Previously on Open Your Mind:

Aang chuckled and hugged the white-haired girl around the waist, "Sorry, big sister."

"Yeah, you better be." Xiaodan snapped and shoved him away from her, fixing him with a stern look, "Because if you do something like that again, that overgrown firebug will be the least of your worry, mister."

"Yes, mother." Aang said with wide grin, ducking his head when the older Airbender took another swipe at his head.

Katara, Sokka, Aang, and Xiaodan looked at each other for a moment before they all simultaneously started laughing quietly as Appa flew towards the setting sun.

"The Earth Kingdom city of Omashu!" Aang said grandly as he stopped on the edge of the hill, his arms outstretched, nearly hitting Xiaodan-who was standing next to him-in the face with the back of his hand.

Sokka and Katara stared at the large city residing in the middle of the massive crater with wide, awestruck eyes and open mouths.

"Aang and I used to always come here to visit our friend Bumi." Xiaodan said, rocking on her heels excitedly, orange eyes taking in the familiarity of Omashu.

"Wow," Katara commented in amazement, "We don't have cities like this in the South Pole."

"They have buildings here that don't melt." Sokka stated as if the concept was hard to imagine, causing Xiaodan to snort in amusement.

"Well let's go, slowpokes." Aang said, just as excited as Xiaodan as he turned to face the two siblings standing behind him and Xiaodan, "The real fun is inside the city!"

Aang leapt down, about to slide the hill when Katara called out to him.

"Wait, Aang, it could be dangerous if people find out you're the Avatar."

"You need a disguise." Sokka suggested, earning a raised eyebrow from Xiaodan and a confused look from Aang.

"So, what is he supposed to do?" The white-haired girl asked drily.

"Grow a mustache?" Aang finished for her, his tone surprisingly just as dry.

The thoughtful look that appeared on Sokka's face unnerved Aang and Xiaodan.

Xiaodan bit her lip to keep from laughing as she looked Aang over. Sokka had used some of Appa's hair to create a wig and mustache for the young Airbender to where, successfully covering the blue arrow on his bald head. The white-haired girl thought Aang looked ridiculous, but she had to give Sokka credit for his quick thinking.

"Ugh, this is so itchy." Aang complained, scratching at his head under the wig then turning to look at Appa, "How do you live in this stuff?"

The sky bison turned his huge head toward the younger Airbender and snorted at him. A giggle escaped Xiaodan's lips which she was quick to cover in an effort to prevent more. The white-haired girl glanced over at Katara, who was standing beside her with a small smile on her face and her arms crossed over her chest, then Xiaodan looked over to Sokka on her other side. He was sitting on a rock with one arm resting on his knee as he looked over Aang critically.

"Great!" The Water Tribe boy said, "Now you look just like my grandfather."

"Technically," Katara started, glancing over at Sokka with amusement, "Aang is a hundred and twelve years old."

Aang kicked up his staff and twirled it around his body then in front of him before placing the end on the ground and hunching his back.

"Now, let's get to skipping, young whippersnappers." The young Airbender said in a fake, but convincing, old man voice, "The big city awaits!"

That was the last straw for Xiaodan and she threw her head back with a loud laugh, following after Aang at a languid pace as he shuffled along, using his glider as a walking stalk. Katara and Sokka exchanged glances before following after the two Airbenders.

"You guys are gonna love Omashu." Aang said, glancing over his shoulder at Sokka and Katara, "The people here are the friendliest in the world."

Sokka and Katara grinned at Aang, both eager to see the city the two Airbenders had been talking about on their way to the city.

"Rotten cabbages!" A harsh male voice shouted suddenly, "What kind of slum do you think this is?"

Xiaodan, Aang, Sokka, and Katara paused and watched as a guard harassed the cabbage merchant, first smashing the cabbage in his hands then kicking the other cabbages out of the merchant's hands, and finally Earthbending the cart full of the green vegetable into the air, off the road and into the valley below.

"No!" The cabbage merchant cried out, leaning over the side of the road and waving his arms, "My cabbages!"

Xiaodan's dark brows rose at the scene while Sokka, Katara, and Aang looked over the side of the road before turning back to face the guards.

"Just keep smiling." Aang said out of the corner of his mouth, a wide smile spreading across his mustached face as he began to shuffle closer to the guards in front of the entrance to Omashu, Xiaodan easily keeping in step with him.

Katara gave a nervous chuckle then she and Sokka followed at Aang and Xia, both grinning nervously.

As the two Airbenders approached the guards, the middle guard stepped forward and Earthbending a large boulder to come up from the road and hover above their heads.

"State your business." The guard demanded harshly.

Xiaodan stepped to the side and out from under the boulder while Aang used Airbending to rush towards the guard, poking him in the chest.

