The following is a disclaimer: I own no part of the Avatar series. They are copyrighted by Nickelodeon; this is merely a fanfiction.

Now that I've got that out of the way, here's the scoop. The Avatar series has ended happily, but I always felt that there should have been a Book 4: Air. Well, I decided to go for it and write one myself. Here's my interpretation of the 4th book. Enjoy guys, and let me know if you like it!

Also, this story was written before Legend of Korra came out ... it may or may not contradict it. But this is my attempt at a Book 4. Hopefully you all enjoy it!

Book 4:

Air

Chapter one:

The Journal

Fall is arriving.

The warm glow of summer slowly fades away, and with it, all signs of war.

For the first time … people seem actually happy.

No longer are they terrorized by the forces of tyranny. The Avatar has seen to that.

A new season has begun … and a new era of peace as well.

But things are still dangerous in this tender time.

As a gentle breeze can become a gale, so can things collapse around us as well.

The other Nations are still at each other's throats, unsure of how to proceed. Some seek vengeance for past injustices.

There is also another matter.

An entire culture – a civilization – has been wiped out. We must find a way to save it, prevent it from complete extinction.

A lot is trying on us right now. We're all exhausted, but we still push forward into uncertainty.

But I do know one thing for sure.

The Avatar has saved the world…

"You know, you guys don't have to come with me if you don't want to." The bald headed monk stared ahead. This had to be the hundredth time he said that. He knew their answer too, having been given it a hundred times.

But he still had to be completely sure that they would stay with him. Particularly her.

"Same answer as before Aang – we're with you no matter what." Sokka belched as he lay on his back in Appa's saddle, shoveling handfuls of a snack into his gaping maw. "Man, these fire-flakes…" He moved to stuff his face again when a lemur leaped from nowhere and grabbed the fire-flakes out of his hand. "Momo!"

Aang, the Avatar, gave a chuckle. "I just don't want guys to feel as though you have to stick with me, you know? I mean, if you wanted to go back home, see your family…"

The girl next to him shook her head. "No, Aang. We know how important this is to you. Sokka and I can head home anytime we like. But, we want to see this through with you to the end."

The young monk blushed and tightened his grip on Appa's reigns. It had been less than two weeks since Sozin's Comet blazed up in the sky, empowering the seemingly invincible Fire Nation. He remembered his final confrontation with Fire Lord Ozai that day. He would have lost, had he not accidentally unleashed his blocked chakra, releasing the full fury of the Avatar State.

He remembered the pure energy coursing through his small body that moment. And then, as though by instinct, he managed to bind the Fire Lord, and use a special bending technique – Energybending – to render the Fire Lord harmless.

Thus, was the end of the war and the beginning of this new era of peace. Things seemed to be going for the better, especially in the Fire Nation. Fire Lord Zuko, his archenemy turned friend, was now in charge, and would guide his nation into a new way of life.

The Avatar felt a small pang in his chest, however. After the end of the war, they had parted ways with their friends. Toph, the blind Earthbender, had returned, grudgingly of course, back to her parents in the Earth Kingdom.

Zuko and Mai would return to the Fire Nation.

And Suki, Sokka's girlfriend, would return to Kyoshi Island, to continue her training with the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors. They had watched Sokka and Suki's goodbye, and frankly, the way they were going at it with their tongues was quite nauseating to the Avatar.

When are Katara and I going to do stuff like that? Wait … where did that thought come from?

Aang and Katara were tentatively "dating" now. They had agreed to take things slowly, but the young monk longed for when their relationship would deepen.

He shook the thoughts out of his head as the clouds began to part and a towering citadel appeared before them.

"There it is," exclaimed Aang, his grey eyes wide and his mouth grinning furiously. He pointed frantically ahead.

Sokka barely managed to roll over to get a good look at the towering structure before them.

Katara's eyes, meanwhile, were on the ecstatic monk. She was happy for Aang, happy that he was returning here. She was also glad they were with him, helping him look for any clues, anything that might help him find out if there were any survivors of his lost people.

