Chapter 15 - The Cave of Two Lovers

Darya twirled in a whirlwind of hot air and steel. The thin tree that stood a few feet from her was severed cleanly as she sliced through it. She felt the way her arms wanted to give way, but she kept them stiff as the tree fell. She relaxed, rolling her shoulders back and taking a closer look at the new stump. She had been practicing heating the air around her swords for the past hour and the progress was finally showing off. The edge of the stump was lightly charred from the cauterizing strike of her swords.

With a triumphant grin, she put her swords away on her hip, careful to keep the heated metal away from any exposed skin, and walked over to see how Aang was progressing. The sun was already high in the sky, even with it being so early, showing that spring was upon them. Its soothing rays glinted off the water of the river in front of her. The river cut through a small ravine with small shrubs sticking out of the rock wall, and that was where the group had decided to stop and train for a while.

"You guys are gonna be done soon, right?" Well, all but one was training. Instead of sparring with Darya, as she had suggested, Sokka had decided to train in the art of relaxation. Darya snorted as he floated in the river on a large leaf he had found, his hair out of its usual wolf-tail and wearing nothing but underwear. It seemed Momo had decided to take a nap on him as well.

"We've got a lot of ground to cover if we wanna make it to Omashu today." He continued, pulling his brown hair out of his eyes and making no moves to get up.

"What, like you're ready to go right now, naked guy?" Katara teased, putting a hand on her hip. Darya laughed as Sokka glared at Katara.

"Sokka, what would happen in Zuko jumped out of the bushes right now? We'd be stuck saving your butt." Darya teased as well, taking off her outer robes until she was in her undergarments like the rest of the group. They had grown very close over the last few weeks and there was little embarrassment between them. She rocketed herself off the bank with a blast of air and did a cannonball into the deeper part of the river. She surfaced as Katara and Aang were laughing at her. She looked over to see a very cross Sokka with water dripping from his hair.

"For your information, I can be ready in two minutes, and I don't need clothes to take down Zuko." Sokka growled from beneath his mop of dripping hair. Darya laughed and splashed him again, eliciting another growl. He sat up and flopped out of his leaf in his anger to get to Darya.

The two older teens relaxed and played in the water while Katara and Aang continued to practice their octopus stance. Darya squealed as Sokka swam under the water and picked her up while she wasn't looking. He scooped her up and with a triumphant yell, threw her in the water. Darya landed with a splash and quickly resurfaced, ready to get her revenge, when the odd sound of a guitar and flute caught her attention.

From out of the forest along the riverbank, a group of people emerged, singing and dancing. Darya watched in amazement as their colorful outfits flashed between the leaves of the trees.

Don't fall in love with the traveling girl,

she'll leave you broke and broken hearted.

The leader sang as he emerged from the trees. He was playing a red guitar and wearing a blue and gold robe with a green sash tied to keep in together, even though one sleeve was completely off. Behind him, a woman dressed in brown and pink played the flute while a larger man in white and pink danced beside her. Several other colorfully dressed people danced behind them.

"Hey-hey, river people!" The leader called out with a smile upon seeing the group in the water.

"We're not river people." Katara said, unsure of these new people. Darya swam to where she could stand and walked over to Katara and Aang, Sokka following slowly.

"You're not? Well then what kind of people are ya?" The man asked, confused.

"Just . . . people." Aang replied, slightly uncomfortable.

"Aren't we all, brother?" The man said, playing his guitar and letting out an odd sound. Darya was a bit concerned for the sanity of the group standing before her, but she could see they were harmless.

"Who're you?" Sokka said, finally arriving with the rest of his group. He stepped in front of them protectively and pointed an accusing finger and the man with the guitar.

"I'm Chong, and this is my wife Lilly." The woman raised a hand in hello. "We're nomads, happy to go wherever the wind takes us!"

"You guys are nomads! That's great, Darya and I are nomads!" Aang said, pointing to his blonde friend next to him.

"Hey me too!" Chong said excitedly.

"We know, you just said that." Darya said, flatly.

"Oh" Chong said, seeming confused before becoming distracted. "Nice underwear."

Sokka, who was still standing in front of the group grew red from head to toe. He grabbed Momo from off of his head and placed the lemur in front of himself before scurrying away shyly. Darya, Katara, and Aang all laughed at his embarrassment.