"My business is my business, young man and none of yours!" Aang scolded in his old man voice while Sokka and Katara looked on with wide eyes as the boulder fell back to the road, "Why I have half a mind to bend you over my knee and paddle your backside."

Xiaodan chocked back a laugh at the look on the guard's face, while Katara shook her head slowly and Sokka's mouth dropped open and his eye started twitching.

"Settle down, old timer." The guard said in a placating tone while Aang squinted up at him, "Just tell me who you are."

"Name's Bonzu Pippinpaddle-Oppsokopolis the Third!" Aang said, giving a false name to the guard, "And these are my grandkids."

Katara stepped forward sweet smile on her faces, while Sokka and Xiaodan stood behind her and Aang and watched the scene with raised eyebrows.

"Hi!" Katara greeted the guard enthusiastically, "June Pippinpaddle-Oppsokopolis, it's nice to meet you."

The dark-haired girl clasped her hands under her chin and smiled innocently up at the guard as he looked from her to Aang in his disguise.

"You look like responsible young lady." The guard said, pointing at Katara, "See that you're grandfather stays out of trouble. Enjoy Omashu."

"We will." Katara said with another smile as the four walked past the guards only to cringe when the guard called out.

"Wait a minute." The guard snapped, grabbing Sokka by the shoulder and turning him around, "You're a strong, young boy show some respect for the elderly and carry your grandfather's bag."

"Good idea." Aang said with a cheeky grin, hiding by his fake mustache as he tossed his bag over Sokka's shoulder and into his arms.

Xiaodan turned back around and covered her mouth to muffle the giggles threating to spill from her lips. She bit her lip and stood between Aang and Sokka as the walls in front of them were Earthbended open. The four walked into the city, the walls sealing shut behind them as they passed.

The four stared at the inside of Omashu with excited eyes, watching as carts made of stone shot past on stone chutes.

"This is the Omashu delivery system." Aang explained, gesturing to one of the passing carts, "Miles and miles of chutes."

"Earthbending brings the packages up." Xiaodan said, taking over the explanation, "And gravity brings them down."

"Great, so they get their mail on time." Sokka said drily, looking over at Xiaodan and Aang.

"They do get their mail on time." Aang confirmed, looking away from Sokka to stare up at the chutes with fond remembrance, "But my friend Bumi found a better use for these chutes."

Xiaodan giggled at the remembering expression on Aang's face and the white-haired girl had no doubt that he was remember the time Bumi had told them about using the mail chutes as a slide instead.

Xiaodan started walking and waved for the others to follow, "Come on, Aang, let's go show Sokka and Katara."

Aang grinned eagerly and hurried after her, "Come on guys, this is gonna be great!"

The two Water Tribe siblings looked at each other unsurely before following after the two excited Airbenders.

"One ride," Xiaodan said from her spot squished between Katara and Sokka.

"Then we're off to the North Pole, Airbender's honor." Aang finished for her from his spot in front of the mail cart the four of them were sitting in.

"This sounded like fun at first, but now that I'm here, I'm starting to have second tho-AH!" Katara started only to be cut herself off by screaming as the cart tipped forward and started racing down the chute.

"Whoo!" Xiaodan cheered, throwing her arms in the air while Aang laughed and the two siblings screamed.

The foursome become silent when they see the cart in the chute next to them is full of spears. This time they all scream in terror as the two chute merge and the spears come up behind the cart.

Sokka gasps as he looks back and ducks just as the spears nearly impale him. Xiaodan yelps slightly and leans forward, pressing her chest against Katara's back, who the presses closer to Aang, alerting him to the predicament they had found themselves in.

"I'm on it!" Aang said confidently as he began to rock the cart they were in until he's able to launch it out of the chute and they slide down the curved roof of a building below them.

"AH!" the four scream again as the cart bounces on the ground in front of a group of Earth Kingdom soldiers, causing Aang to kick Katara in the face and Katara to smack the back of her head into Xiaodan's nose who had to grab the front of Sokka's parka to keep him from falling out of the cart and past another chute. They slide across a couple more rooftops before landing back in one of the chutes going downward.

"Aang, do something!" Katara screams as they fly down the chute, "Use your Airbending!"

"Yeah! Good idea!" Aang said happily, "That'll make us go even faster!"

Aang slashes his arms in front of the cart which causes them to go even faster down the chute. The four start screaming again when as they slide down a particular steep part of the chute and there's another mail cart in front of them, sighing in relief when the Earthbender pushes the cart to the side only to start screaming again when he brings up another cart from the chute below.

