•𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗔 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲•

10

A/N: This chapter should be semi-angsty enough! Enjoy! And there's a surprise at the end for you! My search history was so weird after writing this chapter...let's just say Google now thinks I'm either a serial killer or a gardener.  And if you see any typos/errors, feel free to let me know! 

     When Katara woke up her back was so sore she could barely move. After stretching, it felt a bit better but still hurt. But today there was a goal. Katara had to find Toph. Her ally could definitely hold her own in a fight but there were a few things her earthbending couldn't help with. The moment Toph wasn't on the solid ground, she wouldn't be able to see anything. 

     She undid the rope and packed up her bag. Climbing down a tree was definitely easier than climbing up one. Her feet crunched in the leaves as she plopped down onto the forest floor. But something caught her eye. Katara paled and turned away whenever she noticed it was Yue's blood she was looking at.

     It was hard to believe that just yesterday Yue was alive. And Katara could have done something about it.

     Shush, they would have just killed you too.

     At least that's what she told herself.

     Katara knew she needed to start moving, so she chose the opposite direction of the Careers camp. She may have been a waterbender, but one of Mai's knives would have been the end.

      The weather was deceptively sunny, and Katara couldn't help but take in the beauty of the arena. The sunlight streamed through the trees, and it danced around the plants. It seemed too beautiful to be a place as dangerous as it was.

     Katara funneled her hands again and tried her bird song.

     She waited, and soon it caught on. She couldn't help but smile at the beautiful melody. The bird's voices all cascaded over each other, creating a round effect.

     Then the music stopped.

     Nothing.

     Katara was nervous but shook her head. Toph was still alive. The sky last night told her so. And if she had died before then she would have heard a cannon.

     Katara wandered around aimlessly for a couple of hours, before deciding she was hungry. Her stomach grumbled at the small meals she had each day now, and she wished that she hadn't eaten such large meals in the Capital. She envied the people of the wealthy Fire Nation. They probably always went to bed with their stomachs full. Even before the arena Katara hardly ever went the day without some sort of hunger back home. 

     Katara opened the backpack and grabbed her book of edible plants. Turning to the index, she decided she wanted to look at berries. She sometimes had them for breakfast at home, so why not try and have some sort of routine.

     She scanned and saw in this forest there were many kinds. The arena had plants with thimbleberries, salmonberries, cloudberries and to Katara's delight, raspberries.

     For Sokka's birthday, their mom had picked raspberries, and the two loved them. They went to bed that night with mouths and fingers stained red.

     Katara smiled at the memory.

     She looked down and noticed that there was also a list of poisonous berries. They included plants called holly, nightlock, and moonseed. Katara made sure to keep the names and pictures to mind. She refused to die from eating the wrong plants.

     Wandering around and looking for berry bushes was boring, Katara decided. She felt like she had been wandering for hours when she finally saw a bush with red on it.