Avatar: the Last Airbender NES

This is going to be freaking epic. The end. I'm not even going to specify any rules because I know you guys won't break them.


Name:
Gender:
Age:
Personality:
Appearance:
Nation:
Skill:
History:
Other:

This is just going to be epic.
As Aang and Rachel would say: XD

I see you guys love all the emoticons I added on here!
Dunno what character to make......
I CALL THE AIRBENDER!

Name: Naomi
Gender: FEMALE!
Age: 17
Personality: How would you describe my personality? Well, she's going to be an alter-ego me, so whatever. Um. She's easily angered, and that get's really scary. Defensive. Stubborn. Easily irritated and sort of arrogant. Gosh. Do I HAVE any good qualities? Um. Quoting Rachel: "Beautiful, witty, charming, silly, slutty (JUST KIDDING, JUST KIDDING!, fun, stands up for self and others and opinions." Oh, duh! HOPELESS ROMANTIC!
Appearance: Gold (THE ONLY BLONDE IN THE HISTORY OF AVATAR!) hair that's curly and long and really awesome pretty green eyes. Quite pretty. Wears flowers in her hair and kinda rebels against fire nation fashion and wears more like the pretty Earth-Kingdom fancy robes (I'll find a picture for you if you want one) but in red and pink instead of green and brown. 5'7", way too skinny. Couple burns on her hands and little ones on her cheeks that you can't even see. Wears make-up.
Nation: Fire (Yeah. It's awesome.)
Skill: Pretty decent fire bender, not SUPER good. She typically likes using fire for my productive purposes than burning things and fighting, like candles (she compares fire to love way to often. Thinks the two are synonymous. It gets irritating.) Good at meditating and making tea even though she doesn't do it frequently enough to effect her over-all attitude. Imagine fire bending is to writing as acting is to meditating as tea is to tea.
History: Daughter of a nobleWOman from of the Fire Nation. Like a war strategist or something like that - it's unimportant. So she grew up being treated like somewhat of princess, even though she wasn't one. Dad ran off with an servant girl when she was nine. Has an annoying little brother who makes her fire bending a lot... harsher. He can fire bend a little bit but is more interested in sword fighting. Was a student of Iroh (which is where all of her good principles come from). They're buds. She thought she was a princess growing up and now that she realizes she isn't, it makes her very frustrated.
Other:Not that I can think of right now... I want her to have a pet but I don't know what.

Name: Amaya
Gender: Female
Age: 15 (courtesy of Rose {Hehe. No problem. } <-- Rose)
Personality: Sorta timid most of the time, but rather crazy and funny once you get to know her, kind of quite, but crazy in time. Really, really sweet and very huggable. Sorta crazy though........ Sorry, you needed a negative trait. <--- All Rose It's find that I have a negative trait. Duh. Nobody's perfect, don't make me a fail personality because I have zip negatives. Adding: I feel like I'd be like Katara, apologizing if she accidently beats someone up, you know? What episode was that, when the guy was mad that they destroyed his fancy doors? Haha. Well, she'd be like that to people she doesn't want to beat up, but other people who she hates, she wouldn't hesitate throwing them off a bridge.
Appearance: Asian. Duh. Long black hair, braided. No weird loops. Full lips? <-- Rose Taller than me...shorter than Sokka. Wears: average water tribe clothing. AND HAS A GORGEOUS FIGURE! <--- Rose
Nation: Northern Water Tribe
Skill: Fail of a water bender, getting better. ROAR ROSE!! I'm not a character writer!! I'm all awkward everywhere!!! I have no strengths in certain writing bits, just a jack of all trades!! ROAR!!!!! Uh....skill. Fine. FLIPPING BASKET WEAVING. (Are you kidding me? <- Rose) Then we'll do it like I did Naomi's firebending--WATERBENDING SKILL IS TO WRITING SKILL! She's a jack-of-all trades, can do well whatever you set her up with, but has no real specialty, YET! <-- Rose She has an affinity with animals, even if they aren't from her...element? Yeah. Because those bird horse things are AMAZING.
History: Currently resides in the Southern Water Tribe, traveled there after the war ended. Met up with Katara to have her teach her water bending. She, Aang, and Katara are now back in the Northern Water Tribe, gathering supplies to make the Southern Water Tribe better.
Other: Katara and Aang have drifted away, and now Amaya and Aang have started dating,

Rose: Dude. This is a FAIL! An epic one.

Name: Aellai (It means 'whirlwinds')
Gender: Female
Age: 15
Personality: Sarcastic, strong-willed, brave, head-strong, independent, a relatively short fuse with a huge explosion, holds grudges, can be very irritable, but when she wants to be, she is very kind and caring, and she is also a fierce fighter, so she will stand up for those that she loves.
Appearance: Chin-length brown hair (Like Britta's!) with straight bangs across her eyebrows. Blueish-grey eyes, pale, petit, and has a big smile!
Nation: Eastern Air Temple
Skill: Like what? Gliding? She's an epic air bender. And she's really good at combat.
History: When the Fire benders attacked her temple where the refugees had gathered, her mentor told her to run, and that's what she did. She still regrets and feels guilty about that and it constantly eats at her. She hid herself in the Earth Kingdom city of Omashu. She's been living on the streets, thieving, and finally decided to leave.
Other: Not at the moment
*Hey guys. If you edit one-another's posts, PLEASE at least change the color of your text. It gets SO confusing!!! *