The Southern Air Temple stood magnificently before them.

"May I have some more tea, please?"

"Of course."

The burly old man poured a nice hot cup of tea for the paying customer. Humming softly to himself, he moved behind the counter and into the kitchen to survey the operations. Several employees were hard at work, preparing more tea.

"No, no, no!" Iroh's eyes were bulging as he ran over to a young tea cooker. "You're crushing the leaves all wrong. Allow me to demonstrate."

The man rolled his eyes and allowed his employer to take over. Iroh was still talking, but the man was only half listening.

"You must not crush the leaves so furiously. Negative emotions makes negative tea, remember that." He hummed as he took hold of a small device and gently pressed down on the tea leaves in circular motion. "Tea must be made with love, not anger or frustration. Gentle motions, like this." He smiled at his employee as he handed him the device. "Now you try."

The employee copied Iroh's movements, but as soon as the old man was away, he went back to pulverizing the leaves with hammer-like motions.

Another employee came up to Iroh, a young girl. "Mr. Iroh!" She seemed to be out of breath.

"What is the matter, Jin?"

Jin had met Iroh last spring, when he set her up with his nephew "Lee." When his nephew returned to the Fire Nation, Iroh had told the teenager that "Lee" returned to his family in the circus. Jin was disappointed at first, but when Iroh offered her a post as a waitress, she quickly agreed (more out of hope of seeing "Lee" again).

"Mr. Iroh, your food stores have been tampered with," she hurriedly explained. "I was in the back room and getting extra tea like you asked, and I noticed that several boxes of food have been pulled open. I think you might have pests or something!"

The old man fretted worriedly. "Vermin?! In my tea store! Oh, this is very serious indeed; if word got out that the Jasmine Dragon was infested…" He shook his head and excused himself. He then rushed into the back room of the tea store.

The back room was Iroh's home. He had a nice mat on the floor, a sink, and a nice window with a bright flower on the sill.

And then he had several crates of food in the corner. He examined every last detail of the boxes. Indeed, they had been rummaged through, but it didn't look like any pest he'd ever seen. There were no tears or holes in the crates that are characteristic of pests. The tops had been pulled off.

Whatever it was was intelligent.

Iroh chortled to himself as he stroked his beard.

"It looks like we have a squatter!"

Fire Lord Zuko sat on a pillow on the floor of the war room. Several generals and military officers sat around a table with him. The previous Fire Lord sat above his generals, but Zuko refused to be like him. Here, he wanted to be on equal level with his men, make them comfortable.

"The 132nd regiment has currently withdrawn from the Earth Kingdom's southern coast and General Shu is on his way here with his troops." War Minister Qin had served Fire Lord Ozai ... he now begrudgingly worked as part of Fire Lord Zuko's war cabinet.

The Fire Lord nodded, his hands folded before him. "How soon can we have full demobilization? When can all of our men come home?"

"It could take up to a whole year for complete demobilization," Qin admitted. "There are some areas that could fall away into anarchy without a military presence there."

Zuko nodded. "Then do everything in your power to make sure that when our men do return home, those trouble spots are taken care of. Is there anything else?"

Another general opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it and bowed his head. The Fire Lord, however, motioned encouragingly with his hand. "Go on, General. I want everyone to be able to speak their minds here."

"Sir, there are some other problems beginning to crop up. Now that the war is over, much of the … Earth Kingdom populace still harbors strong sentiment against us. They've begun to attack our men as they march home. None of our men have been seriously hurt, but the attacks are a source of … annoyance…"

"Well, that is to be expected," Zuko responded. "I don't blame the world for hating us. But still, do everything possible to ensure our men's safety."

The general bowed his head, but then spoke again. "Please sir, that's not the only issue. We have some … domestic problems here as well. Many of our troops here aren't pleased that you've ended the war."

"I wouldn't expect them to be."

"But sir … they see you as a traitor. In fact, many of our citizens in the capital have formed a coalition. It's called the 'Alliance to Restore Ozai.'"

A young commander nodded knowingly. "I've heard of them. They're known by the catchy acronym, A.T.R.O."

