Chapter Text
It was obvious that there was no boredom with people who could bend. Sokka, a boy from the South Pole could see his younger sister’s magic tricks everyday, because she was a waterbender. This time these abilities were going to bring much more sensation and change the siblings’ life forever.
While they were fishing, Sokka and Katara got into another of their arguments. Katara’s anger and her magic powers have lead to her crushing one of the icebergs. In addition, there was a frozen person and a giant creature that emerged from underwater, when the iceberg crushed. Katara immediately rushed towards them to help. That’s how they met the last airbender, Aang and his flying bison named Appa.
Aang and Appa were frozen for almost one hundred years. At the time the Fire Nation became close to winning the war. Because of the war, all of air nomads were killed, what shocked Aang.
„That means… All of my friends… The monks… Gyatso… died..?” The boy’s enthusiasm slowly disappeared.
„That’s probably true… But luckily you and your bison survived. If the new Avatar will finally appear, maybe you will teach him the airbending and in the same time help them end the war, right?” Katara wanted to cheer him up.
„The new… Avatar.!?” Then he stood up quickly and started looking around.
Sokka was tired from these magical topics. His sister waterbending, the last airbender and now tales about the Avatar? Does Katara still believed that the Avatar is actually alive somewhere?
„Stop it, okay? It’s impossible! There weren’t any news about the Avatar for almost last hundred years. We don’t even know what happened to the last one.” Sokka was really annoyed.
„That’s why I have to find out what happened to him! Nao… He was like older brother for me…” Aang still was looking around to find some traces about his friend but with no effect.
„Who’s Nao?” Katara looked at him.
„Nao was an airbender like me and the next Avatar after Roku. We were studying the airbending together… We were inseparable. Then one day he asked me to go with him and Appa to the south… There was a huge storm and he was in the Avatar state… He probably freezed us… Only me and Appa, but not himself.” Aang explained and looked at the bison.
The airbender sighed. He lost hope for finding his friend alive. He couldn’t stand that.
„But why not himself too..?” Katara wondered.
„I don’t want to interrupt but probably we will have to come back to our tribe soon.” Sokka told while taking out a net from the water. „Great. We didn't catch anything for dinner.”
„And still the food is what matters the most for you.” Katara giggled and then Aang giggled too.
Sokka only rolled his eyes.
*-.-*-.-*-.-*
It didn't take long for them to come back to the Southern Water Tribe on flying (well, not flying yet but just swimming in the water) bison. But Aang wondered why in this tribe there were only children and women.
„After the last Fire Nation soldiers' ‚visit’ few years ago our men decided to go fight them.” Sokka was really annoyed about this fact. He thought that he should go with them to fight for freedom, but he promised his father to protect his sister.
The rest of the day was also exciting for the tribe.
The youngest children were so excited about seeing so big and fluffy creature they’ve never seen before. For many years no one from this village have ever seen anyone from oustide, especially the airbenders.
While children were playing with Appa, Aang was talking with Sokka’s and Katara’s grandmother.
„Is Katara really the last waterbender from here?” Aang couldn’t believe that something what happened to the airbenders also happened to almost all waterbenders from the south.
„Surely she is. But…” the old woman called ‚Gran Gran’ hesistated for a moment and looked at one of her grandchildren. „I have a weird feeling that Sokka also hide something special inside of him...”
„Maybe you’re right. Since when I’ve met Sokka I feel a strong energy around him.”
„The similar energy I felt when Nao was near…” Aang thought.
„I think Sokka can also be a waterbender… Or even more.” Gran Gran added.
*-.-*-.-*-.-*
Children from the tribe really wanted to see some more airbending tricks from Aang so he decided to show them how he flies - his wooden stick turned out to be a hang glider, which was created specially for the air nomads. With it Aang quickly jumped and started fying above.
But after only a moment Aang hit straight into Sokka’s patrol tower, what didn’t satisfy him.
„That’s how your magic plays always finish!” Sokka with nerves started to bring up the snow to somehow fix the tower but it didn’t help.
„Sokka, that was an acciden-„ Katara wanted to calm him down, but he intereuped her.
„No! This time you’ll listening to me! You and Aang are so special because you can bend, but instead of using it in a practical way, you just play and show off with it and as you see it only make things worse! Look what just happened with my towe-„ Sokka raised his arm towards the tower ruins.
Then happened something what no one expected. In a few seconds the tower was fixed. Everyone looked at it surprised.
„W-well, thank you, Katara. As you see you could do it right away…” Sokka turned towards his sister but she seemed to be more confused than him. „Because you did that… With the waterbending… I mean with snowbending… Right?
„No…” That scared Sokka a litlle.