The cart slams into the second cart, sending the four teens careening and Momo flying through the air. Thankfully, Aang twirls and uses his Airbending to bring the cart in front of them while Xiaodan uses her own Airbending to slow their descent back into the cart. They slide across a few more roofs before flying through a window, into what looks like a potter y shop then out the other window.

"Sorry!" Aang and Xiaodan shout behind them as the cart soars over a balcony and into another, thankfully, empty house except for the cat that was now fighting with Momo on Aang's head.

Momo pushed the cat off of Aang just as they crash sideways through a wall and land on the cabbage merchant's cart. Xiaodan groaned quietly from her spot underneath Katara and Aang and on top of Sokka.

"My cabbages!" The cabbage merchant screeches, "You're going to pay for this!"

"Two cabbages please." Aang comments as the four are surrounded by Omashu's guards.

Xiaodan kept her head bowed as she, Sokka, Katara, and Aang were lead into the King of Omashu's throne room. The two guards behind them pushed on their shoulders until the four friends sat on their knees in front of the king.

"Your majesty," The guard in front of the group began, "These juveniles were arrested for vandalism, traveling under false pretenses, and malicious destruction of cabbages."

"Off with their heads!" The cabbage merchant demanded, practically jumping in place and waving his fist over his head, "One for each head of cabbage!"

Xiaodan scrunched up her nose and subtly stuck her tongue out at the merchant.

"Silence!" the lead guard snapped at the man, "Only the king can pass down judgment. What is your judgment, sire?"

Everyone in the room turned towards the aged kind while he looked over the four perpetrators. Sokka stuck out his bottom lip and whimpered slightly and Katara had her hands clasped under her chin her blue eyes wide and innocent while she smiled sweet. The king looked to the white-haired girl who merely looked back at him curiously with her hands folded in her lap before his mismatched eyes sought out the last member of the group. Aang glanced at the king and scrunched up his nose then looked away and started whistling innocently.

"Throw them..."The king started, pointing a finger at the four teens, "A feast."

The guards gaped while the cabbage merchant slapped his hands over his face with a groan. Katara, Sokka, Aang, and Xiaodan looked first at the king then at each other in utter confusion.

"Huh?" Xiaodan and Aang chorused, giving each other befuddled looks.

"The people in my city have gotten fat from too many feasts." The aged king said, then picked up the chicken leg on Aang's plate, "So I hope you like your chicken with no skin."

"Thanks but Xia and I don't eat meat." Aang said cordially, sharing another glance with the white-haired Airbender.

"How about you? I bet you like meat." The king said to Sokka then shoved the chicken leg into his mouth before the young man could answer.

"Mm." Sokka muttered as he began eating the chicken happily.

"Is it just me, or is this guy's crown a little crooked?" Katara asked, looking over at Aang and Xiaodan while twirling her finger near her temple.

Xiaodan giggled and ducked her head to hide the smile that spread across her face.

"So tell me, young bald one," The king began as he took a seat at the large chair opposite the four teens, "Where are you from?"

"Uh, I'm from...Kangaroo Island!" Aang answered, causing Xiaodan to wince slightly and sigh.

"Oh, Kangaroo Island, eh? I hear that place is really hoppin'." The king said with a completely serious expression on his aged face as he leaned forward.

The four looked at him blankly until Sokka started to laugh madly, causing Xiaodan, Aang, and Katara to look at him.

"What?" Sokka asked, "It was pretty funny."

The king yawned suddenly pulling the teens attention towards him.

"Well, all these good jokes are making me tired." The king stated as he shifted in his seat, "Guess it's time to hit the hay."

Xiaodan yelped slightly and jerked to the side when the king launched a chicken leg at Aang, forcing the bald boy to catch it with Airbending out of reflex. The guards in the room gasped while the four teens stared at the king with wide eyes.

"There's an Airbender in our presence." The king said, a hint of smugness in his voice, "And not just any Airbender, the Avatar!"

Aang gaped at the king and jerked his hands under the table, causing the chicken leg to fall to his plate. Sokka, Aang, Katara, and Xiaodan stared at the king nervously as he retook his seat.

"Now, what do you have to say for yourself Mr. Pippinpaddle-Oppsokopolis?"

Aang swallowed thickly before standing and holding his hands up in the air.

"Okay, you caught me." He said cheerfully, "I am the Avatar, doing my Avatar-thing, keeping the world safe. Everything checks out, no Firebenders here."

Xiaodan groaned quietly and hit her forehead on the table as Aang continued to ramble after checking under the table. The king continued to watch the display with his hands folded in front of his mouth.

"So good work everybody. Love each, respect all life and don't ram it with your spears. We'll see you next time!" Aang said as he, Sokka, Katara, and Xiaodan walked backwards towards the entrance only for the guards to cross their spears and block them from escape.