Zuko had always had a clear path in mind. He had never wavered or questioned himself, but there was always a first time for everything, and he hated it. They had been fugitives for a week now and he hated it. He hated it more than he had hated anything before, except maybe Azula. Yeah, he hated Azula more. However, as he struggled to get unstuck from another damn bush he was angry at another female. A week ago, he had been desperate to find Darya and then decide where his path would lead, now he wasn't sure. He still wanted to find her, as he had nowhere else to go, but he wasn't sure if he wanted her or the Avatar more. He had begrudgingly accepted that his feelings for her were more than that of a little crush, but he couldn't get rid of his desire to return home so easily. Not to mention it was easier to dwell on his feelings for home than his feelings for the enemy. Maybe his father would remove the bounty from his if he brought back the Avatar?

"I didn't find anything to eat." He growled as he finally managed to remove himself from the bush, a new tear adorning his already ragged outfit. "I can't live like this, I wasn't meant to be a fugitive. This is impossible!"

He struck the ground with his foot, although that did little to help his situation. Dust swirled up in the breeze and stuck to his new head of hair. He remembered having it as a child, and he was actually rather happy to have it back. While the shaved style with the ponytail signified his coming into manhood, he had been rather prone to sunburn while on the ocean. With a sigh, he rubbed a hand across his head and looked over at his uncle, who was quietly sitting and looking at a beautiful flower.

"Uncle . . . what are you doing?" Zuko said, moving to his uncle slowly.

"You're looking at the rare white dragon bush. Its leaves make a tea so delicious it's heartbreaking." Iroh said lovingly, but then he turned serious. "That, or it's the white jade bush, which is poisonous."

"We need food, not tea. I'm going fishing." Zuko said with a sigh. He loved his uncle, he really did. The man had been there for him and taught him more than his father, but his patience was quite shallow. Zuko walked away, determined to find something substantial to eat. I bet she's feasting, basking in the glow of the Avatar, and sleeping in a nice bed. Agni, I just need to stop thinking about her.

Darya was on top of Appa, laying on her back and listening to Chong talk with Aang. She had listened happily as they told stories of the places they had been and the things they had seen. She knew they couldn't stay for much longer, but it was nice to relax in the company of people who weren't trying to kill them.

As she was playing with one of the braids in Appa's hair, Sokka came stomping up to them from wherever he had been.

"Hey, Sokka, you should hear some of these stories. These guys have been everywhere." Aang said as the warrior approached.

"Well, not everywhere, Little Arrowhead. But where we haven't been we've heard about through stories and songs." Chong said as he continued to strum his guitar. Darya closed her eyes and hummed along.

"They said they'll take us to see a giant nightcrawler." Aang said excitedly.

"On the way there's a waterfall that creates an endless rainbow." Moku sang from his spot on the ground.

Darya heard Sokka sigh, and knew it was time to leave. She slid down from Appa, avoiding the many bodies that leaned up against his and stood next to her friend.

"Look, I hate to be the wet blanket here, but since Katara is busy I guess it's up to me." He started, making Darya laugh loudly as Katara glared at the two of them. "We need to get to Omashu. No sidetracks, no worms, and definitely no rainbows."

"Sokka's right, Aang, we've lazed about long enough." Darya added.

"Woah sounds like someone's got a case of destination fever. You're worried too much about where you're going." Chong said, motioning with his hands.

"You've got to focus less on the 'where' and more on the 'going'." Lilly added.

"O. Ma. Shu." Sokka said, trying to get his point across to the oblivious nomads.

"They're right. We need to find King Bumi so Aang can learn earthbending somewhere safe." Katara said, standing up from where her hair was being re-braided.

"Well, sounds like you're headed to Omashu." Chong said, making Sokka smack his forehead and Darya sigh deeply. "There's an old story about a secret pass, right through the mountains."

Darya looked up at his ominous tone, curious about a shortcut over the mountains.

"Is this real or a legend?" Katara asked skeptically.

"Oh, it's a real legend. And it's as old as earthbending itself." Chong began to play his guitar and sing:

Two lovers, forbidden from one another,

A war divides their people,

And a mountain divides them apart.

Built a path to be together.

"Yeah, and I forget the next couple lines, but then it goes:"

Secret tunnel! Secret tunnel!

Through the mountain,

Secret, secret, secret, secret tunnel!