Zuko drummed his folded fingers. He knew that there would be resentment towards him. Most of his citizens had been brainwashed in the schools to be fanatically loyal to his father. Even worse was the propaganda spewed to them that they were the "master race."

It was disgusting.

"Unlike my father, I allow dissenting views in this nation. They may be allowed to meet and voice their opinions as long as they do no harm. However, I would ask an eye be kept on them, in case they become violent." He looked around the table. "Is that all?"

The rest of the officers remained silent, and so Zuko stood up. At the same time, they stood as well and respectfully bowed to him.

The Fire Lord then briskly walked out of the war room.

It was time to pay Mai a visit.

"This is … I don't have any words to say."

Aang stood among the remains of his former home, trembling due to his mixture of heartbreak and anger. Even though he had seen the devastation last Winter, it still didn't remit the emotions. Before, while on Appa's back, he had been happy to be returning. But now…

He touched an area of the wall, his hand grazing the scored and blackened wall. As he did, he could hear the screaming of his kin, the roar of the flames. He snapped his hand away from the wall, as though he had been burned.

Katara's hands caressed his shoulders. "Are you going to be okay?"

The bald monk nodded. "Yea. Let's just go inside. See if we can find the library." Grabbing his staff, he marched inside of the temple, Katara and Sokka behind him.

...

"There's nothing here!"

Aang was sitting at a table in the Temple's library, literally dozens of scrolls laid out before him. "We've been here for three hours! I was hoping to find something that might give us a clue, a hint, anything to indicate if there was ever an emergency escape hatch. A secret hiding place or something!"

He held his hand in his heads.

Katara joined him at the table carrying more scrolls and books. "I got nothing from these," she sighed.

"Has Sokka had any luck?"

Katara turned around to look at her brother, who she saw lying fast asleep on the floor under a pile of papers and books. Momo was poking at his face with a stick.

"Something tells me he hasn't had much luck either…"

Aang's gaze wandered out the window towards the ruby red sunset and yawned. "Let's give up for tonight," he suggested. "Get some sleep and continue looking in the morning."

"Sokka's way ahead of you."

The Avatar tiredly stood up, grasping his staff, when a sudden impulse came to him. "Hey, I'll be right back. There's just … there's a place I just want to spend some alone time in."

"Are you sure you're going to be alright?"

Aang tried to smile encouragingly at her. "I'll be fine," he half lied before walking out the door.

...

Monk Gyatso's old bedroom.

It had been a lifetime since Aang had been here. There were many fond memories he had in this room. Playing Pai Sho with Gyatso, swapping jokes, receiving advice.

Gyatso had been his best friend and mentor. The connection he had with the man ran deeper than the tattoos on his body. When he had discovered his friend's demise …

The pain still gnawed at his heart.

But then his mind returned to Guru Pathik's voice. The words soothed his aching heart.

~0~

You've indeed felt a great loss. But love is a form of energy and it swirls all around us. The Air Nomads' love for you has not left this world. It is still inside your heart and is reborn in the form of new love…

~0~

Aang sat himself on Gyatso's old bed, sending up a cloud of dust which caused him to sneeze continuously.

And then he noticed something.

Something in the bed.

Furrowing his brow, he placed his hand under the mattress to remove the foreign object. His hand found it, and he pulled it out from under the bed.

It was a book.

No, upon further inspection, not just a book. It was a journal.

Monk Gyatso's journal.

Aang felt his eyes tear up. In his hands were his friend's deepest, most intimate thoughts. The young Airbender hesitated. Should he read it? No, it would be wrong to invade his old friend's private thoughts and feelings.

But at the same time…

What if there was something – a hint – of what might have become of the Air Nomads between the time he ran away and the time Fire Lord Sozin sent his attack?

Maybe he could find some clue that might show if any Air Nomads had survived, had passed on their teachings.

He couldn't stand not knowing.

What if he was destined to be the Last Airbender for the rest of his life?

Zuko and Mai were sitting outside on a blanket, just watching the setting. "I can't believe you're still making me do this," she grumbled. "Sunsets are so dull."

