It apparently didn't take long for the heat to get to Sokka's head, because he'd just come up with the most hairbrained idea Katara had ever heard.

Katara eyed the cactus warily. She'd never foraged one in her life…it wasn't the sort of thing they had back home. But she felt that a good rule of thumb right now was that edible plants were neither this menacing nor covered in needles. "Sokka, I don't think you should–"

Sokka had sliced an arm off before she could finish her thought, miraculously not getting pricked as he boldly held his prize out to her. "There's water in here! Or…cactus juice. Some kind of liquid. Point is, we can drink it."

"You don't know that." Katara was doubtful. "There's no cactus in the South Pole."

"It looks fine to me," Sokka said flippantly. "Watch, I'll drink it first. If I don't die, it's safe."

"That's a stupid idea," Matthew scoffed.

Katara was aghast. "Who taught you that word?"

"You gave me word book…"

Sokka dropped the now empty improvised container into the sand with an obnoxious exhale. "See? Nothing wrong with it." He cut a smaller piece and let it drop for Momo, who attacked it with fervor. Sokka spread his arms and made a full turn for his sister's benefit. And then again. And again.

Katara let him do this for a while before snapping him back to reality. "Sokka, stop spinning."

Sokka (who was picking up speed) staggered to a halt. He stared blankly at something past his sister's shoulder for a long moment. Then, "Who invented sand?"

Katara brought her hand up to her head in exasperation, wondering not for the first time how her brother had made it this far.

"Can I have some cactus juice?" Toph asked. Katara frowned briefly at how meek the generally unapologetic earthbender sounded. Her exhausted hunch looked like it was just as much guilt as it was the heat.

'Don't feel guilty,' Katara wanted to say. 'No one blames you.'

Except for Aang.

Momo let out an alarmed screech that made them all jolt, leaping into the air and flying laps around Sokka's head.

"No, Toph," the waterbender sighed, too tired to truly delve. "No one else is drinking the cactus juice."

Momo stopped flying circles and drove his own head into the sand.

Matthew used his tunic to mop sweat from his brow. He'd spent the same amount of time out here as all the rest of them, but somehow seemed far worse off with his exhausted slump. "We should move. Staying is death." He took Toph's hand and marched forward–or in the direction that was currently their best guess.

"I agree." Katara gently pushed her brother ahead of her. He giggled childishly. "We need to find Aang and get out of this desert."

As the group continued to stagger across the hot sand, Katara's thoughts turned bleak. Aang was missing, Sokka was hallucinating, Toph was truly blind with the sand impeding her vision.

And Matthew wasn't being himself.

He'd gotten kind of…quietly irritable? Which could be the sun, or the thirst, or the trudging through hot shifting sand that got into your clothes and hair and eyes and made every step twice as heavy for hours on end—but he was sticking awful close to Toph.

It had started with the look on his face when Aang flew off. She'd assumed he didn't understand everything being said, but Katara really didn't know what that had looked like to someone in his situation, did she? And he definitely wasn't stupid.

"Copper for your thoughts, Matthew."

There were a few moments of silent translation before he said, "There are similar words in my world."

"So answer my question."

"Wasn't question."

Katara exhaled, trying to release her mounting frustration with it. He was definitely upset. He only did this when he was upset. They'd learned this early on when some novice earthbending involving a sinkhole went awry, and Matthew's initial set of clothes were the unfortunate casualties. No scolding or yelling, no spectacular blow up, just…quiet seething. And sarcasm.

"The attitude won't make the desert go away," Katara said frankly. Even not looking directly at him she felt his sharp look.

"I'm not that person," Matthew said tersely.

Katara didn't really have the energy to shrug. "So why are you upset?"

Matthew was quiet so long that Katara thought she was being ignored. She was building a tirade in her head by the time he finally answered her.

"Aang left."

"That's why you're upset?"

"No." Then Matthew shook his head. "Er, yes…also no. Aang left angry. Lots of yelling."

"Appa's been with him longer than any of us have," Katara said. "We need to be understanding."

"'Understanding'? As in his words?" Matthew frowned. "I did not catch them all. They were fast."

"Understanding like—friendly…to his feelings. Yes?"

"Ah." Matthew nodded. "Aang should do that first. He is wrong."

