a/n: I am so very sorry that this chapter is so late. I've been working on some other things and took a break from writing on this. I also made stickers for lunar warrior that no one wants, but that's okay. I've been doing WAY too much with the fact that I have a lot of stories, none of them complete or discontinued, and I want to update them all with the plans I have for them.

That will come out in due time, I plan to continue my work on all of them, even my older works. I'm thankful to all of my patrons for their support and for sticking with me. I am grateful to all of you who read my stories and genuinely like them. I know my updates are slow, but I promise none of these stories have been abandoned.

I'm posting this chapter for the sole reason of saying this story is NOT DISCONTINUED. I HAVE NOT ABANDONED IT, IT WILL UPDATE, I HAVE PLANS FOR IT.

Now, onto this chapter!

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Wǔ rushed to Ayaan the moment the Gaang got him on the ground. It took all of them to get him down, Aang using his airbending to make him lighter as the siblings each held a side of him.

"Tell me what's happening!" Sokka snapped, hating the fact he had no idea what was going on with his brother. But he knew that these guys hovering had an idea. He needed to be in the known.

Right now.

"After we get him stable!" Wǔ snapped back. His saturated eyes blazed as he looked back at his brothers, "Qī, Liù. The calming ritual!"

"On it."

"Ready!"

The waterbender, earthbender, and firebender were quick to relax into stances none of them had ever seen before. Gently, with grace in every flow of his fingers, Liù brought streams of water from the pouches they hadn't seen on his person. The crystal-clear waters formed sparkling rings around their lord, seeming to shine in the light.

Qī stomped the ground, raising Ayaan on a makeshift bed of stone as he simultaneously pushed them away. They stumbled at the sudden movement, everything happening too fast for them to properly take it in. The small stones he raised broke down mineral by mineral until they were sand, creating similar rings that danced in tandem with the streams.

Wǔ breathed out, and from his lips, a purple flame emerged. Soft and light, the gentle fire was unlike anything the trio had ever witnessed. Where firebenders of any kind brought dread and anger within them, this flame felt different. They kissed the sand with its heat as the water soothed it, and within moments, they became glass.

Everything began to shine; the setting sun's pure, golden glow reflected off of the glass and was carried by the dancing streams of water. All three brothers were chanting, a song not even Aang, who'd visited many places, had ever heard. They couldn't understand the language spoken, but the melody seemed to soothe their nerves somehow, too.

"Look! On his head!" Sokka called out, having never taken his eyes off of Ayaan. A mark appeared on his unconscious brother's forehead, and this time staying long enough for all of them to see it. It was the yin symbol, seemingly etched into his skin.

And that was the moment his eyes opened, and the Phantoms paused everything they were doing. Everything became still, and finally, the others were allowed to come closer.

"Ayaan...? Are you okay?" Ayaan's eyes were hazy as he lay on the slab. The moment they found them, everyone saw it; they were a midnight blue; a starless night sky just after dusk. No, maybe the deepest part of the sea, endless and unfathomable.

"Ayaan...?"

It scared him how empty his stare on them was, as if he didn't recognize them. Ayaan seemed to be studying them, eyes set in an apathetic glare. Something seemed to swim within those dark pools of midnight blue, a single spark of white mesmerizing as it danced in them.

'A moon in the starless night sky...'

Those eyes continued to search everyone they could see. The Phantom trio was passed by first, a flicker of recognition coming and going. Then they landed on Sokka and Katara, softening just a tad, enough for them to believe that maybe he did remember them, or whoever this being was knew of them.

But they paused when they landed on Aang. Those unspeakably deep eyes bore into him as if seeing through him. The slab began freezing over. The entire area became chilled enough for breath to be seen, the ground crackling as it became layered in thin ice. A flood of incomprehensible rage made the arrow on his head faintly glow in response.

A name only the Phantoms recognized from their stories left his lips.

"Raava..."

"Who...?" Aang didn't know why a flood of regret filled him. He didn't understand why those eyes held such anger in them, a sense of utter betrayal and rage that was palpable within the frozen air. Why?

Why?

Then, the symbol disappeared. His eyes closed. And the foreboding feeling they all got went away like a lie. Ayaan's breathing calmed, his skin returning to a healthy shade. As if the past few minutes didn't occur.

"What happened to him? What is this?" Sokka whispered. He remembered seeing those eyes before... when Aang had accidentally sent that massive wave at him and Appa. He had the same apathy then, the same far-away look.

"The Asrani are cursed, and as such, any form of contact with them is fiercely rejected by those blessed by spirits," Liù explained, his voice carrying a hint of wariness as he watched entranced Ayaan.

