Chapter 22: Monorail & Firelight Fountain

After having a little bit of lunch with Appa, which consisted of apples, oranges, and lettuce, it was not exactly the most nutritious, but it tasted pretty good; besides, after what I had experienced in the marketplace, I didn't want to deal with anyone anymore.

"I know you're still growing, but you eat so much." Said Aang softly as he looked at Appa while gently scratching underneath his ear, causing him to release several growls of pleasure.

Separating from Appa, I left him be as he ate cabbages of lettuce to his heart's content, or until his stomachs were full, whichever came first, before meeting up with Monk Gyatso, who was currently putting on a show for a group of children. He was using the air to control water, like what I had done earlier, making it seem like he was a water bender, though, knowing him, he couldn't refuse such a good prank and splashed the several children with water, causing them to pout while he laughed at them.

"You're reminding me of a bully, Monk Gyatso." Said Aang lightly as he approached the laughing Gyatso, his every step causing a gust of wind to gently hit the children, drying them.

"Yeah!" "You're a bully!" "Lame Old man!" Stated the several children as they looked at Gyatso in annoyance before running away, disappearing back into the crowd, all while he continued to laugh.

"Hoho, a little water won't harm them." Said Gyatso lightly as he clasped his hands, hiding them within his oversized sleeves while glancing at Aang, who gently shook his head.

"So, young man, where shall we head next?" Asked Gyatso softly with a faint smile as he glanced at Aang while aimlessly walking down the street.

"I suppose the monorail; I'd like to take it easy after having just finished eating; I may very well vomit if I'm forced to experience the Marketplace once more." Replied Aang lightly as he glanced at Gyatso, who nearly laughed before he subconsciously shivered.

"W-Well, then, I'll lead the way. No need to fly there; we're rather close to a Monorail station." Said Gyatso with a smile while suppressing his laughter, causing Aang to stare blankly at him before nodding.

Thankfully, while the streets are a little rough, they weren't nearly as terrible as the Marketplace, so I was able to avoid being thrown around like a wet towel; however, I had a feeling Gyatso was pranking me by making us walk there since it wasn't exactly close, as it took nearly thirty minutes to get there.

"Rather close, huh, Monk Gyatso." Said Aang blandly as he walked up the large stone stairs while eyeing Gyatso, who simply chuckled.

Once we made it up the stairs, we entered the large station and got in line to acquire our ticket to ride the monorail, which was moving rather slowly, but I suppose it was a chance for me to meditate since I hadn't done much practicing today.

Forming an air scooter, I sat cross-legged atop it and connected my fists as I began meditating, though funnily enough, now it felt like the line was moving quite fast. When our turn finally arrived, I opened my eyes, hopped off my air scooter, and watched as Monk Gyatso paid the man in charge, prompting him to give us two tickets as we exited the crowd and headed towards the monorail.

"So, you still use the air scooter? Besides the time you first showed us Elders, I don't think I've ever seen you use it besides then." Asked Gyatso curiously as he looked at Aang, who raised an eyebrow before nodding and forming a small air scooter within his palm.

"Yes, though I don't use it often. After all, it would be weird not to use a technique I had created all on my own, though speaking of the air scooter, this tattoo was a rather lengthy and painful process." Replied Aang calmly as he shrunk the air scooter within his hand before expanding it until it was larger than his body, only to wave his hand, causing it to dissipate within the air.

"Heh, you're quite right about that; for such a lengthy process, I didn't expect it to be so painful." Said Gyatso with a slight frown as he nodded.

The procedure to get the tattoo isn't exactly painful; the problem is that it takes roughly ten or so hours, and to be under such constant pain for so long isn't comfortable in the slightest. Not to mention, I was required to be naked, not that I was really bothered by that, but it did slightly amplify the uncomfortable feeling.

'I'm just glad it was a woman who did the procedure; I would've felt many times more uncomfortable if it were a man.' Mused Aang lightly with a sigh of relief as he followed Gyatso into the monorail.

Entering the monorail alongside several other passengers, Monk Gyatso and I sat down; after a few minutes, once the train cars or monorail cars were full, the monorail promptly started as we began moving across the stone tracks, moving at a relatively fast speed to boot.

The monorail itself wasn't all that special; I mean, it was an interesting and impressive use of technology, but what really made it special was the view of Ba Sing Se one could see while taking the monorail. Turning around in the seat, I looked out through the window and looked down at Ba Sing Se as he traveled across the massive city.

"This view, it was quite beautiful. But, it's not comparable to flying through the sky on our gliders or upon our companions." Said Aang lightly as he turned back around and glanced at Gyatso, who faintly smirked with a nod.

"Yes, the view isn't anything special to us… But to everyone else, it is a one-of-a-kind view." Said Gyatso lightly as he glanced at Aang, who nodded before meditating again.

As the monorail now seemed pointless, I spent the remainder of the time meditating; once the ride was finally over, Monk Gyatso and I exited the station, and we aimlessly walked through the city streets. Eventually, dusk began to arrive, and when it did, I figured now would be the best time to visit the Firelight Fountain since, if I remember correctly, it's best to experience it during the night; however, thanks to the monorail, we were now quite far away, and we were required to use our gliders to get there.

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"Well, isn't this perfect? It's not too busy and not too empty." Said Gyatso lightly with a smile as he and Aang leaped off their gliders before gracefully descending to the ground while holstering their bo-staffs onto their backs.

"Yes, this is indeed perfect, though I would've preferred if it were empty." Said Aang as he glanced at the numerous people before observing the fountain, his words causing Gyatso to chuckle.

Although I said that, it was easy to see that if the place was empty, it wouldn't have the same romantic atmosphere that all these couples had generated.

"You never told me it was a spot couples visit." Remarked Aang as he glanced at Gyatso, who chuckled while faintly smirking.

"Well, you never asked. Though, I remember my friend mentioning how lovely this place was during his honeymoon with his wife; it even made me a little jealous of the fun he was having." Stated Gyatso softly as he rubbed his chin, only to faintly smile as he stopped walking and gazed at the numerous lanterns surrounding the fountain.

While I was surprised to learn Roku took his wife here fo their honeymoon, I couldn't help but wonder if she was still alive, since from my understanding, in the show, she's hardly ever mentioned.

'It's very possible; the only problem would be to find her; still, even if she's not alive, her children should be.' Thought Aang lightly as he looked up at the night sky.

I didn't know whether she was alive or not, but if we happened to visit the Fire Nation on this trip, I figured I should try to meet her, maybe just to give her some form of closure; however, that was stuff I could worry about whenever I visited the Fire Nation.

Because I was thinking about Roku's wife, it got me wondering about my own wife, and as I looked at the numerous couples that were so blatantly in love, I couldn't help but be consumed by sadness.

"Aang, are you okay? You're crying?" Asked Gyatso in concern as he glanced at Aang, who was shedding a single tear, causing him to shake his head while wiping his face.

"Yes, I'm fine, Monk Gyatso. Anyways, I think we should leave; this isn't exactly a place for you and I." Said Aang lightly as he grabbed his bo-staff and turned it into a glider before leaping into the air and flying away, leaving Gyatso behind.

"Haa, Roku had told me about the souls of previous Avatars being connected; I wonder if coming here sparked something with his soul." Muttered Gyatso softly with a frown as he looked at Aang before following him behind him, flying through the night sky.

After several minutes, I arrived back at Appa and simply snuggled against his immensely soft and fluffy body; that small flight calmed me down, but I was still tired after experiencing so much today. I may have been the Avatar, but my body was still that of a child.

'Haa, I really miss you.' Thought Aang lightly as he slowly drifted off to sleep.