Chong and the other nomads finished the song grandly with dancing and singing. Darya clapped along with Katara and Aang while Sokka only sulked. Darya was sold when it hit her. Tunnel. It wasn't a pass over the mountains, it was under the mountains. She gulped, hating the idea of being underground. I hate the Earth Kingdom, she grumbled, standing by Sokka moodily.

"I think we'll just stick to flying. We've dealt with the Fire Nation before. We'll be fine." Sokka said, making Darya want to kiss him. She would only go through that tunnel if it was the absolute only choice.

"Yeah. Thanks for the help, but Appa hates going underground and we need to do whatever makes Appa most comfortable." Aang said, smiling at Chong and the nomads.

"Secret love cave. Let's go." Darya said moodily as the four teens walked past the nomads, their clothes still smoldering lightly. The Fire Nation had been prepared and had almost struck them down with the number of fireballs thrown at them.

They set off as a large group with Sokka and Darya in the lead, listening to directions from Chong. After about an hour of walking through Earth Kingdom ruins, Darya was getting anxious. She knew they had no other choice, but that didn't make it easier knowing she would be completely surrounded by impenetrable rock.

"How far are we from the tunnel?" She asked Chong.

"Actually, it's not just one tunnel. The lovers didn't want anyone to find out about their love, so they build a whole labyrinth." Chong said.

"Labyrinth!" Both she and Sokka spun around, horror on their faces.

"I'm sure we'll figure it out." Chong said. Darya and Sokka both smacked their heads and continued walking.

"All you need to do is trust in love, according to the curse." Lilly added airily. Darya and Sokka stopped their bodies rigid as they stared at each other.

"Curse!" They said, Darya in more horror and Sokka in exasperation.

"I hate this, something bad is going to happen. Something bad always happens." Darya complained to Sokka. As they continued to walk, a large, black opening coming into sight around a bend in the canyon.

"Hey-hey, we're here!" Chong said, pointing to the obvious opening in front of them. It was huge, with dancing dragons lining the sides of it. For once, the sight of a dragon did nothing to comfort Darya.

"What exactly is this curse?" Sokka asked, moving to the front of the group to stare into the dark opening.

"The curse says that only those who trust in love can make it through the caves. Otherwise you'll be trapped forever." Chong said, his voice not nearly ominous enough.

"And die." His wife added.

"Oh, yeah, and die. Hey, I just remembered the rest of that song!" Chong took out his guitar and strummed a deep chord. "And die!"

"That's it, there's no what we're going through some cursed hole!" Sokka yelled.

"I agree, this is too much. Aang, we'll find another way." Darya spoke up.

"Hey, someone's making a big campfire!" Moku interrupted, pointing to a pillar of smoke that arose behind them. Darya sighed and resigned herself to the cursed love labyrinth.

"That's no campfire, Moku." Katara said, stepping back.

"That's the Fire Nation. They're tracking us." Sokka added.

"So, all you need is to trust in love to get through the caves?" Aang asked Chong, and Darya looked up at him, hoping he would say no or do some Avatar stuff to get them out of this mess.

"That is correct, Master Arrowhead!" Chong said. Aang turned and looked at Katara thoughtfully. His eyes misted over and Darya could see the love and adoration he had for the waterbender within them.

"Oh Aang, that's so lame." She said quietly to herself. Since when had the Avatar gotten so sappy?

"We can make it." Aang said confidently.

"Everyone in the hole!" Sokka said, leading them in. Darya and Appa trailed the group. Appa swung his head and groaned in protest. Darya put a hand on his leg, giving him an encouraging pat.

"I agree completely, Appa." She said, looking up at the grinning dragons that danced with swords and naginatas.

They were walking for only a few minutes when they heard a deep rumble. Darya spun around, her hand still on Appa as the giant bison roared in fear. She wanted to calm him down, but her own fears were becoming too much for her. Please don't be a cave-in. She said frantically to herself. As suddenly as the rumble started, the light from the entrance was put out. The only light that remained was the sole torch that Chong had lit before entering the caves. Agni, the entrance closed!

Appa roared and slammed into the wall of rubble that now blocked the entrance behind them. The bison stood up on his back two legs and scratched the rocks, desperate to get out. Darya ran up to him, trying to calm him down, using his fear to block her own, even though she felt herself choking on it.