„Aang?” Sokka looked at the airbender.
„That couldn’t be me. I can’t bend water.” Aang answered. He was not less confused than Katara.
„So then… What’s actually going on here!?” Sokka was almost panicing. His jaw dropped.
Aang started wondering. What if his and Gran Gran's suspicions were right? Now he had to check out something.
At once he ran towards Appa and the bag on his back. He took out a quite big and colorful feather.
„What’s that?” Katara whisper when she saw the feather.
„That’s Sneeze-raven’s feather. When it tickles someone, the person or animal sneeze a lot.” Aang explained and came a bit closer to Sokka.
„Sokka, look what I have!” The airbender yelled.
„What is it- AANG STOP IT! HAH HAHAHAHA STOP IT, PLEASE!” Sokka couldn’t control himself because of the feather's touch.
After a moment Aang stopped and moved behind showing with arms to the others to do the same. Sokka looked at them confused. Then he started sneezing. First time. Then the second time.
But at the third time he jumped so high, did a flip and landed into the snow again.
„I admit, that was funny!” Katara giggled and looked at Aang who looked surprised but also worried. „What’s the matter, Aang?”
„Katara! Only airbenders can jump like that while sneezing!” He explained nervously.
„Well, also the tower was fixed like… Like someone used waterbending on it… No…” Katara looked at Sokka, slowly understanding what Aang tried to say.
„Hey! If it was going to be a joke I have to tell you something - that wasn’t funny! Now I’m whole covered with snow again!”
„Sokka, don’t you see that!? Don’t you see what happened?” Katara made a serious look into his eyes.
„Like what?” He still couldn’t understand what his sister had in her mind.
„You used snowbending to fix your tower and airbending when you jumped.” Gran Gran explained stepping closer to him.
„What!? That was... Me? Wait a moment. That means...”
No.
No, no, no!
It couldn’t be true!
„That means you are the current avatar, Sokka.” Gran Gran ended putting her hand on the boy’s shoulder.
„That’s right. Nao was the airbender Avatar, so the next Avatar in the cycle had to be from the Water Tribe!” Aang added.
*-.-*-.-*-.-*
„Wahoooo!!! I’m also special now! I can bend too! Hey, look at this!” This time Sokka was running around and with his snowbending he was throwing snowballs in all directions. „Wahooo!!!”
Katara and Aang were just standing away from Sokka looking at him while he was running and jumping like a little kid, but then he stopped and lied down on the snow.
„That means… I’m the only one who can actually defeat the Fire Lord and end the war… Right..?”
*-.-*-.-*-.-*
The same day Aang, Katara and Sokka decided to go to the North Pole. Sokka had to find a masters of all the elements and learn how to control them. He already had Aang who could teach him airbending but as a waterbender he had to start from waterbending. Then in order to the Avatar cycle he had to learn earthbending, firebending and the airbending at the end. He could only imagine how hard it probably will be to find a firebending master. How someone from the nation which was actually winning the war could want to teach the Avatar how to bend fire? Sokka had to leave this worries for later.
While actually FLYING on Appa, Katara noticed that Sokka, who always was the loudest one, now was sitting in silent looking at the water under them.
„Sokka, how are you feeling?” Katara asked worried.
Black snow was everywhere. The Fire Nation soldiers appeared in Southern Water Tribe again and arrested more of waterbenders from there.
„Mom! We have to help her!” Little Sokka was running as fast as he could towards the Fire Nation warships. In one of them there was his mother which told to the soldiers she is a waterbender… But they didn’t know that she wasn’t. She only wanted to protect her children. Nobody knew it but she felt that BOTH of her children were waterbenders.
„Do you think… If I knew that I’m the Avatar earlier… Could I help mother..?” Sokka said finally, then he started crying.
„Oh Sokka…” Katara sit closer to him and gave him a hug. „I also wanted to help our mom. I knew that I’m the waterbender but I couldn’t do anything that day. I was too scared. But now… I think we have to fight for all we still have now. You, the Avatar have to learn all the elements and then you’ll be able to protect us all.”
„Katara is right, Sokka.” The airbender added. „Even if you knew about your powers ealier, you had no guarantee that you could do anything. Nao spent a lot of time learning only airbending. He had to learn also the rest of them. Now at least the Fire Nation probably think the Avatar was one of the waterbenders from these people they took with them so nobody know about you yet and you are safe.”
They both were right. Sokka mustn’t think about the past longer. He had to use the chance he got from his mother’s sacrifice and luck that he and his sister found him the airbending teacher and the possibility to travel the world to find the rest of the elememts masters. It was his destiny to save the world.
~~~ The end of the Chapter 1 ~~~