The Thief |Sokka

EIGHTEEN

The canopy of trees allowed no light to reach the foliage beneath. There was no angle that could pierce through and most days, Jaya was glad – this time, though, there was unrest weighing in her mind, making her stare apprehensive as she looked up. The wind seemed colder, there were no fish swimming in the stream in front of her, the water's refreshing sound seemed unable to reach her. And yet, she could hear footsteps coming from behind her. She spoke without thought. "Do you think we will be able to leave this place one day?"

The person that was coming closer stopped by her side and let out a sigh – Jaya looked up and her eyes widened. Although her appearance had long since faded from her memory, leaving behind only glimpses—a small smile, a touch that was way too soft to be true—there was something in her heart that told her this person was her mother. Her breath hitched as she gazed at the woman that was almost a copy of her, save for the colour of her eyes and the assortment of freckles Jaya didn't have. Her first thought was to glance down at her hands, check her arrows were still there. She exhaled a sigh of relief as she noticed them still there, as she remembered. There was no doubt in her mind now – this was a dream. And yet her mother's reply hurt still.

"How are we ever supposed to leave? You know what you are." Jaya frowned. Her mother sighed. "I know this is hard for you. Your father got restless, staying in one place all the time, as well. But there's nothing you can do."

"Maybe there is," she murmured. Her mother shook her head, turned around and walked back where she had come from. The stream was still silent as Jaya turned her head to follow her retreat, the thought of missing a single movement leaving a sour taste in her mouth. She observed the way she walked even though she knew this whole scene was a figment of her imagination until the mirage talked again.

"Suki passed earlier, by the way."

Her brows rose. "Suki?"

"Yes, Suki." She stopped, turned to face her. "She was looking for you. I told her it will be a while until you are home and it seemed like she was in a hurry so she told me she knows what you are doing and it's not wise. What have you gotten yourself into again?"

Jaya blinked as she shook her head, "Nothing mum. Don't worry about it."

Her mother shook her head once more—Jaya didn't remember her mother ever shaking her head this much because of her—and kept on walking away, her tone dismissive as she replied, "That's what you always say."

The sound of her footsteps got more and more faint as Jaya watched on, the singing of birds on the other hand growing insistently until she felt herself get detached from the forest. She could feel the softness of her sheets again, the songbirds were no mirage. Jaya buried her head in her pillow, stubbornly attemping to get back to her dream and figure out what her mother could have meant only to come up short. There was no use. She was already awake. She turned to lay on her back, blinked her eyes open. The light in the room was scarce, which could only mean one thing – she had woken up earlier than she was supposed to.

It was the morning they were set to depart to Ba Sing Se. There was no sense in waiting around any longer. In an effort to shake off her dream that the more time passed the more weird made her feel, Jaya started to gather her things. Meeting with people and starting her day would help her for sure, so she left her room as soon as possible and headed to the plaza where she knew Aang had put Appa the night before. And that was where she found the Avatar himself, with Appa on the side and Momo staying close. In the last few days, her companions had been moving around so often she barely had the chance to see them. Appa was free to roam as he wished and a couple of times she thought she had noticed his shadow, and she had lost count of the times Momo had flew by so close to her he had startled her. Other than that, there hadn't been much of an interaction. They were here now, though, and at the sight of her, she received a moan from Appa and Momo let go of Aang to head over. Despite her earlier apprehension, she found herself smiling at him.