Third Perspective:

"Hey, that's my sack!" Mirza hissed, yanking the Sack away from Sokka who tried to dump the contents in his mouth. He looked over and sighs, seeing it was empty anyway. "I told you we should've gone shopping on that last Island, I'm so starved." He said, shoving the bag in his pocket, rubbing his groaning stomach. 

"Then this should give a good idea of what's around here," Katara said, her eyes scanning the posters on the kiosk. "See if you can find a menu, I'm starving," Sokka said, wiping his mouth from the crumbs. "You ate all my seal-jerky from Bato, you're not starving, I'm starving." Mirza grunts, crossing his arms a bit.

"I bet we can find something to eat here!" Aang said, pointing at the poster that featured fire, dragons, and some Fire Nation buildings. " The Fire's day festival;  Fire Nation cultural exhibits, jugglers, benders, magicians." Aang reads, a smile coming across his face. "This would be a great place for me to study some real firebenders."

"I don't know, we are on the run, running away from Fire Benders." Mirza chimed in, looking at the poster. It would be a good experience to see more of his culture but they would be surrounded. 

"You might wanna rethink that, come look at this," Sokka said, eyes narrowed at the wanted pictures in front of him. The group moved around and saw wanted posters covering the back of the kiosk. There was one of Aang and Mirza, even one of the blue spirit. Mirza looked over him and he had to admit, he looked good in the picture. His eyes moving towards the picture of the blue spirit as Aang plucked his off. "This is bad," Sokka added, looking at Aang's picture. 

"I think we better keep moving," Katara said if they had a picture of Aang and Mirza then staying longer in the area was a bad choice. Mirza nods his head before taking his picture, rolling it up, glancing at everyone who was still looking at Aang's picture. He takes the picture of the blue spirit as well, rolling it up and hiding it in his shirt for safekeeping.

"I have to learn firebending at some point and this could be my only chance to watch a master's up close." Aang argued, looking to Katara hoping she would agree. 

"I guess we could go check it out." Katara reluctantly agreed with Aang.

" What? You wanna walk into a Fire Nation town where they're all fired-up with their ... you know, fire?" Sokka argues, his eyes moved to Mirza, "What about you Mirza? Do you agree with this?" Mirza looked to Sokka, then to Appa, "Mirza?"

"I...I'm really hungry, I don't care, as long as the place has food then I don't care." Mirza said, his stomach yowling which startled Momo even. "Come on, maybe if we wear disguises then maybe they won't notice us at all."

"Yeah, we can do that, if they do notice, we'll just leave." Katara agreed as she walked towards Appa. Once Mirza was on the bison, he began pulling off his water tribe clothes and switched them to the red fire nation ones that Zuko gave him on the ship. Appa walking straight, everyone faced the front as Mirza changed. He pulled his hair up in a different style, like the royal top knot but instead of keeping it in a bun, he lets it flow behind him like a black curtain. He had two bangs framing his face a bit, some baby hairs escaping as well. The next one to go was his necklace, pressing a kiss to it, he placed it inside his bag. He kept the dark boots he had on and the dark pants. 

"Wow Mirza, you really do look like a Fire Nation citizen," Katara commented, her eyes admiring how Mirza looked. He seemed to pull off every nation's clothes with ease. 

"Thank you, It..feels nice," Mirza said as Appa stops and they climbed down. Just up ahead was the festival, the lantern lights shining the way there. 

"You guys stay out of sight while we go to the festival," Aang told the flying bison and the lemur. Momo chatters before flying into the bush, Appa moved and "hides" behind it, Mirza cooed at the scene. They were just so cute, maybe one day he'll have a pet.

"Ready disguises!" Aang said as Sokka pulled the hood of his cloak with Katara. Mirza looked to them, nodding before seeing Aang pull up the orange part of his clothes, hiding in a ridiculous manner. "It's like you're a whole different person," Sokka said sarcastically, Katara and Mirza giggling at the Airbender. "Enough, let's go, I can smell the food from here," Mirza said, walking down the hill with the others behind him.

The festival was very lively with people and children, all of them talking or playing around. It felt like they weren't affected by the war at all, they were all being themselves. Mirza watched in amazement as a colorful fake dragging danced away, as fireworks kept going off. His eyes moved from one thing to another, awe on his face. "Wow!"

