Tale Of Two Avatars

The Serpent's Pass

Thankfully, we manage to make it out of the desert, stumbling upon a waterfall on our way to Ba Sing Se. We decide to rest for a day there, utterly exhausted from our ordeal in the desert. I was practising waterbending in the waterfall pond while Aang was swimming, bending an ice cube around himself and relaxing, a lot calmer from what happened in the desert. Toph was resting at the side as well, kicking her legs in the water aimlessly while Sokka was examining the map he obtained from the library.

Katara, on the other hand, was a lot more lively, standing on top of a cliff overlooking the waterfall pond, preparing to jump into the pond, which she does, doing a few somersaults in the air. "Waterbending bomb! Yeah!" 

The impact of her jump sends a giant wave of water out of the waterfall, sending Aang out of the pool but I stay rooted in the water, already anticipating this and bending the water midair, I make them into tiny water droplets and send it raining back into the pond.

"Thanks, Suzume. At least she knows how to respect ancient five-hundred-year-old maps from the spirit library, unlike someone else," Sokka glares at Katara.

Katara only chuckles nervously, walking back onto solid ground and I follow suit. 

We gather around the map, Aang being the one to kick off the discussion. "So, did you figure out what route we're going to take?"

"Okay, we just got out of the desert, so we must be around here. And we need to go to Ba Sing Se, which is here. It looks like the only passage connecting the south to the north is this sliver of land called the Serpent's Pass," Sokka points to a narrow stretch of land between two mountains.

Toph crosses her arms unconvinced. "You sure that's the best way to go?" 

"It's the only way. I mean, it's not like we have Appa to fly us there," Sokka reasoned and I scowled at him, causing him to go silent. 

"Shush up about Appa. Can't you at least try to be sensitive?" Katara whispered chidingly.

"Katara, Suzume, it's okay," Aang reassured. "I know I was upset about losing Appa before, but I just want to focus on getting to Ba Sing Se and telling the Earth King about the solar eclipse." 

"Oh...well, okay. I'm glad you're doing better," Katara smiled. 'That couldn't be farther from the truth.'

'I'm fine, Suzume, I swear. Don't worry about me.'

I glance at Aang in shock, surprised he could hear what I thought when I was pretty sure I had concealed that from him. I give him a slight nod, returning my attention to our discussion.

"Then to Ba Sing Se we go. No more distractions," Sokka concludes the discussion, rolling up the map and placing it back into his satchel. And as if on cue, what Sokka didn't want comes true, as is always the case nowadays.

"Hello there, fellow refugees!" We turn back, seeing three people behind us, a man, a pregnant lady and another lady.

"So, you guys are headed to Ba Sing Se, too?" Aang inquired.

"Sure are. We're trying to get there before my wife Ying has her baby," The man points to the pregnant lady beside him.

"Great! We can travel through the Serpent's Pass together," Katara responded cheerfully.

The three refugees step back in shock, "The Serpent's Pass? Only the truly desperate take that deadly route!"

"Deadly route," Toph punches Sokka in the arm. "Great pick, Sokka!"

"Well, we are desperate," Sokka protested, rubbing his shoulder and wincing.

"You should come with us to Full Moon Bay. Ferries take refugees across the lake. It's the fastest way to Ba Sing Se," the man suggested.