The four froze and looked up at the spears then back to the king.

"You can't keep us here." Katara protested, "Let us leave."

"Lettuce leaf?" The king questioned, picking up the lettuce leaf on his plate and taking a bite out of it.

"We're in serious trouble." Sokka whispered to the others, "This guy is nuts."

"You're just realizing that?" Xiaodan hissed at him from the corner of her mouth, not taking her eyes off the crazy king.

Finished with the lettuce leaf the king began to speak again, "Tomorrow the Avatar will face three deadly challenges but for now, the guards will show you to your chamber."

"My liege," the guard standing beside the king asked, "Do you mean the good chamber or the bad chamber?"

"The newly refurbished chamber." The king responded, looking up at the guard.

"Wait, which one are we talking about?" The guard questioned, holding up a finger.

"The one that used to be the bad chamber," The king explained, "Until the recent refurbishing that is. Of course we've been calling it the new chamber. We really should number them...Uh, take the to the refurbished chamber that was once bad."

Xiaodan almost slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand as two guards lead the four teens out of the dining hall and to their chambers.

"Spirits..." The white-haired girl mumbled and closed her eyes in exasperation.

"Oof!" Xiaodan grunted when the guards pushed her, Sokka, Katara, and Aang into the room they would be staying in after using Earthbending to create a doorway, which was promptly shut as soon as the four were inside.

"This is a prison cell?" Katara questioned, looking around the nicely decorated room with four comfortable looking beds with green linens in the shape of a square with a small circular, yellow table in the middle, "But it's so nice."

Xiaodan quirked an eyebrow and walked further into the room, taking in the drapes above them in various shades of green and the green glowing crystals on the wall that served as lamps.

"It's certainly very, er, green." The white-haired girl commented.

"He did say it was newly refurbished." Aang added helpfully as Mom leapt off his shoulder and onto one of the beds.

"Nice or not, we're still prisoners." Sokka stated pessimistically.

Xiaodan looked over at him as she sat on the edge of the bed Momo was curled up on, "Has anyone ever told you that you are a pessimist?"

The Water Tribe boy merely scowled at her, which was all the answer Xiaodan really needed anyway.

"I wonder what these challenges are gonna be." Aang said, looking at his staff nervously.

"We're not sticking around to find out." Katara stated confidently with her hands on her hips, "There's gotta be some way out of here."

"The air vents!" Aang said excitedly pointing to the small holes in the wall.

Sokka, Katara, and Xiaodan looked at the tiny hole then back at Aang.

"If you think we're gonna fit through there, you're crazier than that king." Sokka snarked at Aang with a scowl.

Realization dawned on Xiaodan a moment later and grinning broadly, she jumped to her feet.

"We can't, but Momo can!" She exclaimed, gesturing to the flying lemur laying on the bed with a hand on his distended belly and licking an apple.

Aang walked over to the bed and leaned over the lemur, "Momo, I need you to find Appa and bust us outta here."

The lemur looked up at Aang with wide green eyes and chirped quietly.

Xiaodan watched from her position lying on one of the beds as Aang stood on a chair and attempted to shove Momo through the air vent.

"Go on boy," Aang said encouragingly as he continued to push the lemur into the too small hole, "Get Appa."

When the lemur wouldn't go any further Aang sighed and stopped pushing, his shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Eh, how was Appa supposed to save us anyway?" Sokka asked from his spot laying on the bed beside Xiaodan's.

"Pessimist." The white-haired girl mumbled drily, watching with slight amusement as Momo attempted to push himself out of the air vent with only his back feet before feeling pity for the poor lemur and getting up from the bed to help him.

"Appa is a ten-ton flying bison." Aang stated, "I think he could figure something out."

"Well, no point arguing about it now." Katara said as she climbed into one of the two vacant beds, "Get some rest, Aang."

"Yeah," Xiaodan piped in, walking back to the bed she had already claimed after pulling Momo from the air vent and cradling him in her arms, "It looks like you'll need it."

Aang sighed and climbed into the last bed, the one between Katara's and Xiaodan's, "Right."

The sound of the wall being Earthbended to create a door for the room woke Aang up.

"Xia? Sokka? Katara?" He called out, looking around the room through bleary eyes only to whirl around to face the guard when his eye sight cleared and he saw his sister and friends were gone, "Where are my friends?"

"The king will free them if you complete your challenges." Guard stated in a monotone.

"And if I fail?" Aang asked hesitantly.

"He didn't say." The guard responded, then held out his hand, "Your staff please."

Aang used his foot to kick up his staff and grab, twirling it for a moment then he tossed it to the guard, a frowning marring his young face.

'I hope you guys are alright.' He thought to himself as he followed the guard out of the room.