"Is that what caused the shaking...?" Katara asked, feeling even worse. She should have left well enough alone. She should have just agreed when Ayaan said he wanted to leave. Now, her brother was hurt, and she didn't know what to do.

"Yes. Lord Ayaan's body and spirit were negatively affected and were in a chaotic state." The waterbender continued, "Lord Ayaan is a blessed child. It is more than just being liked, it is love. A possessive, aggressive type of love. It sensed that he was in danger, and its blessing reacted to protect him."

'It?'

"What you saw was our ritual to sate the spirit's anger," Wǔ answered this time. His voice was light and soothing. "Water heals, warmth soothes, and the glass created reflects their light and calms the senses."

"Then... what was that?" Aang whispered. "That didn't look calm to me!"

Ayaan... that wasn't Ayaan. Ayaan always felt warm, calm, and inviting. Sokka agreed with him with a single nod. He'd been following his brother all of his life, he'd know him with his eyes closed. Whatever that was... it wasn't him. It was cold, calculating... scary.

There was nothing within those eyes. It didn't feel like Ayaan was looking at them. All of them, at the back of their minds, could tell this was true.

"Did you think all there was to a blessed child was boosted strength and changed hair? They share their life with the spirit they're bonded with. In every life they may live."

To the phantoms, it was the most obvious thing in the world. The presence of the spirit is the whole reason they needed to do that ritual. The words they spoke were in the ancient language of the Asrar, which spirits understand. It was an assurance that their child was in safe hands, a promise of protection.

The Gaang did not need to know that these words were the only reason it did not attack them on sight. Aang wasn't the only one who sensed the anger it carried.

"He's stable now. The spirit healed him, too!"

"What?" Katara carefully went up to him. She checked the wounds they'd seen on him from the ropes and on his head, and as the earthbender said, they were all gone. Healed as if they were never there. "That's wonderful!"

"Still, he can not train for at least a day," Liù stated firmly.

Qī turned his sights to Appa and Momo, "Medicine includes lots of cuddles, Lord Appa, Lord Momo. Mei, Jia, Chen. Lots."

Appa roared in approval while Momo warbled contented. The three cheetah seals were more than happy to continue their cuddle session from earlier.

Qī migrated the slab in front of them where he lowered it gently to the ground. From there, Appa maneuvered his large paws beneath Ayaan, so that he was laying on his soft fur. After having him securely in his care, Momo landed on his chest, and that is how they decided to stay.

If it was cuddles he needed, it was cuddles he was getting. Say less.

"Will you guys be staying long?" Sokka asked, noticing they'd set up camp with them.

"For a bit. The area we need to investigate next is on the path you'll need to travel to the north."

Sokka felt relieved at that. At least for a little while, Ayaan could get proper rest and not worry for anything. They were strong, experienced, and very friendly. It was a boon being able to travel with them for a while. In that time, maybe all of them could learn something from them.

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Ayaan was confused when he woke up, unable to remember anything that happened after he'd gotten on Appa.

That in itself was a red flag to him, and his first instinct was to check his siblings. "Is everyone okay?" He got up from the ground, glad to feel that he was back to normal.

The sluggish limbs and painful aches were gone. The wounds he got from the pearl and breaking the thick ropes were gone too. He was back to 100%.

Just as he always does, he checked each of them from head to toe. "How long was I out? What happened? Did anyone get hurt? Any pain anywhere?"

"We're fine!" Katara giggled, relieved her brother was back to normal. But she frowned right after, pushing him back down on the bed the phantoms prepared. "It's you that needs to rest, Ayaan."

"Down you go, Bro." Sokka reaches for his shoulders and helps push him back down, too. Both having a bit of difficulty because of his impressive height. Did he get taller?

"But I feel fi-"

"Nope. None of that." Aang put the blanket on him. "Time for the medicine!"

"Medicine?" His eyebrow raised, his head tilted. Could Ayaan be more confused right now?

All of them had a knowing smile on their faces, "You're going to love it."

On cue, the animals got in their positions. Appa wrapped his legs carefully around Ayaan, while Momo landed on his head. Just when he thought it couldn't get better, three dry, fluffy cheetah seals made their way into the group cuddle, snuggling their heads on his leg.

He was surrounded on all side by fluff. It was fluff paradise. This was medicine?

...He could get used to this as medicine.

"Good evening, Lord Ayaan." The Phantoms said, appearing out of thin air.

"Hello?" He greeted. Currently, he was being assaulted by licks so he couldn't give them attention as he normally would. He scratched the cheetah seals all behind their ears, much to their absolute delight. They purred like they were big house cats instead of ferocious beasts. For Appa, it was a scratch underneath the chin.

