Two months and four days since I'd left my home in search of my Aunt June, I needed to find her so that I could use her shirshu to find my father Manirak. He'd been missing for nearly a year. Sadly it didn't take long for a small town girl like me to get lost in the big wide world.

It had been three weeks since I lost my map, and it was now a week that I'd been traveling on foot after having my ostrich-horse and most of my belongings stolen. Talk about bad luck, to make it worse I was completely lost, and had no idea where to go.

I'd been on the right path to the seedy little Earth Kingdom bar my Aunt frequented, until the bandits came and I tried following them to catch my ostrich-horse, I'd lost the trail after that. Looking back it had been a rather dumb idea, but I'd had to try to get the ostrich-horse back. Now I somehow found myself overlooking a cliff dangling my feet over the edge as the sun set.

I had a few options, I could turn around and go back the way I came, or follow the stone steps that led down the side of the cliff. In my heart I knew that my father was dead, but I had to try and find him, or find out what had happened. I never knew my mother, and he'd never really been open about their relationship. My Aunt June would sometimes come visit, but even she was closed mouthed about my mother.

With a sigh I stood and began walking down the stone steps. As I descended the cliff I came across bushes covered in blueberries. I was running out of food, but thankfully Aunt June had taught me all about edible plants as a kid. She said she was preparing me to follow in the family business and become a bounty hunter. I once asked why I needed to know about plants to be a bounty hunter, and her response was that you never knew when you'd be without food.

The steps ended and I found I was standing on a large smooth balcony. Huge statues of ancient airbenders were carved into the rock face. I hadn't realized my mouth had fallen open until I nearly swallowed a bug. Coughing I made my way through the giant abandoned temple. There were hallways and stairs all over the place.

My heart was saddened as I realized this had once been one of the temples of the air nomads. The architecture was stunning and ingenious. All of the buildings had been built on the underside of the cliff, making the buildings look like they'd been built upside down.

As I traversed the halls I was stunned by the wall mosaics, they told of the air nomad histories, about the sky bison and how air bending came to be. After walking around for a long time I came upon a hallway with rooms. I wandered around a little more, discovering that the hallway the rooms were located on led all the way to a central balcony area. There were giant doors that were opened wide to a second balcony with a natural water fountain. There was a basin to collect the water, and the excess water overflowed off the balcony. I walked back to the rooms as the world darkened into night behind me.

There was a fine layer of dust over everything, but the mattress was cleaner than my recent grass beds and free of bugs and vermin. I tossed my small bag, the one thing I'd been able to save after being robbed, onto the bed. There was a large window at the top of the room and I could see a few stars. I curled up onto the bed and closed my eyes. This place seemed safe for now, in the morning I would worry about where I was going, and how in the world I was going to find my way back to my Aunt June. I was resourceful for a fifteen year old, going to be sixteen in a few months, but being alone was starting to wear on my nerves.

I sat straight up in bed, my heart racing. The night-terrors had started after my father had gone missing. They'd only worsened the longer he'd been gone. It wasn't the first time I'd woken up with this feeling, and just like all the previous times I couldn't remember what I'd been dreaming of, but I knew it had something to do with my father being dead.

I looked out the window and noticed the sun was already past its zenith, I'd really slept in. Course it was the first time I'd slept in a bed in two months, I'd been exhausted without really realizing it. I stretched my arms over my head and loosened my stiff muscles. The afternoon darkened as I yet again faced the fact I was on my own and lost. The plants could tell me the type of people that had trampled upon them, but these plants had been abandoned for over a hundred years. They couldn't help me find the way back to my Aunt June or the Abbey. There'd been a storm after I'd been robbed, to top off my luck, so even if I did manage to find my way back to the road I'd still be lost.

I sighed as I buckled my sage green over skirt around my waist, it was slit in the front to allow movement, and worked nicely as a blanket. I didn't have any other clothes since my ostrich-horse was stolen. I ran my hands down my beige colored capri pants, they were slightly dirty, I'd luckily been able to wash them the day before, so I was looking at stains.

My billowy 3/4 sleeve shirt was slightly stained and bared some of my midriff. This was the shirt I usually wore while cleaning my clothes. Thankfully I'd managed to grab my emerald green and gold over vest before the bandits had taken it as well. I'd been using it as a pillow lately. I slipped into my boots and then packed the little provisions I had back in my sack. I quickly braided my hair into my signature herringbone braid and walked back towards the stairs. I'd have to find a different way back to my Aunt June, I wasn't able to scale down a mountain, and I did know that would be the wrong way.

