𝑺𝑬𝑬𝑫 𝑶𝑭 𝑰𝑪𝑯𝑶𝑹 •𝒃𝒙𝒃•

13 ~ hiraeth

Katara inched forward. "How did you end up at the Northern Water Tribe?"

That...

"Noran. He was my mother's Waterbending student. I can only guess and say that my parents suspected their relationship would be discovered soon so they made contact with him. He came and he took me away."

"Where is Noran now?" Aang asked.

Now...? "That's not something I know. He left soon after we arrived at the Northern Water Tribe, saying that he was going to search for my mother. He said he'd come back with her, but he never did. I don't know if he's alive, and frankly? I don't care."

"You don't?" Katara's voice was soft.

"Why should I? He picked me up and threw me to the wolves. I am a son of a Fire Nation soldier, what other reason would they need to hate me? Noran knew this. He knew and still he left in search of my mother."

"And then you met Yue."

He glanced at Sokka. "And then I met Yue."

"You loved her." Again, Katara's words were softly spoken.

"I did. She was all I had, but I figure it wasn't meant to be after all." He leaned back, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. "Yue was...special to me."

"Was...?"

Guren peered at Aang. "Was. That's my life story you all wanted to know so much. I'm not that interesting, don't you think?"

"Azula."

The moment that name left Katara's lips, Guren turned in her direction. "What...?"

"You called out her name, you...fought her. You knew her."

Shit...! That was a miscalculation on his part. He...couldn't resist calling out to her, especially not after all those years. "That...Zuko you talked about. He's the banished prince of the Fire Nation. Azula is his younger sister. Of course I'd know who they were."

Still, Katara wouldn't give it up. "But you knew her. Were you...friends back while you were still in the Fire Nation?"

Questions, questions, questions. "No. No, I wasn't."

Azula wasn't Little Vixen.

"I think that's enough questions for today. My head is going to split open at this point, so I'd appreciate a little peace and quiet." Not waiting for their reply, he turned to the side and watched the clouds pass them by.

The sun was setting. Night will befall them soon.

_

As it turned out, they ended up flying over a swamp after some time. And Aang was flying them suspiciously close to it. Sokka questioned his actions, and Aang told them that he swamp was calling to him. After receiving disagreeing answers as if to land down, he began pulling them away, only for them to end up caught in an whirlpool...somehow.

It was their unlucky day, it seemed.
.
.
.
That was how they found themselves crashing head first down into the swamp.

"Where are Appa and Momo?" Aang asked as they looked around, before he climbed up the nearest tree.

Guren flexed his arm, wondering if his shoulder sustained any injuries. Seeing that it hadn't, he breathed out a sigh of relief and dried off his clothes, leaving him dry from the waist up. He couldn't go around vaporising every drop of water he saw...could he? He doubted he had the strength to keep doing it.

"Sokka, you've got a leech on your elbow." Guren pointed out as he looked at the other boy.

Within a second, Sokka began jumping around. "Why do things keep attaching to me?!" He grabbed the leech and threw it away.