Avatar: The Red Dragon

Chapter 16: The Masters

Nanami followed Avatar Aang and Fire Lord Zuko, looking excitedly around her. For a little girl who had never left her hometown, this picturesque village, representing an entire supposedly-lost civilization, was a marvelous entertainment. The countless traps that still worked despite being so old aroused her curiosity and fueled her excitement.

"Be careful of the traps, Nanami," Fire Lord Zuko warned her, as they passed by an unsettling, quiet path. "They got us when we first came here."

Remembering her mother's words about listening to the adults, Nanami stopped wandering around on her own, and came back to the group rapidly, walking behind Aang and Zuko.

"Why are we here, Avatar Aang?" she asked, lifting her head on her left to look at him.

"We'll go meet the true masters of firebending. They know every form of firebending. Surely, they'll know about your power too," Aang replied to her, a gentle smile on his lips.

Nanami nodded and looked back in front of her. Her legs were shorter, so she was lagging behind. Tenzin slowed down to wait for the little girl, and matched his pace with hers. He didn't talk much, but Nanami liked him; he was nice with her.

They arrived in a large court where a crowd of people wearing nearly nothing formed a circle. Nanami raised her eyebrow, surprised by the paint on their faces and their weird clothes. A large man with the upper part of his face painted in red and white stepped forward. He had a goatee beard, and was wearing a big hat, colored in both yellow and red, with a pear-shaped insignia in the middle of his forehead. The top of the hat was covered with something that looked like fur, but Nanami was not sure what it really was.

"A tattooed man and a scarred-face man," the stranger said thoughtfully, a hand on his chin. "We know you. You are the Avatar and the Fire Nation Prince."

"Fire Lord now," Zuko corrected, pointing at his headpiece.

"Sun Warrior chief," Aang began. "We came here to meet the firebending Masters, Ran and Shaw."

"Why do you want to meet them?" the chief inquired, squinting his eyes.

Aang and Zuko moved to the sides, letting a space between them for Nanami to come forward. Tenzin gently gave her a little push in the back to reassure her, as she was feeling nervous and didn't budge from her place. The little girl stepped forward, her head hung low, and stood still between the Avatar and the Fire Lord.

Nanami looked up at the chief, a restless expression drawn on her round, baby face. The Sun Warrior chief stared at her intently, scrutinizing her from head to toe. Nanami could feel her heart beat really fast. The man was making her uncomfortable with his inspection. His face was unfriendly, and a little bit scary. His tribe was giving her the same impression, and she gulped from all the pressure.

"I hope for you that your ancestors were nice people."

Nanami raised her eyebrow, wondering why he talked about her ancestors. Anyway, she had absolutely no idea whether they were good people or not. She didn't really know anything about them, apart from what her grandmother had told them the other day.

The Sun Warrior chief motioned to them to follow him with his head. They ascended a long set of steps, at the top of which they found a giant flame burning in the hollow of something that looked like a small sanctuary.