As I neared the stairs I heard voices coming from a different balcony. Had I been wrong? Did people still live here? Would they be able to help me find my Aunt June? There were quite a few voices, and they were arguing with one another. I wasn't sure if I should show myself, so I hid behind one of the structural pillars and peered around it as discreetly as I could.

One of the boys, or rather a guy my age, was wearing a blue tunic that was obviously attire in the style of the Water Tribe. It was similar in style to an old tunic my Dad would occasionally wear. I grew up knowing that he was from the Southern Water tribe, and we'd gone and visited a few times. He'd been a master waterbender, and as soon as we learned that I could waterbend he began teaching me. I was now a master myself with the ability to heal, and bend plants. Though I figured that out on my own

One of the strangers was a teenage girl, I'd guess she was about thirteen or so, who was also dressed in clothing from the Southern Water tribe. She had blue wraps around her forearms and a sky blue outer tunic covered her shoulders. She had blue pants on under the tunic and her feet were encased in boots.

There was a younger boy and girl who both looked to be about twelve years old. The boy had a blue arrow that looked tattooed on his forehead. He was wearing a strange orange and yellow wrap, as well as odd Fire Nation pants and boots. The second girl wore her dark hair tucked up in a headband, and was wearing a grass green undertunic and matching pants underneath a pale green, almost yellow over tunic. She wasn't wearing shoes, but I could only see her from the side.

"Guys, there's another girl over there." The green clothed girl pointed in my direction, but she didn't turn her head. I hadn't made a sound! How'd she know I was here? I sighed, and decided I'd better confront them instead of running away. I stepped around the corner and began walking towards them.

"Who are you?" the boy with the blue arrow asked as the four of them stood and faced me. They'd been sitting on a few pillars that had toppled over the past hundred years.

"My name is Malina, but you can call me Mal," I hoped I sounded friendly, as I looked at the boy with the tattoo. They were cautious, but I only felt friendly vibes from them.

"You're named after the sun goddess of the Water Tribe?" the girl in blue asked, "but you're dressed in attire that looks like it came from the Earth Kingdom."

"My father was from the Southern Water tribe. He liked the name," I said with a shrug of my shoulders, "he prayed a lot to the sun goddess. My mother was part of a family of bounty hunters that live in the Earth Kingdom."

"You look familiar," the boy in blue said as he rubbed his chin and stared at me. "What was your Dad's name?"

"His name was Manirak," I said with a shrug.

"What?" Both the blue boy and girl exclaimed in unison. My eyebrows rose and I looked between the two like they were crazy. They were obviously surprised, but both were smiling at me excitedly.

"He was your Dad?" blue boy asked, stating the obvious.

"Yeah, why do you guys seem so surprised?"

"How did you get way out here?" the two asked at the same time.

"It's a long story," I sighed but walked closer to them. It didn't seem like they were going to attack me.

"We have time," arrow boy said as he sat back down. The others followed his lead and I leaned against the edge of one of the pillars.

"First off, what are your names?" It was getting irritating referring to them by the color of their clothing.

"I'm Aang," the boy with the arrow said.

"I'm Sokka," blue boy said with a smile, and the name triggered something in the back of my mind. Why did it sound familiar?

"I'm Katara, it's nice to meet you Malina," the girl in blue said as she clasped her hands together and smiled at me.

"Please, just Mal," I said with a shake of my head and then looked at the girl dressed in green. She was blind. How in the world had a blind girl known where I was standing?

"The name's Toph," she said as she crossed her arms, "I'm Aang's earthbending teacher."

"It's nice to meet all of you," I said and smiled back. After being alone for so long it felt great to talk to people, especially people who weren't trying to steal my stuff.

"So how'd you get here?" said Aang.

"Well, almost a year ago my Dad disappeared. He'd gone marketing, but he never came home. About two months ago I decided to head after him. I followed his trail by reading the plants."

"You waited nearly a year to go in search of your Dad?" Sokka asked perplexed.

"Well he works for the Terra Abbey," at their blank faces I sighed. "The Nun Perfumers of the Mo Ce Sea?" They nodded their heads and I continued. "It wasn't unusual for him to be gone for several months on a run, but he's never been gone this long. I was trying to find my Aunt June, but I've only been out of our village a few times and always with my Dad."

"So you went off alone?" Sokka looked at me like I was a moron.

"I was willing to do anything to find my Dad," I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him. "I'd been prepared. Purchased maps, and an ostrich-horse, and was doing quite on my own, but when you're set upon by earthbenders there's only so much one girl can do."

"What? That's horrible!" said Katara.

"Yeah, I was outnumbered five to one, even with my water bending I wasn't able to defeat them and they ran off with my ostrich-horse and the rest of my belongings. I do still have some things, like the miniture of my Dad and my money, but nothing else."

