Art drawn by me! Look at our precious baby bean!

'How in the name of the Ocean and Moon Spirits did we end up here?'

Ayaan had no clue how to react, sitting at this table with a feast before them. Guards blocked off every entrance and exit, and in the room with them? The King. Yes, the King of Omashu was walking behind them, slowly making his way to his seat at the other side.

How did they end up here? Not understanding the situation did nothing to calm his nerves.

He could effectively blame all of this on his family; Ayaan could only look at his siblings and Aang in disappointment. This disappointment was laced with a small amount of anger, with just a pinch of pure irritation. This was all on them for being stupid. Because of this, he chose to remain silent.

Though the scowl on his face remained, it probably got worse the longer they were there.

Sokka was having his fill of the meats served, Katara also eating due to the amount of pressure in the room. Aang was vegetarian, so nothing served looked appetizing to him at all. And Ayaan? How could he eat when his guard was up to the max? There was no way to do so. So he just sat there, silently fuming.

He didn't notice or care that all of them were carefully avoiding meeting his gaze right now.

With them, they weren't sure what to say to alleviate the clear anger emanating from their brother. He hadn't spoken a word since being there, at all. They knew for a fact that it was all their fault, and they dragged him into it. And on top of that, he didn't have his spear?

Ayaan was angry beyond measure right now, they were sure of it.

The King spoke up, causing everyone to look towards him, "The people in my city have gotten fat from too many feasts," He said, for some reason looking at Aang, "so I hope you like your chicken with no skin."

There was something in his voice that Ayaan couldn't quite read, there was something off about this King. It was like the king knew something but was choosing not to say it. Why was he like that when he addressed Aang?

"Thanks, but I don't eat meat," Aang replied. He gently pushed the plate of chicken aside.

"What about you, young man? Enjoying your food?" Now the King was addressing Ayaan. "It's... fine." Ayaan managed to grit out. "Thank you."

"You're Welcome!" The King said happily.

Thing was, Ayaan barely touched his food, no, he didn't touch it, at all. He hardly even looked at it. His wariness and nerves shot his appetite, the food disgusted him right now.

The King then turned to Sokka, "How about you? I bet you like meat." Then he stuffs some chicken into Sokka's mouth. Sokka's natural response was to begin chewing, savoring the flavor of the meat as he eats it appreciatively. As the King made his way towards his seat, Ayaan gives him a look.

Sokka could tell from that dumbfounded look on his face exactly what he was thinking: 'How are you eating in this situation?'

Sokka shrugged as he swallowed before answering that gaze, "I'm a simple guy with simple needs. This food is really good."

Katara and Aang had the same response, "It's because he's Sokka."

"Yes, it's because I'm me." Sokka just went with it, enjoying his chicken which the King had put in his mouth, guessing correctly that he liked the food. It wasn't really hard when the boy was looking at the assortment of meals with sparkling eyes.

Ayaan had kept his face blank; his lips were in a thin line and his eyes were without light as he carefully observed everything. His fists were clenched beneath the table, the knuckles of them turning white. If he clenched them any harder he would bleed, but his mind was currently unable to process that fact.

It was running a mile a minute, trying to figure out how to get them out of this situation, but nothing he thought of went well. He did not have his spear or any of his other weapons.

His spear wasn't there then, either.

There was no ample amount of water for him to use as a weapon, and even if there was, he was not an adept waterbender. It was as useless as it had always been.

Just like back then, completely useless.

Of course, he considered simply fighting with his body. While close-quarters combat was not his strongest skill, it was only second to his weapons skills. Ayaan had ample strength which he had to control on a daily basis; if he didn't, he would end up breaking his siblings' bones instead of simply leaving bruises from training them.

His siblings and Aang were once again hostages that could be used against him, but aside from being a bit uneasy, they were eating like it was normal. How could Sokka eat in a situation like this? How could Katara even consider food at all? Aang wasn't eating, but only because he was vegetarian and there wasn't anything that fit his palate. Aside from being a bit put off by this weird situation, he didn't look all that alert either.

Ayaan was the only one who was truly seeing all of the grim possibilities.

Ayaan assumed that every guard stationed in the room was an Earthbender, and despite being old and their leader, they all had immense respect for the King. Ayaan could only assume that he was also an earthbender, as he was taking the worst-case scenarios into account.

