This chapter has been recently updated... I noticed that there were a lot of typo's and some things didn't flow and were a little hard to understand. Please enjoy the newly refurbished chapter 1 (bows).

Kura Neko

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Chapter 1

"Introductions"

(Rewritten)

I probably shouldn't have flown into that storm. It was a stupid decision; anyone could've seen that… The wind gusts were too strong, the pounding rain killing all visibility. And even worse, the strikes of lighting that were flashing all around me. I flew into the open ocean with fifty-foot waves crashing down. I should have turned around when those dark clouds rolled in out of nowhere. It had been sunny all day! The sky a clear blue, with not a cloud in sight, I thought I could make it through... I was wrong.

The ice cold water swirling around me was the last thing I could remember. The waves were swallowing Appa, my sky bison, and me; the ocean refused to let us go. My eyes closed and everything went black. The next time I opened them, the sky was calm and a pair of crystal clear blue eyes were looking at me, set in a tanned skin face. Behind her was a boy looking on the scene with distain and annoyance. I became aware that I was lying on a block of ice in the middle of the ocean. I stood up, taking in my surroundings. One thing was for sure; I was nowhere near my air temple. I doubted I was even in the same sea I had flown over.

"I'm Kimiko, and that 'thing' behind me is my neighbor Sokka," said the girl as she watched me quizzically. I would estimate that she was about fourteen, a year younger than me. The gentle breeze blew her long brown hair to the side. Around her neck was a necklace, a mother of pearl disk with engravings on it. She wore it as a choker. The boy behind her, Sokka, had close cropped, dark brown hair and chocolate eyes. He appeared to be the same age as me, but I wasn't positive.

"I'm ahh…ahh…Chhoo!" I sneezed, my nose tingling and sending a blast of air downward, lifting me up a foot. The instant after I wondered whether or not it had been a good idea to air bend so freely in front of them. I mean… I didn't exactly want to be found… the thought of what the counsel had been trying to do when I ran away brought back bitter feelings.

"I'm Aang," I said, and I brushed back my bangs again. I was pleased with the hair color nature had given me, a dark brown, that was mixed with red. My bangs reached to a little above my thin eyebrows, and I placed them inside the red headband I wore. Kimiko was watching me intently, my person reflected in her curious eyes. There was no doubt that she was very interested in this bright green-eyed air bender she had happened to come across. Which brought me to an important thought… how had I come to be stranded on a floating block of ice?

However, it seemed to be working… very well I might add. It was a relief, though of course I didn't know for sure if it would hold. I scratched my forehead nervously, my fingertips running across a thin black arrowhead, my air-bending tattoo. I felt it for a moment, there against my skin, its long black line that followed my spine, but it passed and I was brought again to the present.

"How did you end up in that block of ice, Aang?" came Kimiko's confused voice to the side of me.

"I'm not sure."

Why had I been inside a block of ice? Or more pressing… how the hell did I end up in a block of ice? Somehow it didn't really add up… Feeling a little off balance I observed where I was again. It looked like the South Pole, with blocks of ice floating everywhere. Suddenly, I remembered I hadn't been alone when I had crashed into the sea… I had been riding Appa. A sky bison, a wondrous creature that flew through the air with air bending, legend being that we the Nomads of the Air Temples were first taught by them to wield the air currents.

When I looked behind me I saw a large circular ice block that had a huge whole in it. Knowing that this is what they had found me inside, I climbed back up the wall, which was three times taller than me.

"What are you looking for?" Kimiko asked.

"You'll see," I said with a smile and hopped over the edge, blocking them from view. He was there. He appeared to be sleeping, his thick white fur rising gently up and down. "Appa!" I exclaimed happily and landed lightly on his flat board tail that he used to fly. He had an air-bending arrow as well, though it was built into his genetics, so he didn't have to get his tattooed on like me, and it was a lot wider. I jumped off his tail and ran around to hug his huge round face. Appa opened one of his dark brown eyes and stood up, giving a small shake. I petted him on the head smiling, feeling slightly damp fur under my hand.

