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squeaklingsTitle: The Avatar and the Winter Spirit
Wordcount: 2, 941
Fandom: Rise of the Guardians, Avatar: the Last Airbender
Rating: G
Warnings: post A:tLA
Summary: The Avatar has always had a connection with the Spirit World, whether or not he was aware of it. Sometimes that connection takes the form of an age-old friendship.
Notes: This came into my head with the thought "Aang travels on the wind. Hey, so does Jack Frost! Wouldn't it be interesting if they met?" But I couldn't think of how that could be possible until my friend suggested I AU Jack into the Avatar world, and I came up with this.
I use the name Jokul in this fic purely for aesthetic reasons, as I feel that the name Jack sticks out like a sore thumb in the Avatar world.
“No, like this.”
Aang picked up the propeller and grabbed the pull-string with his small, seven-year-old fingers. Then he pulled back, almost to his cheek, and let go. He laughed as the tiny propeller took flight, and the pale, white-haired boy floating beside him did as well.
They watched the propeller fly and then begin to float as it descended, and the pale boy darted forward on the wind to snatch it and bring it back.
“Hey, can I try again?”
“Sure.” Aang handed the device over and rocked back and forth on his tailbone, his legs folded in front of him. “How come you can glide in the air like an airbender, Jokul? You don’t look like an Air Nomad.”
Jokul paused in the act of pulling the string, a cheeky grin on his face. “No? Well, what do I look like?”
Aang’s eyebrows drew down in as he thought, taking in the other boy’s pale blue, furred Water Tribe robes and he finally shrugged. “Like a waterbender.”
“Hah, that’s where you’re wrong,” Jokul said, and sent the propeller flying out over the plaza they sat on. He picked up his staff and jumped atop it, balancing like the feat took no effort at all. “I’m a snowbender.”
“There’s no such thing!”
“Sure there is! Watch this.” Jokul held out one of his hands and winked, then blew across his palm. Snowflakes gently floated up into the air on his breath, and Aang fell backwards before scrambling to his feet to get a better look.
“That’s amazing! I wanna try!”
Jokul laughed and jumped off his staff. “Sorry, trade secret.”
“Aang!”
The young boy turned at the monk’s voice, and Jokul flipped his staff up onto his shoulders. Monk Gyatso walked out onto the plaza, his hands in his sleeves as he eyed the light smattering of snow surrounding Aang.
“I came to get you,” he said, coming to a stop beside the young bender and leaning down to speak. “I was able to explain you disappearing during dinner, but the Northern Water Tribe delegation is leaving, and I can’t cover you missing that.” There was a twinkle in his eye as he spoke, and Aang grinned although his cheeks turned red. Gyatso stood and glanced around. “Who were you talking to?”
“My new friend. He asked me to come play with him,” he said, and glanced behind him to look for Jokul. The boy was gone, although Aang felt a cool wind brush the top of his head and he glanced up to see the pale boy hovering a few feet above them.
“You go on ahead. Don’t worry, I’ll come visit again.” He waved and then darted away, swaying with the wind.
Gyatso raised an eyebrow as he followed Aang’s gaze and saw only clear, empty sky. When he looked back down, he noticed the toy in his young charge’s hand, and his expression softened for a moment before he nudged the boy with his elbow and said, “Don’t let the other monks know, but we have a surprise for you once the delegation leaves, so you have to be on your best behavior.”
“A surprise?” Aang’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
Monk Gyatso leaned in close. “A little winged lemur told me there’s a new glider just your size waiting in your room.”
Aang jumped ten feet in the air with his shout of joy.
“Hey there, kiddo!”
Aang glanced up at the voice as he moved through his kata. The sun was nearly set, and the skies were a vivid purple, but he could just make out the blue-clad shape hovering near the fountain.
“Jokul!”
The Water Tribesman waved and landed on the plaza, his bare feet leaving whorls of frost along the ground. Aang jumped up to meet him on the upper level, a huge smile on his face.