"I think we need new disguises," Katara spoken up, and Mirza noticed that many people had masks on their faces for the holiday.

"Where are we gonna get Masks like that?" Sokka asked, glancing around them. 

"Get your genuine Fire Festival masks here!" A vendor called out, Mirza walked after Katara and Aang. "That was surprisingly easy." Sokka grunts as he chose a mask too. Katara picked a woman with makeup on it, Sokka had a blue face one with petals at the ends, and Aang picked one with a frown on it. Mirza went simple and gotten a white rabbit mask, covering his face a bit like the others. He watched as Katara switched masks with Aang and Sokka, chuckling a bit. 

They moved on further into the festival and Aang pointed at the first stand, " Hey, there's some food." 

"Finally!" Sokka said, hurrying towards it with Mirza in tow. "What do you have?" 

"Flaming fire flakes! Best in town."The food vendor boasts with a smile. 

"I'll take them!" Sokka said, handing the money over before taking a bag. He began stuffing them in his mouth before groaning in distress, fanning his tongue over the food. Mirza hummed, laughing a bit. He takes Sokka's bag and began eating it, humming at the odd taste. It wasn't too bad nor was it too good. It tasted a mixture of spicy and sweet.

"They aren't burning you, Mirza?" Katara asked, turning her head to look at him. Mirza stops eating and looked to her before spitting them out on the floor, he waved his tongue as well, trying to take that it was too hot for him. "Okay..."

Once their focus was on the small puppet show, Mirza stuffs the rest of the flakes in his mouth, chewing them and groaning when he swallows. He burps, smoke coming from his mouth a bit as he follows after the group to a larger stage with a much larger crowd.

"Aang? Hold on, where are we going?" Katara asked as she followed the monk.

" I don't know, but there's a big crowd so it must be good." Aang said, giving her a smile before returning his gaze to the stage. 

" Knowing the Fire Nation, it's probably an execution," Sokka grumbled and Mirza nodded a bit. Or maybe another kid getting burnt for fun.

On stage was a young man, bending fire from the poles above and mixing the fire together into a huge ball and it stops. The birds flying around in all directions once the fire was put out. The crowd cheers happily when the trick was done perfectly.

"I gotta learn that trick!" Aang grins, lifting his mask up to see better. "Aang, it's only a trick, not real fire bending," Mirza said, sliding the monk's mask back down his face.

"Thank you! For my next trick I need a volunteer from the audience!" The guy said, his eyes scanning the crowd, looking over the group. "Oh! Oh! Me! Me!" Aang said, lifting his arm but Sokka pulled it down. "What do you think you're doing?" Sokka asked sternly, holding Aang's arm down. "I want to get a closer look," Aang replied about to do it again with his free hand. 

"It's better that we don't attract any attention to ourselves," Katara said just as the guy on stage picks her. Katara tried to decline but everyone cheered her on, encouraging her before she's lifted up on the stage. Mirza felt like his nerves were on fire and everything on him was seating against his skin. Katara didn't take too well to fire close up, he was the same. 

This next trick is called "Taming the Dragon."  You will be my captured princess!" The guy ties her to the chair, summoning a dragon from his fire, holding it on a leash. " Don't worry, young maiden! I will tame this fiery beast! It's too strong, I can't hold it!" He declared as he swings the dragon around, the leash breaks and Mirza's lunch was about to come out. " The rope, it's breaking!" The fire-y beast began heading towards Katara, but before it could, Aang jumps on stage and destroys it with his airbending, streams came from the beast, and people awed for a moment. 

"Come on." Mirza said, getting on stage with Sokka, untying Katara just as people booed at Aang's little dance. "Hey! That kid is the Avatar!" Someone shouted, which alerted the guards. 

"Crap!" Mirza gasped a bit, seeing the guards hurrying towards them. "Follow me! I can get you outta here!" A guy said, covered with a cloak, he was better than no one at all. They follow him through the back alley's of the village, taking turns as Aang tried to call Appa with the whistle. They duck into another alley but it was a dead end.

"Get back." The guy said, pushing Mirza back in front of the group, he stood in between the guards and Team Avatar. Mirza looked at the guards before hearing a loud groan like everyone else. They turn to see Appa coming down, smashing his tail down to scare the guards.

Without a second to think, they got on the large creature before flying away. Not before lighting the festival's fireworks. Once everything settled, Sokka noticed the stranger's clothes, "You're a Fire Nation soldier." Sokka pointed out.