"Who is Appa?" I heard a voice mutter behind me. I turned around; there was an opening in the block in front of us. Kimiko and Sokka were coming around the corner. They stopped when they spotted Appa, both staring, their mouths hanging open.

"This is Appa," I introduced. Sokka and Kimiko lifted their jaws carefully and circled him twice, taking in the creature before them. Appa was twice my height and his tail alone could be a queen size bed, and had six legs. Based on their stunned faces, I concluded they had never seen one before in their lives.

"What is it?" Asked Kimiko, Sokka was examining the air bending mark on Appa's forehead.

"It's a Sky Bison," I said cheerfully. "He's flown with me all over the place. We've been almost everywhere!"

"That thing is huge! How can it fly?" Sokka countered, sounding doubtful.

"He can! I'll show you; anyway don't you need a ride? You're kind of stuck on this floating iceberg," I asked as I quickly checked if they had a canoe or something, but I didn't see one.

"Yeah that would be great," Kimiko said gratefully as Sokka muttered under his breath, "It's not going to work."

"Sure it will work," I said. I knew it would work; I had been flying on Appa for ages. They climbed on top and sat in the back saddle, Kimiko looking excited and Sokka unconvinced. "Watch. Appa yip, yip!"

Appa took a step forward jumped into the sky… and landed with a splash in the water starting to swim. "Come on Appa yip, yip!" Appa didn't do anything.

"Wow that was truly amazing," said Sokka sarcastically.

"He's just tired, a bit of rest then you'll see," I defended. Appa had to be exhausted from that tempest we flew into; he just needed a break.

"Oh well," Kimiko shrugged. I looked over my shoulder at her; she was leaning over the railing watching the water shimmer. She suddenly looked over at me, her eyes questioning as though she had just thought of something.

"So where did you come from? I saw that you could air bend earlier."

"I came from the Southern Air Temple. I was out flying around with Appa over the ocean when a storm hit. We crashed into the water, and I guess that's how I froze," I said editing out why I was flying around and using their account of finding me as I didn't remember ever freezing. Truth however, I actually came from the Western Air Temple but came to the Southern to be with my guardian, Monk Gyatso. Kimiko spoke again, awakening me from thoughts of the past.

"So uh… Do you know what happened to the Avatar?" she asked. I was a little thrown by the question; it wasn't one I had been expecting.

"Uh… No."

"Oh, just wondering," she said and she turned around. You know that feeling in your gut called guilt? Yeah… I didn't like lying very much.

'Was it a mistake to fly into that storm?'

--

"This is Aang, an Air Nomad from an Air Temple." Kimiko was introducing me to the village. When we had entered all the children had swarmed around me, inquisitive about the new visitor.

"It's very nice to meet all of you," I said bowing. Everyone stared at me as though I was some sort of lost relic. "Huh? Why are they all staring at me? Do I have something on my head?" I muttered nervously to Kimiko.

"No, it's just no one has seen an air bender in a hundred years. We thought they were extinct," said an older woman from the sidelines overhearing.

"Extinct?" I was taken aback. Why would air benders be extinct? What had happened while I was away… well, I guess, while I was frozen?

"There has been a war going on for at least one-hundred years. Nearly everyone has given up hope that the Avatar will come back. He's been gone for a century. However, I think that he is still out there, somewhere, and I'm going to find him. Now that we've found you, an air bender, there's still hope that he's still here," Kimiko explained, her voice laced with faith.

"I'm the only water bender in the whole South Pole. So if I find him, he might teach me!"

"Oh uh… Good luck with that," I said smiling to her while feeling uneasy. A War? When in the world had a war been going on? Something was very wrong… but I made a note to ask Kimiko about it later.