“You’ll never guess what I did!”
Jokul laughed and patted the younger boy on the head. “Oh? Let’s see.” He folded his arms across his chest and eyed the young airbender. “You lost all your teeth in a freak accident?”
Aang grinned, big and bright and full of clean, white teeth. “Not even close.”
“Ok then, you…skied all the way down the mountain?”
“Nope! Better!”
Jokul looked mock-surprised. “There’s no such thing!”
“I made some new friends in the other nations!” Aang hopped to the fountain and jumped atop it, doing cartwheels along the edge. “I met this boy named Bumi in the Earth Kingdom, and he’s a genius. And I met this other boy, Kozan, in the Fire Nation, and hopefully next time we can go to the Water Tribes and I can see you there instead of you coming all this way.”
“That is something better than skiing down the mountain,” Jokul said. “But just barely. I’m glad you got to travel around. You don’t seem the type to be cooped up.”
Aang flipped off the fountain to land beside Jokul, and a strong wind blew past, lifting Jokul’s coat and flipping it over his head. “And Monk Gyatso has been teaching me a lot of new tricks. I can’t wait to show you!” He paused and glanced around the older boy. “Where are the others?”
Jokul flipped his coat back to rights and slung his staff over his shoulders. “Just me, kiddo. Thought I’d check up on you.”
“Oh. Cool.” He grabbed Jokul’s hand, ignoring the way it was almost too cold to touch, and nearly dragged the older boy after him. “C’mon, let’s go to the airball court! We can get some practice in before dinner.”
Jokul let himself be pulled along, laughing. “Ok, ok, but no crying when I win.”
“Pfft, like that’d happen.” Aang looked back, a challenger’s grin on his face. “But you’re on!”
The snowball that Jokul shoved down his shirt a few seconds later wasn’t entirely unexpected.
“Aang, what is wrong? You’re extra distracted today.”
The boy scratched the back of his head and grinned in embarrassment. “Sorry.”
Gyatso sighed. “Is there something you want to talk about?”
Aang shrugged. “Just been wondering where my friend is. He usually visits when the seasons turn.”
His mentor raised an eyebrow. “Your friend?”
“Yeah, he’s from the Northern Water Tribe. His name’s Jokul.” Aang idly blew a puff of air, making the leaves around them dance. “He came with the delegates a couple years ago.” He let the leaves fall and glanced sideways at Gyatso. “…You believe me, right? The other monks keep saying there was no one like him.”
Monk Gyatso smiled. “Of course I believe you. But you must forgive the others; we’re old, you know. Sometimes we forget faces.”
Aang grinned, and Gyatso pointed past their cover of leaves. “Now, remember what I taught you about manipulating the air?” As he spoke he gestured, and one of the robes piled on a rock across the way billowed up and out as though being worn. It swayed in the air and then capered away in a very ungainly way. “It’s time for a test, I think.”
The boy grinned his biggest, most mischievous grin, and by the time the other monks emerged from the springs their clothes had all danced away on the wind.
“Hey, Jokul, look what I can do!”
Aang twirled his arms, calling the wind until it formed a swirling ball of chaotic air. He grinned at his friend, then hopped on the ball and rode it around the southern plaza and up along the wall.
Jokul whistled as the young airbender came to a stop in front of him. “Impressive!”
Aang grinned and hopped off the ball, letting it dissipate in an explosive breath of air. Jokul’s blue robes billowed out, and where the wind touched his skin ice crystals formed.
“I call it the air scooter,” Aang said. “I taught it to the others.” His face fell for just a moment before he grinned, big and bright. “You wanna play a game?”
The Water Tribesman knelt down and tapped Aang’s forehead. “Sure, but I gotta ask, what’s with this?”
Aang tried to look up at his own forehead and then held his hands out to show the tattoos there as well. “I got my bending master tattoos!” His grin faded just a bit. “Hey, Jokul, I don’t seem any different to you, do I?”