Naomi liked the way it felt on her fingertips—the small flames dancing in confinement, creating a puddle of vanilla-scented liquid around it she wondered if a waterbender could control. It was singular, only one aching for another—like one little heart wanting love. It jumped and flickered and begged her for love, begged to burn brightly with another. Naomi planned to give it what it wanted. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, the swaying light keeping time. When she opened, there were 99 more of those little hearts, all begging for each other. The scent of vanilla became even stronger. It was gorgeous—a sea of perfect candles. But Naomi wanted more for them. She closed her eyes and took another breath. Then, all the little flames were one—one ball of hungry fire. She felt proud heat fill her blood, but it wasn’t perfect yet. Almost like a waterbender, her arms moved in a flowing yet forceful motion as if the inferno she was sculpting was clay. The ball turned into a heart, just like she commanded it to—beating, craving, burning. I burst once it could take no more and fell back to the Earth like shooting stars to their brown wickers. Naomi beamed at herself and the beauty she had created from something destructive.
A clapping sound came from behind her.
“Well don, my pupil. But you will want to keep the heart’s flames more tightly bound or someone might mistake it for something it is not.” The voce was slow but purposeful and strong, the mouth it came from belonged to a plump, gray-haired man.
“Master Iroh!” Naomi exclaimed, a little startled, “Thank you,” she bowed.
“you are a beautiful firebender. Each time you take a breath, you help repair our nation’s tarnished name.”
She blushed, thanked him, and bowed again.
“Speaking of beautiful firebending and tarnished names, have you met my nephew?”
Naomi laughed at his silly desperation for his nephew, “Of course! I didn’t come to the palace often because I was never friends with his monster of a sister but my mother took us whenever she could for ‘political education’. Not to be rude, but I never really liked him—he’s always so angry.”
Iroh laughed the hearty laugh of old, joyful men, "Yes, he is angry all the time, isn't he? But that is only because he doesn't have a lady-friend."
Naomi giggled even harder and bent the flames of the candles into the three lanterns of the large room. "He and Mae were never going to last. It's his own fault for thinking they would. You're the one who taught me that two negatives don't work well together--the fire created will be hot and angry and uncontrollable. Neither is two positives, that fire is too timid. Only one negative and one positive firebender will create the perfect balance and the best combined flame."
"Well, yes. And you are such a lovely, positive young lady."
"Master Iroh, I" not sure I'm enjoying where this conversation is going..."
"He just needs some cheering up, that's all. All I ask is for one walk around the palace together."
"But he's so infuriatingly sulky. I"m sure we wouldn't get along."
"I know you both better than you know yourselves and you'd be so wonderful together!"
Naomi felt her hands heating, begging to throw a hormonal for ball at the wall in stubborn, adolescent protest. However, she collected herself and continued to pretend to be a prefect little noblewoman's daughter. "Master Iroh--"
"Do it for me, your poor, old master who wants nothing more from his life than to see his nephew who is like a son to him, to be happy and loved. And to be a great-uncle to his many adorable, possibly gold-haired, children."
She instantly grabbed a loose strand of her freakishly light hair and self-consciously pushed it behind her ear. "Master Iroh... What if he doesn't like me?"
"I promise you, my dear," he took her soft, pale hand and looked into her soul with those all-knowing eyes. "He will."
"All right," she gave in, "One date."

Rose wrote:How is Aelli over a hundred years old?

Technically, Aang's 112.... Oh Rose, found this while trying to find a background for my computer.

YES! WIN!!!
Okay, Rachel, this is what I was thinking for your character (because she's a FEMALE AIRbender. Which never happens). If you haven't noticed there are NO female airbenders. Why? Because it turns out the monks are kind of sexist. I mean, have you ever SEEN a female airbender besides the Avatar? No. But of course they HAVE to exist because of, well, reproduction. So maybe the monks put all the woman in a place where the firebenders couldn't find them. The female airbenders are hidden somewhere. And the reason they continued to live is because all the boys they were pregnant with at the time didn't go to the temples and stuff and they stayed with all the females until it was a balanced population of men and women and once the war ended, they came out of hiding! TA-DA! I'm awesome.

*That's a really good idea!
But I kinda wanted to take it in a different direction, where the guilt of leaving her people eats and eats and eats away at her. It's sort of like her eternal flaw that she can never forgive herself. And that one avatar he met on that turtle lion spirit thing was a female air bender!!!*

*God. I just have NO life. Well, either way, I have everything all planned out in my mind and it's going to take a couple more posts before Naomi's going to be ready to meet you guys. But we'll discuss all that later. I'm just a looser. *

