The Warrior and the Prince

11: The Northern Air Temple

 "So the next time you see a strange large bird talking, take a closer look. It might not be a giant parrot, but a flying man! A member of a secret group of air walkers who laugh at gravity!" We listened to the man talk about air-bending stories around a campfire with a small crowd of other people. We stumbled upon this narrator whilst walking through the woods, giving Appa a rest from flying and as soon as we heard him telling air-bender stories we had to sit and listen.

"Aren't air-bender stories the best," Aang said, a big beam on his face. "It must've been a hundred years ago your great grandpa met them!"

"What are you talking about? Great grandpappy met the air-walkers only last week!" The story-teller said. Aang eyes widened and we all looked at each other wondering if it could be true. Were there really still air-benders?

- The Next Day -

Appa flew quickly through the crowds, heading to the Northern Air Temple which was nearby and was also where the 'air-walkers' had been sighted. I was a little skeptical as to whether or not we'd find them but I didn't want to dampen Aang's spirits so I kept my thoughts to myself.

The thick clouds finally parted and up ahead we saw a large, tall temple sat upon an immense mountain. My mouth dropped open however as something else caught my eye. "They really are air-benders!" I cried, looking at the shadows flying around the temple effortlessly.

"No they're not," Aang mumbled and the three of us looked at him, confused.

"What do you mean?! Those guys are flying!" Sokka said excitedly.

"Gliding maybe, but not flying. You can tell by the way they move, they're not air-bending. Those people have no spirit," Aang huffed, folding his arms. Katara and I looked at each other, slightly worried about Aang and wondering whether or not it was best to keep flying; that was until we had to duck as a glider flew by us immensely quickly.

We looked to see a boy sitting in a chair, a glider attached to it. He was laughing happily, gliding through the air effortlessly. Aang growled and grabbed his own glider, jumping into the air to show off his skills. Around us more people holding onto gliders began to appear, although they didn't appear to be sitting in chairs. It looked like incredible fun, being able to glide through the air by yourself, and it was definitely something I desperately wanted to have a go at.

"C'mon, lets find some solid land," Sokka took charge, jumping on Appa's head and taking the reigns. He led us down to the temple where there were a group of people watching the gliders and cheering. We clambered off of Appa and were greeted by numerous people who I assumed lived in the temple.

"Hello, nice to meet you all," Katara said politely. Soon Aang and the guy in the chair landed, him skidding before coming to a halt. A few people ran to him and dismantled his glider leaving him in just his chair, and when I saw him push the wheels and head towards us it clicked: he was paralysed. As he got closer I realised he was quite cute, his black hair tied up in a bun and his greyish brown eyes sparkling.

"Hey, you're a real air-bender," his attention was on Aang who blushed. "You must be the avatar! That's amazing, I've heard stories about you!"

"Thanks," Aang said timidly.

"I'm (y/n)," I stepped forward eagerly, holding my hand out and he happily shook it, blushing a little as I smiled at him. I pulled my hand away as soon as I heard Katara cough behind me. "Oh, this is Katara and that's Sokka."

"Nice to meet you all, I'm Teo," he introduced himself.

"Wow, this glider chair is incredible!" Sokka praised, stepping closer to bet a better look.