The pale boy raised an eyebrow. “You seem taller.” Aang laughed. “But you seem a little sad, too,” he continued, and draped his arms over his knees. “Something on your mind?”
Aang glanced at his feet. “If you found out something about yourself, but it’s not something you want, what would you do?”
Jokul frowned and tapped his fingers against his staff. “That’s a tough question. Is it something you can change?” After a long moment Aang shook his head. “Then maybe change the way you think about it? Make it into something all your own, something you can be proud of.”
“Everyone except Monk Gyatso acts different around me now.”
Jokul put a hand on Aang’s head. “Then they’re missing out, because I see the same fun-loving kid I’ve always seen.” He rubbed Aang’s head, and the boy laughed and pulled away, complaining of an iced scalp. “So, how about that game?”
Aang’s face lit up right before the snowball hit him. Then it was a no-holds-barred snowball and air scooter battle for supremacy. They stopped only at the sound of Gyatso’s call, both out of breath and lying on their backs on the plaza, laughing and looking up at the purple sky.
“Looks like you’re wanted,” Jokul said and floated up to his feet, kicking his staff up into his hands as he did so. Aang smacked his hands down on the ground and propelled himself to his feet, doing a little hop-step as he caught his balance at the end.
“Yeah.” He dusted himself off. “Hey, Jokul?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks. Today was fun.”
Jokul smiled as he hovered up into the air. “Same here.”
Aang grinned and dashed off towards Gyatso as he appeared at the stairway. Jokul watched him go before glancing up at the sliver of moon peeking out from behind the orange clouds.
“Spirit?”
He turned at the voice. Monk Gyatso still stood on the stairs, looking out over the plaza. Jokul floated over, the wind cooling as it brushed against him. When it touched the monk, he turned to look, although he more saw through Jokul than anything.
“I do apologize, but I’m afraid I can’t see you. But I know Aang can.” He bowed and then smiled, and Jokul found himself grinning back at the kind man. “The boy is precious, and there are more dangers in this world than he understands. Please,” he said, and bowed again, his hands hidden in the sleeves of his robes. “Protect him where we cannot.”
“Always,” Jokul said, sending down a small blue snowflake to land on the monk’s nose. Gyatso smiled.
“…Aang. Avatar Aang.”
He woke with a start, falling out of the bed, the covers wrapped around his neck and upper body. Momo chittered unhappily and then fell back asleep at the foot of the bed, his ears twitching rapidly. Aang tossed the covers off and rose to his feet on a puff of air, looking left and right for the speaker.
“Avatar Aang.”
He paused, his eyes going wide as he recognized the voice, and he darted to the window with a smile on his face. The full moon shone brightly, moonbeams dancing across the frozen Northern city, and he didn’t give it a second thought before he grabbed his glider and darted out the window. The air was crisp and refreshing through his sleeping clothes, and in the back of his mind he knew he’d regret going out without proper clothing.
But Yue was waiting.
She hovered above the eastern wall, the moon backlit against her ethereal form, and Aang landed on the ramparts to bow. She smiled and inclined her head.
“It’s good to see you well, Aang.”
He grinned. “It’s good to see you, too, Princess Yue.” His grin faded slightly. “Is something wrong? Do you need my help?” Ever since he defeated Firelord Ozai five years ago the world had been peaceful, but it was possible there was trouble brewing in the Spirit World.
Yue shook her head. “No, everything is fine. But it’s not often you return to my people.”
“Yeah… Sorry about that.”
She laughed, and the sound was like little chimes in the wind. “Don’t be. I’ve seen the good work you’re doing. But there is someone who’s been wanting to see you for quite some time now.”
The moon shimmered behind her, and Aang held his breath in anticipation. It wasn’t everyday that the Moon Spirit wanted him to meet someone.
And that was when the snowball hit him in the back of the head.