"It's okay, Appa. We'll be fine. Calm down, buddy." She cooed, stroking his huge paws while trying to avoid the rocks he was sending down.

"I hope." Katara said quietly from behind her. Darya looked back at her, but Katara was already moving towards Aang. Darya sighed, not wanting to get into a fight while stuck in a cave. She gave Appa another pet, but moved away as a rock landed only a foot from her.

"We will be fine. All we need is a plan. Chong, how long do those torches last?" Sokka was saying as Darya moved to stand by him. His planning was soothing and she decided to stick with him until they were out of the tunnels.

"Eh, about two hours each." Chong said.

"And we have five torches, so that's then hours!" Lilly said, striking all the torches at once. Darya pounced on her, grabbing the torches from her hand and quickly snuffing them out.

"It doesn't work like that!" She snarled, trying to not lash out her anger and failing.

"Ohhh, right." Lilly said, unaffected by Darya's sharp tone.

"I'm gonna make a map to keep track of exactly where we've been. Then we should be able to solve it like a maze and get through." Sokka said, taking the torches from Darya and looping them though his belt.

"Sokka, if you get me out of these caves, I will buy you whatever you want from my share of the gold Master Pakku gave us." Darya said, leaning over her friend as he began to sketch on a piece of parchment.

"I'll get us out, don't worry." Sokka said, putting a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

After walking for an hour, Darya was getting more and more nervous. She wanted to strike out at something, but there was nothing there. She hated when there was nowhere to focus her energy. So, she continued to nervously tap her fingers to her sword hilts and follow Sokka into another dead end.

"Sokka, this is the tenth dead end you've led us to." Katara complained, walking up to her brother.

"This doesn't make any sense; we've already come through this way." Sokka said, staring at the map and walking closer to the dead end.

"We don't need a map. We just need love. The little guy knows it." Chong said, pointing to Aang.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't mind a map, also." Aang said, shrugging.

"There's something strange here. There's only one explanation." Sokka turned to face them, his expression somber. "The tunnels are changing."

Darya shook her head in disbelief. She growled and kicked a rock, sending it into the wall of the cave. It bounced down and Darya stared at it angrily as her foot began to throb gently. It didn't hurt that much, but it certainly didn't improve her mood.

The tunnel started to shake and rumble, drawing Darya's attention away from her foot and to the roof of the cave. The rumble and shaking didn't last long, but it left her with more fear than ever. She paced the floor, trying to dispel the chaotic energy.

"The tunnels, they're changing. At, it must be the curse, I knew we shouldn't have come down here!" Chong said, panicking.

"Right, if only we listened to you." Darya growled as she continued to pace.

"Everyone be quiet, listen." Katara said, holding her hand up.

A quiet growling could be heard from the darkness behind them. Out of the darkness, the growling faded. Silence.

Darya felt herself relax when a bundle of brown fur and wings shot out of the darkness. It dove down, knocking Sokka off his feet. Darya drew her swords, still not able to get a good picture of what was attacking them, it moved too fast.

"Ah! It's a giant flying thing with teeth!" Chong cried out as the creature landed and spun around, snarling fiercely.

"No, it's a wolfbat!" Moku cried out. As the wolfbat paused, folding in its wings, Darya got a good look at it. It's chocolate brown fur blended into the dim light of the caves while its pink, hairless face growled at them. It's large red eyes glowed in the torchlight while it's fangs glistened white. She could see it was larger than a dog, it stood higher than her waist, and its wingspan was huge. Its wings were now tightly folded to its body, and its bat-like nose twitched as it smelled the air. Darya had never seen a creature so ugly and beautiful before.

With surprising agility, it leapt over her and onto the rock wall. It used the rock to launch itself into the air, unfolding its leathery wings. It dove at Sokka, who struck out with his torch, scaring the wolfbat. The wolfbat used its massive wings to knock the torch out of Sokka's hands, unfortunately leading to it hitting Appa's paw. As Appa began to rampage in his pain, the wolfbat landed and ran back down the cave, disappearing into the dark.

The bison slammed into the walls of the cave, blinded by pain. The ceiling began to crumble and shake as the beast continued to slam into the walls. The ceiling began to fall, and finally having something to direct her energy to, Darya sent a blast of air at Aang. She knocked the Avatar back as a huge boulder fell where he had been standing. Darya spun in a circle, her nervous energy giving her bending a boost of power. She sent a wave of air up and back, sending the rocks just in front of her and her friends behind her.