"I was." He said, turning his head to the group, "My name's Chey."

He leads us to his small camping site, Appa settling down smoothly as Mirza started the fire. They sat around it, taking in the faint noises of nature, "I serve a man, more than a man really, a myth, but he's real, a living legend." Chey began, "Jeong Jeong the Deserter. He was a Fire Nation general, or wait, was he an admiral?"

"He's very....ranked up," Mirza said, giving the man a long stare. Maybe staying in the woods hiding made him loopy or something.

"Yeah! Way up there! But he couldn't take the madness any more. He's the first person ever to leave the army - and live. I'm the second, but you don't get to be a legend for that. That's okay though. Jeong Jeong's a firebending genius. Some say he's mad - but he's not! He's enlightened." Chey explains, 

"You mean there's a firebender out here who's not with the Fire Lord? We've gotta go see him! He can train me!" Aang said, standing up excitedly, looking at the others, hoping they agreed too. "We're not gonna go find some crazy firebender!" Sokka snapped, totally disagreeing with the whole idea.

"He's not crazy! He's a genius! And he's the perfect person to train the Avatar! That's why I followed you into the festival." Chey replied, annoyed that they thought his master was crazy. 

"Look, we had a rough night and probably an even rougher tomorrow," Mirza said, not liking how their voices were being raised. Someone could be walking by and hearing them talk. " We need to get to the North Pole to find Katara and Aang a teacher."

"Mirza, this could be my only chance to meet a firebending master who would actually be willing to teach me." Aang said, pulling his lips into a pout that almost had me agreeing. 

"I agree with Mirza, we need to get moving in the morning," Sokka said, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's safer and safe for us."

"It won't hurt to talk to him." Katara said, siding with Aang on this part. 

"That's what you said about going to the festival! Why doesn't anyone ever listen to me?" Sokka cried out, turning to pout away but a man came out with weapons, all of them locked onto the group. Nobody had a moment to move when they came out. 

"Don't Move." The man hissed at the group.

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The man who captured them was scolding Chey about stalking the Avatar and his group. 

"Hold on, you know these guys?!" Sokka asked, voice cracking a bit.

"Oh yeah, Lin Yee's an old buddy," Chey said, looking over his shoulder a bit to Sokka. "Right Lin Yee?"

"Shut up, keep moving." Lin Yee demanded, threateningly held the spear at Chey's back. They contained on towards their camp, coming to a small hill. There was a small cabin at the bottom by the water, and there was no campfire to shed light on the settlement. "Go on, he sees you only." Lin Yee told Chey.

"Oh, that's okay, I can chat with him later." Chey said, not wanting to hear the lecture from the older man.

"Is that where Jeong Jeong is? I need to talk to him right away." Aang tried to push by but Lin Yee, shoved him back with the spear. " No! You wait there," Lin Yee hissed, shoving Chey forwards, " Go now!"

"Don't worry! Everything'll be fine. He's a great man, great man!" Chey assured though Mirza didn't think it sounded real when it came from his mouth. 

"We might have gotten a man killed tonight," Mirza muttered to himself, walking behind Lin Yee, who was showing where they will sleep tonight. Once he laid on the floor, he let himself curl a bit, some bones cracking before he nuzzled his arms that he used as a pillow for tonight. Once his eyes clothes, he was out.

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First Perspective:

I wake up, yawning a bit, I looked around and noticed that I was the only one sleeping. The sun was shining and I could hear the birds chirping. Stretching my limbs and fixing my hair into a lazy braid, I walked outside only to see Katara practicing her water bending and Sokka fishing then I noticed Aang...trying to poop?

"Aang, are you..constipated?" I asked, walking closer towards him and the stranger who I assumed was Chey from far away turns towards me. The scowl on his lips and dark eyes staring down at me a bit. "Hi-"

"Do not interrupt!" He hissed and gives me another look again, though I could see his eyes staring at me like he's trying to figure out something before looking back at Aang. I step back and sit beside Katara as she water bends. 

"Silence! Talking is not concentrating! Look at your friend, is she talking?  Even that oaf knows to concentrate on what he's doing!" He gestures to Katara and Sokka.

"Hey!" Sokka snapped, annoyed and offended. 

