Spoiler: show
“That was so much fun, Bumi,” Aang laughed as he tumbled out of the mail cart, his friend still sprawled out inside. “That was even cooler than the time I rode the elephant koi on Kyoshi Island.
“Glad to see I’ve still got it!” King Bumi cackled, a crooked grin spread across his face. He took a deep breath and blew it out slowly as he pushed himself up. “So, Aang, what do you think you’ll be doing next, now that you’ve spent some time with a mad genius?”
“Well, I’ve still got to master the four elements, so we’re on our way to the North Pole, to find a master waterbender.”
“Why would you want to go up there and deal with those fuddy-duddies all the time?” Bumi asked, frowning suddenly.
“Because there aren’t any more master waterbenders at the South Pole, so the North Pole is the only other place I could find one.”
“Well, if you say so…” Bumi turned contemplative. “I was going to ask you to take something to someone for me, but if you’re just going to be going to the Northern Water Tribe, I suppose I’ll have to find someone else…”
“No way, Bumi, you can trust me to do it,” Aang protested. “And with Appa, there’s no one faster than me.”
“You’ve convinced me!” Bumi cheered. “Come along, I’ll order the castle quartermaster to restock all your supplies while I get you the letter.”
--
“I still don’t see why we have to go out of our way just to deliver this letter,” Sokka complained. “I know he’s a friend of yours, Aang, but the guy did trap me and Katara in tasty growing rock candy death traps.”
“Be nice, Sokka,” Katara reprimanded gently. “He did give us enough food for the next couple weeks, provided Momo doesn’t get into the food stores again.”
“Momo wouldn’t do that, would you Momo?” Aang said from his position up front.
Momo stuck his head out of a bag, cheeks wide and bulging with food. He chittered rapidly as Sokka dove for the bag.
“Look, there it is!” Aang exclaimed. Sure enough, a wide forest came into view as Appa broke over the top of the mountain. Minutes later, Appa had drifted down and was skimming the tops of the trees.
“Do you see anything?” Katara asked. “King Bumi didn’t really give us an exact place to look, he just said that he’d be in the Foggy Swamp.”
“Well, this place certainly is foggy, but I can’t see anything through the trees,” Aang said. “Appa, take us down.”
The sky bison groaned and descended. Branches snapped around Appa’s huge frame, and he quickly became entangled in the large number of vines.
“Hey! Whatcha doin’ up there? And how’re you up there doin’ it?” an unfamiliar voice shouted up to them. The gang peered over the side of Appa’s saddle and saw a pair of barely clad men staring up at them, one short and stocky, the other tall and skinny. “I ain’t never seen a critter that big that far up before, what ‘bout you Due?”
“Nope, never have, Tho. Mighty interesting though,” the man’s skinnier boat partner said.
The vines binding Appa shifted and creaked as Momo chewed through several quickly. After five had snapped, the rest gave out and Appa plunged toward the swamp below, creating an almighty wave when he hit. Appa let out a bellowing groan and kicked up, soaring through the air for a few hundred feet before binding up again.
“Y’all ain’t goin’ to get nowhere like that, friend. Only way to get ‘round in here is down low,” Tho advised, standing up from where he sat at the end of the boat. “Too much stuff up there to move ‘round much. Nothing much bigger than a Screaming Bird can fly ‘round up there.”
Momo chewed through the vines holding Appa once more, but this time, Aang was able to calm Appa down before he could panic and take off again. “That’s it boy, it’s okay,” he said in soothing tones as he rubbed a spot just behind Appa’s right horn.
“Um, Mr. Tho, I think you said,” Katara started hesitantly, “do you know anyone named Huu? We’re supposed to deliver a letter to him.”
“Yeah, then maybe we can get out of this creepy place,” Sokka muttered.
“Shoot, Huu? Yeah, he’s usually up by the big tree ‘communing with nature’ round this time. If’n the big fella there ain’t gonna spook no more, we can take y’all to him.”
“Really? That would be great,” Aang said enthusiastically.
“Alright then, just let us know if’n you can’t keep up. We can get goin’ might quick if we don’t watch it.”
“Uh, how? I don’t even see any paddles or anything,” Sokka asked.
“Just you watch, young man. Alright, Due, hit it.”
