The sun had set and come again, and Aang had yet to speak a word to Orzala. Instead, he found himself pacing on top of Appa. Sokka, having sensed the airbender's frazzled state, had offered to steer for a change. Orzala was beginning to wish he hadn't though, because Aang obvious avoidance was starting to frustrate her.
Her jade eyes snapped up to him as he approached her, feet shuffling as he wrung his hands. The princess let out a huff as he turned away from her again. "Would you sit down?" Sokka called, voicing Orzala's thoughts. "If we hit a bump, you'll go flying off. What's bugging you, anyway?"
Aang snapped his attention to the boy. "It's what Avatar Roku said!" His gaze flitted to Orzala for a moment, but he quickly turned away. "I'm supposed to master all four elements before that comet arrives!"
"Well, let's see. You've pretty much mastered airbending, and that only took you a hundred-and-twelve years. I'm sure you can master three more elements by next summer!" Aang's eye bulged, and he went into a wild panic, clutching his head in his hands.
"I haven't even started waterbending and we're still weeks from the North Pole! What am I gonna do?"
Sokka gulped as Orzala's dangerous gaze turned toward him, watching as she stood and walked to the boy. After a final dangerous stare, she turned to Aang, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. The airbender was hyperventilating, but his breathing slowed slightly as he met the princess's green eyes.
"You can do this, Aang. I believe in you. You're only twelve and you've already mastered your bending style. It takes other people years to do what you've done. You're very powerful." The avatar smiled slightly, but it quickly fell as another wave of guilt washed over him.
"Orzala, I need to tell you something-" He was cut off by Katara, and his shoulders slumped.
"She's right, Aang. It's gonna be ok!" The waterbender pulled him down next to her, grasping his hands with her slender fingers. "If you want, I can try to teach you some of the stuff I know!" The boy's face lit up, and she couldn't help but smile.
"You'd do that?" He asked, beaming at her. Katara sent him a small nod before standing and looking down to the earth below them.
"We'll need to find to find a good source of water first." Orzala knelt beside them, eyes searching for a suitable practice area for the two. Sokka only scoffed.
"Maybe we can find a puddle for you two to splash in." He flinched again as Orzala whipped around to him, narrowing her eyes.
"You better be glad that I'm not an airbender, Sokka, or else you'd be flying right now. And I don't mean on Appa." He turned away from her quickly, scanning for a place for Aang and Katara to practice.
"Ok, ok, I think I see something. We're going down." As they began their descent, Orzala stood once more to gather her things. She turned to Aang, ready to ask what he had wanted to say earlier, but it seemed he had gone back to avoiding her. A huff left the girl's lips, and she decided it better not to press the subject.
The group landed, and Orzala found herself in awe of the beauty that surrounded them. Towering waterfalls crashed into a large spring, and the princess let out a laugh. She didn't wait for anyone to join her. Instead, she simply took off in a sprint toward the spring, stripping to her underclothes as she went.
Appa seemed to have the same idea, flying up next to her and splashing into the spring. The raven-haired girl snorted, not minding that the bison had splashed her at all. Aang beamed at them from the shore, preparing to go join them, but he was stopped by Katara. "Don't forget why we're here!" She called, making the airbender stop in his tracks. He pouted, turning to her reluctantly.
"Oh yeah. Time to practice waterbending." Sokka, who had been staring wide-eyed at the earthbender, shook his head, tuning back into their conversation. With his eyes still locked on the princess, he spoke to them.
"Great. So, what are and Orzala and I supposed to do?"
His sister flashed him a wicked smirk, eyebrows raised suggestively. Before she could say anything, Aang spoke. "You could clean the gunk out of Appa's toes," He suggested, presenting the eldest sibling with a tree limb. Sokka scowled, crossing his arms in irritation.
"So while you guys are playing in the water, I'm supposed to be hard at work picking mud out of a giant bison's feet?"