"So I'm assuming he said yes to the training?" I asked, looking at Katara who nods mutely as she bends the water, creating different shapes of it with her hands. " Am I the only one who sees that Aang is trying to take an angry crap?"

"No he isn-" Sokka began, looking to Aang for a moment. "On second thought...he kinda does.." He snickered a bit, Katara giggling along until Aang looked at us, then we stopped. he seemed flustered already. 

After Sokka caught on small fish, Jeong Jeong took Aang to a larger hill for practice as I changed back into my water tribe clothes. Sighing as I rubbed my hands over the fabric. I walked out to see Aang stomping towards the hut and I saw Katara by the water, dipping her fingers into the water. I walked down and sat beside her, "This feels nice huh?"

"Yeah, just sitting and relaxing without waiting for Zuko to come ruining this, it's pretty secluded," Katara said smiling a bit until her gaze moved to Aang when he came out. Sitting on the rock, meditating it seemed.

"I probably demanded to be taught," I muttered, standing up to look at Aang when Jeong Jeong agreed. I stood back and watched the leaf burning in Aang's hands. Katara beside me as we watched.

"This is the worst firebending instruction ever! All he does is leave me for hours to concentrate or breathe!" Aang groans, the leaf slowly going out due to the air around it not supplying it.

"I'm sure there's a good reason." Katara assured as I moved my eyes onto the leaf.

"Aang, just calm down, Fire Bending should be handled more than air or water." I said, looking at him with a bit of a smile. " You need to concentrate, take deep breaths, and focus on the leaf. Fire is life, so it comes from the air around."

"Uh..Uh..okay." Aang said, looking at the leaf, moving into the position he was in early ago and takes deep breaths, inhaling by the nose and exhaling by the mouth. Soon the leaf began to smoke more and more before an actual ball of fire came out of it. Aang gasped in amazement, looking at what he did.

"I did it! I did it! I made fire!" The Avatar gasped, looking at the fire in the palm of his hand.

"Aang, that's great, but you should take it slow." Katara advised, worry coming across her features.

" Yeah Aang, I just said fire is life." I said, looking at the Avatar, a feeling of something bad going to happen with him goofing around with the fire. He juggles around the fire, playing with it like it was some sort of ball. "Aang." I tried to warn him, as my anxiety was almost at the rooftop when he held in his hands. 

"I wonder how the juggler did it." Aang said, before spreading the fire around him, Katara let out a cry of fear when it was coming closer but I shoved her to the side, hands out to disperse it but it was too late. I cried out when the fire burns my hands, I fell onto my knees as tears gathered in my eyes as the familiar smell of burning flesh hit my nose. I almost felt like puking up whatever I had in my stomach as the pain continue to flash on my hands. I muffled my sobs of pain as Sokka came over, bending down to look at my hands. 

"What did you do?!" Sokka demanded, looking to Aang. 

"It was an accident! I was, uh... Mirza, I'm so--" Aang tried to apologize but Sokka tackled him. I sobbed a bit when Katara touched my hands, I yanked them back. "I told you we shouldn't mess around with this! Look what you did! You burned my Brother!"

I sobbed a bit as I ran from the scene, Katara coming after me but I kneeled down towards the water. I whimpered when I looked over my burned hands, they were red streaks on them, some skin pulling back and the smell was still hitting my nose. " Come on, let's put them in the water.." Katara whispered, she took her hands and gently clasped mine making me wince before she helped dipped them in the water. I winced at first before taking a deep breath, I looked at my hands before gasping when Katara's hands began to glow.

Katara gasped as well as her hands glowed, almost like mine on Appa. We pulled our hands up and admire the new skill. "You...healed me hands.." I whispered, looking over them. The smell was gone and every blister or torn skin was healed too.

"You have healing abilities. The great benders of the Water Tribe sometimes have this ability. I've always wished I were blessed like you - free from this burning curse." Jeong Jeong said as he walked over to us, bending down as he stared at the water. I couldn't help but nod in agreement, he was right, we were cursed with this bending. It murders and kills people, break up families, and caused this war. 

"But you're a great master. You have powers that I will never know." Katara counters.

"Water brings healing and life. But fire brings only destruction and pain. It forces those of us burdened with its care to walk a razor's edge between humanity and savagery. Eventually, we are torn apart." Jeong Jeong finishes.