The Fire Lord laughed softly. "Well, like it or not, we're doing it every night, so get used to it."

"So you're giving me orders now, Mr. Fire Lord?"

"You could say that."

She rolled her eyes. "Speaking of Fire Lords, shouldn't you be in the palace. You know … overseeing things?"

"Hey, I need a break," he replied. "Don't worry about it," he assured her after seeing her shake her head. "I got Qin watching everything while we're on our date."

"Qin? The War Minister? Wasn't he like your father's biggest advisor?"

"He was. But things are changing now, Mai. I for one believe in second chances; after all, the Avatar gave me a million of them."

"Save your sappy stories…"

He drew closer to her. "Aaw, is Mai going to cry if she hears a 'sappy story'?" He loved teasing her, and if he couldn't make her happy, he did know how to rouse her temper.

She grit her teeth. "Shut it."

"Don't worry Mai. One of these days, I am going to make you show some kind of emotion."

She gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "There, happy?"

He smiled as he put his arm around her. "For now."

They sat there for a few moments, watching the setting sun in silence.

Finally, "I really hate sunsets."

The figure darted its way through the shadows, slinking around noiselessly. It was night, everyone had gone home, and the owner of the tea shop was fast asleep. It had better make this raid quick – the old man was already beginning to suspect something.

The thief allowed the darkness to consume it. It lived on darkness, thrived on it. The dark was its home, its whole life.

There!

The food crates, right there, within easy grasp. The thief would have to go about this more delicately. It couldn't afford to tear into the crates. There had to be a way to get at the food without breaking into it.

A sudden blaze of flame caught the thief off guard and sent it scurrying a few feet back.

"I caught you redhanded!"

Dang!

The old man was wide awake now. "You thought I was asleep, but the Dragon of the West never sleeps!"

The figure trembled in the dark, its breathing fast.

Iroh seemed to sense the uneasiness in his opponent and he slowly lowered his arms. "You know, if you were really that hungry, you didn't have to steal. I would have shared my food willingly with you."

"It's not that," the thief replied and Iroh was shocked to hear the voice of a little girl. "It's just … I was afraid you would send me away if you found me."

"Send you away?"

The figure came out from the shadows and Iroh nearly fell over in disbelief at the "thief" that stood before him.

"Toph?"

...

The blind Earthbender sat on a small mat on the ground as Iroh poured them both a cup of tea. "I'm sorry for breaking in and stealing your food, Iroh," she finally said.

"What I don't understand is why you're here, of all places! Shouldn't you be home with your family in Gao Ling? Didn't my nephew give you an honor escort home?"

She nodded. "He did, but I ditched those hog-monkeys and came here."

"Don't you miss your family?"

"I did – I do! And I was going to go home, please believe me, Iroh. But, I remembered all of the gang and all of the adventures we had and I couldn't go through with it. My parents would keep me under tighter restrictions and I would never be allowed to leave the estate or see Aang or anyone ever again!

"So I came here, and I've been living off your food stores for the past week. The food's not great, but hey, who am I to complain? I've been known to eat dirt!"

Iroh took a sip of his tea and Toph stared straight at the wall. "Please don't send me away," she finally implored. "I want to see Twinkletoes and Sugar Queen and even Snoozles again."

"I'll make a deal with you," Iroh finally said, placing his cup on the ground. "I'll let you stay here with me for a month. We'll visit my nephew and we'll make sure that Aang comes here to see you. I'll write a letter to your parents explaining the situation. But … there's something you must do for me. Two things, actually."

"What?"

"First, you have to promise me that after the month is over, you will return to your parents."

"Aaaw, come on!"

"Promise me, Toph."

"Fine," she grumbled, blowing a stray piece of hair from her forehead. "What's the second thing?"

This is where the old man's eyes lit up and a sly grin crept across his face. "If you're going to live here, you're going to work for me. You must work six hours a day as a waitress for the Jasmine Dragon."

Toph lay down on her back, hands behind her head. "You got a deal, Iroh. Just don't make me wear any fancy shoes."