The sky above the one of the palace's many courtyards was bright blue, a nice contrast to the soft pink buds of the cherry blossom trees and the sharp green of the grass. It was a beautiful little courtyard. Naomi was spinning fallen buds in between her index finger and thumb absentmindedly, humming a song she had never heard aloud before. She wore her long, golden curls tumbling down her shoulders except for the strand that normally fell over her left eye--that she pinned back with another fallen, pink blossom. Her robes were light red and rose--her finest that made her look two inches taller, significantly bustier, and a waist as slim as a stem of a jade plant. Her large eyes sparkled like a green sea. Her skin was that of a doll's. She looked completely gorgeous. And she couldn't believe she was wasting this on the protentous, rude, angry Prince Zuko.
"Lady Naomi," Her master's voice said to the right of her. She perked up and smiled her charming smile, the one that made everyone believe that she was the great spirits' gift to man.
The person who stood beside her old, plump master was his opposite in nearly every way. His hair was still dark as midnight, pulled up with the shortest strands lying on his pale forehead. He was strong and sturdy and donned in the most proper clothes for the Fire Nation prince. The rumored burn covered his left eye. It was intriguing and frightening. But somehow, Naomi liked the burst of adrenaline it gave her. She shrugged that off. He and his uncle had the same amber eyes. Except Zuko's looked as dangerous as his scar, and Iroh's simply seemed hopeful.
"Hello," she stood and bowed, dropping the poor little flower to the ground. "It's enchanting to see you, Prince Zuko." Naomi made she sure said it like she actually was enchanted by the man.
"You as well, Lady Naomi," he was doing a worse job of faking amusement than she.
Iroh beamed and said, with full integrity, "You look wonderful today, you're like one of the sun's beautiful rays." He continued to smile and elbowed his nephew, who was awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck and looking distant.
"Yeah, you look great."
Naomi hoped the powder blush she was wearing would suffice for the real thing, "Thank you. It's such an honor to be in your presence. I trust all the tales about you are true."
"That depends on who you ask," Zuko replied coolly.
Iroh chuckled deeply, "I see you have much to discuss. I'll leave you to enjoy your afternoon." He smiled and walked the path away from the two of them, as he passed Naomi he whispered, "I feel that the positive and the negative are attracting."
Naomi giggled, but it was more from astonishment than flattery.
The silence came back. And it burned without wanting words from Naomi as she stood there and uncomfortably assessed her date. It was astonishing to her how physically attractive he was. Even with that scar. It made him more mysterious, more alluring. She pinched herself out of the thought of him pulling her close and pressing his lips against her own just like flames will blend together into one if there's enough wood to burn. She didn't want to be another name on the list of girls who were in love with how he moved, how he stood there awkwardly shifted his weight and looked so lost and angry at the world. She pinched herself with the thoughts of the days when they were young and she was innocent and he was still the same old douche bag in a younger form. That was better than any literal pinch.
"So... Uh... Should we start walking?"
"Fine," Naomi's one word reply was in the vain hope that he'd shut his mouth.
"Um... Where did you grow up?"
The fire that wanted to slip from out of her fingertips was getting harder to control and the perfect persona was nearly completely out the door. If there was one person she hated in the world, it was Prince Zuko.
"Down the street," she tried hard not to snap, "You should know that, I've known you all my life," she said under her breath.
"Oh. Sorry. A lot's happened and I don't remember a lot of my childhood." He didn't look at her as he talked, only straight forward at where they were going.
Her core was becoming hotter and breath instinctively preparing for a fight, even though she knew there wasn't going to be one.
"I'm sure." She swallowed a hiccup of fire.
"What about your family? Who's your father?"
"It doesn't matter," Naomi spat out like venom.
"All right, all right. Chill out. Never mind. I'm just trying to be polite."
She snapped, "Well, it's not working."
"What's your problem?! I know we don't want to go out with each other but you could at least pretend like I am for the sake of my uncle!" Zuko stopped and looked at her, actually yelling now.
Naomi yelled back, "Oh, it's always everyone else's problem, isn't it Prince Zuko?! Everyone in the world is just out to get you all the time! You poor, poor little thing! And nothing ever works out for you and your life is just miserable! Isn't it?!"
"What did I do to you?! Why do you hate me?!" His dark eyebrows were knit together in confused anger. Naomi knew her's looked the same.
"Doesn't everyone just hate little Prince Zuko?! You want to know why?! Because you're a cry baby! And you're so cynical and just a horrible person to be around! And you think you're so fantastic and that everyone should just grovel at your feet and love you unconditionally because you're so freaking handsome and so freaking alluring and so freaking perfect!"
"I'm not perfect! And I don't want anyone groveling at my feet! Did I do something to you?! If I did I am sorry I turned you into such a pathetic bitch! Why the hell did you even agree to this to begin with?! What do you want to do?! Fight me?!" Zuko inched closer to Naomi, balling his hands into fists, threatening her. She wasn't scared.
In her mind she was eight years old. Zuko nine and not really a prince. He was even handsome then, he was even angry then. He was just angry at Azula--his psychotic sister--and himself for not being as perfect as her. And Naomi was just an awkward little freak with blonde hair and a hatred of fire. But she didn't hate Zuko. She daydreamed in class about seeing him, made plans about what she'd say to him. And he didn't remember her name. Zuko liked Mae. Mae liked Zuko. Naomi liked Zuko, too. But Naomi wasn't important enough, or at least that's what Mae said. And when Naomi asked Zuko himself if she was important enough, he said no. But Naomi had a fireproof heart from then on (she learned that a hundred thousand tears helped form the barrier), and it was something that did her well. But she didn't have a fireproof face and two years later when she was ten years old and Zuko was eleven and still not really a prince and still handsome and still angry, they practiced firebending together even though she still hated fire but she still hated him too. He didn't know how to control himself and neither did she and his dysfunctional relationship with flames left the first imprint on her cheek. And Mae didn't laugh often, but she laughed at the freaky blonde girl with burns on her face from a pretend Agni-Ki with her then, and future, boyfriend. And a year later she was twelve and he was thirteen and he was so, so handsome and so, so angry yet now an actual prince, at least a banished one. And he stole the one person away from her that really understood her--the one person who could teach her how fire was like a heart, who understood the destruction as well as the love. The one who taught her that and more and made her feel like the burns on her face really were fading and her hair was like the sun--the thing that gave power to all the firebenders and light to all the people. Zuko stole Iroh away from her for four long, hopeless years of misery and he didn't even want Iroh himself. That is what her problem was. That is what he did to her.
"Yes! Yes, I would love to fight you!" Naomi screamed, she hated what he did to her. She hated even more he didn't remember.
"Fine! I challenge you to an Agni-Ki!"
"Good!" Her hatred for him was boiling hot at that moment, but she couldn't help feeling the magnetism she felt when she was eight years old. Zuko was a gorgeous, evil magnet.

*Hehehehe, swearing, Rose!! I feel so rebellious!*

*I know. It seemed rather fitting... *

The sun was slowly beginning to sink below the horizon, but Naomi wasn't paying attention to it. She had stripped down to her under shirt and shorts, not wanting to damage her pretty robes as she kicked the prince's ass in Agni-Ki. Her back was turned to him and she knelled on the ground as she plotted out her strategy, she knew he was doing the same. But she was determined and the long, light hair was pulled off her shoulders, ready for anything. Killing him was optional, winning was necessary. She was going to get him back and he was going to feel sorry, he was going to remember her. This was so similar and so different from that day seven years ago. He wasn't going to burn her anymore. Naomi stood and turned, she knew she was ready.
It startled her--his strong, bare chest and dark hair that fell over his face and that dark, angry look in his eyes. It knocked the breath out of her like someone had slapped her in the face. That wasn't the best way to start an Agni-Kai, ever, let alone one you felt you had to win to regain your honor. Proper breath support was key to perfect firebending. But she couldn't breath, she couldn't seem to find the strength to fight him anymore.
"I don't want to fight you," he said calmly. "I'm sorry. Just tell me what I did to you!"
Naomi thought of the four long years where she had no one, of the teasing as a child, of the broken heart. Breath found her. "You're an ass. And I really want to fight you." She balled up her fists and took the first attack--a fireball he dodged. She narrowed her gaze angrily. Then a firebomb, which he blocked with a fire shield.
"Stop! Naomi, tell me what I did to you!" he screamed and contradictory blasted a stream of fire at her. She blocked and argumented it back on to Zuko.
Beads of sweat were running down his face. The magnetism pulled harder and she shot a couple fire daggers at him to counter it. He put up another fire shield and stealthily moved closer to her. "Naomi!"
She, in anger, threw three more fireballs. He dodged and launched a fire arc at her, in order to evade it, she had to take three steps closer. The positive and negative charges making her head spin. "You've made sure my life was miserable since I was eight years old, that's what you did!" She shot fire at his feet, making him hop backwards a couple steps, the charges cooled.
"HOW!? I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER YOU!" He stopped fighting her for a moment simply to scream, she took this as an invitation to shoot three more fireballs at him, which he blocked, of course.
"THAT'S WHY I HATE YOU SO MUCH!" Naomi made a fire whip. Zuko avoided it but coming closer to her, subconsciously she took two steps forward--the charge being so strong.
"Tell me what I did!" He threatened a blade of fire that he was keeping in palm.
"You took Iroh away from me! For four freaking years! And you burned me, on my face, when I was ten! And then you chose Mai over me when I was eight! And then you were a douche about all those things!"
It made her angry to say it out loud, it made her forget about the magnetism for a moment. The negative and positive charges didn't matter. She blasted the hottest stream of fire at him she could, from her hands and with her breath. It made her so angry, and when she finally stopped, he was still standing there. Neither moved for ticking seconds, until he created a fire lash just behind Naomi's heels, she jumped forward to escape the heat. She was steps away from him and the circle of fire around them made sure she wasn't going anywhere.
"I'm sorry," he said, out of breath. There was honesty in his tone.
The negative and positive charges were too strong, the magnetism too hard to control, the ring of fire around them too small, the passion too heated. They mirrored each other by closing in the little space between them.
Zuko pulled Naomi close and pressed his lips against her own just like flames will blend together into one if there's enough wood to burn.