Due swung his arms back and forth a few times, before swing them all the way around, creating wide, sweeping circles that cut through the air like windmills. Nothing happened for a moment, but then the water underneath the boat stirred, and the small skiff took off, throwing up a wake that took the gang by complete surprise.
“They – they’re waterbending,” Katara whispered reverently.
--
“Huu! Hey, Huu, you up there?” Due called after they had docked their skiff.
A short man with a round stomach peeked his head out from behind an enormous tree root. “Due? Tho? I though you two would be out fishing by now.”
“We was, but these fellas came crashing in through the air and just ‘bout landed on our boat. We conversated a moment and turns out they got something for you,” Due explained.
“Well, that certainly explains it.” Huu walked out, showing he was wearing the same leaf-style loincloth Due and Tho were.
Aang grabbed Bumi’s letter from his pack and leapt from Appa’s head, landing just in front of Huu. “King Bumi sends his regards,” Aang said formally, bowing slightly.
Huu took the letter and unrolled it, his eyes scanning the words. “You’re Aang?” Huu asked as he finished the letter. Aang nodded. “Bumi asks that I take you on as a student of waterbending. Katara too.”
“Really?” Aang and Katara exclaimed as one.
“Yep.”
“That would be great! Did you hear that Katara? Now we don’t have to fly all the way too the North Pole!” Aang cheered.
“So you’re both waterbenders, huh?” Huu asked. “Didn’t know there were any waterbenders anywhere besides the Foggy Swamp. Makes sense though, I suppose. Water’s everywhere. Why shouldn’t there be waterbenders there too. Everything’s connected, after all.”
“Wait a second, you’re just going to accept them as students?” Sokka blurted out. “Just like that?”
“Why not? Bumi’s a friend, even if I haven’t seen him in a while. I don’t mind doing him a favor. Besides they seem willing to learn, and I’m willing to teach.”
Sokka seemed dumbfounded. “Huh. You’d think that it would be harder than that, every epic story you hear the master makes the student prove themselves worthy first, before they train them at all.”
“Sokka! Stop trying to talk him out of it!” Katara hissed. She turned back to Huu and smiled sweetly. “Sorry about Sokka, he doesn’t really get bending.”
“It’s perfectly fine. Everything has its place, so just remember that before forcing something to happen. Not everything is like water, after all, able to fit and adapt to whatever you put it in. Some things are like the trees, growing up, straight and strong, and only able to alter so much before they break. Just something to think about. Now, why don’t you two tell me a little about yourselves.”
“I’m Katara, of the Southern Water Tribe. After the raids the Fire Nation did against our Tribe, I was the only waterbender left in the whole village. We were planning on going to the North Pole to find a master there, but I guess we don’t have to do that now.”
“I’m Aang, and I’m the Avatar. I’ve spent the last hundred years frozen in an iceberg, but before that, I lived at the Southern Air Temple, where I mastered airbending. Um, I really appreciate this, Master Huu.”
“Oh, no need for that Master stuff. And Avatar, you say? I can’t say I know much about it, we don’t get out of the swamp much, and not many people try to come in. But if you want to learn about waterbending, I’ll do my best to teach you.”
Huu stretched, and something popped in his back. “Ooh, that feels better. Communing with nature is harder work than some people seem to think,” he explained, ignoring Due and Tho’s snickering. “Now, what say we head back to the village, and get these kids settled. Tho, Due, I’m riding back with you.”
--
“So, have you guys been attacked by the Fire Nation at all?” Sokka asked. Aang and Katara were off practicing with Huu, and Sokka had been left back at the village with the other tribesmen.
“Not much, not for the past few years,” Tho explained. “They can’t really do much here. The trees and plants are too wet for them to burn real easy, and they can’t get them fancy warships of theirs in the swamp without getting them stuck. We can sink the little boats pretty easy, and the swamp can usually take care of itself for the most part.”
“Wait, what?” Sokka asked with an upraised eyebrow.
“Didn’t Huu give you that whole big speech of his?” Sokka shook his head. “Huu says that the whole swamp is one big tree. I don’t know ‘bout the whole thing being one tree, but for the most part, he’s not far off. And something that big and that old has got a mighty big spirit. Long as we respect the swamp, the spirits don’t give us no problems. You go bargin’ in with no respect for nothing, and you’re in for a world of hurt.”
