The Jaded Princess - A Sokka Love Story

Chapter Twenty-One

The gang had flown for what felt like hours, and Orzala was growing bored quickly. Her gaze drifted to the yellow sky above them that was now decorated with brushes of pink and orange as the sun began to set. She smiled. Sokka let out another long sigh beside her, and she fought the urge to roll her eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, but the princess cut him off.

"If you ask if we're there yet one more time, I swear to all the spirits that I will shove you off this bison." The boy immediately shut his mouth, gulping audibly. Orzala huffed, running a hand over her eyes as she looked to Aang. "Ok, but seriously Aang. How much longer? If we don't arrive soon, the sun will have set and the solstice will be over."

The airbender shot her an irritated glance but turned to scan the horizon once more. His gray eyes lit up when he spotted the island up ahead. "There it is! The island where Roku's dragon took me!" Orzala jumped up behind him, laughing happily. That is, until a familiar presence knocked into her, and her smile immediately faded.

Why can I feel him? She thought to herself, stealing a quick glance at the others before looking back to the temple. The princess set her jaw, determined to get answers from Roku this time around. "Well, come on then. We have a spirit to find." Aang flashed her a lopsided grin, hurriedly steering Appa down toward the temple. Once they had landed, the gang dismounted the bison, gathering around to praise him.

"You did it, buddy," Aang praised, rubbing the bison's face lovingly. "Nice flying." With a loud groan, Appa rolled over and exposed his stomach. With a laugh, Orzala began to pat the creature's stomach.

"Oh, you must be tired." Sokka, who was stretching a couple feet away, looked smug.

"No! I'm good! Refreshed and ready to fight some firebenders." The princess raised an eyebrow, scoffing as he ran in place.

"I was talking to Appa, water boy," she deadpanned. "And you should probably stop running like that. You look like an idiot." The boy blanched, feeling heat rise to his cheeks as he glanced at her. He spun around with a huff, too embarrassed to face her.

"Yeah, well- I was talking to Momo. And you should fix your hair. It looks like an artic hen's nest." The girl paused, and he shot a quick, fearful glance over his shoulder.

"Sokka, you are standing in the middle of a volcanic island, which- may I remind you- is made of earth. I can bend earth. I'd advise you to choose your next words carefully." His blue eyes widened and shot to the ground.

"I take it back! I take it back!" This earned a snort from Orzala, and she clapped his shoulder playfully. He stared at her, admiring the smile that graced her pink lips as she laughed at him. He silently decided that if she would smile like that all the time, he wouldn't mind being the culprit of her antics.

Katara watched the two with a knowing smile before calling them. Once everyone had deemed themselves ready, they started sneaking up the bridge and toward the temple. Orzala frowned, noticing that no guards were stationed outside of the doors. It was oddly reminiscent of the temple she had foudn herself in in the spirit world. However, she didn't remember there being quite as much lava.

The gang hid away from the temple, and Orzala found herself entranced by the brilliant architecture of the building. "I don't see any guards," Sokka pointed out, blue eyes scanning the temple entrance for any sign of firebenders. He frowned.

"The Fire Nation must've abandoned the temple when Avatar Roku died," Katara reasoned, but Orzala shook her head at the brunette.

"No, that's too easy."

"It's almost sundown!" Aang exclaimed, hopping up and dragging Katara with him. "We'd better hurry." The princess frowned skeptically, but dashed to follow the others as they ran toward the temple. She allowed her gaze to sweep the hall, and a shiver ran down her spine as she observed the red hue that coated the walls. She kept herself ready, prepared to fight at any moment.

They came to a stop in a large corridor that had new halls at every turn. Aang furrowed his eyebrows. "Which way do we go?" Orzala only shrugged, looking to the siblings to see if they had any ideas.

"Wait," Sokka tensed as the soft clack of footsteps hit his ears, and he grabbed the princess's elbow, pulling her closer to him. "I think I heard something." Orzala's eyes bulged, and her head snapped around the hall, trying to find the source of the sound. A loud gasp escaped her as her gaze locked on a large group of men wearing red Fire Nation clothing. The other three whipped around.

"We are the Fire Sages," the man in the front bellowed, and Orzala felt her heart began to race. Sokka's grip on her arm tightened slightly, and she rested her hand on his, pulling him backwards with her. "We are the guardians of the temple of the avatar."

Aang, being his happy-go-lucky self, smiled, advancing toward the group. Orzala reached for the boy, trying to prevent him from going closer. "That's great," he said, brushing the princess off. "I am the avatar!"

"Aang, I don't think they're friendly."

As if to emphasize her point, the head Sage scowled at the boy, falling into a bending stance. "We know." Two more sages fell in line beside him, and three blasts were thrown toward the gang. Orzala hurriedly pushed the boys back, grounding herself and throwing her fist up. A rock wall surged from the ground, blocking the fire from hitting them. Flames licked around the stone, but the princess held her ground, only releasing her focus when the yellow light faded out.

"Go, I'll hold them off!" Aang shouted, and Orzala did not waste a moment before high-tailing it down the nearest hall. The siblings ran in sync alongside her, and she shot them an exasperated glance.

"Is it too much to ask for one day of someone not trying to kill us?!" Her only response was their heavy breathing as they ran. A small scream tore from Orzala as someone popped out of the hallway before them, and she readied her bending before she realized it was Aang.

"Follow me!" He took off down another hallway, and the girl didn't wait a moment to take off after him.

"You know where you're going, right?!"

"Nope!" He yelled as he rounded a corner, and Orzala was caught off guard when he came barrelling back around the corner and into her. "Wrong way!" He grabbed her wrist, hoisting her up and sprinting past Sokka and Katara. The raven-haired girl stole a glance over her shoulder, eyes widening as she saw a Fire Sage round the corner.

"Go, go, go!" The gang rounded another corner, and Orzala's face fell when they came face-to-face with a barred window. "You've gotta be kidding me!" Footsteps echoed behind them, and the gang whirled around to face the Fire Sage from earlier. Orzala fell into her stance, green eyes fiery as she sized up the man. His old eyes widened and he quickly raised his hands in surrender.

"I don't want to fight you,'" he assured, backing away a couple of inches. "I am a friend." Aang fell into stance beside the princess, gaze hardening as the man began to approach once more. Sokka scoffed behind the two.

"Firebenders aren't our friends!" He exclaimed, his hand reaching for his boomerang as the Sage stepped closer, gaze focused on Orzala. He felt an urge to protect flare up in his chest, and he placed a hand on the girl's shoulder, glaring at the man before them. The Sage suddenly fell to his knees, bowing to Aang. The friends looked at one another, confusion evident on their faces.

"I know why you're here, avatar."

"You do?" Aang asked, letting his guard down for a moment as he shared a glance with Orzala. She did not back down, only shaking her head as she turned back to the Sage.

"Yes. You wish to speak to Avatar Roku. I can take you to him." The princess's eyebrows shot up, and Aang looked on skeptically.

"How?" The Sage nodded, standing up and reaching for a hanging light on the wall. The Sage lifted his hand to the hole that rested there, and he shot a blast of fire into it. Orzala felt the ground under her begin to rumble. Her eyes shot to the wall where a fiery light outlined a door. The wall shifted suddenly, and Orzala jumped back in shock.

"What the hell?" The group stood still, silently warring in their minds whether or not this man was trustworthy. But their thoughts were cut short as a shout errupted down the hall.

"Time is running out! Quickly!" Orzala looked to Aang, who gave a short nod, and together, the four kids ran into the dark hall.