“Hey!” he yelled, although he couldn’t stop the grin tugging at his lips. “That was a low…”
Jokul hovered behind him casually tossing a snowball in his right hand, his ever-present staff in his left. He’d ditched the heavy blue coat and wore a simple dark-blue tunic with brown leggings. “Hey, Aang.”
The Avatar stared and stared before he dropped his glider and launched himself at the other boy, laughing in that way one does when meeting an old friend again after a long time. Jokul hugged him back just as fiercely, and together they slowly descended back onto the wall, for once Aang’s feet as bare as Jokul’s.
“Jokul! I can’t believe you’re here!” He pulled back to give the pale boy a once-over. “Hey, I’m taller than you now! And other than your clothes you look exactly…” His words died in his throat as realization sank in. “…the same…” He backed away quickly and put his hands together to bow deeply.
“Hey, hey, no need for formalities. We’re friends, right?”
Aang straightened from his bow, a grin warring with the confused look on his face. “I guess this explains why no one else ever mentioned you.” He was silent a moment. “Looking back on it, it’s kind of obvious, actually.”
“It made me happy, though, you thinking I was human.”
The Avatar smiled and stood up straight, then frowned as a thought hit him. “But, wait, if you’re a spirit, how are you from the Northern Water Tribe?”
Jokul leaned against his staff, lips pursed in thought, but Yue was the one to speak. “Not all spirits remain in the Spirit World. He’s been a protector spirit of our tribe’s children for centuries.” She floated lower, although she still didn’t touch the wall. “We might not all see him, but at least the royal family always knew he was there.”
Aang frowned in thought, and then smacked his fist into his palm. “That’s right, that first time I met you, the young princess was traveling with the delegates.”
“Yeah, we were on our way to have some talks with the Southern Tribe and made a small stop at your temple.”
Aang tilted his head, curious. “But you always came alone the other times.”
Jokul nodded. “Even protector spirits get time to visit friends. Especially if that friend is a young Avatar.” He grinned. “Besides, I was technically still doing my job. Who’s the one who kept cutting out on lessons whenever I showed up?”
“Only like twice!” Aang protested, his cheeks pink despite the grin on his face.
“Yeah, yeah,” he said, and rubbed Aang’s head like he used to so many years ago. Aang laughed, although his expression turned somber soon enough.
“So you were here, then? During the Siege?”
Jokul glanced over at Yue, and she gave a slight nod. He turned back to Aang. “Yeah. There was never a chance to talk with you, though, and after Zhao killed the Moon Spirit it took all my power just to stay in the Human World and protect the children.” He paused. “I’m sorry, too, for not being there for you a hundred years ago.
“Oh.” Aang glanced down at his feet; they were half-buried in the snow, and Katara would yell at him in the morning for going outside without his shoes on. “It’s ok. Everything worked out, right?” He looked up, a small smile on his face. “I was meant to be here, I believe that. I’ve met so many wonderful people and learned so much.”
Jokul studied the young Avatar’s face for a long moment, both hands clutching his shepherd’s crook. After a moment he nodded, a smile tugging at his lips.
Aang suddenly stepped back and bowed, first to Yue and then to Jokul. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”
“Hey, no formalities, remember?”
Aang grinned. “Yup.”
Jokul didn’t even have time to defend himself before Aang knocked him off the ice and into a snowbank with a quick, strong gust of wind. Yue covered her mouth in surprise, but from the way her shoulders shook Aang was rather sure she was laughing.
“Hey!”
Aang kicked his glider into his hands and spun it open as he ran for the edge of the wall. “Last one to finish a lap around the city has to drink a whole glass of onion and banana juice!”
He dove off the wall and caught a breeze, and Jokul was up in the air moments later, trailing snow in his wake as he sped after the young man fast disappearing into the distance.
“You’re on!”
Yue smiled as she watched them go, the moon hanging low in the sky, its silver light shining big and bright.