“So the swamp’s alive?”
“Course the swamp’s alive! Not really alive like me or you, but its sure got something goin’ on. I’ve seen people come in and get so turned around they never see their way out. Not to mention that people see things sometimes. Don’t right know what causes it, but people come into the swamp, don’t show it no respect, and they start seeing things. Huu explains it better than me, but I’ve seen Fire Nation troops come in, and all of a sudden they’re wanderin’ off, calling after people what aren’t there.”
“Whoa, that’s kinda scary, when you think about it.”
Tho slapped Sokka on the back. “Don’t worry kid, just stick with me, and I’ll keep you straight.”
--
“Why would the Avatar come here, of all places?” Zuko complained as he stood at the head of the steamer.
“Perhaps he felt this place would deter you from following him, Prince Zuko,” Iroh suggested to him over a cup of tea.
“Well, it won’t work. Nothing will stop me from capturing him, and regaining my honor,” Zuko vowed. Iroh said nothing, but his eyes clouded in thought behind his teacup.
--
“Hey Tho, we got some people down in the South End,” Due shouted as he made his way into camp.
“What’d they look like?” Tho prompted.
“Fire Nation, looked like. Real small group, though. Seemed like they were lookin’ for something, cause they weren’t burnin’ anything down or anything.”
“Welp, I’m guessin’ we should go give ‘em a proper welcome. Sokka, come on, I’ll show you how we do things here in Foggy Swamp Country. Boh, you go get Huu.”
A scraggly looking boy shot up and ran off in the direction Huu had left with Katara and Aang that morning, and Sokka gathered his weapons. “Let’s go,” Sokka said, far more serious than normal.
--
Sokka, Due, and Tho all hunched in the bushes, waiting for the Fire Nation soldiers to pass. The sound of heavy footsteps grew louder, and Due had to put a hand on Sokka to keep him from running out and challenging the whole contingent himself.
“Shh, watch this.” Tho straightened as much as the cover would allow, and began moving his arms in circles, first small but growing larger. A vine snaked out slowly, creeping along the ground until it snagged the leg of one of the soldiers towards the middle of the line. The soldier went down, hard. He took the man in front of him with him, and the soldier behind him as well.
“Hold the line!” a slightly better armored soldier in the rear called.
“What? Why?” the armored figure at the head of the line snarled. He turned around quickly, seeing the three soldiers sprawled across the ground.
“It was a vine, Prince Zuko,” Iroh said, and Sokka had to suppress a gasp as he realized who it was. The helmet had kept him from recognizing Zuko, but now that Iroh was out in the open, Sokka knew whom he was up against. And he knew that Zuko’s men were good at what they did.
Two of the soldiers got up without trouble, but the third fell to one side as he pushed himself up. “Sprained ankle, sir,” the group’s medic declared after a moment of inspection.
“Lieutenant Jee, take a partner and get this man back to the steamer,” Iroh said, his voice taking on one of command. “And see if you can get him a good cup of tea.”
Then the river exploded.
A huge, hulking form made of twisting vines and plants dominated the sight of everyone present. The monster seemed only to have two arms and a body, with no head or feet, and the only thing resembling a face was marked by a plank of dead wood, hovering close to the middle of the body.
It swung one monstrous arm out, scattering the soldiers. Several were hit, and knocked into the river. The other arm reared back, and shot forward, slamming into the unfortunate Lieutenant Jee. The arm carried him back, pinning him against a tree.
Zuko recovered his wits first, and shot a blast of fire at their attacker. A chunk of the monster’s shoulder was burned, but just as Zuko prepared to shout an order, the damage healed easily. A grimace pulled across his face, and Zuko gave the order. “Fall back! Everyone, back to the steamer!”
The soldiers quickly responded, sending ineffectual fire blasts at the monster, but covering themselves well. As soon as their comrades were pulled from the river, the soldiers were gone, retreating as fast as they could.
As soon as the soldiers were out of sight, the monster melted back into the water, much less violent then its appearance. Once it had disappeared, Huu walked out of the river, breathing heavy but unharmed.
“That was awesome!” Aang exclaimed as he floated down gently. Katara emerged from the brush on the other side of the river, and swam across.