"I don't know where he might be," I said quickly, then changed the subject. "Hey, will you go penguin sledding with me? Before we go to look for he…him." I stopped talking. I bit my cheek praying she hadn't heard me stumble. I would have kicked myself, but that would've really have given me away.

"You will help me look for the Avatar? Great but, how do you penguin sled?" Kimiko asked as she let out a sigh of relief. I beckoned her and we walked out of the village with Sokka's stony glare on our backs. I walked to the shore, where a lot of penguins were waddling around.

"All you have to do is catch one of these penguins, somehow, and ride them down a steep hill," I said and tried to pounce on a penguin but they kept waddling away, out of my reach. Kimiko laughed as I landed on my stomach after a failed attempt at capture.

"Here," she said and she handed me a dried fish strip she had pulled out of her pocket.

"Why do I need a fish?" I asked, then mentally added, 'Why do you have one in your pocket?'

Before she could answer all the penguins swarmed around me, trying to get a bite of the fish. I laughed and a few minutes later we were sliding down a hill and into ice caves having so much fun! Pity it was over so quickly. We stood up laughing and brushed the snow off, while the penguins we had been riding started walking toward the sea. Looking in the distance I saw something that sent an involuntary chill through me. A Fire Nation ship stuck in the ice. From my memory they hadn't looked like this, streamlined and lethal.

"Hey what's that?" I asked pointing towards it. I really hoped I was mistaken. That I was imagining it, that it was mirage caused by the sun reflecting off the ice. It was arising more and more questions. But Kimiko shattered that hope by her next words.

"It's a Fire Nation ship," she said as she turned around to start back toward the village. I stayed where I was, my curiosity getting the better of me. I loved to explore and go on adventures, though more often then not I had the worst luck on them.

"Hey, where are you going? Let's go explore it," I said to her excitedly.

"I can't. It's forbidden, anyway it could be booby trapped," Kimiko said over her shoulder as she continued to walk.

"If you want to be a bender you have to let go of fear," I said quoting my friend and teacher. "Let's check it out."

"Okay."

And with that we headed toward the ship. We climbed into it through a gash in the hull. I listened to our footsteps echo as we walked to the bridge. The place was eerie and silent as the grave, with an ominous feeling at every corner. My heart thudded quickly with excitement, until we passed an armory. The weapons were strange, newer and obviously meant to harm. It was then it clicked for me as we walked through the silent Fire Nation ship. The ice burg… the strange time lapse… I had fallen into the sea… and froze for a hundred years! It was unbelievable but yet… the only logical answer. I wondered as a side thought, what had become of my home.

We walked to the main bridge, passing through doorways. My foot caught on something and I stumbled. With a deafening bang the door slammed behind us, trapping us in. It was then that I remembered what she had said about booby traps. I looked around for a way out. It was lucky I was an air bender; there was hole in the ceiling, but too high for a normal person to jump. I grabbed Kimiko and shot up out of the ship, just as a huge bang sounded, hurting my eardrums and a flare shot high into the sky.

"Oops…"

--

"Oh man. I am so busted," said Kimiko as we ran back to her village.

"Sorry," I apologized. If I was honest it had been a rather fun adventure. It hadn't been really life threatening. When we had almost reached the village. However, I saw something that froze my blood. I stopped dead. Out in the harbor was a Fire Navy ship, even newer then the ship we had just left. Now I was busted.

"Oh no!"

"What?" asked Kimiko and I pointed toward it, my finger shaking slightly. With the new knowledge of the war, and air benders being extinct… I guess it wasn't a shock that I had a different attitude toward the Fire Nation, one of anger and dread. Kimiko's next words sent chills up my spine as well as further confusion.

"Oh crap! You have to hide! Don't come with me. If they know there is an air bender here… They might kill you!"

I was too stunned to speak. 'Say what?' When did the Fire Nation kill air benders and for what reason? A sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach told me that I knew. 'Was this all my fault?'