Momo felt a little jealous and landed on his chest demanding ear scratches. How dare these big cats try to steal his human's amazing scratches?! He hissed at them. But Jia, Mei, and Chen hissed right back, baring their teeth.

'What are you, a snack?' -Chen

'You wanna go?!' -Mei

'I'm busy cuddling, come back later.' -Jia

This only earned each of them a tap on their mouth and a chastising glare from Ayaan. "No fighting." His voice was stern, finite. They immediately stopped as if they didn't hate each other two seconds ago, whimpering as they lowered their heads and ears as apologies.

"Good. You must be nice to each other." He gave them each a scratch behind their ears for being good, and from then on it was blissful.

'Yep. We're keeping him.' The big cats thought.

'Says who?!' Momo's side-eye said back.

'Says--'

Before anything could escalate again, Appa slammed his tail down. It was soft enough not to jostle Ayaan, but loud and firm enough that the rumble could be felt through the ground. His large, brown eyes glared down at the four little beasts before him, lowly growling.

'This is my calf. Don't get ahead of yourselves. Momo, calm yourself.'

'Y-Yes, sir.' The cats backed down immediately. Momo simply huffed, but he too returned all of his attention to the extremely comfortable chest he was on.

Authority speaks, and Appa had it all.

Sokka was glad that he was okay now, even though in the back of his mind, the worry remained. "We'll stay here for a while, and then we're off. You need rest, Ayaan."

"But I swear I'm fi-"

"REST."

He was about to retort, when five fluffy beast made their opinions known too. It was too much to resist. "Okay..."

Ayaan, too tired to resist the lull of sleep amid the warmth of the cuddles, sleeps soundly without a single dream. The others decided to keep what had happened before to themselves. It was obvious to them that Ayaan did not remember.

When he looked at them, they could see the love that they missed. He was worried about them, those grayish-blue orbs full of warmth even though it was cold around. The Ayaan they knew was back and healthy. As scary as that spirit had been, they were more than thankful.

After Ayaan got another night of rest surrounded by glorious fluff, they continued their travels further into dangerous territory. As the weeks went by, they got closer to their temporary companions, the Phantoms.

"Ayaan, could you show me the move you did before? You know, the ice you shot from the river?" She had optimism in her eyes. She'd deduced that it had something to do with his spear art since the movement he did looked familiar.

"I could do it again, though I have no hope of teaching it." He sighed. He wanted to be more help to them, but trying to put his instincts into words was almost impossible for him.

"That's okay. Viewing it is enough." Katara understood that. As frustrating as it was to never be good at something she loved, she knew her brother was trying his best for her. That's all she could ask for.

They'd spoken about her over-eagerness to learn and her impulsiveness. Ayaan leveled with her, as she wasn't the only one who acted on them. But she needed to be more cautious and think things through more.

"Putting everyone in danger is never okay. If you do so again, there will be no negotiation." The dark look in his eyes terrified her. It was never a good thing to make Ayaan upset. To even get him to that point was a challenge, so the fact that she did was horrifying to her.

"I won't." She answered resolutely. Putting everyone in danger was never her intention. She just wanted a real way for them to learn waterbending. It had been something she wanted her entire life, a piece of their heritage she never had a chance to grasp. Ayaan understood that, which is why he'd even thought to let her try learning.

But he'd also learned a lesson, and that was to listen to his feelings. Those dark, ominous cues that shoot across his scar didn't just come from a breeze. They always hinted that something was off. If he ever got one again, he was going to listen to it instead of holding off.

If they got mad at him for following his instincts, they could stay mad.

Just as Katara asked, he shifted his movement. Just as before, a jet of water zipped from the stream, turning to ice as it left the water. Upon impact, which she hadn't seen before, it exploded, freezing the surrounding area, too. Katara studied his form as closely as she could, mimicking it to the best of her ability.

But still, she could get nothing. Not even a ripple of water could be seen. As frustrating as it was, she had to admit defeat. There was no way for her to do it. Besides, Ayaan already told her she had no talent for his spear art. She was even worse off than Sokka when it came to it.

"I'm sorry." Ayaan frowned, unable to help more than that.

"It's okay, Ayaan."

"Would you like me to teach her, my lord?" Liù asked. "While advanced techniques are out of the question, I can at least give her and the Avatar the basics until they find a more suitable master."

"Really?" Ayaan was shocked, "Is it not too much to ask, Liù?"

"Of course not, My Lord!" Was his immediate answer. He was more than willing to teach Katara and Aang if his lord asked it. "But I warn you, I was not taught idly. This will be difficult."

