46: Problems.

Since the South Pole was one of the most spiritually active places, the presence of small spirits in the icy wastes of this place was even engraved in the folklore of the Southern Water Tribe.

This was because one of the largest and most important portals connecting the earthly and spirit worlds was located here. Even though it was closed by the first Avatar nearly 10,000 years ago, the influence of such a thing could not be easily removed.

Small 'cracks' between the two worlds were common here, and something had been brewing for weeks. Perhaps because of the Avatar's presence for 100 years, which constantly emitted spiritual energy, very few spirits dared to use these spiritual rifts.

This would not be a problem in normal times; very few humans could get along with the spirits, and aside from a few very friendly ones, many of them are suspicious or prejudiced against humanity.

But the Avatar awakened, releasing a great surge of spiritual energy that may have had some consequences, one of which was to widen one of the spiritual rifts at the South Pole.

Normally, nothing bad would happen, but the Avatar was a byword for trouble. A certain being, who felt that this was a good opportunity to explore the waters and create a little chaos, was told of the incident by one of his subjects.

Vaatu, as one of the oldest spirits and with a fundamental role in this world, does not need to play tricks to 'corrupt' other spirits, many approach him looking for the power he can give them.

Even sealed, some of his power could be used, because in the end, even in the eras of 'peace' or 'light', darkness will always exist and manifest, that's how the cycle worked between him and Raava, since they appeared in the world at the same time.

"Go to the human world, find the man who calls himself Zhao and tell him about me. I can feel it from here, the thirst for chaos, for disorder, it's like a distant call to me.

What is this guy going to do? I don't care, as long as he causes trouble for Raava and his human skin. Maybe... Sage Shisui will want some power? Hahahahahahahaha! Playing while I wait is quite comfortable," Vaatu, still trapped in the Tree of Time, burst out laughing.

His minion, a lion-like spirit whose mane resembled flames, had his body covered by Vaatu's dark spiritual energy, and his aura was not only dangerous, but seemed to subconsciously attract those who watched him.

"As you command," the lion said in a shrill voice, but his tone was respectful.

For the Spirit knew that no matter how strong he was at the moment, his power came from Vaatu, and whether he wanted it or not, Vaatu could take it from him if necessary.

But as a spirit who had consciously chosen to submit to Vaatu, he wanted to remain powerful, for although he was a spirit, he had his desires and needs that the extra power could satisfy.

So the spirit began to travel through the spirit world, making his way until he came to what appeared to be a rift, a flaw in the space-time of the spirit world.

This gave off a golden glow, and a few small spirits stood around it, looking at it curiously. But when they sensed the arrival of the dark lion-shaped spirit, they fled in terror.

The lion spirit approached the crack and looked at it with a little curiosity, but there was more scrutiny and fear. He had never actively gone to the human world, because he didn't like them, nor did he find it fun to chat with one, but he had to take this step.

"Just... what must have happened to that wildcat, why did he decide to lose the blessing of the great Vaatu and become a mere human pet? He even got fat from eating so much of his food!" the spirit lion growled before walking to the portal and stepping through.

...

"Hmm?" Shisui, who was sitting on a bench made of ice, looked questioningly into the distance.

"What happened?" Zuko asked, sitting on his bench made of fire.

"I felt something strange in the distance, but maybe it was so far away that it blurred too much," Shisui shook his shoulders and turned his attention back to what was in front of him.

He, along with Zuko, Sokka, and 'Kuzon' were gathered in front of a hole in the ice where there was liquid water.

Why was there a frozen lagoon in this place? Shisui was curious but now was not the time. Each of them had their way of 'fishing'.

Shisui held a water line with a slimy consistency, Zuko a fire line, Aang, for reasons related to his culture, used his own hands to fish, while Sokka held a harpoon made of bones.

"I felt it too, the wind felt kind of strange, but it was more like a lost whisper, something concrete," said Aang, who was the first to 'catch' his prey, but then let it go.

"Then we have to be vigilant, I don't want to be like those characters who discover something strange but ignore it because it seemed like a trifle, but it turns out to be something dangerous," Shisui said, looking enviously at Aang's ease of fishing despite his hands getting very cold.

"What a stretch, if there is a problem, it will come to us, right? Because the Avatar tends to attract trouble every time," Sokka said before attacking the water with his harpoon and managing to hook a fish.

"Right, aren't Avatars magnets for trouble?" joked Zuko, causing Aang to look at his two companions with some annoyance.

"It's my life they're talking about," the boy complained, but the others ignored his complaint.

"Anyway, how are we supposed to 'find' you, Aang?" asked Shisui, quickly getting to the point.

"And your plans, what are you going to do, will you become a Super Peace Messenger? Or will you just travel while you learn the other elements?" added Sokka, causing Aang to sink into meditation.

"Though I want peace... I know no great country would want me over their heads telling them what to do, but I would like to work to help people understand each other better," Aang said, knowing it was a difficult thing to do, but it was something he wanted to do.