Kimiko ran ahead, to a tent that was outside the actual village. My guess was food storage or extra lodgings. I followed her bewildered; she started to crawl into a sleeping bag. I stared puzzled.

"I like naps, but this not the time…"

Kimiko crawled back out said, "Crawl in," and left before I could respond or object.

"Kimiko," I whispered. There was no answer. "I'll stay out of the village so they don't see me," I muttered to myself. I hurried out of the tent and hid behind an ice block, some penguins to my left. I watched as the ship docked with the ice. The top opened revealing a ramp down and men in Fire Nation uniforms walking toward the village. A man came down the center, flanked by two other soldiers, and my eyebrows raised. He looked like a teenager, a year or two older then me! It looked like he was in charge, the other men were giving him a large birth. He had a full head of dark brown hair that was tied in a queue. On the left side of his face was a scar, it covered his eye and went back to his ear and hairline. His skin was rather pale, but it could've just been the glare from the snow. He spoke.

"Southern Water Tribe, I am Prince Zuko. I have been made to believe that you have an air bender among you, reveal him," The teen said, his golden eyes looking over the village. His words were met with silence as no one spoke or moved. I watched his eyes narrow in impatience. "I know he is here, I saw him."

I tried to take deep calming breaths; these people wouldn't sell me out… at least I hope they wouldn't. My attention was drawn again to the teen, Prince Zuko; I could see the gears in his mind working, as though trying to find a way to make me reveal myself. He nodded at one of his soldiers. The soldier, and another one next to him, pushed their way into the crowd and came back out, dragging a little boy with them. They brought the trembling child before Prince Zuko.

"Air bender come out or I shall kill this child," Zuko said. I fidgeted, I didn't like how this situation had changed and escalated. I wasn't going to let these people suffer because of me! I had to think fast; I slowly came out from behind my ice block and looked around for a quick way down. A penguin squawked catching my attention. I smiled and jumped on it. We slid down, towards the village and the Fire Nation soldiers. I steered the penguin so that we came right behind the Fire Nation troops. We practically plowed Zuko over. I slid around to face them and stood up, my staff in hand, the sound of the villagers cheering behind me and the feeling of satisfaction as the little boy ran back into the crowd.

"What do you want?" I asked coldly. Zuko stood up and brushed snow off his shoulders as the rest melted. I saw his eyes widen in surprise, he obviously wasn't expecting a teen like him. He seemed to push it to the back of his mind, to save it for another time.

"Avatar, you're under arrest by the Fire Nation," he said. There went one secret I had been trying to conceal; I heard gasps and whispers behind me as the secret leaked out.

'Well I guess it wasn't that important anymore.'

"Under what charges?" I asked, looking into his eyes, challenging him. I hadn't done anything wrong, at least not in my book.

"Eluding the Fire Nation, getting me kicked out of my home, and ruining my life!" he said angrily, a wave of steam rising from his feet. Eluding the Fire Nation? I didn't think I had been doing that, at least not intentionally. As for the other offenses against him, I felt my temper rise; it was completely unfair to accuse me of such trivial things.

"I'm sorry, but that's not my fault," I muttered icily. I glanced over my shoulder and noticed Kimiko and Sokka look at each other, hurt in Kimiko's eyes. She probably hated me for lying; I hoped I got the chance to apologize to both of them…

"Enough!" Zuko growled and he punched his fist toward me, flames jumping out of it in a fireball. This man had a problem with his temper… but then, I smirked as I watched the flame draw near, so did I. I spun my staff, bending the air into a shield, deflecting the blaze. The Prince Shot two more fireballs, dodging the wind gust I blast at him. I deflected them as well, the fire shooting over my head and towards the villagers. I saw them shrink back as the flame came within inches of scorching them. If this battle went on much longer, one of them would get injured. I knew I could settle this battle later, while escaping.

