𝙒𝙝𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙁𝙡𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨 ⚠ slow updates ⚠ *editing*

The Winter Solstice Pt1. ; Gentle Faces of the Past.

Enjoy this chappy! Word count: 4897

Hestia's parents above ^

"The clouds look so soft", Hestia marvels from Appa's saddle.

Hundreds, possibly thousands of feet in the air, Appa flew. From her point of view, the clouds blanketed thick and cotton-like. She had gotten used to the fact she was higher than a traveling nomad right now but in literal terms.

"Don't they?" Katara was admiring the clouds just as Hestia was. She lies on her stomach, popped up on her elbows, staring over the rim of Appa's saddle. "Like you could just jump down and you'd land in a big, soft, cottony heap?"

Hestia giggles. "I wouldn't go that far, but yes, they do look soft." She twists around, reaching out to touch the fluffy-looking clouds.

"Maybe you should give it a try." Sokka grunts mockingly.

"You're hilarious", Katara retorted sarcastically.

Hestia suddenly teetered over the saddle rim, yelping out as she plunged through the clouds, completely vanishing from sight.

"Hestia!" Katara shouts.

Aang takes quick action by diving from his lazy perch on Appa's head with his glider.

Soon enough, Aang propelled high above Appa's saddle, swiftly plopping on Appa's back. The boy held the older girl, both dripping wet. Hestia was a little stunned, probably still processing what had just happened.

"Turns out clouds are made of water, " Hestia suddenly giggled as Aang set her down with a giant grin on his face too.

Aang takes a deep breath, slamming his balled right fist against his stretched left fist, creating an airball around him, in the process drying him and Hestia both.

With her hair frizzier than a spooked owl cat, Hestia attempted to smooth her thick locks into their original waves. It was futile, truly.

"Are you okay, Hestia?" Katara was a little shaken after that close call.

"I'm fine!" Hestia smiled at her reassuringly. "Didn't expect to fall, but other than that, I'm okay."

"That's good to hear..." Katara glances at her brother, her attention suddenly is drawn at the ground over his shoulder. "Hey, what is that?"

Everyone looks toward what Katara points out. Hestia's jaw gapes ajar at what she is seeing. Below was a large patch of burned land, standing out amongst the lush green forest surrounding it.

"It's like a scar..." Sokka comments.

Hestia is suddenly reminded of Zuko, how his scar looked. This charred land was bitter with melancholy.

!

She knelt on the charred land, scooping a palmful of ash. Hestia dully frowned as the ash slipped out of her palm like sand.

"This is diabolical..." Hestia's eyes narrowed in angsty. As she dreaded about the catastrophic damages that this land withstood, about the animals that must've either died or cowered away to save themselves.

"Listen, " Sokka's voice distracted Hestia from the ashy destruction. "It's so quiet. There's no life anywhere."

Hestia lifts herself to her feet, dusting her palms off on the skirt of her dress. She turns her attention toward the group.

"Aang? Are you okay?" Katara asks the bald boy.

As she approaches the Water Tribe siblings from behind just as Sokka catches sight of foot tracks.