The Lunar Warrior [ATLA FF]

Book 1: Water | 52 | The Scroll III

Aang was having fun learning the scroll with Katara. They would go back and forth with theories, taking turns holding up the precious parchment. They knew that sooner rather than later, Ayaan was going to come to get them to head out, and they wanted to get as much as they could in before then.

But as time passed, he was starting to notice a shift in her. It was a slow, steady build-up. Her stances became more rigid, a sigh or a scoff would escape her. He could see the pride in her eyes when he managed to learn, and it made him feel confident in himself that she was so happy for him.

Even so, there was something else, something bitter when she returned to her own practice, not seeing nearly as much progress.

Hours went by, and he could see that her progress had stagnated somewhere. He'd gotten the basic moves down by then. While not perfect, it was enough for him to feel satisfied. He'd learned authentic waterbending! He may not have been in a great rush, but he understood that learning the elements was important for him.

He was a step closer to becoming who people see him as. He wanted to live up to the trust those people put in him as the Avatar. They spent one hundred years praying for a miracle; even if he couldn't make that happen, his role as the Avatar certainly could help, right?

Everyone thought so. As the Avatar, that was something he should be able to do. It was a lot of pressure, which is why he'd been so anxious about starting his training somewhere.

Bumi told him how important his existence was. It was a real eye-opener seeing his friend, wisened by age, explaining that. But it hadn't truly sunk in until Ayaan spelled it out for him.

As much as he wanted them to have fun, now wasn't the time for games.

As much as he wanted to keep them safe, life wasn't predictable.

The burns on his skin weren't done as an accident. People were hurting right now. People were dying right now. And the person that they pray for? If it's not the spirits, it was the Avatar. This mythical person was said to bring peace to the world. Stories of them were told to children before bed, and believed in by the elders who still had hope in their hearts.

That person was him, but he was far from ready to take the mantle. Ayaan pointed all of that out, plain and simple. His training constantly reminded him that he had room to improve. He wasn't like the others, expecting him to rise to the occasion in an instant. Ayaan was patient, thorough, and honestly, a little terrifying sometimes.

Especially when he says he's the enemy for ten minutes. Those are brutal.

But even so, he never tested him in the ways an Avatar would probably be able to spar. No, he critiqued what he was right now. Just Aang. He improved on what Aang had to offer. He helped him build up his foundations, from his skills to his mind.

That was Ayaan's teaching. It had nothing to do with being an Avatar. All of this was so that he could be the best version of Aang he could be. And he'd adjusted his training to be a bit different than Sokka and Katara's. While he still wanted Aang to go on the offensive sometimes, he let Aang focus on building his defensive skills.

He even managed to come up with some cool moves! He was Super Aang! And his body had built up some definition. He even grew a bit taller! A whole centimeter! It was fun to compare his arms to Sokka, who described it as "testing manliness levels" or something. No, it was fun to talk about how far they got in their individual spars with Ayaan, and how much closer they seemed to get in their goals compared to yesterday.

<"While saving the world is definitely a goal an Avatar should have, I guess, it's too far and hard for you right now." Sokka said, "So, start small. What can you improve on right at this moment? What is something that can be better by next week? Next month? Think of goals like that, and you will steadily get to where you want. At least, that's what I do to reach my dream of Ayaan-level manliness.">