"Wait," and I held up my hand to stop him shooting fire again. "If I go with you… do you promise to leave these people alone?" The Prince looked at the villagers, then back at me as though considering.

"Yes," he finally said lowering his hands. I put my staff down then put my shaking hands behind my back. I still didn't know whether or not his motive was to just capture me or whether my so-called 'eluding the Fire Nation' was serious enough for a death sentence. Two Fire Nation soldiers came up behind me the instant I had put my staff down, taking my arms while a third picked up my staff. They started escorting me to the ship, Zuko walking up the ramp in front of me.

"I'm sorry…" I called softly over my shoulder.

"I'm sorry too…" I heard Kimiko's quiet voice say as the ramp began closing. At least I had gotten a chance to apologize… no matter how long.

The platform closed with a clang of metal on metal. I felt the ship move beneath my feet as the vessel pulled out of the ice and set a course back north, leaving a cloud of smoke in it's trail. They took me up to the bridge, where I saw briefly the icebergs being left in our wake, before going back into the ship. They took me to a holding cell, pushing me harshly into the room before walking out. Zuko appeared then, locking my cell door.

"I must say you surprised me, I expected an old man, not a kid!" Zuko said as he sneered at me through the bars.

"Hey, I'm a teenager! And you're not that much older," I said as I glared at him through the bars resentfully. Zuko gave me a sour look and I knew he wasn't used to people talking back to him.

"But I'm still older and above you, so you should respect me you little brat!" he snarled, shooting a blast of fire through the bars at me. I jumped back, and glared at him as he walked away, his head held high.

'Fine, be that way, jerk!'

I walked into the bathroom and locked the door behind me. There weren't any windows and, after I felt assured that no one would be able to see me, I peeled off my shirt. It was soaking wet from all the snow play I had done. I ringed it out in the sink.

"Too bad he's cute," I muttered softly allowing my voice to slip back to its normal pitch. He had been a lot taller then I had thought when I had seen him close up. His eyes were such a shade of gold that you could get lost in, burning with a fierce intensity. If I was honest with myself, he had been rather attractive, tall, dark and handsome. I smiled, pity he'd never see me in my element, I felt almost sorry for him.

I examined my reflection in the mirror. On top of my regular undergarment I had tied an extra band around my breasts, in an effort to look more manly. The cloth was rather tight, but I had already gotten used to it. It was the perfect disguise. Who would expect the Avatar to be a girl? I mean, when you heard the term air bender you thought of monks. I retied my bands, making sure they wouldn't come undone in a fight and put my shirt back on, air bending it dry. I had felt like such a genius when I had come up with the idea when I left home.

I took off my headband, and took out a hair tie that I had in my hair. It fell to the bottom of my chin, my bangs naturally swinging to the right. It had been such a crime to chop off my red–wood hair; I wasn't a fan of short hair, preferring it to be shoulder-length. But it was necessary, and I knew it would grow back quickly. I retied it, putting the band back on, covering my short bangs, it helping the hair tie make the hair look shorter then it was. I checked my appearance again, my emerald gem's for eyes gazing back at me and walked out.

There were two guards standing on either side of the cell door chatting. I wasn't bothered to listen, knowing that they had been sent by that hotheaded prince to watch me.

'No matter,' I thought and I looked up, searching for my way out. I spotted it; it was an air vent that was imbedded in one of the panels, large enough for me to fit into. After a quick examination of the screws I used air bending to twist them out. I caught them before they hit the floor and glanced at the guards; they remained oblivious talking about whether or not Jasmine or Ginseng tea was better. The panel fell and I caught it, put it against the wall, and quietly jumped into the vent. I crawled along the tunnel, looking through the small holes at the soldiers below. Before I left however, I needed to grab my air bending stick, it was rather important to me. My guess was that Zuko had it somewhere, he probably knowing, that it was my weapon of choice.