Wordcount: 2, 941
Fandom: Rise of the Guardians, Avatar: the Last Airbender
Rating: G
Warnings: post A:tLA
Summary: The Avatar has always had a connection with the Spirit World, whether or not he was aware of it. Sometimes that connection takes the form of an age-old friendship.
Notes: This came into my head with the thought "Aang travels on the wind. Hey, so does Jack Frost! Wouldn't it be interesting if they met?" But I couldn't think of how that could be possible until my friend suggested I AU Jack into the Avatar world, and I came up with this.
I use the name Jokul in this fic purely for aesthetic reasons, as I feel that the name Jack sticks out like a sore thumb in the Avatar world.
“No, like this.”
Aang picked up the propeller and grabbed the pull-string with his small, seven-year-old fingers. Then he pulled back, almost to his cheek, and let go. He laughed as the tiny propeller took flight, and the pale, white-haired boy floating beside him did as well.
They watched the propeller fly and then begin to float as it descended, and the pale boy darted forward on the wind to snatch it and bring it back.
“Hey, can I try again?”
“Sure.” Aang handed the device over and rocked back and forth on his tailbone, his legs folded in front of him. “How come you can glide in the air like an airbender, Jokul? You don’t look like an Air Nomad.”
Jokul paused in the act of pulling the string, a cheeky grin on his face. “No? Well, what do I look like?”
Aang’s eyebrows drew down in as he thought, taking in the other boy’s pale blue, furred Water Tribe robes and he finally shrugged. “Like a waterbender.”
“Hah, that’s where you’re wrong,” Jokul said, and sent the propeller flying out over the plaza they sat on. He picked up his staff and jumped atop it, balancing like the feat took no effort at all. “I’m a snowbender.”
“There’s no such thing!”
“Sure there is! Watch this.” Jokul held out one of his hands and winked, then blew across his palm. Snowflakes gently floated up into the air on his breath, and Aang fell backwards before scrambling to his feet to get a better look.
“That’s amazing! I wanna try!”
Jokul laughed and jumped off his staff. “Sorry, trade secret.”
“Aang!”
The young boy turned at the monk’s voice, and Jokul flipped his staff up onto his shoulders. Monk Gyatso walked out onto the plaza, his hands in his sleeves as he eyed the light smattering of snow surrounding Aang.
“I came to get you,” he said, coming to a stop beside the young bender and leaning down to speak. “I was able to explain you disappearing during dinner, but the Northern Water Tribe delegation is leaving, and I can’t cover you missing that.” There was a twinkle in his eye as he spoke, and Aang grinned although his cheeks turned red. Gyatso stood and glanced around. “Who were you talking to?”
“My new friend. He asked me to come play with him,” he said, and glanced behind him to look for Jokul. The boy was gone, although Aang felt a cool wind brush the top of his head and he glanced up to see the pale boy hovering a few feet above them.
“You go on ahead. Don’t worry, I’ll come visit again.” He waved and then darted away, swaying with the wind.
Gyatso raised an eyebrow as he followed Aang’s gaze and saw only clear, empty sky. When he looked back down, he noticed the toy in his young charge’s hand, and his expression softened for a moment before he nudged the boy with his elbow and said, “Don’t let the other monks know, but we have a surprise for you once the delegation leaves, so you have to be on your best behavior.”
“A surprise?” Aang’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
Monk Gyatso leaned in close. “A little winged lemur told me there’s a new glider just your size waiting in your room.”
Aang jumped ten feet in the air with his shout of joy.
“Hey there, kiddo!”
Aang glanced up at the voice as he moved through his kata. The sun was nearly set, and the skies were a vivid purple, but he could just make out the blue-clad shape hovering near the fountain.
“Jokul!”
The Water Tribesman waved and landed on the plaza, his bare feet leaving whorls of frost along the ground. Aang jumped up to meet him on the upper level, a huge smile on his face.
