Avatar: The Last Airbender: Double Trouble

Chapter 12

I gasp as a weight lands on my stomach and I shoot up into a sitting position, blindly throwing my arm out to throw whoever's attacking us back. 

   "What's going on?" Sokka asks sleepily from the other side of a wide awake Katara. I glance over to see him sitting up in his sleeping bag, knife and boomerang in hand as his eyes fight to stay open. "Did we get captured again?"

   "I don't care," I groan, falling back to the ground. "It's too early to fight."

  "It's nothing," Aang says. "I just had a bad dream." I want to to cry, knowing I won't be able to sleep now without making sure he's okay. I wipe the sleep from my eyes and sit up. "Go back to sleep," he says, curling up on his side with his back to me. 

   "Don't have to tell me twice." Sokka lays back down, leaving only Katara and I sitting up. 

   "Are you alright, Aang?" Katara asks.

   "I'm okay."

   "I think you're forgetting that I'm your twin and know when you're lying," I say mildly. "I'm the one that taught you to lie."

   "You seem to be having a lot of nightmares lately," Katara points out. I lightly slap the ground and am launches into the air to lad gently on Aang's other side so I can see his face. Might have been easier to just roll him over, but I like making a point. Don't ask about what point I made. I have no idea. 

   "Wanna talk about it?" I ask. He closes his eyes so that he can't look at me and mine narrow in irritation.

   "I think I just need some rest," he says. 

   Sokka suddenly sits up, bright eyes and bushy tailed. "You guys want to hear about my dream?" he asks. Katara and I give him the same irritated look that tells him to shut him and he looks away. "That's okay." He lays back down. "I didn't want to talk about it anyway." Katara lays back down, too, but I continue sitting next down in front of Aang with my legs crossed as i stare down at him. He peaks an eye open to check if I'm still there. I quirk an eyebrow at him and the eye slams shut again. 

   I sigh in defeat and move back to my spot between him and Katara. The rest of the night is spent tossing and turning with a few jogs to try and get me to fall asleep. Nothing works and I'm useless by morning. 

I'm curled up on Olla's saddle as everyone gets ready to leave. "Look at those clear skies, buddy," I hear Aang say to Appa. "Should be some smooth flying."

   "Please, don't jinx us!" I call over sleepily. 

   "Well, we better smoothly fly ourselves to a market, because we're out of food," Katara says.

   "Guys, wait. This was in my dream. We shouldn't go to the market," Sokka says and I sit up to look at him.

   "What happened in your dream?" Katara asks.

   "Food eats people," he says dramatically and I glare at him, chucking a bag at his head. He grunts. "Also, Momo could talk," he says, pointing to the lemur. He crosses his arms. "You said some very unkind things." Momo's ears droop and he chitters. 

"Out of food and out of money," Sokka says, rubbing his sore bum from the fruit merchant kicking him. "Now what are we supposed to do?" 

   "You could get a job, smart guy," Katara suggests. 

   "We shouldn't go out there," a female voice says loudly. We look over to see two old people not far from where we stand. "Please! The fish can wait. There's going to be a terrible storm." I glance at the clear sky. 

   "Aw, you're crazy," the old man says angrily. "It's a nice day. No clouds, no wind, no nothing, so quit your nagging, woman." I glance at Aang.

   "See? I told you you jinxed us. Can't you just enjoy a clear sky and not comment on it?" I quip.