Amaya stomped her foot on the ice she was standing on, annoyed. She was sweating with the effort of doing such a simple task. The water sloshed lazily, seeming to laugh at her for not being able to pull water from it. She moved her hands in an angry motion, forgetting the grace and elegance that went with waterbending. An unattractive blob of water wiggled it's way out of the pool, uneven and sloppy looking.
"You're getting better," a girl appeared behind Amaya. "Pass it over."
"Don't jinx me, Katara," Amaya said, throwing the ugly thing to Katara. The waterbender caught it and before passing it back, changed it to a smooth sphere, which stretched out like a comet as it came back towards Amaya.
"Just keep your focus," Katara advised.
Amaya nodded, she felt wind brush her neck, and the sphere of water turned back to an uneven orb, which then splashed onto her feet. Amaya sucked in her cheeks as she looked at the puddle she was now standing in. Slowly she breathed out, and then lifted the water back into a sphere, tossing it back to Katara.
"Good," Katara praised.
Amaya didn't reply this time, and focused on keeping the water off of her feet, and tossed it back to Katara. Katara spun around quickly, and then shot it back forcefully at Amaya. Amaya's eyes widened, and she panicked, frantically trying to find knowledge of a move that would block the move. She put her hands up simply, and hoped for the best. A stupid decision. Katara's blast knocked Amaya back and into the pool behind her.
"Fail," she groaned as she sat up.
Katara ran forward and pulled Amaya out of the water.
"You were doing good," she said, lifting the water off of Amaya and putting it back into the pool.
"Were." Amaya said shortly, but she nodded her head in thanks and started walking away. A random blast of air shot down and blocked her way out. "Come on, Aang, not now," she sighed.
Aang cleared the fog surrounding him and smiled. He gave Amaya a hug. Katara disappeared.
"Where you watching me?" Amaya asked, remembering the random breath of wind on her neck.
"Maybe," Aang smiled.
Amaya rolled her eyes. "I hope you know that you can wait until the end of my lesson until you bother me."
"But you weren't even being trained. Katara just happened to come along. What's wrong with that?"
"You distract me though. To bend, you must have concentration," Amaya teased lightly and raised her eyebrows. She grabbed Aang's hand and they walked back towards the palace of ice.

*Yes. Yes, I am in fact a post whore. As well as a whore-poster. So... Yeah. *

"Your feet are cold," Zuko said the words in a funny way. Like he wanted to say something else, but that was what came out.
"I get cold if I go too long without firebending," she smiled, she didn't know why in the world she was doing so, because she wasn't happy. Or maybe she was. She couldn't tell yet.
He didn't ask or anything polite like that, but he pulled her body even closer to his and began to radiate heat like a fire. Zuko was a fire. A hot, wild, beautiful, dangerous, comforting, frightening fire. "Better?"
She nodded.
It briefly crossed Naomi's mind the peculiarity of the bedchamber, really nothing but a giant bed in the middle of the room. No windows to look out onto the sun, the beautiful sun that is so essential to firebending. It wouldn't have mattered anyways. She knew it had already sunk deep below the horizon to sleep, just like Naomi was supposed to be doing in her own home. Her mother was probably worried sick. Instinctively, she thought of all the reasons she should leave. She then realized she didn't care. She really was happy.
"I want to know more about you," Zuko said.
Naomi laughed, "What's there to know? I'm just the freaky weird girl."
He ignored her, "Before, I asked you about your father and you snapped at me. Why? Will you tell me about him?"
Suddenly, she was serious, "This is usually the part where I leave and you never talk to me again." Her tone was awkward and timid.
Zuko sat up, pushing her off his chest, "Well, do you want to leave?" He scared her.
"No."
"Then stay and tell me about your family." The prince laid back down, she positioned her ear over his heart once again. She loved his heart beat. Fires are like heartbeats. Zuko had the strongest internal fire she'd ever had the pleasure of listening to.
Naomi began, "My mother is the one who takes care of me. She's the head of the Department of the People. She's controlling and nit-picky and projects all of the things she wishes for herself on to me. I love her, but she just doesn't understand..."
"What? What doesn't she understand?"
"Me. Why I'm here."
"Why are you here?"
Naomi paused for a moment, deciding whether or not to trust him. He was so harsh and blunt and rude, but it was a thirsty kind of persistence that she knew sprang from his own turmoil that he refused to speak of. She had to let him in so he could do the same for her.
"My father. He left us when I was nine. For a servant girl. They just ran away. He didn't even say good-bye. He didn't say he was coming back and he never did. I was sad, of course, but my brother wouldn't come out of his room for weeks. He got better for a couple years, but then he decided to run away to the army. He was ten. Like father like son, I guess. I haven't seen either of them since."
"I'm not sure which is more lethal--women or war."
She turned an embarrassed shade of carmine for a moment, then recovered, "I'm not sure either--one kills out of ignorance the other out of arrogance."
Naomi couldn't see it, but Zuko smiled slightly.
"You've tempted yourself with both, so I suppose it's safe to assume that you're ignorant and arrogant on top of being and awful, portentous jerk?" She tried to hide the laugh that was almost escaping from her lips.
He smiled more, despite his hatred of being called names, then turned serious again, "I'm sorry about your family."
She shrugged, "I don't think about it much. I try not to let it bother me and as long as I can keep my head on straight, it doesn't."
"You're strong."
"That's not what my mother says. She hates men now and doesn't want me around them at all. I'm weak for giving into them. To you. She would lock me in my room for weeks if she knew I was here. It's even worse since she knows how mean to me you used to be."
"Oh. Maybe you should leave," Zuko said timidly, not truly wanting her to go yet.
Naomi panicked and sat up so she could look the prince right in the eye, "No!" She felt stupid, "I mean, I can't let her win." He smiled slightly. She wanted his heat again and curled into him. "Tell me about your family." Instantly, she felt even more stupid than before. Everyone knew about his family. "I'm sorry. You don't have to answer that."
Zuko's brow hardened and he stared up at the ceiling. He looked like how Naomi did when she first started learning to send telepathic flames. Intense.
He ignored her apologies. "You know the stories of my sister and father. But my mother... She was so kind and gentle. No one has ever loved me like she loved me--except for Firelord Iroh, maybe--she sacrificed herself for me. My cousin Luten had just died and Iroh's bloodline ended. My father asked my grandfather if he could take Iroh's place, since his bloodline had ended. My grandfather refused told him he must know the pain of loosing a first born son. My own father was going to murder me. But my mother wouldn't let him do it. She saved me."
Naomi was quiet for a moment, not knowing what to say to something that shocking, "Why did you tell me this?"
"You remind me of her."
Naomi smiled.
"I miss her. A lot."
A sad peace was draped over them for a moment until Naomi asked softly, "Did he kill her? I can't imagine anyone killing their own--"
"I don't know," Zuko interrupted. "I have no idea what happened to her and I can't do anything about it." He practically threw Naomi off him and sat at the edge of the bed. He pulled at his hair and looked more hurt than she had ever seen him.
She timidly moved towards him and placed her hand on his shoulder, "Couldn't you just ask your father?"
From her slanted view of his face, she could see two furious tears run down his cheeks, "No! I killed him! He's dead, I killed him, because he wouldn't tell me. I lost my temper and I killed my own father! I'm just as horrible as he was." he screamed.
Startled, Naomi withdrew for a moment as tears gushed to her own eyes in shock and pity and something she couldn't name. She put her hand back on his shoulder.
"Let go of me," he said sternly.
"No," was her reply as she turned him to face her. "I'm not going to lie to you and tell you I know how you feel, because I don't. And I'm not going to say it gets better either because I have no freaking idea about that. But I know you are nothing like him. Nothing at all."
"You don't know that." Zuko recoiled away from her again, Naomi turned his face towards her again.
"I do! When I was little, I hated that I was a firebender because I knew what destruction it caused. That was one thing my father taught me. I hated how I couldn't control myself. But then I learned that fire is love and life and everything about being human that's worth achieving. It's drive and passion and warmth. You are like fire the way I see it now, Zuko. You are warm and passionate and determined. He is fire like I used to see it--destructive and evil and all too powerful. Don't ever say you are like him again because you're not," Naomi nearly yelled.
He gritted his teeth.
She laughed, releasing her tension as she thought of an old anecdote, "Same with your sister. She's just like him. Can I tell you something funny?" She continued anyways, even though he didn't say anything. "On the day of Sozin's Comet, I was serving as one of Azula's attendants, and before she 'banished' me... I, uh... Drugged her."
"What?!" Zuko shouted.
Naomi laughed harder, "Yeah. I put some funky herbs in her tea."
And for a moment everything was silent.
Then Zuko laughed and gave her a kiss on her forehead. And they both multiplied through the air and burned everything around them with fire that was like a sigh of relief, like a hundred thousand little vanilla scented candles.

