Koete ↠ Sokka

Chapter 5: Hei Bai - Part 2

"Hey Aang!" Katara called from slightly further back. In all honesty, Charlie hadn't even realised she'd left his side until she saw the waterbender standing with her hands hidden behind her back. Aang turned around to look at the girl, only for an acorn to hit him directly between the eyes.

He fell backwards in shock, letting out a small yelp as his back hit the floor. "What was that for?" he asked, rubbing his head as he pushed himself back up into a sitting position.

"Look," she began, twiddling another acorn between her fingers. "These are all over the place. That means that one day, the forest will grow back on its own." Aang relaxed his arm on his raised knee, listening closer to Katara. "Every one of these will become a tall oak tree, and all the birds and animals that lived here will come back." She reached over and placed a single acorn in his palm before wrapping her fingers around Aang's to close his fist. Charlie shuffled away slightly, not wanting to ruin the moment.

"Thanks Katara," Aang said with genuine appreciation in his voice.

Their conversation ended when Katara gasped, seeing an old man with a walking stick coming towards them. Sokka was quick to stand up, blocking the path of the man. "Who are you?" he demanded.

The man only ignored him, stepping around the boy to speak to Aang. "When I saw the flying bison, I thought it was impossible. But those markings..." He trailed off his thoughts to stare at Aang's tattoos, showing on his hands and head. "Are you the Avatar, child?"

He explained the situation after seeing Aang nod, before leading the four to Senlin Village. In structure, it was very similar to Haru's village. Four walls protected the homes and stores within, and a larger community building stood tall at the furthest point from the entrance. It wasn't occupied by the Fire Nation, however, unlike Haru's. It sat in the middle of the forest, and would be impossible to find if they weren't led to it.

Some of the buildings had been badly damaged by Hei Bai, roofs caved in and walls knocked down. The setting sun casted a golden glow on the village, lulling it into a false sense of tranquillity before the destruction that she knew would follow.

They were introduced to the leader of the village, who seemed somewhat sceptical of Aang's ability to make peace with Hei Bai. After seeing the airbender's worry, Katara pulled him aside and they all regrouped to discuss a plan.

Charlie leant against the wall, crossing one leg over the other. "You seem a little unsure about all of this, Aang," Katara admitted, resting a hand on the window ledge. Aang looked away, his eyes downcast.

"That's because I hardly know anything about spirits. I mean, Charlie knows more than me, and I'm the Avatar!" he said, gesturing to the ginger. She offered him a lopsided smile before he turned back to the waterbender.

"Do you think you can still help them?" she asked.

"I've got to try. And who knows, maybe Charlie's right and it'll just come to me." Momo jumped on his shoulder with a supportive purr.

"I think you can do it, Aang," Katara said with a smile, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Sokka leant on the wall next to Charlie, crossing his arms and muttering to her, "We're all gonna get eaten by a spirit monster, aren't we?"

She stifled a laugh as she looked over to him, tearing her eyes away from the moment that Karata and Aang shared. "Well. Just you," she admitted, unable to stop the corner of her lips from twitching upwards.

Sokka chucked for a second, but quickly did a double-take when he saw Charlie's expression. "Wait, what? Are you serious Charlie? Charlie."

Charlie threw up her hands in surrender as he turned his body to face her, taking a small step back. "Hey, I can't change this one," she said, shaking her head. "It is what it is, you know? You'll be fine."