I raised my head slowly before pushing myself to a seated position. And the female monster was back, sitting on her heels beside me.
"Ready for another spar?" she asked.
"Can't I just do target practice or something?" I asked back.
"Well, there is nothing better than learning how to fight by actually fighting!" she grinned at me.
Oh, I hate that grin!
"I mean, in a real fight, you won't have the luxury of standing there in the open with all the time in the world to hit a stationary target," she continued. "You'd be fighting someone that is trying at least as hard as you are to come out on top."
I couldn't argue with her logic.
"Also," she commented as a side note. "They won't wait till you're ready."
She stood and strode to a bucket of water and began to scoop water up over her face. I followed suit and stood next to her.
"So, what can you tell me of Amaya?" I asked.
I looked around then dropped my voice. "What is Caitlin like?"
Jin choked on her water and gave me an odd look.
"What do you mean?" she croaked, wiping some of the water from her chin.
"I mean, I can't remember anything about her," I sighed. "For all I know, she could be my girlfriend or nemesis enemy."
"Well, she isn't your girlfriend, so get that out of your head."
"Why not?"
"Well, for starters, you aren't really her type," she sighed. "Also, she would've been more concerned about finding you and would have used it as an excuse for sinking my ship."
"Ship?" I questioned
"Amazu. Amaya and Zuko... Dumbass."
"Okay, okay. I get it. It just sounds weird," I sighed and sat down. "I guess that Amaya and I don't have the connection, I thought."
"Oh, you have a connection, alright," Jin grinned. "She used to stay up pretty much all night chatting with you. You are like a brother to her."
"Great... That's a step down from the friend zone. No possible chance of escape!"
"Well, it's better than a bitter enemy. And trust me, you don't want to be her 'interest'. She is one bag of crazy," Jin chuckled.
"Says who?"
Jin chuckled at what I said.
"What?!" I asked. "If you woke up one day and remembered nothing but this one girl, then you would be wondering why too!"
"I reckon I know why you remember her," she said slyly.
"Well, please share with the group then," I said sarcastically.
"It's cause you had one of the biggest crushes on her in history."
"What?"
"Well, you were seeing this other girl when you noticed her, and also, you're a bit younger than her, which made things even weirder," Jin started rambling. "Anyhow, she didn't want to get in the way, and you aren't her type, and you moved to Scotland... So, yeah. You two never got TOGETHER. You just stayed really good friends. Aaand now she is with Zuko, and if you so much as THINK of sinking my ship, I'll rip your head off. With 'The Thing'..."
"So that's why I feel the connection..."
"You do not want to be the target of the thing," she threatened.
"What?"
Jin grinned but shook her head. "I've asked Muteki to be your spar partner this time. You handle well against an agile partner, but I want to see you up against an Earthbender."
"I have a feeling that I've fought him before," I raised an eyebrow at the girl.
"Probably. But he's an earthbender here, so you will be sparing him in a new way," she stretched, popping joints. "I will be sparing Katara so that I can get a handle on fighting someone with an actual fluid defence-offence tactic that doesn't involve accidentally causing a disaster behind you that you have to avoid to not die."
"Sounds like I'm in for a real treat," I followed suit, making my back crackle like a machinegun.
Then a rock smashed at my feet. 'Great... An artillery barrage...'
"He does like to use his reach to his advantage. I can tell you that," I said, grinning and starting to run towards where the boulders were coming from.
Suddenly, the ground under my feet slid swiftly backwards, and I fell flat on my face, and then I was encased in rock. Again.
"SCREW YOU! YOU SON OF A MOTHERLESS GOAT!!!!" I yelled at the hidden giant.
I easily heard his laughter, and so was that of three other girls and Aang, I think.
I pushed against the rock wall around me, and one hand burst through. It must not have been that thick. I dug my way out as quickly as I could and stood, facing my opponent.
"That was a cheap shot, bro," I growled.
"But others may use it too," he said with a shrug. "And 'they' won't be so kind as to keep it thin enough to break out."
"What about if I do this?!"
I blasted him with all I had. Lightning and fire mixed as my bolt struck his feet, or at least where his feet should have been. It was a pretty explosion. Very colourful. Like the whole rainbow in one deadly ball of heat.
A rock wall shot up, and when the fire was done being fired, he launched pieces of his wall at me. I narrowly avoided a cheap shot to the head when a torrent of water knocked me off my feet.
"Katara!"
"Sorry!" she called before splashing me again.
Jin laughed. "I forgot to mention it was a free for all! Katara and Muteki on one side, you and me not."
"Not?"
"You're on your own, mate!"
"Heads UP!" Muteki yelled.
A rock barrelled at my shins, and I barely managed to jump it before streaming fire out of my hands at him. Then I charged. I managed to dodge everything he could throw at me while closing the distance, then suddenly, his chest stopped my progression. I ducked his fist and swung my own into his ribs.
He blocked with his arms. I tried a kick at his knees, but he blocked that too somehow. So I tried some point-blank Firebending. Fire lashed out from my hands as I swung another punch just short of his chest and his shirt took light. That's when Katara decided to douse us both. Then Jin decided to give me a flying kick, narrowly missing my head and landing where I had been mere seconds earlier. She blocked a couple of jabs from Muteki, deflecting others at me since I was still standing a little too close. Katara joined the fray, and it became almost a messy free for all. Katara didn't have much hand-to-hand skill, but her bending was extraordinarily good. I mean, at one point, she froze both of my hands. I had to resort to breaking the boulder of a man down with my forehead. I gotta say... That left me with a headache for at least a week. He retaliated by knocking my feet out from under me again, and Jin used me to cushion her fall, leaving me winded while she just rolled back onto her feet.
"Alright! Take five!" Jin yelled over the commotion.
Katara groaned and flopped down where she was, while Muteki just grunted and stretched a little before taking a seat. Me? I just lay there trying not to die and catch my breath.