The Girl No One Knew

Chapter 6

"Saki...."

I groaned.

"Saki, get up...."

Again, I groaned.

"No, seriously, Saki. Get up! You're making my arm numb."

I finally opened my eyes, not happy to find myself being shaken from my sleep by Zuko. I rolled over so he could get his arm from under me, and ended up rolling off of the bed with a hard thud. He laughed at me, crawling to the edge of the bed. "You alright?"

"Oh yeah," I say as roll to my back so I could look at him. "The best way to start my day is to fall on the floor." He laughed again and helped me to my feet. The smell of breakfast seeped into the room, making my stomach grumble loudly. I didn't even bother fixing my messy hair as I ran to find the food, dragging Zuko behind me. He didn't protest; He was just as hungry as I was.

Reaching the deck, the crew greeted us (me, mostly) with a hearty and harmonious "Hello!" and "Hey!". The cook handed us both bowls of sea soup and a small loaf of bread, which I actually hated but had to become used to it. The two of us joined Iroh, beginning our morning as we usually did. Zuko and his uncle talked about where we were to sail next. (Well, that's what Zuko wanted to talk about. Iroh continually tried to change the subject.)

"Uncle, I just want to find the Avatar so Father will accept me back," he said. I didn't pay much attention to the conversation and stood up, leaving to return my empty bowl (I may or may not have waterbent the soup into the ocean).

We were close to the South Pole, but I think I was the only one who knew that. I wondered what would happen once we reached what people saw as an icy wasteland. I pictured my village looking at me like a stranger, not recognizing me. I'll admit, I looked nothing like the little water tribe girl I used to be. My small wardrobe was nothing but Fire Nation attire. I couldn't wait to see everyone again. The village women, the chief's children, Sokka and Katara. I had been friends with the two before leaving. Katara was like a sister to me, more so when her mother was killed in an invasion. I hadn't become friends with her goofy brother until the day after finding him with the village's food, when I didn't rat him out.

"It was very nice what you did last night," Iroh's voice startled me.

"What do you mean?" I asked, my heart no longer racing. My body seemed to had become accustomed to people sneaking up behind me.

"Getting Prince Zuko to join us," he smiled at me. "You seem to be a blessing for him."

"Oh, I wouldn't say I'm a-"

"Oh, but you are," he cut me off. "You are very important to my nephew." He smiled a bit mischieviously. "Don't think I didn't see you two last night after hours."

"Y-You saw?" I felt my face burning as I blushed. "Nothing happened, I swear!"

He only laughed. "I know. That is my point." As he laughed, his round belly jiggled. He smiled and added, "You have a great impact on him, and I thank you."

He patted my shoulder and turned to walk away, off to train Zuko's firebending, leaving me with my thoughts again.

The afternoon came quickly, everyone returning to their usual routines. I didn't exactly have a routine on the ship, so I was to find something to entertain myself. That was normally easy, but not anymore. I'd read every scroll on the ship, had done enough training so that my bending just barely matched the skill of a master, and had explored every nook and cranny of the ship. I was agonizingly bored.

After rereading, a commotion from the crew caught my attention. I set the scroll on the mat and stood up, blowing out the candles by my pillow before leaving my room. The noise grew as I drew closer to the deck. The crew sounded like....they were actually doing work. Zuko could be heard giving orders and commands. Stepping onto the deck, I immediately see what was happening.

We were sailing straight for the South Pole.

I rushed to find Iroh in hopes of finding out what was so urgent, knowing Zuko wouldn't tell me everything. I found Iroh standing near the men working on the sail.

"What's happening?" I asked. "Why is Zuko so worked up this time?"

"Prince Zuko saw a beam of light," he sighed. "He believes that it comes from the Avatar." This was just great. Another voyage that was destined to end in disappointment.

"We can't let him hurt anyone," I looked at the old man, my voice breaking and becoming soft. "These are my people, and I refuse to let anything bad happen to them." Before giving Iroh a chance to talk me out of it, I ran off. I really had nowhere to go. If I took a rowboat, I wouldn't get there until hours after they had already sailed away. I had to get there first and warn the village.

I did the only thing I could come up with: I jumped from the ship.

Yes, I'm completely aware that that was a stupid move, but I was limited on time. I bent the water up so that it would catch me, and froze it under my feet. Using my bending to push the small iceberg, I zoomed to shore, ahead of the ship. It was all going fine and well....until it came time to stop. That wasn't my best skill.

I crashed against the icy shore and flew into a bed of snow, my face completely buried. I didn't realize how unprepared I was for the South Pole until that moment, when I remembered exactly how cold it was, and I remembered how Fire Nation was definitely not made for cold weather or snow. I shivered as I trudged towards the village, following the smoke from the fire used to cook food for the entire village.

As I finally reached the village, I received instant glares and looks of fear. I was confused at first, wondering why they looked like that wanted to drown me in the ocean. That's when I remembered.

Oh, right, I thought. Fire Nation clothes.

I continued to walked through the silent village, their glares burning into my flesh. Part of me wished that I really was I a firebender, just so I could warm myself.

"Saki!" A voice called from behind me. I didn't have enough time to turn around to see the source of it. I had already been engulfed in a hug. "You're back!"

"Y-Yeah." The hug warmed my whole body, and I did not want whomever this was to let go. I was spun around and found myself face to face with the hugger. It was then that I returned the hug. "Sokka!" He laughed and squeezed me tightly as we hugged, spinning me around. When we ceased our embrace, he took one good look at me and his smile dropped.

"Why are you dressed in Fire Nation clothes?" He asked. "How did you get here?"

"Bending," I answered. "I've been practicing!" To be fair, I wasn't lying to him. I was just conveniently leaving out the part where I've been sailing with Prince Zuko and his soldiers and that they were on their way at that moment.

"That doesn't explain the Fire Nation clothes," he said as he looked me up and down.

"Well, I have been living there," I reminded him. He always hated the Fire Nation, which made me appreciate the fact that he trusted me. "Sokka, where is your grandmother? I really need to talk to her."