The worst-case was that everyone in the room was stronger than him and any fight he put up would be useless.

While he had memorized the way they had gotten to this room from the throne room, it was useless because the guards used their bending to close off the exits. If he was to engage the enemy, they would not be able to escape the room before re-enforcements arrived.

Plus, he had never engaged an earthbender in battle before. He heard plenty of rumors from Omashu's citizens of their strength and teamwork. He'd even accessed them for himself when he escorted Miss Rinrin away from that mean sentry. He also remembered how the triplets on Kyoshi Island battled, comparing it to the other earthbending techniques he'd seen here.

These men were stronger individually, but the triplets had drastically better teamwork which made up for it. But that didn't mean that their teamwork was anything to laugh at, these men were trained together as well as individually. And while their clothing did not provide as much protection as the metal armor of the fire nation, they had a stronger, natural defense.

He was outnumbered by skilled people. He was sure that he could put up some sort of fight, but they were at the advantage. They were literally surrounded, ceiling to floor, by earth and stone.

Ayaan was not stupid. which is why he stayed still and silent.

He can't protect them like this. Just like her.

Were they even worried right now? They were in front of a king, one that seemed particularly insane. Guards were everywhere, all of them strong. He had no weapon, only his body to fight with. Sokka and Katara did not have enough training to even comprehend fighting them. Aang was a pacifist.

Ayaan found his clenched fist tightening even more.

He's just as useless as he's always been. Nothing has changed.

Ayaan felt his mind spiraling as he was seated there. All of the what-ifs were playing on repeat, the horrible possibilities of him being unable to protect them when Katara's voice brought him back to reality.

"Is it just me, or is this guy's crown a little crooked?" She says, whirling her fingers in a circle by her head.

"I would say the same to all three of you for using the mail system as a damn super slide," Ayaan remarked silently, all three of them wincing at the very true remark being the first thing he'd said in a while.

"We apologized, like, a thousand times already!" Sokka whisper-yelled, earning a look from his brother that Gran-Gran would be proud of.

"...No." Ayaan was not accepting that. Usually, aside from one man and one man only, he did not hold grudges, but this? "After this, I'm increasing the intensity of your training."

"What?!" They paled in horror.

Ayaan ignored their pleas, he had better things to give his attention to. "Momo, do not eat too much. It will make you sick later."

Momo, who had been eating contently in his own little space by them, looked up towards Ayaan in confusion. Ayaan, seeing his cute and confused little face, repeated his words. "No more, Momo."

Momo whined. His ears pressed down on his little head and his tail lay limply curled at his side. If anything, he gave Ayaan his best 'puppy eyes', and they stared at each other. A few seconds passed. Momo added more power to his best move. Ayaan continued to stare, unyielding. But if you looked closely, his lighter brown cheeks had a pinch of pink on them. Momo added on even more power! Just a little more, and—

Ayaan sighed. "Fine, but only a bit more."

"That's all it took?!" The trio tried to do the same thing Momo did, but Ayaan returned to being edgy. He didn't even give them the time of day as he returned his attention to the King, who had begun talking. It seemed he watched Ayaan and Momo's little exchange with interest, finding humor in it.

"So tell me, young bald one, where are you from?"

"I'm from ... Kangaroo Island!"

Ayaan internally sighed.

"Oh, Kangaroo Island, eh? I hear that place is really hopping!"

Silence.

Then, someone snickered, and that snicker became laughter, all coming from their one and only Sokka. The boy promptly ceased his laughter at the looks he was getting from his fellows. He looked towards them with uncertainty, "What? It was pretty funny."

"No, Sokka. Just... no."

The King lazily stretches himself, yawning in the process as he says something strange. "Well, all these good jokes are making me tired. Guess it's time to hit the hay."

He was currently having a feast with juveniles his guards brought in, and now he was going to bed? It was too strange and sudden, Ayaan had an iffy feeling.

And his feeling was right when The King threw a chicken leg at Aang, who caught it with his airbending. With that stunt, his identity was revealed. "There's an airbender in our presence, and not just any airbender," The King stands, making his next statement more decisive, "The Avatar!"

Ayaan sighed again, this time, externally.