"First, Avatar," The crazy king began as he stood a few feet in front of Aang, "What do you think of my new outfit? I want your honest opinion."

Aang remained silent and someone in the room coughed.

"I'm waiting." The king said insistently, holding his arms out.

"I guess it's fine." Aang said, scratching his head and shrugging his shoulders.

"Excellent!" The king said happily, "You've passed the first test."

"Really?"

"Well..." The king said sheepishly, "Not one of the deadly tests. The real challenges are much more, uh, challenging."

Aang suddenly rushed forward, using Airbending to make his run faster and he skidded to a stop right in front of the kicking, wind blowing past him from his sudden movement.

"I don't have time for your crazy games!" Aang snapped, glaring at the king, "Give me my friends back. We're leaving!"

"Ooh, I thought you might refuse." The king drawled darkly, with mischievous smile on his wrinkled face, and a section of the wall was Earthbending away which revealed three guards holding Katara, Sokka, and Xiaodan captive, "So I will give you friends some rather special souvenirs."

"Those delightful rings are made of pure jennamite, also known as creeping crystal." The king explained, watching as the guards slipped the rings onto the fingers of the Avatar's friends, "It's a crystal that grows remarkably fast. By nightfall your friends will be completely covered in it. Terrible fate really. I can stop it, but only if you cooperate."

Sokka yelped suddenly, looking at the dark blue crystal on his index finger as it grew, "Ah! It's already creeping."

Xiaodan rolled her eyes and glared at the purple crystal on her finger as it grew suddenly, creeping up over her knuckle.

"I'll do what you want." Aang agreed, looking away from his friends and back to the king with a stony expression.

The king smiled menacingly at the young Avatar, leaving Aang with a slight feeling of foreboding.

The crazy king laughed, standing at a balcony that overlooked the cave he had brought the four in for the first challenge. Aang was standing on a flat pillar a few feet from the giant waterfall in the middle of the cave, where a ladder was perched on another flat pillar with a key on a chain hung above it. The king glanced over his shoulder at the three teens, taking notice that the jennamite had already crept to their elbows.

The king turned back to the Avatar and began to speak, "It seems I've lost my lunch box key and I'm hungry."

"Oh, there it is!" The king pointed to the key in the hanging in the middle of the water fall, "Would you mind fetching it for me?"

Aang glared up at the crazy king for a moment before furrowing his brow and jumping from the flat pillar he'd been standing on, jumping and flipping from stalactite to stalactite on his way to the waterfall.

Finally reaching the waterfall, Aang dove right in and ran up the stalactite in the middle, grabbing the bottom rung of the ladder with one hand then he struggled to grasp the run with his other hand.

"Ooh, climbing the ladder, no one's thought of that before." The king said sarcastically as he watched Aang.

The force of the waterfall was too strong and his hand slipped from the ladder, sending him flying out of the cascade of water, towards the sharp stalactites.

"Aang!" Xiaodan yelped, leaning over the railing of the balcony and watching her little brother with wide orange eyes, sighing in relief when he caught himself between two stalactites using his hands and feet.

Aang breathed a sigh of relief and looked up at the balcony where Katara, Xiaodan, and Sokka gave him encouraging smiles, even though the jennamite had already reached their shoulders. Taking a deep breath, the Airbender once again jumped from stalactite to stalactite, this time though he moved upwards towards the stalagmites at the top of the cavern. With his hands and feet pressed against two stalagmites, Aang looked down at the key in the middle of the water fall with his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as he judged the distant. Taking another moment, he jumped away from the two stalagmites and dove towards the waterfall, using Airbending to spin and propel himself rapidly.

Unfortunately, that plan didn't work out to well since the force the water was falling with sent him off course and he was tossed out of the waterfall and into a stalactite, which he quickly clung to so that he didn't fall on the pointed tips of the stalactites below him.

"That's right, keep diving head." The king drawled, "I'm sure it will work eventually.

"You can do it, little brother!" Xiaodan cheered, throwing up her the arm that wasn't covered in the purple crystal.

Aang clung to the stalactite for a moment before a crazy idea hit and he gasped, looking back at the waterfall where the key was. The bald boy broke off the sharp tip of the stalactite he clung too then perched at the now flat top and leaning back slightly, Aang throws the stalactite tip like a dart at the key, then used the moment from the throw to spin himself around and send a crescent of air to propel the stalactite tip even further and slice through the cascading water, which revealed the key.

The stalactite pierced the middle of the chain holding the key before embedding itself in the arch above the entrance into the cavern where the key dangled right above the king's head.

"There!" Aang shouted, "Enjoy your lunch. I want my friends back now!"

"Oh, not yet." The king denied clasping his hands together, "I need help with another matter. It seems I've lost my pet Flopsie."