The mound of rocks settled, dust covering them all. Darya looked back and saw Sokka and Momo with the nomads. Aang and Katara were missing. She looked over to the rock pile and called out.

"Aang! Katara!" She cried, digging through the rocks and praying that they were on the other side and unhurt. "Aang!"

Sokka appeared beside her, digging just as ferociously.

"Darya? Sokka?" A faint voice came through the rubble. Darya felt tears spring in her eyes in her relief. They were alive.

"Aang, we can't get through, we'll meet you in Omashu, ok?" She knew there was still the obstacle of getting out of the tunnels, but Aang was the Avatar, he could handle it.

"Ok." Came Aang's faint reply. She thought she heard him say something else, but the rocks were too thick. She stopped digging and stood up, dusting off the dirt from her golden robes.

"Yeah, it's no use, we're separated, but at least you have us!" Chong said, appeared beside Darya. She looked at him and smiled, although her patience with the nomads was gone. They had gotten them into this mess. Sokka froze in his digging for a moment before resuming with more fervor. Darya laughed as a pile of dirt fell on him. She grabbed his collar and pulled him out of the rubble.

"Come on," She said to his scowl. "We need to find a way out of here."

Zuko wanted to be left alone. He was sitting on the front porch of the girl, Song's, house. She was cute, he admitted that, but she was so annoying. Nice, sure, but she was so soft, like she thought she could change the world with only a kind word. Not only was her softness annoying, her ability to make him feel guilty was worse. She had brought up the war and to see the consequences of his family's actions was hard to see. He had always felt guilt, ever since he had interrupted his father's general before he was banished, even Darya had made him feel guilty at times, but this family, who was torn apart by his own blood was almost too much. He hatedguilt. He hated it so much. It made him angry and confused, and that only lead to more anger.

The door to the house slid open, and the one person he was trying to avoid stepped out. He ignored her as she stepped out next to him, sitting down cross legged like himself.

"Can I join you?" He ignored her. If I'm cold to her, she has to leave, he thought.

"I know what you've been through. We've all been thought it. The Fire Nation has hurt you." She said, reaching a hand out to touch his scar. Zuko's hand shot out, not wanting her to touch him. She was unworthy of touching him. He was the crown prince of the Fire Nation!

"It's okay, they've hurt me too." Song drew back her hand kindly, which annoyed him further. She lifted up part of her dress to reveal a burn scar running around her right leg. Zuko stared at it, shock taking over him. This was the first time he had directly seen a person damaged by the Fire Nation. Guilt washed over him, and it was too much. He turned away. It was all too much.

Darya couldn't take much more of it. This is too much, she growled internally. The nomads were acting like this was a fun adventure and that they would be home for dinner soon. She grumbled under her breath about idiots, causing Sokka to snicker next to her, relieving himself of a matching scowl for a moment.

Don't let the cave in get you down.

Don't let the falling racks turn your smile into a frown.

When the tunnels are darkest that's when you need a clown, hey!

Don't let the cave in get you down DaryaandSokka!

Darya growled out loud as Chong finished his song by smashing her and Sokka's names together, teasing them. She turned to glare at the nomad, who only smiled widely back at her. I'm going to strangle them, that's the only way to get them to stop. A rock wall rose from out of the darkness and she sighed, another dead end.

"Oh, great! Your plans have led us to another dead end!" Moku said, throwing his hands in the air. Darya spun around, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"At least he's thinking of ideas and trying to get us out of here, Moku." Darya bristled, causing the pink clad nomad to shuffle uncomfortably. Satisfaction snaked its was up her body to form a sinister smile.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute, we're thinking of ideas? 'Cause I've had this idea for, like, an hour." Chong said, making Darya shift her fiery gaze to him.

"Yes!" She snarled.

"We're all thinking of ideas!" Sokka yelled with her, exasperated. Momo chirped at his movements. The lemur was trying to balance on Sokka's head.

"Well, listen to this. If love is the key out of here, then all we need to do is play a love song!" Chong said, turning around and ignoring the smack! of Sokka slapping his forehead and the growl from Darya. She was fuming as the nomad began to play another song on his guitar. I'll strangle him with his own guitar strings if this keeps up!

Even if you're lost you can't,

Lose the love because,

It's in your heart,

Ooooohhhhhh . . . . . . .

