Journey to the Fire Nation

[arrowed_monk]

Aang sighed as he tightened the straps on Appa's saddle.  He wasn't looking forward to the long ride back to the Fire Nation--not when he and Katara had only just gotten to the village they were in.  Sometimes he wondered what it was like to settle down, but he knew his feet wouldn't let him stay anywhere for too long

Comments

[waterwhipitgood]

Katara surveyed the room, hands on her hips. She had grown accustomed to not taking anything with her when they left, but it was hard when people would leave gifts along the way. Aang would usually refuse them, but if they left food, Katara would take it with, in her pack so they wouldn't have to stop as much. Noticing that they had left nothing, she turned on her heel and walked out the door.

She saw Aang already on Appa, twitching nervously. She didn't know the letter bothered him that much. She gave him a weak smile.

"Ready to go?"

[arrowed_monk]

Aang jumped slightly at the sound of her voice, then smiled down at her. Getting lost in thought wasn't always a good thing. "Yeah, I'm ready. We'll have to hurry--we're getting Suki and Ty Lee first, I think."

Eyeing her pack, he asked, "Need help getting that up here?"

[waterwhipitgood]

"I do. I hope you don't mind that I threw some of the fruit from that gift basket the people gave us in there."

She paused.

"We have to get those two first? I thought for sure we'd have more time alone."

[arrowed_monk]

He laughed weakly. "Yeah, that's fine. Better to use it than to let it go to waste, right? I just wish people didn't feel the need to give me things all the time."

Jumping down, he tossed the bag over one shoulder and took Katara's hand. "Up we go," he whispered, airbending them up.

"We'll have a bit of alone time. Was there something you wanted to talk about?" He couldn't help the blush rising on his cheeks. There were other things they could do besides talk.

[hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii guys]

[warrior_suki]

Throwing her pack over her shoulder, Suki decided to leave just a little bit earlier than planned, which meant that Ty Lee would have to catch up with her. That was fine anyway; Ty Lee could catch up to anyone, no matter how much of a head-start they had on her; Suki knew that better than anyone.

The shore scouts had reported a while back that Appa had landed, though it took her longer than she wanted to reply. She hoped she wasn't too late - the last thing she needed was Zuko getting irritated at them for being late.

As she rounded the rockface that encompassed the shoreline, a flash of orange and blue caught her gaze, and she smiled, quickening her pace. If she were to be honest, she would admit she was rather excited to be going; things had grown rather monotonous as of late.

But then her footsteps stuttered to a halt and she stared, unable to keep herself from gaping at the scene before her. Her first thought was, It's a good thing Sokka isn't here, followed by, Ugh, why do I have to be here?Then she smirked; After all, she

*tackles*

[arrowed_monk]

Aang jumped at the noise, instantly sitting up on his knees and feeling his face heat up. "I, uh, um... yeah, looks like that thing in your eye is gone, Katara!" After he shouted that, he instantly kicked himself. Why would he be looking for something in her eye while pinning her?

With beet-red ears, he spun around and saw Suki smirking up at him.

"H-hi, Suki, long time no see."

Re: *tackles*

[waterwhipitgood]

Katara pushed Aang away quickly, blushing furiously.

"Yes thank you Aang, you're a big help." she said, laughing uncomfortably.

"Suki, didn't see you there! How are you?"

BAD CHILDREN

[warrior_suki]

Suki smirked, unable to keep it in. She crossed her arms over her chest and raised a carefully painted eyebrow. "I'm surprised you could see me at all, what, with Aang's face in the way," she replied, her tone dry.

[sweetsugarcakes]

When Ty Lee awoke, Suki's things were gone, and so was Suki.

Oops.

Cramming all of her clothes in one sleeping roll was harder than she thought, but Ty Lee managed to put her strength training to use. She braided her hair with one hand and slathered face paint on with other, and though the finished effect wasn't as polished as she would've liked, they were going to spend the whole day a mile in the air; appearances didn't matter much. Hopping down the stairs while lacing up her left boot, she yelled a goodbye over her shoulder to her roommates that was somewhat strangled by the bean roll crammed in her mouth.

After sprinting back for her socks (she knew the sleeping roll felt too light), she made her way down the beach.

OH HAI THERE

[warrior_suki]

"Oh!" Suki shielded her eyes from the sun, catching a glimpse of brown hair and green clothes. "I think that's her now!"

And just on time, she thought with a smile.

It was just like she thought - Ty Lee would always catch up, if she had somewhere - or someone - to get to.

It used to be a vice, but now? Suki was glad to have her. She wasn't just a Warrior anymore - she was a friend.

Re: OH HAI THERE

[arrowed_monk]

Aang, still grumbling, glanced out toward the village. He squinted a little (was Suki some kind of superwoman with amazing sight?), and finally caught her in his gaze.

"Yeah, that's her. I guess it's about time to head out, then!"

[waterwhipitgood]

"Yeah, I think we're ready to go. Do you need me to grab anything?" she asked to everyone and no one at the same time.

[warrior_suki]

Suki smiled briefly at Ty Lee in greeting, then moved towards Appa's tail, giving him a gentle pat before lightly stepping onto his tail. As he brought it up towards the saddle, she walked upwards, carefully jumping off when she was close enough.

She carefully inspected the saddle before choosing a spot close to the edge, securing her pack to the side. She then sat cross-legged, one arm looped around the rim of the saddle casually.

"I'm ready when you are."

[arrowed_monk]

"Is everyone situated?" Aang called from the front. He didn't want to accidentally have someone fall off or anything. "Ty Lee, Suki, all set?"

Grinning (and finally feeling a bit calmer), he took the reigns and shouted, "Yip yip!"

Once they were in the air, the young Avatar turned to look at his friends. "Okay, where are we going next?"

[sweetsugarcakes]

Ty Lee tried very carefully to pry her fingers from the saddle.

"A-are you sure this thing is safe?"

[waterwhipitgood]

"Don't we have to go pick up Sokka and Toph?" Katara asked, sliding close to Aang.

[warrior_suki]

Suki smiled, closing her eyes and letting the rushing air caress her face. She was looking forward to seeing Sokka again, even if they hadn't been apart for too long. "Good idea," she replied absently.

[waterwhipitgood]

A little while later, when Ty Lee had dozed off and Aang was curled up near the front of Appa, Katara slid over next to Suki.

"Hey Suki, can I ask you a question?"

[warrior_suki]

Suki opened her eyes, somewhat surprised by how serious Katara sounded. She looked over, and it was clear that something was bothering the other girl.

"Sure, ask away."