All of the effort they put into trying to keep it hidden? Worthless, it was completely and utterly for nothing. Honestly, what were they expecting? Look at what Aang was wearing. It was a garb airbender's wore, which translated to 'something no one wears anymore' because airbenders hadn't been seen or heard from in a century. If they truly wanted to hide him, they should have changed his outfit along with his hairdo.

"Now, what do you have to say for yourself," The King said, smiling, "Mr. Pippinpaddleopsicopolis?"

'How did he remember that ridiculous name?'

"Okay, you caught me." Aang says, "I'm the Avatar. Doing my Avatar thing, keeping the world safe. Everything checks out." He looks under the table, "No firebenders here. So, good work, everybody!" He pulled Sokka and Katara into a hug since he was sitting between them. Ayaan was too far, so he grabbed the sleeve of his parka and pulled him along. "Love each other, respect all life, and don't run with your spears. We'll see you next time!"

Aang's flimsy attempt to escape was thwarted quickly when the guards surrounded them, taking each of the children at the King's command.

That was the last straw as Ayaan attacked them.

"Get your hands off of them!" One guard took a solid shot to the face, everyone could hear the horrid crack as silence resounded in the room. The poor guard writhed on the floor holding his nose, which was without a doubt very much busted.

The guard that nabbed Katara was met with a kick in the ribs, Ayaan's rotation causing the furious blow to travel to the guard holding Aang. Pivoting on his foot and he switched legs mid twist, his other foot met with the last guard's cheek, releasing Sokka.

All of it happened within moments, Ayaan now standing protectively over his family.

But now, they were surrounded by the other guards in the room. No way out, no weapons, no waterbending, nothing but his body between his family and them. It was just as he thought. The guards were quick to restrain him with their earthbending, his arms and legs clasped tightly within sheets of rock.

"Ayaan!"

"Bro!"

"Brother!"

Ayaan didn't reply to their shouts of surprise. snarling like a beast as he struggled in his confinement. To the earthbenders' own surprise, they could see the rock cracking steadily. That would not hold him very long.

The guards shivered, thankful the kid didn't have his weapons on him. He was this much trouble without them. With that spear they had trouble taking? Nightmare. He would have been a complete nightmare.

The guard that had his nose busted was being picked up off the floor, as well as the others who had the misfortune of meeting one of Ayaan's blows. A jaw out of place, and maybe some cracked ribs, the three guards were trying to look tough.

Until one of the guards checked the wounds, that's when their facade broke and they whimpered.

'I don't get paid enough for this...!'

"Get away from him! Hey!" Katara shouted, only to be nabbed by another guard. The others gave similar replies, Ayaan struggled even harder.

"Don't you dare touch them!" The guards, a bit startled by this boy, added more layers to their earth-made trap. They added and added until Ayaan could no longer be seen.

"You can't keep us here! Let Ayaan out! Let us leave!"

"Lettuce leaf?" Suddenly, the King was eating on the said leaf. The others were looking at him with dumbfounded expressions.

"We're in serious trouble. This guy is nuts." Sokka states, looking to where their brother was encased in stone slabs. He tried to tear himself from the guard's grip, but the guy was strong. "Let Ayaan out of there! He's just trying to protect us!"

"I know." The King stated, surprising them again. "I won't hurt him, he's a nice child."

The guards were looking at their king like the crazy guy that he was. That 'nice' kid just busted someone's nose, broke someone's ribs, and snapped someone's jaw! That poor guard wasn't even awake yet, he was still lying in the corner! Unconscious!

The wall separating them from the feral teen was getting weaker and weaker. Was their king going to pointedly ignore that terrifying fact?

That kid was truly a monster. How was he punching his way through a rock wall?!

Aang could see dust falling from it as powerful hits echoed from within it. He never expected for them to be left alone like this. But Ayaan's words from before rang true.

"I won't always be there to protect you as I want to."

Ayaan had probably seen all of this coming from a mile away. It was no wonder that he was on edge and quiet; he was trying to think of a way out! But this was all it led to.

Them being at the mercy of a crazy king.

"Tomorrow, the Avatar will face three deadly challenges. But for now, the guards will show you to your chamber."

"Huh?" They weren't being put in a jail cell? What about the violent one, who was still ramming away at the earth wall, which was once again caving into his strength. That kid was a monster.

The three poor guards shivered as they could hear the young man muffled roars from behind the walls of earth. They had the misfortune of being the closest to it, with a few others who were just as unnerved by the sound to keep the wall up.