"We are grateful for any teaching you are willing to give!" Katara, ecstatically, ran from where she was, "Let me go tell Aang!"

And thus their mentorship under Liù began. He would guide them through the basic stances, reinforcing their knowledge about how to properly shift their weight and guiding the water. Fluid movements required balance, and Aang had plenty of that as an airbender.

"It is one of the reasons, outside of being the Avatar, that he can grasp waterbending so easily." The phantom explained, "Plus, as the Avatar, his spirit has done this a thousand times already. This is re-learning for him."

"So it isn't about natural gifts?" Katara asked. She hoped that this could make her feel a little better about her lack of development, but Liù shut down her hope immediately.

"Don't get me wrong, he's a genius. Nothing like Lord Ayaan, mind you, but still a genius." Aang was a star pupil... when you take his childish antics out of the picture. When he focused, that kid was a force to reckon with.

"That's why you shouldn't compare your progress to theirs."

"I shouldn't?"

"Hell no!" Liù looked aghast that she even suggested she did, "It's like comparing a puddle to the ocean! Take Lord Ayaan for example. You can't do any of the moves he can because his talent is as wide as the sea. He is greatness. He is perfection. Us? We're ponds, streams, maybe a lake if lucky."

"So... we're hopeless?"

"No, kid. We're different. And different is okay." He reassured. "You don't need to be as fast or as talented. Hard work does pay off, too. What makes Lord Ayaan so amazing is the fact he utilizes both."

"Yeah, he does." Getting reminded of that fact made her feel a little worse about the stupid thing she said to him before. She couldn't apologize more for that outburst. "You guys really... admire my brother, don't you?"

"We don't 'admire' him." He said, "We worship him, revere him. If he asked us to jump, "how high" is the only acceptable response!" Liù exclaimed. Katara could almost see waves of passion crashing in the background.

Katara was off-put by their demeanor. From day one, they served Ayaan hand and foot. He could ask anything, and they'd attend to it to the best of their ability, no questions asked.

"Why, though?" She asked, apprehension in her tone. "Is it my brother you're loyal to, or..." Or that entity we saw before was left unsaid. Were they only this obsessive because he was a blessed child? Were they like this because of the spirit protecting him? If so, what would happen if he were to suddenly lose that?

Would they become hostile instead?

Katara was worried, and if that was the case, she was ready to protect her brother.

Liù gave her an understanding smile. "Both Ayaan as himself and the spirit within him, we Asrar will always serve them, as was our vow."

"Vow...?" Liù smiled mysteriously but didn't answer her questions more than that. Letting the matter go for now, she smiled, "I'm glad my brother has people as loyal as you guys around."

"In this life and the next, he always will."

From that point until the next few days, they worked on all of Katara's forms and practical sparring with waterbending for Aang. Though some of his methods were insane for them.

"You want us to train where?!"

"While on Appa, on the sea."

"But we'll be moving! How are we supposed to waterbend in the air?!"

"Stopping is a luxury you can't always afford. Get used to doing things on the move." He said resolutely. They tried to argue, but couldn't find anything to counter his point. He was right, after all. "Water can be found in places you least expect. Like air, it is a versatile element."

Liù was a fierce teacher, but his lessons were thorough, and soon, Katara was performing the water whip and other moves easily. She and Aang were still novices, but they could call themselves waterbenders with a bit of pride! Now they had a decent foundation to go on until they got to the North Pole.

While they were doing that, Sokka and Wǔ hit it off pretty well. They were looking at maps together, Wǔ taking out the main one he had on his person.

"These are the most frequented fire navy routes?"

"Yes." He showed him some other documents, which made his eyes sparkle.

"They mainly carrying in new troupes for land operations, weapons, and rations? There is also certain information circulating at certain checkpoints depending on location?! This is premium info!"

Wǔ nodded, preening himself. Sokka noticed his prideful attitude immediately.

"You got this info yourself?"

Wǔ nodded again.

"Did you use it to mess with them at some point?" Sokka had a devious smirk. With this info, messing with their operations would be blissfully easy, and with Wǔ's skills, they'd never know. Wǔ gave an equally devious smirk, and Sokka got his answer. "How awesome are you?"

"Yes." Wǔ knew he was amazing intimately. But hearing it aloud was never a bad thing once in a while.

"I have a question about your bending." Sokka started, the asrar silently permitting him to continue, "How come your fire is purple where every other firebender I've seen has orange flames?"

"I can make my flames orange, but I prefer to keep them at their normal heat."

"So it's a heat difference that makes the color change?"