“You could teach me. It doesn’t have to be all Katara, you know,” Amaya suggested. The pair was walking along the sides of the many canals that were the roads of the Northern Water Tribe.
“Don’t you want it to be all Katara though?” Aang looked at her, confused.
“You’re the Avatar, I’d learn a lot. Especially if you both teach me.”
“Well,” Aang said, thinking.
“If you both taught me, I wouldn’t have to embarrass you by being a fail of a water bender,” Amaya said, raising a bit of water out of the pool and splashing it back down, splattering the pair with water. “You wouldn’t have to deal with that.”
“It’s fine, Amaya. Katara’s a great teacher, and you’ll learn quickly. You aren’t a fail of a water bender. You’re great,” Aang said, leaning forward to give her a kiss.
Amaya giggled and accepted the kiss.
Aang pulled away and looked at her. “Perhaps I could teach you something…”
Amaya’s eyes widened and she dragged a rope of water from the pool and splashed him.
Aang countered it and splashed her with his glider staff.
Laughing, they splashed each other back and forth until Aang grabbed Amaya by the shoulders and they tumbled into the water, sinking beneath the bubbles and laughing out more air. The wiggling bubbles floated to the surface, and Amaya started to follow them, but Aang pulled her back down and gave her one long, watery kiss.

*Okay, how come everyone is making out in this NES???? *

*Because we want to make out with them. *

*HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! I LOVE YOU!!!!! *

Naomi's eyes fluttered open to look upon a room she didn't know. For a moment, she couldn't breathe, then she remembered. It was cold and Zuko was gone.. Exactly like every other night. She pulled back the scarlet sheets bearing the fire emblem and sat on the edge, cradling her head in he hands for a brief moment. She always woke up a lone. A pounding echoed through her mind--one that didn't ache but haunted. He was just the same. And naomi couldn't believe she'd told him all those things and listened to everything==his whole story from the very beginning--but she didn't regret that at all, she would hold that forever==his entrancing, alluring story.
Twirling her gold hair around her fingers, creating her pretty little curls, she straightened her spine but wasn't yet ready to get up.
A small bang echoed through the romo, Naomi turned. It was Zuko. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of him.
"Hey I, uhh.... I got your clothes cleaned for you." He crossed the room to hand them to her. After he did so, he pulled away. Her hand grabbed his.
"Thank you."
"No problem."
The words she spoke were meant to stay in her mind, but they jumped from her tongue like an eager, leaping flame in a sigh, "You're amazing..."
Zuko only reacted a little, a slight spark in his amber eyes. "Why do you have such light hair?"
Naomi laughed, "I don't know. I heard from someone a long time ago that there's so ancient legend about a firebender with gold hair but no one can remember it properly and no one really cares to."
Once again, he didn't as when he let his fingers touch one of the curls, "Maybe I'll find it for you."
She laughed a little more and stood to put on her robes.
"You should come back tonight. We could have dinner, uh, or something."
Naomi grinned, "Of course." She moved towards the door, then turned back, "About your mother... I believe she's alive. And I believe she misses you just as much as you miss her."
Zuko didn't say anything and turned away from her.
She kissed his cheek and said goodbye, promising to meet him in the courtyard in a few hours.
But she had no intentions of going home.