"Thank you for the duck. It was excellent." Iroh said as he took the bento box of duck from Song's mother.

"You're welcome. It brings me joy to see someone eat my cooking with such gusto." The woman smiled kindly, making Zuko roll his eyes. Gusto was putting it gently.

"Much practice." Iroh replied, patting his stomach. "Junior, where are your manners? You need to thank these nice people."

Zuko turned around, scowling and hating the fake name his uncle had given him. He wanted to get as far away from these people as possible. He gave a small, stiff bow and turned, beginning to walk away.

"I know you don't think there's any hope left in the world, but there is hope. The Avatar has returned!" Song called after him, making Zuko pause. Over the past hour he had figured out what he needed to do. He had to push away everything. Every emotion that had torn him up the past week would become numb. He would focus on only one thing: capturing the Avatar. That had never failed to keep him focused before.

"I know." He said quietly, intensely. He continued to walk off as the mother and daughter went back inside, his uncle following him. As they closed the garden gate behind them, Zuko rested his eyes on a large ostrich horse tied to a post opposite the house. He walked up to it and quickly untied its tether. He swung up in the seat as his uncle turned to him, an appalled look on his face. As Zuko felt the guilt rise, he pushed it down once more, becoming numb.

"What are you doing? These people just showed you great kindness." Iroh protested.

"They're about to show us a little more kindness." Zuko offered his hand to his uncle. "Well?"

Iroh looked down, unhappy. He looked back up at his nephew and saw the blank look in his eyes, a look he had not seen since Zuko was chasing the Avatar across the seas. Iroh sighed and took his nephews hand. They rode off until the darkness swallowed them.

A deep rumble shook the tunnel once more.

"Not again!" Darya cried, slowly becoming numb to the terror of the tunnels. She was tired, hungry, and had a pounding headache. She no longer liked the nomad's songs, in fact, she would be happy if she never heard a guitar again.

The rumbling stopped for a moment and then the screeching and growling began. Wolfbats, she thought, drawing her swords in case one attacked. Out of the darkness and huge pack of wolfbats appeared. They ran at the small group, leaping over them and taking to the wing. Sokka screeched and flailed as the bats flew over him, while Darya simply knelt down, keeping out of reach of their wings. Where are they going, and why aren't they attacking? The air from their wings felt good and she smiled softly as she felt a breeze for the first time in hours.

As soon as they appeared, the wolfbats were gone.

"Hey-hey, you saved us Sokka!" Chong yelled.

"No, sorry Sokka, but they were trying to get away from something." Darya said, standing and keeping her swords at the ready.

Behind them, the rock wall exploded, sending rocks flying. Darya spun a circle of air, throwing the rocks away from the group. Out of the rocks appeared a monstrous creature the size of Appa. Its small, triangular face swung to look at them. Its beady, black eyes narrowed as it swung its huge mass to face them. Behind them, another rock wall exploded, showing another giant. Both creatures blocked their path. The light brown fur was stripped with black and white, and Darya stared as the two beasts used earthbending to separate Sokka from the rest of the group.

"Badgermoles!" She yelled, recognizing the original earthbenders from stories. She had no idea they were so large!

The badgermole closest to her remained still, while the one near Sokka advanced. He crawled backwards until his hand fell on Chong's guitar. The strum caused an eerie silence to fall on the group. The badgermole tilted its head in confusion.

"Sokka, keep playing!" Darya said, not sure if she could believe her eyes. Sokka quickly grabbed the guitar and continued to play the same note.

"Hey, those guys are music lovers!" Chong said happily.

"Badgermoles, coming toward me. Come on guys, help me out." Sokka sang, horribly. Darya, laughed. Her fear and nervous energy seemed to drain away as the badgermoles listened to the group play for them.

The big bad badgermoles,

Who work in the tunnels,

Hate the wolfbats,

But love the sounds.

Chong continued to sing as Darya raced forward, grabbing Sokka and pulling him up. They both stared at the badgermoles as the creatures began to purr.

"I can't believe it." Darya said, in awe at the monsters before them. A quiet whimper caught her attention and she looked past the badgermoles and into the rock pile they had formed. Something moved slightly, and a small pink face could be seen. Darya shot forward, ignoring Sokka's cry.