"My liege," One of the chamberlains leaned over to The King, "do you mean the good chamber or the bad chamber?"

"The newly refurbished chamber."

"Wait, which one are we talking about?" The chamberlain asked.

"The one that used to be the bad chamber, until the recent refurbishing, that is. Of course, we've been calling it the new chamber, but we really should number them." He suggests, before turning to his guards who were leading the children out of the room, "Uh, take them to the refurbished chamber that was once bad!"

Just as Aang, Katara, and Sokka were out of sight, the earth wall keeping Ayaan at bay cracks heavily. With the king's signal, they, reluctantly, let down the wall to see a livid Ayaan. The shoulder of his parka and his hands were stained with blood, the evidence of his struggle apparent by the slabs of stone broken off on the inside of his former prison.

When he came out, only to see his family wasn't there anymore, Ayaan's world faded into grayscale. Rage overtook him like a tsunami and the bits of liquid within their drinking cups rose like a gauge of his anger. "Where have you taken them?!"

The others were on edge by the fury present on his face. Who even was this kid?! Just moments before this and in the throne room, he'd been so docile and compliant. But now it was like a switch had been flipped. The only one who wasn't as terrified was their King, who seemed to have seen this coming.

"Don't worry. I haven't harmed them if that's what you're wondering." He snorted, causing his guards to look at him like he was crazy. In what world was this situation funny? "They are in the refurbished chamber, waiting for the trials I'm going to give the Avatar tomorrow."

"Trails?" Ayaan growled. The other guards were already by their king's side, ready to defend him at a moment's notice. While livid at the moment, Ayaan was not going to attack anyone. There would be no point in it, without knowing exactly where his family was and having no real way to escape.

"Yeah, no biggie." The King said nonchalantly until he added, "I never thought I'd encounter another blessed child."

"Huh," That term caught him off guard. He'd heard it before, many times, "What do you mean?" But he was still not letting his guard down around this old man. Being polite went out the window the moment they touched his family.

"Just look behind you!" He pointed, Ayaan reluctantly following the instruction only for his eyes to widen a bit.

The water was floating still, icing over until his moment of surprise sent them plummeting back into the cups they came from with a clank. He hadn't even known it was there. It was similar to what had happened before when Katara and Aang found him practicing.

"'A son beloved by water, touched by moon's light'... I don't remember the rest of it, haven't met another quite like you in a very, very long time." He said, a strange, almost distant look ghosting over his eyes. It was as if, when he gazed at Ayaan, he was seeing someone else.

The moment was fleeting, The King returning to his humorous and crazy self. He instructed the guards to take Ayaan to the room where the other children were staying, after treating his wounds, of course. Ayaan was a very nice child. The King was sure of it. Ayaan didn't see the mysterious, and somewhat sad smile on the king's face as he was escorted away.

'If he is anything like my old friend, then I'm sure of it.'

...

..

.

He ignored the slightly terrified guards who had the misfortune of escorting him, the three injured guards being escorted to the other side of the medical wing of the palace.

"I will need you to remove your coat, sir." The nurse said. He spoke gently, Ayaan following his words in silence. It was then that the nurse and guards saw his bandages, the continuation of the scar hidden just beneath them.

'He was already injured like this but still fought like a beast?!'

'Horrifying!'

'Kind of... inspiring.'

The other guards looked at that last guard like he was insane.

"Leave the bandages alone, please." Ayaan's voice sounded empty, all of the energy and anger from before gone.

"Alright, sir. Your cuts aren't too bad, but they are many, so I will apply this ointment and wrap them. I'm sorry, It may sting a bit."

Ayaan didn't say anything. When the ointment was applied, he made no reaction. When they were wrapped, he still made no sound. But as they were leaving, Ayaan gave the nurse a quiet "Thank you."

The nurse returned his gesture with a nod and a smile. 'What a nice child he was.' He thought.

The guards, however...

'Bipolar!'

'Terrifying!'

'...I want a raise.'

Meanwhile, Ayaan was thinking deeply about what the king had said before. Now that his anger had lessened enough for him to do so, he could think more clearly about it. It was strange, the way the king looked at him. It was as if he was seeing someone he missed, it was weird.

But the king was weird, period.

But that left the question: Had he met someone like him before? This question left him very confused.