*Hah! Cute! (: Can't wait to get this thing in gear!*

For a day so beautiful and sunny, the dark hallways of the palace's underground jail were exceedingly frightening. Naomi kept breathing, letting the fire from her core heat her, comfort her.
"Hey! What are you doing down here?" A guard shouted. She jumped out of her skin for a second, then recovered. Naomi bent fire in a burst and threw the big guard against a wall. She took an offensive stance over his body lying helplessly on the ground.
"Were's Azula? I need to talk to her!"
"Down the hall and on the right, she's in the first cell," he cowered.
Naomi paused for a second, assessing the man's face before determining he was telling the truth. She ran down to where the guard had directed, her heart thudding. She was scared, but she had to do this for that mysterious, beautiful man who she now realized she wanted who she now realized she wanted so badly. But she realized she could never truly have him--that was obvious. He didn't have to sait, she knew it. The way he talked about his father--the anger, the hatred--his sister--the fear, the shame--his mother--the love, the hurt. Naomi knew he could love her with that on his shoulders. She was determined to take the weight off.
Azula's laugh echoed through the corridor before Naomi actually saw her. It sent a sharp chill down her spine. Then the once-princess came into view. She looked like some spirit that had escaped from their world--deranged, cruel, terrifying. Her long, midnight hair hung over her shoulders and her hands and feet were chained to prevent her from firebending. She wore rags and a sick smile. Naomi hated that she had the same amber eyes as her brother, it made her hate her even more.
"Well, well, well. Looks like I have a visitor. Who are you? They've certainly changed the guard staff," she spat.
"My name's Naomi. WE went to the Royal Firebending Academy for girls together."
"Oh. I remember you. You were that freak with the blonde hair and burns from my brother. Mai hates you."
Naomi laughed despite her fear, "I hate her too. But I'm not the one chained to a wall, now am I?"
Azula snarled at her, "What do you want? Why are you here?"
"Azula, I know you're crazy on your own, but I have a confession to make..."
"Oh? And what would that be?" she growled.
"FIrst you have to tell me something. What do you know about your mother's whereabouts?"
Her laugh came out more malicious than Naomi thought possible, "You want to know about my mother? You really are pathetic. My mother's dead. Everyone knows that."
"But that's not true, is it? That was a lie you told your brother and the whole world so no one would look for her. You didn't want her to be found. You didn't love her but you knew Zuko did. And you hated Zuko. So you said she died. But she didn't."
Azula snarled, "You're wrong and repetitive and a miserable human being."
Naomi ignored her, "But she loved you. She loved you just like any other mother would love their daughter."
"No she didn't! She thought I was a monster!" Azula cried.
"She loves you. I know she does. And I know she misses you too. Tell me where to find her."
In a voice that proved she wasn't buying it, she continued, "She was weak. That was why he did it to her."
"Who did what to her?" Naomi asked, having been thrown off balance.
"Oh, nothing."
Rage was burning under Naomi's skin, "Tell me! You think your situation can't get much worse, Azula, but it can!"
"I'm not scared of you. You're just like she was - soft."
"She loves you. She could help you! She could make you better! She could make the whole world better! Why won't you tell me where she is?! Don't you understand?!"
Azula continued to scowl.
"Please," Naomi said, bowing her head. "Please, please, please tell me. I need to know."
"I might tell you. If you tell me why you need to know so badly."
Naomi considered this, then decided lying wasn't the best option, "For your brother. He needs her."
"But why do you care? He's with Mai."
"Not anymore. She cheated on him."
"No one ever tells me anything anymore. Oh well. I'm not surprised."
"Tell me. You know Azula. I know you know. Please..."
"You'd be willing to go find my mother who's been missing for almost ten years just for my brother. You're pathetic."
"I know."
Azula didn't reply.
"She loves you. She's the only person in this whole world who loves you now. The only person who would care that you're down here rotting in this prison."
Azula sighed and looked down as she spoke, "There's a jewelry box hidden in my bed chamber. If you can find it, you can find her."
Naomi beamed, "Thank you! Thank you so much!" she turned to go back to the palace, then remembered, "Oh, by the way, I drugged you on the day of Sozin's Comet. That's why you lost."
Naomi knew Azula was screaming in rage behind her, but she was too excited to even care.

*Okay, I'm FINALLY posting! And NO she doesn't make out with anyone *
The laughter of children drifted up through a nearby window, causing Aellai to look up from her studies. Carefully, as if she were floating, she moved towards the small opening in her stuccoed room and leaned out slightly. Far below her, four young air benders guffawed as they created their very own flying carpets out of straw mats. They giggled and smiled broadly, the sun illuminating their pale, bald heads. Aellai propped her elbow up on the sill and leaned her cheek on her hand, smiling as the children's joy rubbed off on her. Of course, she was sort of a child as well at 12 but she focused more on her studies at this time of day, and had more time for fun in the later hours of the evening. It was a warm day, but Aellai commanded a breeze that cooled her as she rubbed the top of her head where her brilliant sapphire tattoo was.
Tearing her eyes from the joy, she began to turn back to her table when something caught her eye out on the horizon. Quickly, she leaped onto the windowsill, swung up to the roof, ran along the top of a wall, and squinted to get a better look.
Her breath caught in her throat as she watched the enormous, metal monsters crawl steadily closer, reflecting back the sunlight from which their masters drew power.
The Fire Nation.
She was frozen. Her feet would not move, as hard as she pulled at them. The beautiful blue sky suddenly filled with dark, ominous clouds and she watched as the women came out from the Eastern Air Temple, puzzling, panicking, planning what to do next as they regarded the danger to come. That's when she noticed a huge red scar in the sky, burning with a firey, evil passion. She heard laughter, wicked and malicious, echo through her brain and her vision was blurred. Then, she was spinning, falling, drowning. The flames engulfed her and she could feel the heat searing her skin.
"Go, Aellai! Run! We cannot hold them off much longer!" A woman's voice called, growing more and more distant as Aellai fell and tumbled through the flames, becoming almost unbearable as screams broke through the sound of crackling flames, sounds of metal on flesh terrified her. She could smell the fire, blood, death---

Aellai gasped, sitting up straight with cold sweat running down her brow. Throwing off the thin blanket, she went to a small basin in the corner of the room and splashed her face with cold water. 'Just a dream, just a dream. Relax.' she whispered inaudibly. She looked up into the mirror in front of her and touched the top of her head, trying to remember what it felt like when she had no hair. Now, her brunette bob covered her arrow, so no one could possibly know.
"Good, you're awake. We've been expecting you." a dark voice startled Aellai and she turned around suddenly, about to blast the living daylights out of whoever it was--
But a pale hand shot out of the shadows and caught her by the foot. There was a moment of still silence, which was broken when the figure flipped her off balance and sent her tumbling to the floor. He stepped forward slightly, his hands hidden within his now visible robes, but his face was masked in shadow.