Katara stopped in her tracks to look at him. "Matthew…"

"What?" Matthew stopped as well, reaching out to steady Toph as she also stumbled to a halt. "He is. Professor Zei died. Aang lost a bison, which is not Toph's fault. Not your fault. Not Sokka's fault. And he's mad at you. About the bison. But not Zei?" He held up a hand before Katara could respond. "I know he is young. He has young priorities. But Toph is the same age, and she is more realistic. You are barely older, and you are not being…like that."

She wasn't sure how to explain her sympathy. And though she felt he was being uncharitable, it would do both Professor Zei and Toph a disservice to say that he was entirely wrong. When she failed to respond, Matthew shrugged and gently nudged Toph back into motion. Sokka trailed ahead of them, weaving and tilting with the landscape. "Where'd the cabbage merchant go?" he asked loudly, his volume control long gone. "He's always there. Wheeling…wailing…cabbage-ing…"

There was a distant clap that sounded like thunder, despite the clear sky. Everyone's head snapped up to see the great cloud of sand rising in the distance. Matthew poorly choked down a panicked gasp.

"What is that?"

A rush of wind traveled across the sand dunes that nearly knocked them all off their feet.

"Probably bad," Matthew's expression settled into mildly alarmed. "Not bad like I'm thinking. Still probably bad."

"It's a giant mushroom," Sokka breathed with awe. "Maybe it's friendly!" He began to dance for the cloud, waving his arms over his head and kicking his feet wildly. "Happy mushroom! Happy, happy Mushroom King!" Momo screeched and flew in wild looping patterns.

"Wish I could see what was happening," Toph muttered.

Katara and Matthew shared a look. It was the clearest conversation they'd ever had, as they immediately agreed on the next course of action. Matthew went to take Sokka's shoulders and firmly direct him away from the cloud. Katara gripped Toph's hand. They had to keep moving.

The information was good: this well had water. Every canteen was full now, something that hadn't actually happened in a while. It was as good a place as any to stop for lunch and an impromptu training session.

After an hour of laborious demonstration and explanations that seemed to go in one ear and out the other, Zuko was eyeing Alfred's seated form critically. "That's not how you breathe."

The blond slumped for what was probably the twentieth time. "You're starting to sound like a tutor I had once. The one who had opinions about spoons and napkins. When can I try stuff with fire?"

"You aren't going anywhere near a fire until you learn how to breathe," Zuko gritted out, struggling to keep a lid on his temper. "Not even the campfire." They couldn't afford an accident around all this dry brush. Which was why Iroh wasn't standing here right now–he was making tea and lunch over their small firepot that was at least twenty feet away. "So unless you want some cold and dark desert nights in your immediate future, you'll keep trying."

Alfred glowered at him briefly for the threat before he sat up straight and tried again. Not perfect, but better than the near heaving he'd been doing just a moment ago.

Unfortunately for Alfred, Zuko wasn't about to set the bar that low. "You're still doing it wrong."

Alfred threw up his hands with a foreign phrase that sounded like a curse and flopped onto his back. "Dude, it's like afternoon already. I've been doing weird breathing for hours now."

"Fire is breath," Zuko explained. Again. "Everything starts with breath control."

Alfred stared up aimlessly at the too-bright sky. "Can I do it from down here instead?"

"Alfred I swear to Agni–"

"Nephew, please." Knowing Zuko and his temper very well, Iroh finally came to the rescue. He came and sat with them, tea in hand. "We are raised with stories and traditions influenced by the hand the spirits place upon our world. Even our nonbending martial arts are fashioned after bending styles–and you do not fight like anyone I've seen, Alfred. Your first lessons will be harder than most."

"There's a nation in my world kinda like this one." Alfred sat up to face them again. "Super far away. He's got all the fancy moves, with none of the bending. I never bothered, because…well, frankly we couldn't be more different if we tried. But if I'd known I'd have to learn weird magic kung fu, I might've listened in on Yao's mystic old man tangents. Alfred paused and speared them both with a narrow-eyed warning look. "If you ever meet him and say that, I'll dump your tea in a harbor. Just ask the last guy."

Iroh smiled a very particular smile that Zuko knew all too well. He groaned internally and stood. He knew what was about to come next and was absolutely not interested in hearing the Introduction to Chi and the Universe lecture again. Iroh smiled. "Then what I'm going to teach you now should sound…familiar."

Once Zuko was sufficiently distant, Iroh hummed thoughtfully. "Is it a custom of your world to refer to nations as people?"