She approached the wolfbat cautiously, she had no idea how it would react. Its back-right leg was trapped under a rock, pinning it to the ground. She could tell it was young due to its small size, although still older than a pup. It flapped its wings desperately and when that didn't work, it began to scratch the ground, whining the whole time. It let out a sad howl, its red eyes blinking balefully at her. She stretched out a hand slowly.

"What are you doing?" Sokka said from a few feet away. Darya kept her eyes on the injured wolfbat.

"If we leave it, it'll die." She said. It wasn't the most beautiful creature she had seen, but she felt a connection to it. It was alone, separated from its own kind, not unlike her.

"Let it, look at it, it's disgusting!" Sokka said. At that, Darya turned her head to glare at him. When she did, the young wolfbat snapped at her fingers. He didn't get anything, but Darya took her hand and gently flicked it on the nose.

"Bad wolfbat." She said sternly. The young wolfbat stared at her, seemingly in shock. It stopped moving and laid its head down, looking up at her sadly. She smirked.

"Sokka, help me out." She said, moving to the rock trapping the little wolfbat. Grumbling about girls being crazy, Sokka helped her lift the rock off the wolfbat. The creature limped out from under the rock, but as soon as it was away from the rocks, it sat down, it's foot sticking out at an odd angle. It whined as it tried to lick it.

"Leave it alone." Darya said, patting it on the head. She went to walk away, leaving the wolfbat to find its way through the tunnels when she felt a tug on her robes. She looked back, wide-eyed as the wolfbat held her robe in its teeth. She stepped back and it released her. She stepped forward and it once again latched on, not wanting to be left alone. She sighed and smiled. It looked like she had found a new friend. She scooped up the wolfbat in her arms like a baby, surprised at how light it was. It licked her cheek, making her laugh.

"No." Sokka said, clearly seeing what Darya was about to do. "Leave it."

"But Sokka, he's hurt." Darya said, giggled as the wolfbat wagged its tail. "He's so cute too!"

"Cute?!" That has to be the ugliest creature I've ever seen!" Sokka cried, his hands in the air.

"Take that back!" Darya demanded, shifting the wolfbat so it was more comfortable in her arms.

"Uh, I think these guys want to get going?" Chong interrupted from his place on top of the badgermole.

"What are you doing up there!" Sokka yelled, allowing Darya and her wolfbat to pass. Darya used her bending to lift herself onto the back of the second badgermole. The wolfbat struggled slightly in her arms at the sudden altitude change, but she soothed it.

"Come on Sokka!" She called, laughing at his deep scowl. He trudged up to her badgermole, struggling to climb it. Darya sighed and helped him by lifting him onto its back with bending.

"You are insane. Absolutely crazy." Was all he said as the badgermoles began to move through the tunnels, bending earth out of their way when they needed to. The wolfbat was clearly unsure of what was happening, so Darya continued to pet its ears, trying to keep it calm. She had no idea how to care for an injured wolfbat, or if it could even stay out in the day. However, she knew she had to ask Katara to try and heal it at least. Then it could go back to its pack. She scratched its ear and the wolfbat made a deep purring sound. She laughed as it lifted its chin, clearly wanting to be scratched there. She was unsure of touching its face, since it was just skin, but her curiosity got the better of her. She scratched lightly, and when she felt that the skin wasn't slimy or loose, she continued to scratch. She realized that there was a thin layer of soft fur that protected its bare skin, and it felt like petting the nose of a dragon moose.

After only half an hour, the huge badgermoles had shown them to the sunlight. Darya was off the badgermole and in the air in a flash. She laughed and set the wolfbat down. She fell back onto the ground and sighed, relieved to be out of the caves. Her new friend put his chin on her stomach and she scratched his ear.

"Darya! Sokka!" Darya shot up when she heard Aang's voice, causing the wolfbat to sit up in surprise. Darya leapt up and hugged her little brother tightly.

"Thank goodness you're ok!" She said, stepping back from him.

"How'd you guys get out?" Sokka asked as he approached them.

"Just like the legend says, we let love lead the way." Aang smirked and Darya raised a brow, glancing between him and the now blushing Katara.

"We need to talk later, little brother." She said, smirking with him. Aang blushed.

"Really?" Sokka said, oblivious. "We let huge ferocious beasts lead our way."

They all turned and waved as the badgermoles retreated to their tunnels. A whine drew Darya's attention back to her new friend.

