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"What now?" Sokka whined. It's been a couple weeks since they've made it in Ba Sing Se. Long days with little to no action. The most thrill they've experienced was messing with Joo Dee. Particularly with their constant whine for amusement. And by "their" it was often, if not always, Sokka and Momo.
"Walk around this place?" Aang sat up from the floor, his eyes flickered back towards the others. But they were too busy staring at the ceiling looking like lifeless cabbages on a soggy road to even respond. Oddly specific but accurate nonetheless.
A minute passed and the silence stretched into deafening stillness, save from Toph's serene hum as she mindlessly picked at her nose. This day couldn't get any more boring than it already was.
Aang was desperate to look for Appa, he spent a majority of his silence reminiscing about his friend who was probably lost, confused and, worst of all, hungry. Nights meant for sleep were dedicated to staring out the window, waiting for a bison to pass through his peripheral. Even just a glimpse of him, but it was never that easy. If not for Katara's constant nagging for him to go to bed, Aang would've been just as lifeless as those cabbages they constantly stumble upon.
It was weird, actually.
Katara noticed, of course she did. With how much Aang has been restless these couple of days, she was running out of ideas on how to cheer him up. Toph and Sokka shared the same sentiment. They all did. Appa's missing, and there was no telling if they could ever find him again. That thought alone was hard to swallow.
"Well," Katara announced, clapping the dust off her hands. "These flyers won't stick on their own now, would they?" She stood up with the left-over flyers now in hand.
They all tailed her quietly. Aang couldn't help but feel a fond warmth bloom in his chest; knowing that his friends cared as much as he did was comforting. Right, he was never alone from the start. They were family now.
"Won't Joo Dee pester us again?" Toph questioned. She wasn't entirely fond of how disingenuous the woman was. It all felt so fake—programmed even. Each word that exited her mouth sounded like a script to a poorly written play; it bothered Toph to no end.
Sokka hummed. "Now that I think about it, she hasn't shown up for two days now."
"Probably busy," Katara chimed. Everyone had a life no matter how inauthentic they portrayed themselves. But for someone like Joo Dee? A life outside her work was hard to believe.
The team had decided to exit as quietly as possible.
"Toph, you left the glue inside!" The door slammed shut behind Sokka as it swung lightly at the force.
As quietly as possible.
To be fair, the place had no need for any more flyers. One after another, they stuck and coated the wall with sticky residue before slapping in Appa's drawn face. Toph didn't even bother to help with sticking the posters on the wall, but unfortunately she was left with another boring duty.
"Pass me another one," the three demanded in tandem. Toph slammed the flyers into their outstretched palms with more force than necessary. Grumbling to herself, she handed Momo the tub of glue, gladly sharing her duty to the lemur.
But what could a lemur possibly know about glue? He shoved a fist into the tub curiously, raising his sticky paws up to his face like the liquid was somehow the most appetising dessert in all of Ba Sing Se.
Before Aang could even register what was happening, Sokka had already lunged himself towards the lemur with a loud, whiny grunt as he toppled over Toph. Well, that was fast.
The tub had now rolled over towards Katara's feet, nudging at her like a tattle-tail to their antics. Her eyes flickered to the scene before her, the flyer in her hand now effectively crumpling at the tight grip of her fingers.
"Move, Snoozles!" Toph yelled.
"I'm trying," he grunted.
Sokka tried, he really did. But this glue was no joke. They both stood up from the cobblestone road, ignoring the dust that clung to their clothes. Because there was another 'thing' clinging to their sides.
Katara held a palm out in front of Toph. "Hold my hand," she coaxed.
Aang did the same with Sokka. And together he and Katara pulled and pulled until finally—they wound back to one another with a slam.
"OW—"
Aang and Katara winced at this, silently reaching out to help them back up again.
How much time had passed by now? Ten minutes?
"—of complete torture!" Toph grunted.
Katara spent the last ten minutes attempting to take them out of this sticky situation, but to no avail. Sokka's right arm clung tightly onto Toph's left arm. Getting rid of the glue that coated their arms and clothes was a difficult task not even Katara's waterbending could help with.
"Guess you could say they're attached to the hip," Katara pondered. To which they were.
Aang snorted. "Nice one, Katara."
Momo was fortunate enough to not have stuck to anything or anyone. Aang helped him wash off the glue from his sticky paws but even that was a challenging task. Now with two paws stuck together and fur as rigid as stone, he sat near Aang. Awfully well behaved and innocent-looking after having caused this chaos in the first place. Not a single hint of guilt flashed behind those eyes.
"Let's go look for someone who can help." A soft sigh escaped Katara's lips. "There has to be a clinic somewhere—"
She paused. A few feet away from her, Aang stared at a small hidden building tucked away between the lavish architectures of two large homes. Despite being surrounded by grandeur, the building itself stood out on its own.
Aang was dazed. Children ran in front of the humble building with mud covering their hands and clothes. Their laughter echoed across the field, which was a rare sight here in Ba Sing Se. Specifically the upper ring. And for once he wondered what could've been if his old friends were still alive. They had a great future ahead of them until it was stolen—until everyone including the tiniest of children were murdered.
He swallowed. And so did Katara.
"You guys can wait for another minute… or hour, right?" She offered her most punctual, persuasive smile in an attempt to tug at their heartstrings. But both Toph and Sokka could agree that it tugged at their nerves instead.
"Come in, come in." An old woman greeted the team by the entrance. Her hair fell down in white waves that nudged at the small of her back. She shared an uncanny resemblance with Gran Gran. Or perhaps Katara just happened to miss her a lot.