"Why is the Avatar so weak looking? I mean, all he has is a staff," said one soldier walking below me. I resisted the urge to yell at him, he wasn't so strong lookin' himself.

"Isn't it in the Prince's room?" asked his companion nodding toward a door across the hall. The first one nodded. I grinned; these gossiping guards were so useful. I crawled, passing over a doorframe and looked down into the room below me. Zuko was meditating in a chair, the room dark, save for the candles that grew and shrank with his every breath. I saw my staff in a corner, propped against the wall. And then the blessed words came ringing through the whole ship.

"The Avatar has escaped!"

I watched as he stood and quickly left the room, the door slamming against the wall as it swung. I grinned; so predictable, it was almost too easy. I unscrewed the vent and dropped catlike on the floor. I jumped over his desk and grabbed my staff. Flushed with my victory, I was fully intending to walk out the door… that is until I heard Zuko yelling.

"THEN FIND HIM!" I watched through a crack Zuko blast fire at his officers in anger. I walked slowly back into the room, not wanting to run into the pissed off prince. A random thought crossed my mind; 'He was pretty cute when he was mad.' I chuckled and countered the thought, 'Sure he was…'

The sound of quick footsteps brought the realization that he was coming back to his room! Thinking fast, I jumped up to the ceiling, holding myself up between two groves in the metal. Just as he walked in, slamming the door, I remembered about the air vent. He grabbed a cloak off the bed, and sat down putting it on, along with his armor and boots. He gave an exasperated sigh and stepped out again, slamming the door, making the candles go out.

It took a lot of self-control not to burst out laughing. He had walked right past me, well, under me, but still it was amusing. The dark room calmed my thudding heart, making feel a little safer. I was about to jump down when the door swung open again and he walked back in, his eyes alert.

'Dude seriously, make up your mind,' I thought thankful I hadn't jumped down yet. I watched him scan the room, his eyes locking in on where my staff had been before. I saw him freeze, realizing that I was in the room. He started looking around the room, in the closet, under the bed and in the corners. I grinned when he straightened up and scratched his head puzzled. My smile faded as I waited for him to leave the room again. Then… he looked up.

"Oh shit…" I muttered, my voice switching to its disguised tone.

"There you are," he said, his hand reaching up to grab my arm.

"Nope, uh huh," I said and I jumped down, landing to the side of him. I stood up and backed away, watching him apprehensively. He was between the door and me, just great.

Fire in the shape of daggers appeared in his hands and he swung at me with one. I dodged, leaping to the right. That was a nice hello… I decided to see if I couldn't use his attacks to swing around him and get to the door… it didn't work. Zuko lunged out at me, forcing me to back up, farther away from the door. I gritted my teeth and jumped over him, his expression changing from anger to surprise and shock, to anger again. I landed lightly behind him and started running, heading for the bridge. I heard a hiss of anger behind me, along his thudding steps.

"You won't get away that easily, boy," he yelled behind me.

'Girl, retard,' I thought slightly annoyed. I reached the helm; a few people stared at me. An old man who was playing Pai Sho with another crewmember, hardly looked up, as I wiped past. As I ran out onto the deck my staff opened, it's glider wings unfolding from compartments. I heard Zuko's frustrated yell behind me as I threw my glider into the sky and jumped onto it, bending the air around me. Before I had reached barely two feet away from the deck however, someone jumped on top of my contraption sending us spiraling toward the bridge. When I looked up it was no surprise to see Prince Zuko, his face full of determination. We landed heavily, the hard metal disorienting me for a moment.

"I've got you now! No escaping this time!" said Zuko as he grabbed my shirt. A shadow engulfed us and I looked up pleasantly surprised.

"Not for long."

Appa was directly above us, with two faces I was extremely pleased to see, Kimiko and Sokka. Kimiko bended water and shot it behind me. I turned to watch her freeze some soldiers that had been coming to aid Zuko.

