Now for the note. I am extremely sorry that this update is so late. A lot has been happening left and right. The moment I think I'm okay to write again, something happens. Literally. just yesterday, I was so sick I could barely walk!

I want to say that hopefully, everything is relatively normal again... but I feel like I'd just be jinxing myself.

I... I am so very sorry. I wanted this story to update normally. It's so close to me and I've come so far with it. But with the way things are now, my update schedule will be absolutely weird.

I am begging you. Please don't ask me to update faster. While I am thrilled that there are people so eager to read my story... I just can't right now. For that, I could not apologize more.

With Many Apologies,

-Jenna.

When Ayaan gets back to the camp, Katara and Sokka weren't even surprised to see him carrying Aang around like a potato sack. They had the exact same treatment, and Ayaan was all about equality.

All three of them sat by the warm fire, waiting for Ayaan's orders. The older boy took a breath before speaking, "First, we bathe. Then we shall start on dinner for the night. While that is happening, I will tell you the results of each of your tests."

All of their eyes sparkled, and immediately they made their way to the river. With all of their traveling, they hadn't really had time to properly bathe themselves. The water wasn't warm, but it was still refreshing to be cleaned of all of their collected musk and grime.

After cleaning themselves off, Ayaan went into detail about their tests. He bluntly told them where they needed to improve while praising the things they did right. Overall, they were left burning with the determination to do better next time.

"Ayaan Bro," Sokka called, rolling his shoulder to try and work out the soreness, "You do this type of training all the time? How do you deal with the aching?!"

"Yeah... I'm sore everywhere. Even my arrow is sore!"

Ayaan didn't answer them right away. His eyes seemed to become distant for a moment before he said anything, "...I'm used to it." Was all he said.

All three of them had a sinking feeling in their gut that they couldn't quite place when he said those words. Was it because he'd been doing this training for a while? Yeah, that had to be it, right?

Right?

"You will be continuing this training from now on. One day of break only. So, you should rest while you can."

At this, all three of them actually started crying, "Nooo!"

Their cries were ignored, as Ayaan went to give Appa and Momo their daily dose of love and affection. Especially Appa, who had missed him while they were in Omashu.

That night, as like every other night, he went to sleep immersed in Appa's warm fluff.

...

..

.

It had been a few weeks since their grueling training had started, and they were finally beginning to get used to it. In the mornings they worked on strength, stamina, and sparred, while later in the day they attempted to hunt using the many tips that Ayaan would give them. Each of them had an area they excelled in and failed in.

Katara was wonderful when it came to fishing, using her waterbending to draw the fish into her basket. But, she was abysmal when it came to any herb picking, more often than not picking out grass and useless weeds.

Sokka was proficient with sparring and weapons training. Showing him by example was a breeze, just a few tries and he would get it. It was in these moments and strategizing that his genius truly began to shine. But hunting? You can forget it. It was like mother nature had a vendetta against him and every bit of bad luck to be had? He had it.

Aang, being the vegetarian he is, was glorious when it came to herb picking, fruits, vegetables, and anything concerning plants. There were some that Ayaan didn't have to instruct him on how to pick or handle because he'd done something similar 100 years ago. His airbending was still amazing, and he was actually pretty natural when it came to waterbending, though the stances that seemed to work were a bit foreign to him.

That left his sparring... Ayaan honestly didn't know what to say.

While he was getting better at not running away from him, he still refused to attack him directly. When he looked like he was contemplating it, when Ayaan gave him an opening to do anything, he simply refused to. Don't get him wrong, Aang was an amazing combatant. If he wasn't of the pacifistic mindset, he would be a monster on the battlefield.

His stamina was admirable, and while he wasn't incredibly strong physically, that didn't mean he wasn't still strong for a child. He was extremely quick, and with Ayaan constantly putting them through battle-like scenarios with his training, he knew how to use it to make an impact.

He just... refused to attack. He refused to hurt others. He refused to do more than incapacitate enemies. Since being on this journey, while they had encountered many enemies, most of them being Prince Zuko, there hadn't been a real need for him to do anything more than that.

He didn't want to do anything more than that.

Ayaan understood his hesitance. He understood that Aang was giving it his all, trying his best to be better, to get stronger... but it wasn't something that is easily done. And something taught to him, practiced by him, and admired by him his entire life isn't something that would suddenly change.

The fact that he was trying at all was something that Ayaan admired. Though it didn't mean that it was any less frustrating.

That left him with his own training. And honestly? It wasn't going very well.

While he could keep his current skills through constant training, always returning to the basics and strengthening his foundation, he himself wasn't improving very much. Aang, Katara, and Sokka were not fit as sparring partners for him yet, and the fire nation soldiers they'd run into were weak.

Pathetic.

Though Prince Zuko seemed to improve every time they clashed, and for some reason pointed him out above the rest of them aside from Aang, for obvious reasons. His guess? He was probably tired of constantly losing to him.

Not that he was ever going to let him win.

That left his waterbending, which was just as awful as before. He still felt this disconnect when it came to it, like something that was supposed to be there wasn't. It made what was supposed to be natural feel otherwise, and it frustrated him to no end.

What was missing?

All of his life, he felt like something was missing. That missing something correlated directly with his waterbending. When he thought about what it could be, his chest felt heavy. But why? It didn't make any sense to him. The thought of whatever it was not being there made him angry.

Why was that?

"Ayaan Bro, are you okay?" Sokka asked, noticing his shifted mood. Currently, they were traveling in search of a nearby town to replenish supplies. The younger boy had made it his secret mission to pay more attention to his brother's moods. As more time passed, it was becoming easier to tell when he was upset or not.