"Okay." Aang called out to the king standing in the area above the dirt pen he was in, where a white rabbit was sitting on a rock, "Found him."

"Bring him to me!" The king demands, then coos in a baby voice, "Daddy wants a kiss from Flopsie."

"C'mere Flopsie." Aang said and smiles slightly and started tip-toeing towards the rabbit with his arms outstretched only to freeze when a sudden thump sounds from behind him.

The young Airbender turned around slowly with a nervous chuckle and smile and looks up at the massive goat-gorilla standing behind him, the rabbit jumping away. The goat-gorilla growls and attempts to grab Aang, but the bald boy jumps into the air and flips so the massive beast only crushes the rock the rabbit had been sitting on.

Landing in a crouch, the rabbit hops past Aang with a terrified squeak.

"Flopsie, wait!" Aang calls out, chasing after the fleeing rabbit with the huge goat-gorilla right behind him, "Flopsie, wait!"

"Flopsie!" Aang shouts and turns sharply right after the rabbit, glancing over his shoulder at the quickly advance goat-gorilla before looking forward again just in time to see the rabbit head towards a hall in one the wall.

The Airbender dives forward in an attempt to grab the rabbit but the rabbit ducks into the hole, and with his arm still outstretched Aang hits the wall face first.

"Ouch." Xiaodan mumbled with a wince as she watched her brother, Sokka nodded in agreement.

"Wait a minute..." Aang mumbled as something dawns on him and he turns to look at the goat-gorilla after digging in the hole for the rabbit.

The young Avatar jumped to his feet and faced the charging, slobbering goat-gorilla who had almost reached him.

"Flopsie?" He asked hesitantly, then cringed backward and lifted his arms to cover his face when the monster was about to crash into him.

The goat-gorilla paused in his tracks and he looked down at the bald boy standing in front of him, his thin tail wagging happily. The beast took a step forward and scooped Aang up in a tender embrace and licks him happily.

"Flopsie!" Aang laughed and rubbed the goat-gorilla's head when a sudden whistling caused Flopsie to drop him and run towards the king.

Flopsie flopped onto his back in front of the kick, his arms and legs spread eagle as he laid on the ground.

"Oh that's a good boy," The king cooed and stepped towards the goat-gorilla, rubbing his belly, "Yes, who has a soft belly?"

Aang jumps onto the railing around the pit where Katara, Sokka, and Xiaodan where standing, the crystals now covering the three from neck to ankle.

"Guys are you okay?" He asked, smiling slightly.

"Other than the crystal slowly encasing my entire body?" Katara snarked, "Doing great."

Aang turned to Xiaodan and Sokka just in time to see one side of the crystal encasing Sokka grow, causing him to tip over form the uneven weight.

"We'll be alright, little brother." Xiaodan said calmly and nodded towards where the crazy king was still rubbing the goat-gorilla's belly, "Find out what the next challenge is so we can get out of this stuff."

Aang nodded once and jumped down to where the king was, hands on his hip. The king stops cooing and rubbing his pet's belly and looks up at the young Avatar curiously.

"Come on, I'm ready for the next challenge." Aang stated confidently, his voice firm.

A grin spreads across the king's aged face as he looked at the young Airbender mischievously.

"Your finally test is a duel." The king states after leading Aang to a large arena, "And as a special treat, you may choose your opponent."

Two scary-looking men armed to the teeth with weapons and armor appeared on either side of the king, vicious smiles on their faces as they looked at Aang.

"Point and choose." The king says jovially with his hands folded in the long sleeves of his robe.

Aang looks at the two men with wide eyes before looking at the ground contemplatively, "So you're saying whoever I point to, that's the person I get to fight?"

The king cocked his head slightly, "Choose wisely."

Aang thinks for a moment, looking at the ground, then back to the men.

"I...choose" Aang starts looking at each of the men before his gaze stops on the king, "You."

The king chuckles and smiles darkly, "Wrong choice."

Aang, Xiaodan, Katara, and Sokka all watch in horror-struck fascination as the king cracks his fingers then straightens his stooped back with a crack, his robes falling off him to reveal a startlingly muscular body.

Aang recoils and his eyes widen slightly in fear as he realizes his mistake while Sokka, Katara, and Xiaodan stare with wide eyes

"That is just too weird." Xiaodan mutters with a shake of her head, earning a noise of agreement from the Water Tribe siblings.

The king suddenly slams his foot down on the stone balcony he and Aang are on, causing a crack to appear which then shoots up a small geyser of dirt, launching Aang into the arena below the balconies.

"Ah!" Aang yelps as he flies through the air, hitting the ground then flipping over and skidding a few inches with a groan.