“You’ll never guess what I did!”
Jokul laughed and patted the younger boy on the head. “Oh? Let’s see.” He folded his arms across his chest and eyed the young airbender. “You lost all your teeth in a freak accident?”
Aang grinned, big and bright and full of clean, white teeth. “Not even close.”
“Ok then, you…skied all the way down the mountain?”
“Nope! Better!”
Jokul looked mock-surprised. “There’s no such thing!”
“I made some new friends in the other nations!” Aang hopped to the fountain and jumped atop it, doing cartwheels along the edge. “I met this boy named Bumi in the Earth Kingdom, and he’s a genius. And I met this other boy, Kozan, in the Fire Nation, and hopefully next time we can go to the Water Tribes and I can see you there instead of you coming all this way.”
“That is something better than skiing down the mountain,” Jokul said. “But just barely. I’m glad you got to travel around. You don’t seem the type to be cooped up.”
Aang flipped off the fountain to land beside Jokul, and a strong wind blew past, lifting Jokul’s coat and flipping it over his head. “And Monk Gyatso has been teaching me a lot of new tricks. I can’t wait to show you!” He paused and glanced around the older boy. “Where are the others?”
Jokul flipped his coat back to rights and slung his staff over his shoulders. “Just me, kiddo. Thought I’d check up on you.”
“Oh. Cool.” He grabbed Jokul’s hand, ignoring the way it was almost too cold to touch, and nearly dragged the older boy after him. “C’mon, let’s go to the airball court! We can get some practice in before dinner.”
Jokul let himself be pulled along, laughing. “Ok, ok, but no crying when I win.”
“Pfft, like that’d happen.” Aang looked back, a challenger’s grin on his face. “But you’re on!”
The snowball that Jokul shoved down his shirt a few seconds later wasn’t entirely unexpected.
“Aang, what is wrong? You’re extra distracted today.”
The boy scratched the back of his head and grinned in embarrassment. “Sorry.”
Gyatso sighed. “Is there something you want to talk about?”
Aang shrugged. “Just been wondering where my friend is. He usually visits when the seasons turn.”
His mentor raised an eyebrow. “Your friend?”
“Yeah, he’s from the Northern Water Tribe. His name’s Jokul.” Aang idly blew a puff of air, making the leaves around them dance. “He came with the delegates a couple years ago.” He let the leaves fall and glanced sideways at Gyatso. “…You believe me, right? The other monks keep saying there was no one like him.”
Monk Gyatso smiled. “Of course I believe you. But you must forgive the others; we’re old, you know. Sometimes we forget faces.”
Aang grinned, and Gyatso pointed past their cover of leaves. “Now, remember what I taught you about manipulating the air?” As he spoke he gestured, and one of the robes piled on a rock across the way billowed up and out as though being worn. It swayed in the air and then capered away in a very ungainly way. “It’s time for a test, I think.”
The boy grinned his biggest, most mischievous grin, and by the time the other monks emerged from the springs their clothes had all danced away on the wind.
“Hey, Jokul, look what I can do!”
Aang twirled his arms, calling the wind until it formed a swirling ball of chaotic air. He grinned at his friend, then hopped on the ball and rode it around the southern plaza and up along the wall.
Jokul whistled as the young airbender came to a stop in front of him. “Impressive!”
Aang grinned and hopped off the ball, letting it dissipate in an explosive breath of air. Jokul’s blue robes billowed out, and where the wind touched his skin ice crystals formed.
“I call it the air scooter,” Aang said. “I taught it to the others.” His face fell for just a moment before he grinned, big and bright. “You wanna play a game?”
The Water Tribesman knelt down and tapped Aang’s forehead. “Sure, but I gotta ask, what’s with this?”
Aang tried to look up at his own forehead and then held his hands out to show the tattoos there as well. “I got my bending master tattoos!” His grin faded just a bit. “Hey, Jokul, I don’t seem any different to you, do I?”