“I’ve never even thought of doing anything like that, Huu,” Katara breathed. “I can’t wait to learn how to do that.”
“Glad to see I’ve still got it!” King Bumi cackled, a crooked grin spread across his face. He took a deep breath and blew it out slowly as he pushed himself up. “So, Aang, what do you think you’ll be doing next, now that you’ve spent some time with a mad genius?”
“Well, I’ve still got to master the four elements, so we’re on our way to the North Pole, to find a master waterbender.”
“Why would you want to go up there and deal with those fuddy-duddies all the time?” Bumi asked, frowning suddenly.
“Because there aren’t any more master waterbenders at the South Pole, so the North Pole is the only other place I could find one.”
“Well, if you say so…” Bumi turned contemplative. “I was going to ask you to take something to someone for me, but if you’re just going to be going to the Northern Water Tribe, I suppose I’ll have to find someone else…”
“No way, Bumi, you can trust me to do it,” Aang protested. “And with Appa, there’s no one faster than me.”
“You’ve convinced me!” Bumi cheered. “Come along, I’ll order the castle quartermaster to restock all your supplies while I get you the letter.”
--
“I still don’t see why we have to go out of our way just to deliver this letter,” Sokka complained. “I know he’s a friend of yours, Aang, but the guy did trap me and Katara in tasty growing rock candy death traps.”
“Be nice, Sokka,” Katara reprimanded gently. “He did give us enough food for the next couple weeks, provided Momo doesn’t get into the food stores again.”
“Momo wouldn’t do that, would you Momo?” Aang said from his position up front.
Momo stuck his head out of a bag, cheeks wide and bulging with food. He chittered rapidly as Sokka dove for the bag.
“Look, there it is!” Aang exclaimed. Sure enough, a wide forest came into view as Appa broke over the top of the mountain. Minutes later, Appa had drifted down and was skimming the tops of the trees.
“Do you see anything?” Katara asked. “King Bumi didn’t really give us an exact place to look, he just said that he’d be in the Foggy Swamp.”
“Well, this place certainly is foggy, but I can’t see anything through the trees,” Aang said. “Appa, take us down.”
The sky bison groaned and descended. Branches snapped around Appa’s huge frame, and he quickly became entangled in the large number of vines.
“Hey! Whatcha doin’ up there? And how’re you up there doin’ it?” an unfamiliar voice shouted up to them. The gang peered over the side of Appa’s saddle and saw a pair of barely clad men staring up at them, one short and stocky, the other tall and skinny. “I ain’t never seen a critter that big that far up before, what ‘bout you Due?”
“Nope, never have, Tho. Mighty interesting though,” the man’s skinnier boat partner said.
The vines binding Appa shifted and creaked as Momo chewed through several quickly. After five had snapped, the rest gave out and Appa plunged toward the swamp below, creating an almighty wave when he hit. Appa let out a bellowing groan and kicked up, soaring through the air for a few hundred feet before binding up again.
“Y’all ain’t goin’ to get nowhere like that, friend. Only way to get ‘round in here is down low,” Tho advised, standing up from where he sat at the end of the boat. “Too much stuff up there to move ‘round much. Nothing much bigger than a Screaming Bird can fly ‘round up there.”
Momo chewed through the vines holding Appa once more, but this time, Aang was able to calm Appa down before he could panic and take off again. “That’s it boy, it’s okay,” he said in soothing tones as he rubbed a spot just behind Appa’s right horn.
“Um, Mr. Tho, I think you said,” Katara started hesitantly, “do you know anyone named Huu? We’re supposed to deliver a letter to him.”
“Yeah, then maybe we can get out of this creepy place,” Sokka muttered.
“Shoot, Huu? Yeah, he’s usually up by the big tree ‘communing with nature’ round this time. If’n the big fella there ain’t gonna spook no more, we can take y’all to him.”
“Really? That would be great,” Aang said enthusiastically.
“Alright then, just let us know if’n you can’t keep up. We can get goin’ might quick if we don’t watch it.”
“Uh, how? I don’t even see any paddles or anything,” Sokka asked.
“Just you watch, young man. Alright, Due, hit it.”