With a harsh laugh, the king jumps from the balcony and lands in front of Aang, the force of his landing creating a small crater around his feet while Aang looks up at him with a scared gasp.

"Aang!" Xiaodan shouted, struggling against the crystal encasing her body, fearing for her little brother's safety.

"You thought I was frail old man," The king mocks, looking down at Aang, "but I'm the most powerful you'll ever see!"

"Can I fight the guy with the axe instead?" Aang asked after getting to his feet and point to the warrior back on the balcony.

"There are no take-backsies in my kingdom." The king snaps, then points to the guard standing by Sokka, Katara, and Xiaodan, "You might need this!"

Quickly, Aang catches his staff that the guard threw down to him and started dodging the boulders the king began tossing at him.

"Typically Airbender tactic," The king taunts, pausing in his assault, "Avoid and evade. I'd hoped the Avatar would be less predictable!"

The king stomps his foot and a large boulder leaps from the ground which he quickly launched at Aang. The younger Airbender jumps in the air with a small yelp spinning his staff above his head rapidly.

"Don't you have any surprises for me?" the king demands, "Sooner or later, you'll have to strike back!"

The king kicks up another boulder then jumped up and kicked both his feet towards it, sending it up at the ceiling which caused it to break and small rocks to fall on Aang, knocking him out of the air. Aang fell to the hard ground, a small crater forming around his body as his staff fell a few feet away.

"Aang!" Xiaodan cried out again, worry gripping her heart as she watched her little brother struggle to pull himself to his feet, "You can do it, little brother!"

Looking up, Aang's gray eyes meet Xiaodan's orange ones and she nods once. Taking a deep breath the bald boy jumps to his feet and starts to race towards the king, dodging the sharp rocks that started to jut out of the arena's floor thanks to the king's Earthbending. The king causes a large rock to jut out of the ground and hits Aang in the stomach sending him into the air.

"Aw, you'll have to be a little more creative than that." The king taunts again, watching as Aang jumps from the rock and creates an air scooter.

On his air scooter, Aang charges the king, dodging the rocks sent his way before directing his air scooter of the wall and continuing towards the king. Once he was close enough, the Airbender pulls his arm back and sends crescent of air at the king, but the king pulls up a thick sheet of rock that blocks the air.

"Did someone leave the windows open?" The king jokes as he looks around the sheet of earth, "It feels a little drafty in here. Are you hoping I'll catch a cold?"

"What is he? The King of Bad Puns?" Xiaodan snarked, glaring over the crystal that had grown past her nose.

Sokka snorted and would have shaking his head if it wasn't encased in crystal.

The king knocked the slab of earth over and created a wave of rocks underneath it which he sent at Aang. The young Avatar tried to avoid it but the wave lurched upward and knocked him back to the ground, causing him to bounce a few times before landing on his feet. The king slammed his fist in to the ground and sent a stream of earth at him and Aang flips backwards, kicking off the wall then grabbing his staff as he flipped past before landing on his feet again.

"How are you going to get me from way over there?" The king asks jeeringly.

Frowning Aang begins to charge the king, holding his staff like a bat but the king Earthbends the ground into sand, causing Aang to sink up to his waist. Then the king brings two of the larger boulders around the arena towards where Aang was stuck, slamming them together. Fortunately, Aang used his Airbending to spin out of the sand he had been stuck in and jumped over the two rocks and swung his staff downward, sending a power gust of wind at the king and knocking him and the flat piece of rock her was standing on into the wall of th wall below the balcony.

Suddenly the king jerks the large rock he'd created when trying to crush Aang between two smaller ones towards him in an attempt to hit the bald boy, but Aang saw the attack and leapt upward, curving his body around the rock so that he practically slide along it. The king gasped and was just able to turn the large boulder into harmless dirt before it him in.

With a grunt of effort the king began to Earthbend the middle balcony from its place in the wall and moved it so it hovered just above him.

"Ah!" Aang shouts and began to run in a circle with his staff held diagonally across his chest, using his Airbending to increase his speed and until he creates a tornado. The king launches the massive chunk of earth at Aang but the tornado redirects it back at him. With a gasp the king slams his hands together and cuts the mound of earth in two but Aang leaps out of the dust created by the tornado and rock and points the end of his staff at the king's throat, effectively pinning him.

Aang looks at him with a smirk but the king grins back at him and looks up. A pebble falls on his head and the young Airbender blanched when he sees the large boulder hovering above the king and him.

The king chuckles lowly, "Well done, Avatar. You fight with much fire in your heart."

The king turns and tosses the mound away then falls backward through the earth, only to appear on the balcony a crystal covered Xiaodan, Katara, and Sokka were standing on. Jumping and twirling his staff, Aang lands on the balcony in front of the king, his glider behind his back.