Alfred blinked. "What're you talking about?"

Iroh stared patiently. Alfred stared right back, his expression perfectly open and confused. To most people, a silent confirmation of innocence.

For someone like Iroh, a baldfaced challenge.

Iroh sipped his tea. "Since you're still new to this world, I would begin by telling you how everything here is connected. To each other, and to the spirit world…know that the spirits are a very open subject here, Alfred. However you are a firebender, and time is against us." He lit a small flame over an open palm. "I'm afraid your training will be rather condensed."

Alfred was immediately entranced…and nervous, though he was quite adept at hiding it. "I thought you guys didn't want me near open flames."

"I am confident in my control," Iroh reassured. "It is the first thing a firebender learns. The start for everything, as my nephew says." He extinguished the flame, and Alfred looked openly disappointed. Iroh knew the feeling well–it was a common symptom in novices, all the worse when it was their own fire. "This art is beautiful, and challenging, and a lifetime of learning well-spent. It's also very, very dangerous. Have you ever seen a fire go out of control?"

Alfred immediately grimaced. A chord struck.

"What happened?"

"...It's complicated," Alfred said at length, his voice curiously hoarse. "Please don't ask me again."

Iroh inclined his head, allowing the silence to stretch long as he drank his tea again. Allowing Alfred to stew.

"So…breathing."

"Yes." Iroh adjusted himself slightly to better face Alfred. "Show me what you were doing."

LINE BREAK

The day dragged on. Katara wasn't sure how long it was before she spotted the shimmering shape of Aang flying towards them–without Appa, though a hysterically optimistic part of her had hoped for otherwise.

"There's sand whales here," Sokka said. He began to hyperventilate. "That's why the sand's been moving this whole time–guys, wait! We have to kill them before they kill us!" When Sokka started reaching for his club, Matthew practically lunged to pin his arms down to his sides in a hug. Sokka screeched his protests directly into Matthew's ear as the older blond slowly forced Sokka to sit down on the ground with him, murmuring soothing noises.

Aang landed with a slump, heedless of the commotion as he leaned heavily on his staff. "I can't…I can't find him."

"Aang," Katara sighed. It was all she could think to say.

Momo detached himself from Toph's head and skittered across the ground to grip Aang's leg as though his little life depended on it. Toph stared deliberately away from the sound of Aang's voice, kicking at the sand with idle dejection.

"No whales," Matthew promised Sokka, rubbing his back like a parent would for an upset child. "Whales are in oceans. We are far away from oceans."

It might've been the first time that Katara didn't know what she should do next. She'd seen the map–this desert was far, far bigger than they could hope to walk. She wasn't even sure how many miles they had left in them…or how much longer their water was even going to last.

What a hopeless bunch they made.

She ached for home. She missed her village, and Gran-Gran, and her dad, and the weather that was always cold enough for her favorite furs…

The sun was relentless and uncaring, the sand that blew into every. Single. Crease and fold of her clothes made her skin itchy and raw.

And the heat. Katara had never experienced this kind of heat before. It was heavy. Every breath she took was hot, making her feel like she was being slowly baked to death in an oven. She could feel herself drying up.

Was this what those Fire Nation prisons felt like? The ones for waterbenders that she'd heard horror stories about?

If they didn't make it out of this place—would the Fire Nation do this to every waterbender left? The North Pole? Foggy Swamp? Horror dawned upon Katara with this new understanding. This, and worse. Smoked like jerky until the Water Tribes shriveled up and died. She…couldn't let that happen. The Avatar was the world's only hope. She couldn't give up until the Fire Nation was stopped. Couldn't let anyone else give up either. "Listen up, everyone."

Everyone roused to attention at the sound of her voice. Katara put all the determination she could muster into her voice. "We aren't going to get out of this by standing around. The world is counting on us to get through this desert, and we can't let it down now! Everyone grab hands." She took Toph's hand in one and held her other hand out to Aang impatiently.

The airbender looked a little shocked as he slowly took her hand. The others followed her lead, Matthew gently manhandling Sokka into line with the rest of them.

Katara pulled them all forward, firmly ignoring the buzzard wasps circling far overhead.

Hospital Residency Part II: Electric Boogaloo

This chapter came out pretty short, but the next ones I've got drafted out are longer.

Leave a review if you've got the chance! They keep me going.

Later dudes. ^J^