"Mud and bugs!" The airbender flashed a smile, and Sokka rolled his eyes.
"Ok." The boy turned, eyes locking onto the princess once more. "Hey, Zala! Come help me clean Appa!" The girl stopped, eyes wide as she focused on him.
"What did you call me?" Sokka froze, heart beating rapidly as he realized what he had said.
"Zala. Is that ok?" The girl's lips turned up in a radiant smile, and she sent him a small nod.
"Yeah, I like that." He found himself smiling in return.
Meanwhile, Katara and Aang had moved themselves toward the water. That didn't keep the water tribe girl from flashing the two a smirk, however, and Orzala felt her cheeks heat up. With a cough, she snatched the branch from Sokka's grasp, darting toward the bison. "Come on, you said we had work to do."
He turned to throw a glare at his sister, but quickly followed, picking up another branch as he walked. Katara couldn't help but chuckle before she returned to Aang. The boy was looking at her expectantly, a hesitant smile on his face. "Ok, Aang. This is a pretty basic move, but it still took me months to perfect. So, don't be frustrated if you don't get it right away." He sent her a short nod, gray eyes focused on her movements.
"Just push and pull the water like this," she instructed, moving her weight back and forth as she went. "The key is getting the wrist movement right." The avatar quickly hopped up and mimicked her.
"Like this?" Katara turned, observing his form.
"That's almost right. I'm sure if you keep practicing, I'm sure eventually-"
She was cut off as his face lit up. "Hey, I'm bending it already!" Her gaze drifted to the large amount of water that copied his movements.
"Wow, I can't believe you got that so quickly. It took me two months to learn that move." She looked away as a slight jealousy began to build in her chest.
"Well, you had to learn all on your own. I'm lucky enough to have a great teacher." Katara's jealously diminished into guilt, but she flashed him a smile anyway.
"Thanks."
"So, what's next?"
"This is a more difficult move. I call it 'streaming the water.'" She raised her hands, making sure her movements were fluid as she brought a stream up and out of the water. "It's harder than it looks, so don't be disappointed if-" She stopped short when she noticed that Aang had already learned the move, and her lips contorted into a scowl as he moved the water rapidly around him.
"Nice work. Though, the over-the-head flair was unnecessary," she deadpanned. He dropped his head in shame, apologizing quickly, but that didn't last long.
"Well, don't stop now! Keep 'em coming!"
"Well, I kind of know this one other move, but it's pretty hard. I haven't even totally figured it out yet. The idea is to make a big, powerful wave." She turned her attention to the lake once more, raising her hands in an attempt to make a wave. The girl's shoulders slumped as the water fell back, and she sighed.
"So, like this?" The avatar raised his hands, immediately summoning a gigantic wave that towered over their friends. Orzala and Sokka whipped around quickly, eyes widening at the massive force of water that was heading for them. It collapsed on top of them, washing them off Appa and into the surrounding water. A bright smile came to Aang's lips when he heard Orzala's wild laugh as she resurfaced.
"Looks like I got the hang of that move," he stated proudly, not noticing the anger that rested on Katara's face. "What else you got?" The girl turned away from him, stomping off.
"That's enough practicing for today."
"Yeah, I'll say!" A disgruntled Sokka called, making them turn to him. "You just practiced our supplies down the river!" Aang flinched, raising his hands innocently.
"Uh, sorry. I'm sure we can find somewhere to replace all this stuff."
"My life was hard enough when you were just an airbender." Orzala laughed loudly from beside him, and Sokka quickly ducked under the water to hide his smile.
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Author's note
Hello lovely readers!! Wow... 1K... I honestly never thought that this story would get that many reads. Thank you to everyone for your support and for reading The Sandbender! I have so many plans for this story and Orzala.
How is everyone liking the story so far? If you have any comments, tips, suggestions, or questions let me know in the comments! Hope everyone is having a lovely day :) that's all for now! Until the next chapter...
Love, Liz