"I won't. But you will wear the standard uniform. And … please try to be polite to the customers."

"I'm always polite."

He laughed and then began spreading an extra mat on the floor for Toph to sleep in. He looked up at her as he finished unfurling it.

"You begin first thing in the morning."

Aang sat in the library at a desk, pouring himself over Gyatso's journal. Katara and Sokka had set up cots in another room, but Aang couldn't sleep. He had shown Katara the journal but she had told him not to read it. "You can't invade other people's private thoughts," she had chided.

So Aang snuck away when they were asleep. If there was any chance of Gyatso knowing anything … any chance at all of finding out if any Air Nomads might have been forewarned of the attack…

Nothing.

He had been reading for hours on end. Gyatso had poured his heart out into this journal, talking about his feelings, his thoughts, daily events.

But there was nothing to indicate whether the Air Nomads had any prior knowledge of an attack and had thus prepared.

Oh, but wait a minute. Here was an interesting entry.

It was near the end of the journal, and Gyatso's handwriting seemed frenetic and emotionally charged. Aang settled in as he read this entry.

I've just had some jolting news. The Air Council has decreed that Aang is to be taken away from me - sent to the Eastern Air Temple. They feel that my emotions for Aang are hindering his training.

I won't let them take the boy away from me - I won't. Yes, maybe I have become a little too attached to him, but that is only natural. The boy is like a son to me. He still needs me.

But perhaps I am being selfish. Perhaps the Council is right and Aang and I must be separated. There is a war coming, as the Spirits have told us. The Great Comet will be here by the end of the summer and Aang has barely mastered Airbending.

If the Fire Nation does start a war, we can be sure they'll be coming after the Air Nomads first. They want to extinguish the Avatar Spirit. I can keep Aang safe, but if they take him away from me, then who knows what will become of him?

And as for the Air Nomads ... I have heard the rumors. I know that Fire Lord Sozin left Avatar Roku for dead. He's a ruthless dictator. Aang is our top priority right now! He must complete his training! If the Fire Lord gets his hands on him ... I shudder to think what will happen.

But I must find a way to convince the Council to let Aang stay with me!

Aang bit his lip, and decided to proceed to Gyatso's next entry. But, what had he meant when he said "I can keep Aang safe"?

Perhaps the next entry held new answers.

His heart was pounding. He knew that this was around the time that he ran away. He didn't want to read Gyatso's reaction. He dreaded to read his feelings.

But he had to go on.

I'm still in shock.

I can't believe that Aang is actually gone. He left me a note, of course. I fought so hard to keep him here with me, and now he's gone after all.

I can understand why he did it, but it was a foolish move all the same. He may be the Avatar, but he's all alone! If he gets captured ...

No, I mustn't think like that. Aang is resourceful. He will find a way to endure, to survive.

But the pain is so unbearable!

But I must focus on other priorities. The Fire Nation is mobilizing its troops and they're marching on our position. When they come, I must fight to defend my people. I know that some are fleeing to the Fifth Air Temple. Only a select few within our culture are aware of it existence.

If I must, I will die to protect its location!

I need ...

The entry was cut short as Aang noticed that the bottom half of the page had been torn out. How odd! Could Gyatso have done it?

The news, however, of a new Air Temple, a fifth one, really stirred in Aang's blood. He had never heard of a fifth temple before. And Gyatso had said that some of the Air Nomads were heading there. He also hinted that the Fire Nation didn't know of its location.

This gave him new hope. Perhaps some Air Nomads had escaped and reached this fifth temple. Perhaps some had survived and carried on his culture to this very day.

He had to find its location! If there were other Air Nomads there, they could rebuild their lost nation.

However, he had no idea to start.

More disturbing was the missing half of that page. He didn't know if it was Gyatso or someone else who had torn it out.

All he knew was that someone didn't want that page read…

Okay, so there's the first chapter. Please Review. I have the plot basically in my head and mostly developed, but if anyone has any ideas, I'd love to hear them. I'd love some constructive criticism, but no flames please.