"You've passed all my tests." The king states, placing his hands on his hips as he looks at the Avatar, "Now you must answer one question."

"That's not fair!" Aang protested instantly, glaring at the king, "You said you would release my friends if I finished your tests."

"Aw, but what's the point of tests if you don't learn anything." The king drawled mischievously.

"Oh come on!" Sokka groaned from behind the king.

"Answer this one question and I will set your friends free." The king said, gesturing to the three crystal covered teens behind him, "What...Is my name?"

Aang recoiled and bit his lip.

"From the looks of your friends, you only have a few minutes." The king noted as he walked away from the four friends.

Aang turned to look at his friends, his expression full of confusion, "How am I supposed to know his name?"

"Think about the challenges." Katara suggested, "Maybe it's some kind of riddle."

"I got it!" Sokka exclaimed suddenly and the other three turned to look at him.

"Yeah?"

"He's an Earthbender right? Rocky!" Sokka explained excitedly, "You know because of all the rocks!"

Xiaodan's eye twitched slightly and she glared at Sokka, "If I could move my hands right now, Sokka, I would smack you."

"We're gonna keep trying, but that is good backup." Katara stated, feeling desperate.

"Okay, so back to the challenges." Aang said, looking at his staff as he thought, "I got a key from a waterfall, I saved his pet, and I had a duel."

"And what did you learn?" Katara asked.

"Well..." Aang muttered, "Everything was different than I expected."

"And?" Katara encouraged just as a part of the crystal grew and began to cover her face.

"Well, they weren't straightforward." Aang muttered, placing his fist against his chin as he thought, "To solve each test, I had to think differently then I usually would."

"That's it!" Xiaodan exclaimed just as Aang snapped his finger and said, "I know his name."

"I solved the question the same way I solved the challenges." Aang stated as he stood in front of the king-who was wearing his robes again-back in the throne room, "As you said a long time ago, I had to open my brain to the possibilities."

The king started to laugh loudly, snorting and hiccupping.

"Bumi," Aang said blandly before grinning widely at the laughing king, "You're a mad genius."

Aang rushed forward and hugged his old friend around the waist.

"Oh, Aang," Bumi mumbled, hugging his friend as well, "It's good to see you. You haven't changed a bit. Literally."

"Uh, over here!" Katara called out, the jennamite crystals having almost complete encased her, Sokka, and Xiaodan.

"Little help!" Sokka added.

"Please." Xiaodan piped in.

Bumi jerked his hand and the crystals shattered, Bumi catching one of the piece that came flying towards him.

"Jennamite is made of rock candy." Bumi stated and took a bite out of the piece of crystal in his hand, "Delicious!"

"Bumi!" Xiaodan exclaimed, rushing forward and throwing her arms around the old king, causing him to laugh, "I missed you!"

"Xia!" Bumi laughed hugging the white-haired girl to him, "I missed you too, Xia. You haven't changed a bit either."

The white-haired girl smiled up at him and moved to stand beside Aang, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"So this crazy king," Katara started, "Is your guys' old friend Bumi?"

"Who you calling old?" Bumi demanded before sighing, "Okay, I'm old."

"Why did you do all this?" Sokka questioned confusedly, "Instead of just telling Aang who you were?"

"First of all, it's pretty fun messing with people." Bumi said with a snorted laugh, "But I do have a reason."

Bumi turned to Aang and Xiaodan, looking at them seriously, "Aang, you have a difficult task ahead. The world has changed in the hundred years you and Xia have been gone. It's the duty of the Avatar to restore balance to the world by defeating Fire Lord Ozai. You have much to learn, you must master the four elements and confront the Fire Lord and when you do, I hope you will think like a mad genius."

"Don't worry, Bumi, I'll make sure to remind him to." Xiaodan quipped, patting Aang's head affectionately.

Aang and Xia smile up at Bumi and place their fists against their opposite palms and fold their fingers over them then bow to the king of Omashu, then the two Airbenders straighten.

"And it looks like you're in good hands." Bumi comments looking of at the two siblings then back at Aang and Xia, "You'll need your friends to help you defeat the Fire Nation."

Momo suddenly leaps onto Aang's shoulder, wrapping his tail around the bald boy's head and placing one of his hands on the Xia's shoulder.

"And you'll need Momo too." Bumi added, nodding to the lemur.

"Thank you for you wisdom." Aang said with a smirk and cocks his head to the side, "But before we leave, I have a challenge for you."

"Whoo!" The three friends yelled as the mail cart Xiaodan, Aang and Bumi were sitting in raced down the chute, laughing and cheering even when they crashed into the cabbage merchant's cart again, just like old times