Ruka (1)
It was a beautiful day today. The sky was a bright blue, the clouds were all fluffy and white. The air felt great when it breezed through my hair.
"Those clouds look so soft, don't they?" Katara said as she laid on her stomach and watched the clouds under us. "Like you could just jump down and you'd land on a big, soft cottony heap."
I had my head laid on Sokka's lap while he was carving something above me.
"Maybe you should give it a try." Sokka suggested and I snickered. "You're hilarious." She replied.
"I'll try it!" Aang said before standing up from Appa and jumping down. Katara and Sokka moved to the edge of the saddle to see, and my head thudded down. "Hey!"
Aang flew back up onto the saddle and he was dripping wet. "Turns out clouds are made of water." He blew a gust of wind off him and he was dry.
I scooted back to Sokka and laid my head back onto his lap. Sokka looked down at me then pulled my ear. I smacked his hand away and rubbed where he pulled, "Jerk."
"Hey, what is that?" Katara said, looking past Sokka. I sat up and looked ahead. We walked over to the front of the saddle to see it better.
"It's like a scar." Sokka said. "Aang, let's stop there for a second." I told him. Aang nodded and went to the reigns, guiding Appa down to the 'scar'.
When we landed, we all got off and observed the place. It looked like it used to be a pretty land of grass and trees. But now, everything was burned to a crisp. Black tree trunks were all that was left.
"Listen. It's so quiet, there's no life anywhere." Sokka said. "This is so sad." I said, bending down and picking up ashes with my fingers. "The only things living is us right now."
"Aang, are you okay?" Katara asks Aang who was ahead of us. I stood up and looked at Aang sadly. Sokka pulled down on the sleeve of my shirt, pointing to recent footprints in the ashes that was paired with rhino prints. I sighed, "Of course."
"Fire nation! Those evil savages make me sick! They have no respect for-" Sokka yelled out but Katara shushed him. "What? I'm not allowed to be angry?" Sokka asked in a whisper with hands on his hips.
Katara pointed to Aang who was looking down at the floor then dropped to his knees. He sighed, "Why would anyone do this? How could I let this happen?"
"Aang, you didn't let this happen." Katara said softly.
I nodded, agreeing. "Yeah Aang. The fire nation destroys everything they see. It has nothing to do with you."
"Yes it does." Aang put his head on his hands. "It's the avatar's job to protect nature but I don't know how to do my job."
"That's why we're going to the North Pole - to find you a teacher." Katara said. Aang looked at us over his shoulder, "Yeah, a water bending teacher. But there's no one who could teach me how to be the avatar. Monk Gyatso said that avatar Roku would help me."
"The avatar before you? He died over a hundred years ago. How are you supposed to talk to him?" Sokka asked.
"I don't know." Aang said sadly. I walked over and sat next to him. "Well, maybe there's a way to reach out to a dead spirit who's basically in your blood."
Aang turned his head to me and shrugged.
We sat for awhile longer in silence, until Katara walked over to Aang and I. "Hey Aang, are you ready to be cheered up?"
"No." He pouted before an acorn was thrown to his head. "Ow! Hey, how is that cheering me up?"
Sokka laughed lightly from behind us, "Cheered me up."
I whispered over to Katara, "Pass me an acorn."
When she did, I threw it roughly to Sokka's head, "Ow!" He rubbed the side of his head and slumped his shoulders, "Yeah, I probably deserved that."
Katara got down to her knees in front of Aang and showed him an acorn that laid on the palm of her hand. "These acorns are everywhere, Aang. That means the forest will grow back. Every one of these will be a tall oak tree someday and all the birds and animals that lived here will come back." She put the acorn onto the palm Aang's hand and he slightly smiled, "Thanks Katara."
I put my hand on his shoulder and he turned his head to me and gave me a smile too.
Katara gasped, looking behind Aang and I. We all turned and saw an old man walking with a cane in our direction.
We all stood up and watched as he made his way over to Aang. "Hey, who are you?" Sokka asked.
He walked right past him and stopped in front of Aang, "When I saw the flying bison, I thought it was impossible, but those markings... are you the avatar, child?" He asked Aang.