Pink skies and pink cherry blossom trees were what Naomi and Zuko walked under. One of the blossoms fell to the ground, he picked it up for her and put it in her hair. She smiled. He kept looking forward.
Days had passed. Maybe weeks. She hadn't been paying attention. her hours went by at the palace firebending, falling in love with Zuko, searching for that illusive box in the den of the beast. She avoided her home--only going back to make herself look presentable once again and occasionally get a few extra hours of sleep. Twice she saw her mother. And twice had she become so angry and so sad she nearly burned down their beautiful home in Palace City. Her mother hated it, hated everything she was doing. But her mother wasn't the one that mattered so much. Ursa was.
"I have a military meeting all day tomorrow," Zuko announced, still avoiding looking her in the eyes.
Naomi sighed, "I know how much you must hate those."
"Actually, now they're not as bad as you'd think. But the ones from during the war--those were awful."
He became lost in his memories and she became lost in the way his face looked when he was hiding something deep.
"I know. But the future looks bright," she smiled, her positive energy reacting well against his negative.
"That's what tomorrow's meeting is supposed to figure out."
"You need to lighten up. I'm sure Firelord Iroh wouldn't approve of your melancholia." Zuko turned to her and smiled, it made tens of thousands of little flames leap in her stomach. His amber eyes were beaming at her, his strong arms holding her's. His passion for one second being redirected at her. It felt like how she had imagined it would when she was eight and he had said yes instead of no. Except thousands of times more powerful. But he hadn't said yes. He had said no. He always said no.
Naomi let out a deep breath and pulled him under the shade of the awnings to a small marble bench. Those amber eyes were still looking intently at her but not like she knew her own were looking at him.
"I know you can't love me."
"What are you talking about?! Of course I can! I can if I want to. You're ridiculous." He tensed and became defensive.
"No, no you can't, Zuko. I know you can't."
"You don't know me at all."
"I do! You can love Firelord Iroh and Avatar Aang and all of the others that saved the world. You maybe even can love Mai still, but you can't love me."
His fingers heated and he stood, balling his hands into fists, "I do not love Mai. She's an awful, terrible slut who cheated on me with some bastard earthbender and then chose him over me when I thought we could fix our relationship!" The trees behind him caught on fire, Naomi quickly argumented it back into a pool nearby.
"She saved your life once, you told me that. She'll always have a special place in your heart. Now calm down and listen to me or I'll slap you."
"You don't slap that hard," he grumbled but contradictory sat next to her again, this time farther away.
She raised her eyebrows, knowing for a fact her hits hurt, but didn't comment and moved back to the original subject. "You can't love me... And I think I want you to." Naomi looked down at her hands which were fumbling with her red skirt, "Jeez, it sounds so stupid when I say it out loud," she laughed and shook her head. "I want to do something for you. Like they all did."
"You don't have to do anything, Naomi."
"I know I don't have to. But I want to," for dramatic effect, she paused, "I want to find your mother for you, Zuko."
He turned away from her, "I've been all around the world and I've never even found a trace of her. If there was anything to find, I'd have already discovered it. You're setting yourself up for failure."
"Maybe... But I already found a trace of her." He was suddenly completely enthralled. Naomi reached her hand into the deep pocket of her robes and pulled out a simple necklace, a blue stone hand-carved with a few curved lines on a thick, black piece of fabric. She set it in his hands.
"I knew a girl who had something like this. Katara. She was a--"
"Waterbender. I know."
"How did you find this?! What does it mean?!"
"I talked to Azula. She told me I would find a clue in her old bedchamber hidden in a hidden jewelry box. I've been scouring her room with every extra moment I get. Iroh says it looks more like a Northern Water Tribe necklace--so I'll start there."
"Azula had this the whole time and she never told me?!" His firey rage was beginning to show again. "My entire life could have turned out completely different if she had been there and she didn't tell me?!"
"Azula always lies, Zuko, but she didn't lie about this. You just didn't ask," Naomi said softly. He clenched the necklace tightly in his fist and his eyes tightly for a moment before returning to reality with the touch of Naomi's hand on his shoulder.
"I have to find her."
"You need to stay here. I'll find her."
"NO! She's my mother, this is my destiny."
"Destiny's a funny thing. You can't really predict it." She moved her hand to his cheek, "Please let me do this for you. Please." Zuko met her gaze, he couldn't believe how much raw hope and love was captured in it.
Before he could answer, a guard interrupted them, "Prince Zuko! Firelord Iroh needs to see you immediately. The war meeting has been rescheduled for now."
Zuko stood, as he did Naomi followed and slipped her hand into his, slyly taking the necklace back. He barely noticed and if he did, he didn't care.
Suddenly, he looked so professional and regal, standing straight and stiff with his hair pulled back and in his proper prince clothes that Naomi really hadn't noticed before. "We'll discuss this more later. Do not go anywhere!" He commanded and walked away with the guard.
But Naomi knew a journey to the Northern Water Tribe would take preparation and she had to make it quick.

There was a moment of silence that engulfed Aellai, and she felt dizzy.
"Who are you?" she demanded.
"I suppose I should ask you the same question." his voice was level, calm, smooth.
"I--I don't know..." she trailed off, avoiding his eyes and getting to her feet. He did not make any move to stop her.
"If you don't know who you are, then why am I obligated to tell you who I am?" he mused, and she could tell that he was smirking, although she couldn't see his face.
"My name is--" she bit her lip as she hesitated. "Suki."
"No, it is not. You're a terrible liar, you know. And I already know who you are, and you are the one left in the dark." he chuckled slightly at the irony.
Aellai was getting angry. "If you already know who I am, then TELL me who YOU are! I don't have time for these games!"
There was a long pause as the stranger considered this.
"I suppose you have the right to know." Carefully, he stepped from the shadows and pulled up a chair. He was very tall, had a strong jaw, and dark, mysterious eyes, and walked with such grace Aellai thought he was floating. His long emerald robes brushed the floor, and an Earth Nation symbol was stitched on the front. "I am Hitoshi. You are in an underground room in Ba Sing Se."
"BA SING SE?!? WHAT?" Aellai blew up. "But I live in Omashu! I was just in Omashu! No, no, no, no, no. There has to be some kind of mistake. How did I get here? What do you want from me?!? Is this why my head hurts?"
"There is too much to explain and not enough time to--"
"NO! I WANT TO KNOW NOW!" She screamed, her voice echoing around the walls of her small room.
"You must lower your voice, sit down, and I shall tell you." he replied coolly. Aellai stood there for a moment, hands clenched into fists, frozen in fury. Then she slowly sat down on the edge of a small cot, still angry, and crossed her arms.
"Good. Now listen carefully, young airbender. You are in Ba Sing Se. An agent of mine was in Omashu and happened to run into you. For some reason, still unknown to us, you managed to throw him on top of a building. Not many 14-year-old girls that aren't airbenders can do that. A few days later, I was informed of this through messaging hawk. Fascinated that there was an airbender other than Avatar Aang, I replied that they should convince you to come here. There was a--miscommunication and they ended up knocking you out and carrying you the whole way here. This was NOT my intention, I assure you." he pointed out quickly. Aellai opened her mouth to say something but he put out his hand and she stopped. "Now, you want to know WHY I want you here. I have a very prestigious and popular business. It's also illegal and unknown to the government. The Earth Rumble."
"The Earth Rumble? I've heard of that. But why would you want me?" Aellai was more intrigued than angry now.
"We thought it would be interesting to throw an airbender into the mix." he smiled, and she was reminded of a cat, sly and devious. But there was something about him that she almost trusted.
"I see." she mused, searching his face for any fire-bender qualities. "You want me to fight. What do I get out of it?"
"5,000 gold pieces for every fight you win, fully-paid-for housing run by me, and absolute protection from the government, as well as the will to go wherever you want inside the city and to cancel a fight if you wish it." he pitched.
Aellai considered this for a moment. It was a hell of a lot better than stealing in Omashu....
She stuck out her hand, spit in it and said, "I'm in."