"Oh, Katara! I need your help." Darya dragged Katara over to the wolfbat, which was helplessly laying down, its eyes shut in pain. Darya swept her hand over its ears, wanting to help it.

"What are you doing with a wolfbat?" Katara asked, reluctant to go near it.

"I've been asking myself that for the past half hour." Sokka said, exasperated.

"He got hurt, it's his back leg. Can you try and heal it?" Darya asked as the wolfbat continued to whine in pain. Darya looked up at Katara, and saw the waterbender sigh, kneeling down.

"I barely know how to heal people, let alone an animal, but let me try." Katara used the water in her pouch. She bent it until it wrapped around the wolfbat's leg. The creature fidgeted uncomfortably, but Darya calmed it down as she continued to pet it. The familiar blue glow of healing appeared as Katara concentrated. After a minute, Katara pulled the water away and stood up, dusting off her knees.

"That's all I can do." Katara said. Darya stood up, encouraging the wolfbat to stand with her. The creature, a lighter brown than the others they had seen, stood up slowly and gently put weight on its leg. It stood for a moment before its tail wagged wildly and it leapt onto Darya.

"Darya!" Aang, Katara, and Sokka yelped. However, the peals of laughter rising from Darya showed she was in no danger. The wolfbat had her pinned down and was licking her face while it wagged its tail. Darya pushed it off and stood up, patting its head as it leapt into the air. It flew around them in a circle and landed next to Katara. Katara let out a slight 'oh!' of surprise as the wolfbat gave her hand a lick and then pranced back to Darya.

"I'd take that as a thank you." Darya giggled, joining her friends. They all laughed as the wolfbat stuck close to Darya's side.

"Hey Sokka, why's your forehead all red?" Katara asked, finally getting a good look at her brother. Sokka opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, Chong interrupted him.

"Nobody react to what I'm about to tell you, but I think that kid might be the Avatar." Sokka smacked his head, giving Katara all the answer she needed.

"Sokka," Chong said, pulling away and placing his flower necklace around Sokka then pulling him into a hug. "I hope you learned a little something about not letting the plans get in the way of the journey."

Darya and Katara snickered as Sokka's face grew red.

"Just play your songs." He grumbled. Chong pulled back, keeping his hands on Sokka's shoulders.

"Hey, good plan!" Chong turned away, following behind the other nomads.

Even if you're lost you can't,

Lose the love because,

It's in your heart.

Oooooohhhh…

"Agni, I thought that would never end." Darya said, stretching her hands high into the air, her back popping. "Now let's get to Omashu so we can relax."

As she led the group away, she shuddered slightly, thinking of seeing King Bumi and his monstrous pet again. Ah well, she thought. She hadn't enjoyed her time encased in rock candy, but at least she'd gotten a good snack out of it. And now I've got a monstrous pet of my own, she thought, giving the wolfbat another scratch behind the ear. It gave her a toothy grin in response.

As they climbed the last ridge that barred their view of Omashu, Sokka ran ahead of her.

"The journey was long and annoying, but now we get to see what it's really about – the destination." He said as he scrambled up the rock.

"I present to you the Earth Kingdom city of O-" He cut himself off, and Darya leapt up next to him to see why, the smell of smoke wafting into her nostrils.

"No . . ." She whispered, unable to accept what she was seeing.

The once proud city of Omashu was covered in smoke. Scaffolding encased the crumbling walls and huge wooden bridges jutted out over the deep chasm. The worst of all was the stench of smoke and the huge red and black flag that hung over the entrance to the city. The Fire Nation flag swayed in the breeze, its black flame emblem seemed alive. It accentuated how the once green front gate was now painted red. Darya felt her heart stop. This couldn't possibly be true. The Fire Nation had attacked once more.

A/N: This was one of my favorite chapters to write so far! I've been mulling over the idea of Darya gaining a pet, but I wasn't sure what it would be/when it would happen. Then this little wolfbat just came along! So, just a heads up with some future chapters, I have everything planned out but I'm having trouble deciding what to do for "Avatar Day". I have something, but it would make a very short chapter. So I'd love some opinions, should I skip writing that chapter and have some flashbacks like I've been doing with Jet and King Bumi, or should I make it an entire chapter? Let me know and get ready for the next chapter where Darya and Azula will begin the start of a beautiful friendship (lots of sarcasm there!)