I sniffed a bit, rubbing away the tears that fell, still watery from the burn but that also made me a bit emotional. I've been scared to use my bending because the fire would kill someone, someone like Kya or worst. This fire, it only brought destruction and pain to my people and to myself. If I hadn't push Katara out the way, it would be her crying here.

I yelped when the fire hit the water, standing up to defend myself but Jeong Jeong disperse the fire with one swift move. "Katara, let's go!"

"Go get your friends and flee! Do not come back here or you will all be destroyed. Hurry!" Jeong Jeong added on, fire nation boats coming closer but not because of Zuko, I could see the figure on it was Zhao, and he wouldn't be happy seeing me with them. I grasped Katara's hand, I held her hand as we ran, turning my head a bit to see Jeong Jeong create a wall of fire, almost like a waterbender would. I have to try that one day

We made it back and saw Sokka packing up Appa, " Mirza! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, all good. We need to get Aang and get out of here." I said as I let go of Katara's hand.

 "I'll go get him, he's probably upset," I said, hurrying down to the small hut, moving through the curtain and saw Aang with his back towards me with the candles lit. "Aang?"

"Jeong Jeong tried to tell me that I wasn't ready. I wouldn't listen. I'm never going to firebend again." Aang said, keeping his voice low and stern, like he was the one talking to himself.

"You have to, the Avatar has to learn the four elements." I said, looking at him with a small smile.

"Never again."

"It's okay Aang, plus I'm healed up." I said, showing my hands as he snapped his head towards me.

"How?" Aang gasped, "I'll tell you later but we have to go." I said, moving the curtain for us to leave. "Zhao is here with his soldiers."

"Where?"

"By the river, last time I saw, Jeong Jeong was fighting them off." Aang hurried past me towards the river, ignoring Katara and Sokka. I shake my head a bit before getting on Appa, sitting down before looking at my hands a bit, they were healed for sure, from Katara but I could've tried my own.

"Mirza?" Katara said, "You oka-"

"I can fire bend." I said, looking to her, seeing her eyes go wide for a moment, "The reason why I pushed you down was that I could've dispersed it but I wasn't fast enough. I know for so many years I could've told you but Kya and Hakoda said to hold off until you were old enough to understand." I said, closing my eyes. " Me being hurt because of the element that brought so much pain, just made me..want to tell you. It could've been you hurt, but I took it because I love you...I understand if you hate me-"

"Mirza, I knew the whole time." 

"I-" I stopped to stare at her, smiling a bit as Appa took off, "You knew?"

"Yes. Well, I knew you were able to make the campfire within minutes, you always brought back burned meat at home and the way you told Aang to start his fire. It all built up, I am a bit pissed that you kept it to yourself for years, but I know you would never hurt me." Katara assured, leaning over giving my shoulder a squeeze, "I love you too."

Within minutes, Aang appeared hoping on Appa, looking down at the village where it was empty. Everyone was just gone, "Aang, You're burnt." Katara said, and Aang looked to his arm to see a slight burn. "I got it." I said, wanting to show off my own talent, I looked at my hand, taking a deep breath and a flame appeared before it slowly began warming my hand, turning it white and with some simmering. Like before, taking a deep breath, I gently placed it over Aang's arm, watching the fire slowly warm the area into a bright pink before pulling back when the light over my palm was gone. The slight burn was healed and I smiled, "It worked!"

"That explains why your scar is gone." Aang gasped, looking at his arm. "You can heal-"

"Me and Katara can heal, I'm just confused why I could heal." I said as Sokka huffed. "What now?"

"When did you learn this?" Sokka asked, eyeing us, "I guess...we always had it." Katara answered, giving me a smile and I return it.

" Oh ... Well then thanks for all the first aid over the years. Like when I fell into the greaseberry bramble." Sokka grunts, crossing his arms, "Or that time I had two fishhooks in my thumb!" He gestures his thumb.

"Two?"

"He tried to get the first one out with the second one," I answered, "Plus I got it out! Both of them."

"Oh, and the time that mink snake bit me! Thanks for healing that up. That was great. Really helpful." Sokka grumbled as I huffed, " I said to leave the snake alone but no, you wanted to poke it with a stick. You were lucky I knew how to take it off."

"You beat with a stick, and then you beat me with a stick." Sokka pointed out, I shrug a bit.

"You deserved it for playing with the snake."