The pale boy raised an eyebrow. “You seem taller.” Aang laughed. “But you seem a little sad, too,” he continued, and draped his arms over his knees. “Something on your mind?”
Aang glanced at his feet. “If you found out something about yourself, but it’s not something you want, what would you do?”
Jokul frowned and tapped his fingers against his staff. “That’s a tough question. Is it something you can change?” After a long moment Aang shook his head. “Then maybe change the way you think about it? Make it into something all your own, something you can be proud of.”
“Everyone except Monk Gyatso acts different around me now.”
Jokul put a hand on Aang’s head. “Then they’re missing out, because I see the same fun-loving kid I’ve always seen.” He rubbed Aang’s head, and the boy laughed and pulled away, complaining of an iced scalp. “So, how about that game?”
Aang’s face lit up right before the snowball hit him. Then it was a no-holds-barred snowball and air scooter battle for supremacy. They stopped only at the sound of Gyatso’s call, both out of breath and lying on their backs on the plaza, laughing and looking up at the purple sky.
“Looks like you’re wanted,” Jokul said and floated up to his feet, kicking his staff up into his hands as he did so. Aang smacked his hands down on the ground and propelled himself to his feet, doing a little hop-step as he caught his balance at the end.
“Yeah.” He dusted himself off. “Hey, Jokul?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks. Today was fun.”
Jokul smiled as he hovered up into the air. “Same here.”
Aang grinned and dashed off towards Gyatso as he appeared at the stairway. Jokul watched him go before glancing up at the sliver of moon peeking out from behind the orange clouds.
“Spirit?”
He turned at the voice. Monk Gyatso still stood on the stairs, looking out over the plaza. Jokul floated over, the wind cooling as it brushed against him. When it touched the monk, he turned to look, although he more saw through Jokul than anything.
“I do apologize, but I’m afraid I can’t see you. But I know Aang can.” He bowed and then smiled, and Jokul found himself grinning back at the kind man. “The boy is precious, and there are more dangers in this world than he understands. Please,” he said, and bowed again, his hands hidden in the sleeves of his robes. “Protect him where we cannot.”
“Always,” Jokul said, sending down a small blue snowflake to land on the monk’s nose. Gyatso smiled.
“…Aang. Avatar Aang.”
He woke with a start, falling out of the bed, the covers wrapped around his neck and upper body. Momo chittered unhappily and then fell back asleep at the foot of the bed, his ears twitching rapidly. Aang tossed the covers off and rose to his feet on a puff of air, looking left and right for the speaker.
“Avatar Aang.”
He paused, his eyes going wide as he recognized the voice, and he darted to the window with a smile on his face. The full moon shone brightly, moonbeams dancing across the frozen Northern city, and he didn’t give it a second thought before he grabbed his glider and darted out the window. The air was crisp and refreshing through his sleeping clothes, and in the back of his mind he knew he’d regret going out without proper clothing.
But Yue was waiting.
She hovered above the eastern wall, the moon backlit against her ethereal form, and Aang landed on the ramparts to bow. She smiled and inclined her head.
“It’s good to see you well, Aang.”
He grinned. “It’s good to see you, too, Princess Yue.” His grin faded slightly. “Is something wrong? Do you need my help?” Ever since he defeated Firelord Ozai five years ago the world had been peaceful, but it was possible there was trouble brewing in the Spirit World.
Yue shook her head. “No, everything is fine. But it’s not often you return to my people.”
“Yeah… Sorry about that.”
She laughed, and the sound was like little chimes in the wind. “Don’t be. I’ve seen the good work you’re doing. But there is someone who’s been wanting to see you for quite some time now.”
The moon shimmered behind her, and Aang held his breath in anticipation. It wasn’t everyday that the Moon Spirit wanted him to meet someone.
And that was when the snowball hit him in the back of the head.