"I've hit a wall in my training. I am extremely frustrated." Ayaan said honestly. "All three of you sparring with me at once is not enough to test me. Not at the moment, anyway."

"Ah. I see." Sokka nodded. That would be something that would upset his brother greatly. He took any free moment he had to train. Getting better was something Ayaan immensely enjoyed, and reaching a wall was frustrating to anyone, "Maybe in the next town there'll be someone strong who could spar with you? I know you enjoy testing your skills against real opponents."

"Yes," He said, his mind easing at the thought, "that would be nice."

"Hey guys," Aang called from the base of Appa's neck, "I think we should walk on foot from here. There's more fire navy in this area than I've ever seen."

"Yeah. Appa will be spotted at this rate, it's better if we stick to land. I'm sure I saw a town just north of here, anyway. We can replenish our supplies there." Katara added, earning nods from her brothers.

"Let's go down, buddy," Aang said, leading the bison to a nice landing spot.

And that was how they continued their journey through the earth kingdom territories. While their pace was slowed considerably due to not flying, it did allow them to train more earnestly... much to the younger three's dismay.

As they continued their trek through the many forests, Ayaan noticed that the further they went, the more baren it seemed. Sure, the trees were tall and vast, but there was nothing to hunt, no berries to pick. He was surprised to find any herbs mixed in with the dry grass. The streams and rivers they came across steadily had less and less fish, until there was practically nothing but the freshwater.

It really put into perspective how well off Omashu had been compared to everywhere else.

"It's a good thing Ayaan is an amazing hunter. Without his rations, we would have run out of food by now." Katara said, sighing as she chewed on another piece of dried meat. Aang was munching on some berries, feeding Momo and Appa along with himself.

"I wonder when they'll be back. They've been gone for a while now," Aang said, Katara nodding with his concern. Ayaan and Sokka went out to hunt, telling them to stay and look after the camp since they weren't in very safe territory.

Ayaan had made it very clear that these areas weren't safe, especially with the fire navy wandering around. He hadn't been wandering all over Omashu just being a good citizen; just as he did on Kyoshi Island, he gathered information, maps, rumors, and else anything they would need for their journey ahead.

Ayaan was thorough like that.

"Oh, there they are now!" Katara exclaimed, pointing to her brothers who'd finally returned from their little trip.

"Did you find anything?" Aang asked curiously, but Ayaan shook his head.

"No, nothing."

Sokka looked affronted, "What do you mean 'nothing'? I found nuts, look!" He pulled out a pouch, dumping its feeble contents on a flat slab of rock, "There are these round nuts, um, and these oval-shaped nuts? And there are these rock-shaped nuts, too, but they may just be rocks... Anyway, dig in!" He tossed a nut to Momo, who caught it expertly.

Katara's face wasn't readable for a moment, before turning to her eldest brother, "I'm so extremely thankful we have an Ayaan in our lives."

"Yep." Aang agreed, wearing the same expression.

"Hey! I worked hard to find those nuts!"

"Yes, yes, you tried your best." Ayaan comforted, "But I am pretty sure that most of those are indeed rocks, little brother."

Sokka comically deflated, "Awe, ma—"

BOOM!

"What was that?" Sokka asked cautiously. The others were just as alert as he was, as whatever was causing those sounds was enough to shake the ground they were walking on.

Momo thought that he may have been the cause of the earthquake, so, with great caution, he dropped the rock-like 'nut' he was trying to crack. Only for that horrid quaking to return even stronger.

BOOM!

He promptly fled to the safety of Ayaan's shoulders, the boy caressing his back with comforting pats, "You're okay, Momo. Everything's okay." He said, easing the animal.

"It's coming from over there!" Aang exclaimed, both he and Katara foregoing any caution and running towards it.

"Shouldn't we run away from huge booms? Not toward them?"

"Yes, Sokka, you are very right," Ayaan answered, frown adorning his face. Once again, their sense of danger just wasn't present.

He felt his frown deepening.

They hid behind a fallen tree, not giving away their position. In a clearing just beyond it was a young boy, most likely just a bit older than Sokka. He showcased his skills as an earthbender splendidly, lifting boulder after boulder and slamming them into the barren hills surrounding him. He was so focused in his practice that he didn't notice that he had an audience.

Well, he wouldn't have noticed, until childish curiosity and oblivious stupidity combined to create what happened next.

"An earthbender!" Katara said in awe, as if she had never seen an earthbender before.

"Let's go meet him!" Aang added, with just as much enthusiasm as she did.

Both Ayaan and Sokka shared the same thoughts, "No! Don't—"

But of course, you know what happens next?

"Hello there! I'm Katara! What's your name?" Katara was already yards away from them, out in the open, introducing herself as if there wasn't even a hint of danger in the stranger before her.

The boy is surprised by her presence, and flees immediately, covering his path with an avalanche of stone.

"Nice to meet you!" Aang yelled into the distance.

Katara shrugged, not noticing the air shifting behind her, "I just wanted to say hi."

"Katara," She jumped at the chilling sound of her name exiting her eldest brother's mouth. She took her time turning around, afraid to see the look on his face, "Aang," the airbender wasn't different, turning around like a robot with rusted joints.

There was an incredulous frown on Ayaan's face, and Sokka's expression wasn't very far off. Slowly, trying to wrap his head around what had just happened, he approached them both.

Ayaan was furious. So furious that only one question popped into his mind.

"Are you both stupid?"