Not only did Shisui's teachings make him understand politics better, but the teachings of the other Avatars, their mistakes, their successes, gave him a pretty high vantage point from which to look at things.

But his decision was undoubtedly a rather difficult and thorny path, but as an Avatar, he could not disappear for another century, could he? So, for the betterment of the world, but also to make amends for his mistakes, this was the path he chose.

"I support you," Zuko said, touching Aang's shoulder confidently, raising the boy's temperature so his hands wouldn't freeze.

"When I'm the next Fire Lord, I'll do my best to help you on your way, Aang," Zuko was someone who was quite easy in that regard because even though he didn't know Aang very well, he trusted Shisui.

Shisui trusted Aang quite a bit, so his trust in his friend was easily transferred to the Avatar. Also, he shared some views with Aang, so his affirmation was more of a promise, and as someone with a high sense of honor, he would never forget or break it.

"As the eldest son of the tribal leader, I should technically inherit that position, but unlike the northerners, we don't follow ideas of lineage or anything like that. If you want to be the leader of the tribe, you have to prove your strength and worth," Sokka said, explaining a bit about the inner workings of his tribe.

"As a tribe, even if we are settled, we have to rely on strong individuals for hunting or fishing, or even piracy..." Sokka looked at Zuko with some discomfort as he said this.

"Don't worry, as long as you don't attack the royal family's ships or the navy, we don't care about the rest," Zuko replied with an unspeakable look on his face.

"Right, if you attack the merchant ships or the navy of those wretched nobles? Hehe," Shisui chuckled, laughing strangely.

"Ok... as I said, I have to prove that I am capable of leading my people before I can be elected as the leader of the tribe. I admit that I have had a hard time learning things from my mother and father, but I know that I have been raised to inevitably be the next chief.

So Aang, you will have the support of the Southern Water Tribe, making the world a little better makes my tribe safer, so I have no problem giving you all the support I can," Sokka said, causing Aang to touch his nose a little, touched.

"Seeing how Katara looks at Aang, maybe you'll help your future brother-in-law..." Shisui had to dodge Sokka's sudden attack, but even as he comically fled, he continued to tease Sokka.

"What better waterbending teacher than your future girlfriend! Katara is very talented, I even plan to write a guide for her, maybe you can read it together in the moonlight~" Shisui continued to dodge Sokka's attacks while Zuko and Aang watched the scene with amusement.

"So, do you like Katara?" asked Zuko suddenly, causing Aang to stumble and almost fall into the water, but he used Airbending to avoid falling in.

"Why are you asking all of a sudden?" asked Aang loudly, drawing the attention of Shisui and Sokka, who sensed the gossip vibes and approached the others.

"You like my sister!" threatened Sokka, harpoon in hand, but Shisui stopped him, the smirk on his face giving Aang a bad vibe.

"You have snow blindness? That's more than obvious! And why so overprotective? You're both good kids, and Aang is too pure to do anything inappropriate with your sister," Shisui counted, though his gestures and facial expressions made the whole situation even stranger.

"If you weren't making so many strange gestures, I'd take you seriously," Sokka tried to wriggle out of it, but the strength of Shisui, who was trained to push his limits without worry because of his lifebending, was something he couldn't overcome so easily.

"My mind is young and fresh," Shisui said, touching his head with his index finger.

This was something Shisui had discovered, apparently he had become so close to the concept of 'water' that his mind was always fluid, rarely subject to emotional influences or the apathy that usually came with age.

"But that doesn't change the fact that he likes my sister," Sokka growled, but Shisui pointed at Zuko.

"I'm with his sister, and you don't see him as crazy, remember, he's a noble," Shisui made a joke with a strange connotation that only Zuko understood, and got annoyed.

"Stop reading those stupid books! Nobles aren't like that," Zuko complained, but Shisui just ignored him.

"Aang is in love with your sister, and your sister is attracted to him. It's inevitable, and you should at least do your best to understand the situation instead of just turning against it," Shisui turned serious and gave a piece of advice that made Sokka think about it.

"I think you could calm down and think things over," Sokka said before slowly approaching Aang, this time with no negative intentions.

"Do you really like my sister?" the boy asked, and Aang swallowed hard before nodding.

"I guess I do...it's a strange feeling that I don't quite understand, but seeing her and talking to her makes my heart race," Aang expressed, causing Sokka to stare at him for a few seconds before sighing and putting his arm around Aang's neck in a gesture of trust.

"I understand, my friend, I've felt the same way in the past," Sokka said with a bit of sadness in his tone, but the made-up face of a certain warrior came to his mind and made him feel better.

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AN: I took the weekend to rest, especially since I have the flu, and I'm still sick xD at least I haven't gotten a fever, or I'd be dying. Anyway, tomorrow I'll upload chapter, so I'll complete the two chapters I owe, and on Wednesday (I'm from the American continent) we'll be back to the usual schedule.