The sun was just beginning to peak over the roofs of the many pretty houses of Palace City by the time the meeting was over. Naomi had gotten a few hours of sleep between painting her face again and preparing for her voyage. And she was going to the North Pole, whether Zuko wanted her to or not. Now she sat by the door outside in the hall, waiting for him, just like he wanted her to.
The door opened and the generals and war strategist and captains and everyone else spilled out. Last was Prince Zuko. He looked frustrated, like always, but scared too. He never looked scared.
"Hey," she said and stood, taking his hand. "What happened?"
"Nothing," he didn't meet her eyes again.
"Something," Naomi corrected. "Look at me." He did. "What's wrong?"
"I have to stay here. There's something going on." Zuko took her hands. They were cold, Naomi warmed her own for his sake, "I don't want you going to find my mother now."
"Why not?! Zuko, stop being so dramatic! If there's any chance she's still alive, let me take it! Even if you do have to stay here. Please!" she withdrew from him, although she couldn't help but feel her love for him burning even brighter for some reason.
"I command you, as the heir to the Fire Nation throne, to stay within Palace City, Naomi."
"No! I'm leaving and there's nothing you can do about it." Naomi began to stomp away. He grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"It's not safe. You can't go."
"I'm a good firebender, Zuko. I'm not the little kid that let you burn me anymore. I can fend for myself."
Zuko searched her face for something that said otherwise beside the feeling in his gut that wanted to protect her. "Just believe me, you don't want to go into the world right now."
"Tell me why!"
Her stubborn attitude pushed him over the edge, "Aang discovered that the spirits are no longer physically confined to their world any longer. They can physically come to our world. Not just their spirits."
Naomi nearly laughed, "Are you serious? That's the best you could come up with to keep me here?"
"He's telling the truth." They both turned. There stood Firelord Iroh. His ability to show up at the most random times never ceased to amaze Naomi. "When Avatar Aang went into the Avatar State after closing his last chukra, he opened their bridge to our world so they could come here freely, without any purpose. Then when he took away Ozai's bending, he allowed them to physically come here."
"But spirits are good, right? They protect our natural world," Naomi asked, taking Zuko's hand again nervously.
"Not all. Some are more evil than Sozin, both Azulas, and Ozai put together!" Iroh exclaimed.
"I don't want you getting hurt by one of them," Zuko turned to Naomi. "I can't have something else happen."
"The world without you, Naomi, would be like living with no sun," Iroh smiled.
She blushed, "Iroh, you're so sweet. But Zuko... That's not going to stop me. Maybe she can help. I need to do this for you. For... us." She bit her lip after she said the word, knowing she sounded stupid.
"You're stubborn and crazy," Zuko said, nearly straight-faced, but Naomi knew him well enough by now that the tone of his voice, his squeezing her hand back, the look in his eyes were all to say that he cared about her. He wanted to love her too.
"There are some battles I choose to fight. I'll fight for you." This made Zuko finally smiled. He pulled her close to him and gave her a kiss, completely forgetting that his uncle was standing four feet away.
"I'll fight for you too. And I'm going to keep you safe, even if I do have to stay here. I'm going to take care of the spirit problem." Naomi smiled slightly and was shocked by the sudden wave of love for him that passed over her. "Uncle, we need to prepare for battle against the spirits, but reserve one of our best ships to take Naomi to the North Pole." This made her grin.
"I don't know if we can do without it for too long, but I will see what I can do."
"You're the Firelord. You can do anything," Naomi teased.
"That is true." he slipped into deep thought for a moment. "I have a present for you both."
Iroh turned and walked down the hall, expecting the two of them to follow, they did after a brief moment of hesitation.
"If this is one of your 'love is the best gift of all' presents followed by a proverb no one can understand, I'm good," Zuko said.
Iroh laughed and shook his head, "No, no. This is a real gift."
They walked for a while until Zuko realized where they were going, "Why are we going into the volcano, Uncle?"
"You need to keep my gift as hot as possible until it is ready, then you must make it as cold as possible. Good thing you're going to the North Pole!"
"What do you mean 'until it's ready'?" Naomi asked.
Iroh didn't answer.
They ventured deeper into the volcano until they were at the center. A lava pit which Naomi didn't realize was there until Zuko pushed her back. And the oddest thing was that there was a nest of three large eggs with a shell of shimmering blue and green, pink and purple, and orange and red on a rock slightly above the lava. the only way of getting to them was an old, rickety bridge.
"Uhh.. The bridge was much more stable when I was young... I'm too old to go get them. Would one of you like to go get them?"
Naomi turned to Zuko, "I'm in a dress."
He rolled his eyes and put one foot on the bridge. It creaked. He moved faster and skillfully avoided the bubbles of magma that popped in front of him. He got the eggs and had even harder time trying to carry the three large things and dance around the lava.
"What are these things?" Zuko grumbled when he had reached them once again, "They weigh a ton."
"Dragon eggs," Iroh stated.
Zuko and Naomi's jaws both dropped unanimously.
"But Zuko said the last dragons are guarded by the sun warriors. How can these be dragon eggs?!"
It was Iroh's turn to drop his jaw, "You told her about the dragons of the East and West?!"
Zuko flushed and shrugged, "It just came out... But, really, how do you have dragon eggs?"
"They were a gift from the sun warriors since I promised to protect the dragons by saying I slayed them! They thought I could keep the eggs safe as well!"
"That was twenty years ago, Master Iroh."
"Exactly! Female dragon eggs take twenty years to mature and male dragon eggs take twenty-five before they are ready to hatch. In one week's time, you must make them the coldest you can. That is what triggers their instinct to hatch. It will be another week before you can ride them, and another before they are full sized. Zuko, you may have one. And Naomi, take the other two, you never know what friends you might meet on your journey. Dragons are some of the most loyal creatures to ever walk the earth. Protect them with your life and they will protect you with theirs."
Zuko laid the eggs on the ground and they all stared stared at them for a moment, imaging the wonders under the rainbow shells. Zuko took Naomi's hand. She realized how much she was going to miss him. He realized how much he was going to miss her.