Aang looked to Katara and she nodded with a small smile then Aang did too.
"My village desperately needs you. Please come with me." The man pleaded. Aang nodded and when the man turned around and started to walk back the direction he came, we followed.
As we made our way to his said village, Katara tapped my shoulder. "Yes?" I raised a brow.
"You never talked about Haru after we left." Katara said. I furrowed my brows, "Why do I need to talk about Haru?"
"Hm, maybe because you two kissed?!" Sokka hissed at me. I rolled my eyes and waved him off, "No one is talking to you."
"Was something going on between the two of you?" Katara asked me. "What? No." I shook my head. "I knew him for like, two or three days."
"Then explain the kiss." Sokka crossed his arms. "Because that was something."
I sighed, "it was more of a... goodbye kiss...? Yeah, a goodbye kiss. Nothing too drastic."
"Mhm, well for the rest of this trip, no more kissing boys." Sokka said in a fatherly tone.
"Yeah, okay Sokka." I chuckled. "But after the North Pole, I'll just be on my merry way, kissing all types of boys... y'know, since you basically gave me permission." I joked.
"What?!" Sokka widened his eyes.
"Right Katara?" I smirked to my sister who nodded, "Yup. Sounds about right."
"No! You will not be kissing any boys as long as I'm walking on land!" Sokka raised his voice. I crossed my arms, "That can be arranged."
Katara and I laughed while Sokka grumbled.
When we arrived at the village, I looked around to see some homes missing either half the building, the ceilings, or the whole thing. Other than that, the village seemed alright.
The man led us into a building. "This young person is the avatar."
A younger man turned around and walked to Aang, "So the rumors of your return are true. It is the greatest honor of a lifetime to be in your presence." He bowed to Aang and Aang did the same. "Nice to meet you too."
"So, is there something I can help you with?" Aang asked. "I'm not sure." He replied. The elderly man approached the younger one, "Our village is in crisis. He's our only hope."
The elderly man turned to us, "For the last few days at sunset, a spirit monster comes and attacks our village. He is Hei Bai, the black and white spirit."
"Why is it attacking you?" Sokka asked. The younger man walked past us and stopped at the door frame, "We do not know. But each of the last three nights, he has abducted one of our own. We are especially fearful because the winter solstice draws near."
"What happens then?" Katara asked.
"As the solstice approaches, the natural world and the spirit world grow closer and closer until the line between them is blurred completely." The elderly man replied.
The younger man looked behind his shoulder to us, "Hei Bai is already causing devastation and destruction. Once the solstice is here, there's no telling what would happen."
"Then what do you want Aang to do with, Hei Bai, was it?" I asked them and Aang nodded.
"Who better to resolve the crisis between our world and the spirit world than the avatar himself." The elderly man went down to reach Aang's height level. "You are the great bridge between man and spirit."
"Right, that's me." Aang said slowly.
Sokka and I looked to each other with confused looks.
"Hey bridge guy, can I talk to you over here for a second?" Katara whispered to Aang. We moved away from the young and elderly man.
"Aang, you seem a little unsure about all this." Katara said. Aang looked down, "Yeah, that might be because I don't know anything at all about the spirit world."
I face palmed.
"It's not like there's someone to teach me this stuff!" Aang put his hands on his hips.
"So then what do you want to do?" I asked him. "Can you even help these people with their 'destructive spirit monster' problem?"
"I have to try, don't I?" Aang said lowly. "Maybe whatever I have to do will just come to me." Momo hopped onto Aang's shoulder and Aang smiled nervously.
"I think you can do it Aang." Katara reassured.
"Yeah, we're all gonna get eaten by a spirit monster." Sokka said. I elbowed him in the stomach and he bent down in pain. "That's what you get for having no faith in the avatar." I crossed my arms.
"No, no. Aang, you're going to do great." Sokka said with pain etched in his voice.
I put my hands on my hips, "Ah, that's better."
I gave Aang two thumbs up, "Go get 'em lion tiger!"
^^^
we come from dust ;
we return to dust