“Hey!” he yelled, although he couldn’t stop the grin tugging at his lips. “That was a low…”
Jokul hovered behind him casually tossing a snowball in his right hand, his ever-present staff in his left. He’d ditched the heavy blue coat and wore a simple dark-blue tunic with brown leggings. “Hey, Aang.”
The Avatar stared and stared before he dropped his glider and launched himself at the other boy, laughing in that way one does when meeting an old friend again after a long time. Jokul hugged him back just as fiercely, and together they slowly descended back onto the wall, for once Aang’s feet as bare as Jokul’s.
“Jokul! I can’t believe you’re here!” He pulled back to give the pale boy a once-over. “Hey, I’m taller than you now! And other than your clothes you look exactly…” His words died in his throat as realization sank in. “…the same…” He backed away quickly and put his hands together to bow deeply.
“Hey, hey, no need for formalities. We’re friends, right?”
Aang straightened from his bow, a grin warring with the confused look on his face. “I guess this explains why no one else ever mentioned you.” He was silent a moment. “Looking back on it, it’s kind of obvious, actually.”
“It made me happy, though, you thinking I was human.”
The Avatar smiled and stood up straight, then frowned as a thought hit him. “But, wait, if you’re a spirit, how are you from the Northern Water Tribe?”
Jokul leaned against his staff, lips pursed in thought, but Yue was the one to speak. “Not all spirits remain in the Spirit World. He’s been a protector spirit of our tribe’s children for centuries.” She floated lower, although she still didn’t touch the wall. “We might not all see him, but at least the royal family always knew he was there.”
Aang frowned in thought, and then smacked his fist into his palm. “That’s right, that first time I met you, the young princess was traveling with the delegates.”
“Yeah, we were on our way to have some talks with the Southern Tribe and made a small stop at your temple.”
Aang tilted his head, curious. “But you always came alone the other times.”
Jokul nodded. “Even protector spirits get time to visit friends. Especially if that friend is a young Avatar.” He grinned. “Besides, I was technically still doing my job. Who’s the one who kept cutting out on lessons whenever I showed up?”
“Only like twice!” Aang protested, his cheeks pink despite the grin on his face.
“Yeah, yeah,” he said, and rubbed Aang’s head like he used to so many years ago. Aang laughed, although his expression turned somber soon enough.
“So you were here, then? During the Siege?”
Jokul glanced over at Yue, and she gave a slight nod. He turned back to Aang. “Yeah. There was never a chance to talk with you, though, and after Zhao killed the Moon Spirit it took all my power just to stay in the Human World and protect the children.” He paused. “I’m sorry, too, for not being there for you a hundred years ago.
“Oh.” Aang glanced down at his feet; they were half-buried in the snow, and Katara would yell at him in the morning for going outside without his shoes on. “It’s ok. Everything worked out, right?” He looked up, a small smile on his face. “I was meant to be here, I believe that. I’ve met so many wonderful people and learned so much.”
Jokul studied the young Avatar’s face for a long moment, both hands clutching his shepherd’s crook. After a moment he nodded, a smile tugging at his lips.
Aang suddenly stepped back and bowed, first to Yue and then to Jokul. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”
“Hey, no formalities, remember?”
Aang grinned. “Yup.”
Jokul didn’t even have time to defend himself before Aang knocked him off the ice and into a snowbank with a quick, strong gust of wind. Yue covered her mouth in surprise, but from the way her shoulders shook Aang was rather sure she was laughing.
“Hey!”
Aang kicked his glider into his hands and spun it open as he ran for the edge of the wall. “Last one to finish a lap around the city has to drink a whole glass of onion and banana juice!”
He dove off the wall and caught a breeze, and Jokul was up in the air moments later, trailing snow in his wake as he sped after the young man fast disappearing into the distance.
“You’re on!”
Yue smiled as she watched them go, the moon hanging low in the sky, its silver light shining big and bright.