"Yes. My flames are much hotter than normal flames. I have expert control, and can adjust the heat." The phantom let a ball of fire dance on his palm. It flickered in color, changing from orange, to blue, to purple.

"Whoa..." It was nice to be around a firebender that wasn't an enemy. It was refreshing to be able to ask questions like this. The two were fast friends, to say the least. Wǔ even shared his long list of insults for them with Sokka, who wrote them down eagerly. Some were very colorful, which the asrar admitted were taught to him by the wondrous Yon.

Qī and Aang, when the airbender wasn't training with Katara, were also fast friends. When you put two pranksters together, you get unholy chaos. Good thing it was for the remnant Fire Nation camps they came across.

No one wants to be pants down in the cold covered in stinky mud. They did that soldier wrong in the fact they made it look like he pooped himself. When he was found and the smell hit his comrades, he even cried, trying and failing to convince them it was mud. They were all taken away by Earth Kingdom authorities, but that soldier's pride will never recover.

He still stunk the entire way there.

What did Ayaan say about the prank?

"Good job." He gave them both head pats. Aang was used to receiving such praise, but Qī? Qī felt like a new world had appeared before him. He had a smug expression as he peeped the jealousy in his brothers.

'I. got. headpats~'

'THIEF!'

'SCANDELOUS SCOUNDREL!'

"Hm?" Ayaan did not understand why the other phantoms looked aggrieved. So, he walked over to them, and also gave them head pats. He was much taller than them, so it was so easy to give them pats.

They practically melted. Pats of praise from their lord! Qī felt robbed as he saw his smug expression returned to him.

"Heh." Now they all were getting praised.

"Hey, that expression! Wipe it off your faces!" Qī yelled, indignant.

"HEH." His brothers' smugness only grew.

"Hm?" Ayaan, still giving everyone praising pats, didn't understand their conversation. He just continued to tell them they did good. The phantoms loved praise, and he was more than willing to give them that.

For the trio, traveling with Ayaan was a dream come true. But they knew it wouldn't be for long, and a certain tweet of a sparrowkeet ended their happiness.

"Twee!" The fluffy bird landed on Ayaan's head, snuggling comfortably.

"Hello, Fleet. Is it time for the phantoms to go?" The little bird tweeted again, making the trio sigh.

"We can't stay for a little longer?"

"Tweet."

"Not even a few more minutes?"

"Tweet! Twee Twee!" The bird huffed. It took him forever to catch up to Appa. How is a tiny bird suppose to keep up with a 10-ton airbending bison?! And now when he finally did, they're complaining?! They had many missions to complete! The bird flapped his wings in outrage, only soothed by Ayaan patting him.

He lifted his little leg, revealing the latest bit of information from their other comrades attached to it. After reading through it, their apprehension to leave waned.

"Asrani." They hissed. "They've had their slimy hands in this area recently. Though it seems our clan was able to drive them off. We have to make sure they didn't do more than what was found."

At the mention of them, everything in Ayaan froze. He remembered the pain he felt vividly, almost as bad as the burns on his skin. There was a fear within him, but boiling over that was an unfathomable rage.

"Go." He almost ordered. As reassuring as it was to have them around, he knew they needed to leave for this. It was important. "We'll see each other again soon."

"Yes, sir."

"Twee~"

Liù gave a small scroll to Katara, "Practice these while on land, and these while on Appa. Be diligent and you will be just fine."

"Thank you!"

Wǔ gave Sokka a few maps, pointing to some places on it that he'd marked. "These are good places to go if we need supplies?" The firebender nodded, and they shook hands in mutual respect.

Qī tossed Aang a satchel. Confused, he opened it and was hit with a foul odor. "Ugh, man that stinks!" His disgust at the stinky mud quickly became elation, and he bowed to the earthbender, "I will use it well!"

"I know you will, the poop prank was excellence, my friend, excellence."

The phantoms pulled up their mask, and lept for the woods, "Take care until we return. We will meet you again as you travel north. Follow the trail, it's the quickest route when taking land and air into account!"

With that information, they tossed a familiar token. It was the Asrar token, similar to what they received from Yon on the rig. There were little images etched into the medallion, with a mysterious swirl in certain areas.

"Until next time!"

And with that, they disappeared without a sound.

"How do they do that?!"

"So cool!"

They continued on their way after a night's rest, and just as before, came across enemy camps. They took care of most of them easily, leaving them tied up for the earthbending forces in the area to find. But there was one that had more soldiers than usual, most likely due to added security in response to their successes.

Just when they thought they could still handle it, a new group beat them to it, led by a teen wielding hook-like swords...