"Quick! AANG HOP ON!" she called as Appa came down a little lower. I managed to break free of Zuko's grip and darted toward the Bison, grabbing my staff at the same time.

"No you don't!" came Zuko's furious roar and I turned in time to deflect a fireball with my staff. He shot again, and again, and again! Each time forcing me to take a step back in order to avert the attack; he shot again and I just barely repelled it. I didn't notice the second one… forced back in order to avoid the hot flames my foot stepped over the edge and I heard Kimiko's scream as the wind wiped past me. I hit the freezing water and felt the liquid engulf me before my world went black.

Emotions flickered through me, strong emotions, of anger and self-conflict. When I finally opened my eyes, everything was slightly blurry and my body felt drained and fatigued. With a stab of comprehension I felt the hard metal deck of Zuko's ship under my skin. I opened my eyes a crack and watched Appa land with a thud and Kimiko and Sokka run towards me.

--

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," I said as we flew again through the air, heading north. I didn't meet Kimiko's inquiring gaze, instead looking at my feet, feeling guilty.

"It's ok. But why didn't you tell us you were the Avatar?" she asked, her clear eyes burning again with curiosity.

"Because…" I looked away, "I never wanted to be." I had never wanted this gift, this burden, this trial... My world had changed the instant they had bestowed the knowledge that I was the Avatar upon me. My friends treated me differently, and they were going to take me away from the one person I had considered my family. I shut my eyes tightly, willing myself not to cry.

"Well its okay now," and Kimiko gave me a hug, her embrace was soothing, like the sister I never had. I opened my eyes, the traces of tears gone. I decided to tell them, to adopt them as my family.

"One more thing… My name's not Aang."

"What?"

"My name is Ayame, a female air bender." I stood up and bowed and took out my hair to prove it. Kimiko's jaw dropped and Sokka looked flabbergasted.

"OH MY GOSH! A FEMALE AVATAR? THAT'S GREAT! It shows how great girls are!" said Kimiko bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement. Sokka rolled his eyes skeptically.

"Girls aren't so great," he said folding his arms.

"Ah, but no one would expect a female Avatar, so now I have a cover when I go out in public. By being dressed as a guy people will think the Avatar is a guy, so when I walk out dressed as the girl I am, no one will notice, but…" I trailed off and took a deep breath. "But it also means that I can be taken advantage of due to my status." The monks at the Western Air Temple had never left me alone about that, constantly reminding me and urging me to be cautious. Kimiko nodded in agreement, looking slightly upset, she knew exactly what I was talking about.

"Your right, the disadvantages of being a woman…"

"I'm sorry…" said Sokka his expression softer. "Girls do sometimes have it tough."

"He admits it!" Kimiko squealed and she hugged him. I broke into a smile and laughed.

"So where to first?" asked Sokka once Kimiko let go of him.

"Well we need supplies so I'd say…Keyoshi Island," I said, "Then I need to check what happened to my air temple." I knew that both places were fairly close together, and that as much as I wanted to go home, food was a more important matter. Kimiko nodded and leaned back.

"You can drive, I'm not good at it… I almost crashed."

"It's not that hard if Appa knows where he's supposed to go," I said privately wondering if it was even possible to crash an animal. I leaned over and patted Appa's head. "Hey, lets go to Keyoshi Island ok?" He blinked and adjusted his course slightly. I had taught him where places were and where to go based on what location I told him.

"See?" And I sat in the back with them, wondering and speculating the future and what it held for me.

--

Well I hope you enjoyed! We wrote this ages ago and have been debated whether or not to post it. Just to clear up some possible confusions:

Katara does not exist...sorry Kimiko is an OC instead of her. Sokka and her are not blood relatives!

We thought it would be very interesting if the Avatar was actually a girl in disguise...

And sorry, most of the stuff won't happen in chronological order... and possibly not at all. But then it's more interesting that way isn't it?

Please review and give us any comments or criticisms that would make it better!