Due swung his arms back and forth a few times, before swing them all the way around, creating wide, sweeping circles that cut through the air like windmills. Nothing happened for a moment, but then the water underneath the boat stirred, and the small skiff took off, throwing up a wake that took the gang by complete surprise.
“They – they’re waterbending,” Katara whispered reverently.
--
“Huu! Hey, Huu, you up there?” Due called after they had docked their skiff.
A short man with a round stomach peeked his head out from behind an enormous tree root. “Due? Tho? I though you two would be out fishing by now.”
“We was, but these fellas came crashing in through the air and just ‘bout landed on our boat. We conversated a moment and turns out they got something for you,” Due explained.
“Well, that certainly explains it.” Huu walked out, showing he was wearing the same leaf-style loincloth Due and Tho were.
Aang grabbed Bumi’s letter from his pack and leapt from Appa’s head, landing just in front of Huu. “King Bumi sends his regards,” Aang said formally, bowing slightly.
Huu took the letter and unrolled it, his eyes scanning the words. “You’re Aang?” Huu asked as he finished the letter. Aang nodded. “Bumi asks that I take you on as a student of waterbending. Katara too.”
“Really?” Aang and Katara exclaimed as one.
“Yep.”
“That would be great! Did you hear that Katara? Now we don’t have to fly all the way too the North Pole!” Aang cheered.
“So you’re both waterbenders, huh?” Huu asked. “Didn’t know there were any waterbenders anywhere besides the Foggy Swamp. Makes sense though, I suppose. Water’s everywhere. Why shouldn’t there be waterbenders there too. Everything’s connected, after all.”
“Wait a second, you’re just going to accept them as students?” Sokka blurted out. “Just like that?”
“Why not? Bumi’s a friend, even if I haven’t seen him in a while. I don’t mind doing him a favor. Besides they seem willing to learn, and I’m willing to teach.”
Sokka seemed dumbfounded. “Huh. You’d think that it would be harder than that, every epic story you hear the master makes the student prove themselves worthy first, before they train them at all.”
“Sokka! Stop trying to talk him out of it!” Katara hissed. She turned back to Huu and smiled sweetly. “Sorry about Sokka, he doesn’t really get bending.”
“It’s perfectly fine. Everything has its place, so just remember that before forcing something to happen. Not everything is like water, after all, able to fit and adapt to whatever you put it in. Some things are like the trees, growing up, straight and strong, and only able to alter so much before they break. Just something to think about. Now, why don’t you two tell me a little about yourselves.”
“I’m Katara, of the Southern Water Tribe. After the raids the Fire Nation did against our Tribe, I was the only waterbender left in the whole village. We were planning on going to the North Pole to find a master there, but I guess we don’t have to do that now.”
“I’m Aang, and I’m the Avatar. I’ve spent the last hundred years frozen in an iceberg, but before that, I lived at the Southern Air Temple, where I mastered airbending. Um, I really appreciate this, Master Huu.”
“Oh, no need for that Master stuff. And Avatar, you say? I can’t say I know much about it, we don’t get out of the swamp much, and not many people try to come in. But if you want to learn about waterbending, I’ll do my best to teach you.”
Huu stretched, and something popped in his back. “Ooh, that feels better. Communing with nature is harder work than some people seem to think,” he explained, ignoring Due and Tho’s snickering. “Now, what say we head back to the village, and get these kids settled. Tho, Due, I’m riding back with you.”
--
“So, have you guys been attacked by the Fire Nation at all?” Sokka asked. Aang and Katara were off practicing with Huu, and Sokka had been left back at the village with the other tribesmen.
“Not much, not for the past few years,” Tho explained. “They can’t really do much here. The trees and plants are too wet for them to burn real easy, and they can’t get them fancy warships of theirs in the swamp without getting them stuck. We can sink the little boats pretty easy, and the swamp can usually take care of itself for the most part.”
“Wait, what?” Sokka asked with an upraised eyebrow.
“Didn’t Huu give you that whole big speech of his?” Sokka shook his head. “Huu says that the whole swamp is one big tree. I don’t know ‘bout the whole thing being one tree, but for the most part, he’s not far off. And something that big and that old has got a mighty big spirit. Long as we respect the swamp, the spirits don’t give us no problems. You go bargin’ in with no respect for nothing, and you’re in for a world of hurt.”
“So the swamp’s alive?”