"Once every few generations, a child like you is born, Ayaan. With beautiful silver hair, strong, brave, smart, and wonderful just like you. You are a blessed child."

But what, truly, was a blessed child? Why were they so 'beloved' by spirits, as his grandmother had put it? Ayaan wasn't anything special. Just a bit strong, and good with a spear. But that didn't matter, those skills did nothing for him when he needed them.

Just like now.

Just like then.

His questions went without answers as he made it to their holding cell, which was surprisingly very comfortable. If anything, this was like one of the rooms in Paisho Paradise Inn. But he could care less about that.

"Are you three okay? Did they do anything weird to you?" Was the first thing that came out of his mouth when he saw them. He ran to them, checking them over. But they stopped him to check him over instead.

"Us? What about you?!" Sokka exclaimed, seeing the bandages placed on his hands. Ayaan had to remove his parka because of his injured shoulder, so he now had bandages on both of his arms.

He didn't want to be near anyone in the palace more than he had to, so he only let the nurse tend to those little wounds. He did not like this place or anyone in it for that matter. The only one he had any mild trust towards was the old guard that brought them there, but that was only because he promised to take care of his spear.

He tried to alleviate his family's worries, "I'm fine, it's just a few scratches from punching the wall until it broke."

"Awesome." Sokka marveled, looking at the bandages like they were amazing battle scars. The markings of a warrior.

"You did what?!" Katara exclaimed, having the complete opposite reaction.

"You broke the wall?!" Aang was surprised, not too far off from Sokka in admiration and Katara in worry.

"Why are we even questioning this?" Sokka said, confused by the both of them, "He's Ayaan." He stated as if that answered everything.

"Yeah, he is Ayaan." The remaining two confirmed, nodding their heads in agreement.

"Yes, I'm me?" Ayaan said, a bit confused by their tone but brushing it aside. "Are you okay?" He asked again, rechecking them over for any injuries. They all smiled at his overprotectiveness. At least he wasn't mad at them anymore.

An angry Ayaan is scary.

"Yes, we are fine. But we have to worry about tomorrow."

"Yes, that king said something about 'trials'," Ayaan affirmed, getting nods from the others.

"'Deadly challenges', he said."

"I'm killing him," Ayaan replied immediately.

"WAIT, NO! STOP!" Aang and the others had to stop him from attempting to break down the wall with a bed frame, that same angry aura oozing out of him. It was terrifying seeing Ayaan upset, because it was so rare to ever even get him upset. "Let's get through this, without killing anyone, please?"

Silence.

"Please?" He asked again.

There was a very long pause before Aang heard Ayaan sigh, "...Fine."

"Phew." Aang wiped the sweat from his brow. "Before you got here, we were trying to figure out what the challenges might be."

"We were going to try escaping, but..." Katara said, trailing off as she looked towards Momo, who was still stuck in the vent.

"What did you do to Momo?" Ayaan asked, going over to the poor, stuck lemur and pulling him out. The lemur latched on to his savior, crawling up his arm until he was behind his neck. His little head rested on top of his hair and his pawed feet wrapped around his neck, his tail acting as support as he wrapped around him too.

Ayaan gently rubbed his finger on his head, the lemur purring. "Good, Momo." He said. The lemur's presence and the confirmation of his family's well-being calmed his nerves a bit, but they still weren't out of danger. They were effectively prisoners. Ayaan was left thinking of hundreds of different scenarios of how tomorrow could go.

As his thoughts wandered and his family found themselves asleep, a question came to his mind.

'Why was being a blessed child such a big deal that even a King from a different kingdom would know of them?'

With that thought, he let himself succumb to sleep, too.

~QUOTE FROM A FUTURE CHAPTER~

A trembling voice escaped him. "Because no matter what I do, what I sacrifice, what I endure... It will never change the fact that she died protecting me! So yes, Katara, you are right..." Tears silently fell from his eyes, the ones that looked upon Katara with nothing but heartbreak and sorrow. "I... failed her."

A/N: Please don't mind the misspellings here and there.

A/N: If you go to my Instagram, I drew this particular scene as best I could. You can find me at musiclover_j101. If you are on Wattpad, AO3, or Quotev, I put the picture and/or link to the picture there as well as the quote. If it's the link, it's connected to the "~QUOTE FROM A FUTURE CHAPTER~" heading.