"You have a picture of your Dad?" Sokka perked up and looked at me hopefully.

"Yeah, just let me find it," I slung my bag off my shoulder and began to rummage through it. It wasn't in there. "I must have left it in the room, just let me go back and grab it." I stood and slung my bag back over my shoulder.

"Wait, before you go, how'd you and your Dad end up in the Earth Kingdom?" said Aang.

"Well, he promised my mother that he would live near her, so she could come visit me and still work, but she stopped coming when I was little and no one really speaks of her. My Aunt June still came around though, and after my mom disappeared my Dad stayed here. I think it was so that I'd still be close to my Mom's family. We did go and visit the Southern Water Tribe a few times," as I was talking an old memory surfaced.

"Sneak attack!" a young boy shouted as he threw a snowball that hit me in the back. I laughed, "Sokka that wasn't fair!" I shouted, but I threw a snowball back at the young boy. He threw another one at me, and this time when I threw the snow it turned to water and drenched Sokka.

"You're name is Sokka?" I looked at the boy and he nodded. I was stunned, was it possible that these were my cousins? "Let me go grab that miniture!" I quickly dashed back towards the room where I'd spent the night. I couldn't believe that I'd left the picture in the room.

"We'll meet you by the giant fountain!" Katara called after me. Thankfully I knew where it was.

It took me a few minutes to find the painting. It'd somehow slipped out of my bag and under the bed. I blew some dust off of it and looked into the familiar face of my father. The painter had managed to capture his mischievous smile and the blue of his eyes. I felt tears well in my eyes and quickly dashed them away.

I turned and walked back towards the fountain area, hoping that Sokka would recognize my Dad. It would be incredible if they were my cousins! I quickly walked up two flights of stairs and through the long hallway that led back to the fountain area. When I walked out from the hallway and into the main balcony there was a new guy standing and talking with them.

He looked to be about seventeen or eighteen, and on the left side of his face was a striking scar. It looked painful, but didn't detract from his handsome angular face, or his brilliant golden eyes. He was dressed in a red tunic with gold trim, I'd seen Fire Nation soldiers wearing similar garb and was instantly on edge, until I heard what they were discussing.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" the stranger said in a pleading voice. "You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me." I stood back a ways, not wanting to interfere in whatever discussion was going on.

"There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done," Aang sounded angry as he said this. "We'll never let you join us."

"You need to get out of here," Katara said as she glared at him. I felt bad for the guy, even though my father had most likely been taken and killed by the Fire Nation, and I had every right to hate them, there was something about this guy that screamed he was telling the truth. There was good in him, he knew it, but it seemed he was still surprised by it. Or at least that was the vibes I was getting from him. Sometimes being an empath was harder than it should be.

"I'm trying to explain that I'm not that person anymore."

"Either you leave, or we attack," Sokka said, all humor gone from his voice. He positioned himself so that his boomerang was in the attack position.

"If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner," the stranger slumped to his knees and held out his hands.

"No, we won't!" Katara shouted, and then bended a strong current of water directly at the stranger, it looked like a small wave. He fell back and lay prone on the ground for a second, then sat up as water dripped from his face. I found myself stepping forward to help him. "Get out of here now, and don't come back. If we ever see you again," Katara paused and then spit out, "well we better not see you again." The stranger got to his feet and walked towards me, we locked eyes and as he walked past I bended the water out of his clothes. His eyes widened slightly, but he continued walking until he disappeared out of sight.

"Who was that?" I walked towards them but looked back over my shoulder. I felt bad for him, he looked so sad and alone, and the emotions he was emitting were desolate and filled with grief. Everything in me wanted to go and comfort him.

"His name is Zuko," Katara's voice was filled with hatred. "He's the Prince of the Fire Nation, and he's hunted us and on multiple occasions has tried to capture Aang."

"Why would he try to capture Aang?" I took a closer look at the boy with the tattoo and began putting two-and-two together.

"I'm the Avatar," he shrugged his shoulders and smiled sheepishly.

"Well," I said with a laugh, "so you are." I looked back over my shoulder and let out a sigh, I knew what it was like to feel alone. I hadn't had anyone in over a year, not even Aunt June had come by our little farm to visit. I'd left a note, but unless she used Nyla, she would never find me.

"Hey don't worry about him," Sokka said as he come over and placed a hand on my shoulder. "He doesn't deserve your sympathy, his sister nearly killed Aang once, and he helped her. Can I take a look at that picture?"

I looked down at my hand and then handed the miniature over to Sokka. He looked at it and then a smile spread across his face. "Katara," he called and she came over looking between the two of us. "She is our cousin!" They enveloped me in a hug and we were all laughing, who would have ever thought that I'd find family in such an abandoned place?