"New faces, how exciting," the woman chuckled. Her eyes nearly closed at the heavy wrinkles that covered her skin. A breath then escaped her weary lips at the sight of the two glued to one another.
"I see Helo has another victim." She shook her head.
Sokka perked at this. "Helo?"
"Hi," Toph snorted.
"He's a famous glue maker here in Ba Sing Se. Also notorious for causing plenty…" she pursed her lips, "mishaps."
"But not to worry!" She clapped her hands together. "My niece is an expert at this."
Both Toph and Sokka entered a small nook tucked away inside the building, waiting impatiently to be taken out of this mess. Momo sat besides them looking more patient than ever. A suspect must never complain about their own crime.
"Where was I—oh right, welcome to my class," The old woman muttered, smiling heartily. She was not an inch taller than Katara as she offered the two to take a seat as well.
"Pottery class, I'm guessing?" Aang stated with a curious glint. His gaze danced across the small room that seemed to be no bigger than the place they were staying at. Albeit large shelves served as a second wall, comfortably isolating the scent of earth and moisture from water mixed with soil.
A huge table sat in between, surrounded by four smaller ones with what seem to be wheels. Aang wasn't sure.
"You can call me Jin," the girl stated. She was the old woman's niece that was kind enough to share her expertise with the three who fell victim to what was it again? Hi? Hello? Something like that.
Jin's fingers moved precisely as she lathered coconut oil onto their arms. There were a few other steps she had done, none that Sokka and Toph bothered naming. As long as they get out of this mess—anything to get out of this mess.
"Uhh thanks, Jin, and—" Sokka squinted his eyes at the old woman as if looking for a name tag somewhere in her tattered green outfit that was covered with a muddied black apron.
Sokka parted his lips hesitantly. "madam—"
"Lin," She muttered tersely.
Toph nodded approvingly at this. "Nice name."
Lin chuckled softly, her eyes shutting close at the fond compliment.
"Well, I suppose you children are here for pottery lessons?"
Katara glanced at the others expectantly before nodding in Lin's direction. "Why, of course," she muttered.
They all sat around the table, eyes now glued to the old woman at the far end, holding clay in her hands. Jin soon offered some clay as well to the rest, serving each of them a small bunch as though she were serving another meal.
"The act of sculpting and the art of pottery as a whole is a creative feat," Lin drawled. "However, to master it, one must learn patience. Because… it is, in a way, an act of listening to the Earth."
Her hands moved with practised ease, and for the first part of the lesson, they were given the freedom to shape anything, or anyone, they liked.
"This is too easy," Toph snickered. She held a tiny sculpture in her hands with a boastful glint. What was the sculpture, perhaps? Herself, of course.
Lin chuckled warmly at this. "You're an Earthbender?"
Toph nodded with a smooth hum.
"A talented one, I see." Lin nodded with acknowledgement.
"Thanks."
Lin's eyes curved as she smiled thoughtfully. "But for non-benders, I reckon it could be a little… challenging."
Sokka raised his head. "Can't relate," he shrugged. His tongue poked out at the side of his lips with intense focus that would come from someone professional in this field. To which the deformed-looking potato with ears in front of him suggested he wasn't.
The rest stifled a chuckle.
"So… pottery," Aang pondered. "It's the first time I've seen someone start a class for this," he added.
"Ah, yes. It is barely acknowledged when crafted from the hands of a non-bender, especially here in Ba Sing Se. Outside these walls there are many more people just like me." A pause. "But times have grown to be more dangerous than ever… and fortunately enough, my niece and I were moved here in the upper ring."
She gave a quick glance at Aang's direction. "But I shall warn you that you shouldn't trust the authority so much…" Her voice fell into a whisper. "Especially here in Ba Sing Se."
Before Aang could utter another question, Lin was quick with her tongue.
"Well anyway, I started this class for non-benders such as myself—and my niece."
Her hands never stopped from shaping the clay beneath her.
"Earthbending is a beautiful power not all of us are blessed to have. But who said we can't bend earth as well?" She chuckled.
They all nodded, and Aang couldn't help but remember the dawning task ahead of him. Mastering the four elements, battling with the Firelord, and saving the world from a war that they've built a life around for a hundred long years.
And for the four elements, it was a task he was reluctant to do. Fire is an element that has a life of its own. To control it means to risk harming the life he swore to protect.
"All elements have their own advantages and disadvantages. But together, they create balance." A soft sigh escaped her lips. "However that is something the world has long forgotten."
Too much time had passed. The late stream of the sun tore through the windows, nudging at them carefully as they rounded the table.
"Well, it's getting late," she grunted, reaching for the final ceramic pot. "Kilning takes a lot of time, and hopefully you'll be back to watch it finish."
"We'll make sure to pass by sometimes," Katara promised.
Sokka yawned. "This was an awfully nice day."
He yawned again.
"You're far too young to be this fatigued." Lin patted his shoulder with consideration that reminded Sokka of Gran Gran… to say that he missed her would be an understatement.
"I suggest you kids visit the Jasmine Dragon. The tea shop had opened a few days ago; they serve very nice tea," she hummed.
"Thank you again." They all waved goodbye, heading back to their temporary home with a joyful lilt that numbed the weight that burdened them. Maybe it wasn't too bad here after all, and maybe when they meet Appa again—maybe, just maybe, Aang can tell him all these experiences that he wasn't present for. And maybe for once they can finally forget these sleepless nights they shared without each other.