“Course the swamp’s alive! Not really alive like me or you, but its sure got something goin’ on. I’ve seen people come in and get so turned around they never see their way out. Not to mention that people see things sometimes. Don’t right know what causes it, but people come into the swamp, don’t show it no respect, and they start seeing things. Huu explains it better than me, but I’ve seen Fire Nation troops come in, and all of a sudden they’re wanderin’ off, calling after people what aren’t there.”
“Whoa, that’s kinda scary, when you think about it.”
Tho slapped Sokka on the back. “Don’t worry kid, just stick with me, and I’ll keep you straight.”
--
“Why would the Avatar come here, of all places?” Zuko complained as he stood at the head of the steamer.
“Perhaps he felt this place would deter you from following him, Prince Zuko,” Iroh suggested to him over a cup of tea.
“Well, it won’t work. Nothing will stop me from capturing him, and regaining my honor,” Zuko vowed. Iroh said nothing, but his eyes clouded in thought behind his teacup.
--
“Hey Tho, we got some people down in the South End,” Due shouted as he made his way into camp.
“What’d they look like?” Tho prompted.
“Fire Nation, looked like. Real small group, though. Seemed like they were lookin’ for something, cause they weren’t burnin’ anything down or anything.”
“Welp, I’m guessin’ we should go give ‘em a proper welcome. Sokka, come on, I’ll show you how we do things here in Foggy Swamp Country. Boh, you go get Huu.”
A scraggly looking boy shot up and ran off in the direction Huu had left with Katara and Aang that morning, and Sokka gathered his weapons. “Let’s go,” Sokka said, far more serious than normal.
--
Sokka, Due, and Tho all hunched in the bushes, waiting for the Fire Nation soldiers to pass. The sound of heavy footsteps grew louder, and Due had to put a hand on Sokka to keep him from running out and challenging the whole contingent himself.
“Shh, watch this.” Tho straightened as much as the cover would allow, and began moving his arms in circles, first small but growing larger. A vine snaked out slowly, creeping along the ground until it snagged the leg of one of the soldiers towards the middle of the line. The soldier went down, hard. He took the man in front of him with him, and the soldier behind him as well.
“Hold the line!” a slightly better armored soldier in the rear called.
“What? Why?” the armored figure at the head of the line snarled. He turned around quickly, seeing the three soldiers sprawled across the ground.
“It was a vine, Prince Zuko,” Iroh said, and Sokka had to suppress a gasp as he realized who it was. The helmet had kept him from recognizing Zuko, but now that Iroh was out in the open, Sokka knew whom he was up against. And he knew that Zuko’s men were good at what they did.
Two of the soldiers got up without trouble, but the third fell to one side as he pushed himself up. “Sprained ankle, sir,” the group’s medic declared after a moment of inspection.
“Lieutenant Jee, take a partner and get this man back to the steamer,” Iroh said, his voice taking on one of command. “And see if you can get him a good cup of tea.”
Then the river exploded.
A huge, hulking form made of twisting vines and plants dominated the sight of everyone present. The monster seemed only to have two arms and a body, with no head or feet, and the only thing resembling a face was marked by a plank of dead wood, hovering close to the middle of the body.
It swung one monstrous arm out, scattering the soldiers. Several were hit, and knocked into the river. The other arm reared back, and shot forward, slamming into the unfortunate Lieutenant Jee. The arm carried him back, pinning him against a tree.
Zuko recovered his wits first, and shot a blast of fire at their attacker. A chunk of the monster’s shoulder was burned, but just as Zuko prepared to shout an order, the damage healed easily. A grimace pulled across his face, and Zuko gave the order. “Fall back! Everyone, back to the steamer!”
The soldiers quickly responded, sending ineffectual fire blasts at the monster, but covering themselves well. As soon as their comrades were pulled from the river, the soldiers were gone, retreating as fast as they could.
As soon as the soldiers were out of sight, the monster melted back into the water, much less violent then its appearance. Once it had disappeared, Huu walked out of the river, breathing heavy but unharmed.
“That was awesome!” Aang exclaimed as he floated down gently. Katara emerged from the brush on the other side of the river, and swam across.
“I’ve never even thought of doing anything like that, Huu,” Katara breathed. “I can’t wait to learn how to do that.”
