"Tell her how you feel, and it'll work out!" the prisoner urged.

I groaned and rubbed my face. Aang had made friends with the prisoners, and they were giving him dating advice.

"Seriously, Aang, I can't believe you're letting convicts give you dating advice," I grumbled, my eyes on my book and a bag of popcorn in my lap. Yeah, I was able to pop it using my firebending. Who needs microwave ovens?

One of the felons turned towards me. "What about you? You need any help?"

"I'm good," I replied, popping a piece of popcorn in my mouth. The man frowned.

Aang patted his shoulder. "Hey, buddy, it's okay. Don't take it personally." He smirked at me. "She already has a boyfriend, that's all."

I choked on my snack. "I'm sorry, what?!" I felt myself blush.

"Yeah," Aang said with a triumphant smile, "that Jacob kid you told us about."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Jacob is my best friend, not my boyfriend," I growled. He raised an eyebrow.

"Really? Then I must have imagined that dreamy look on your face when you talked about him."

The prisoners all leaned back, saying, "Ooh, burn!"

I spluttered for a few moments, then slammed my book closed and stood up. "I'm gonna go find a library," I grumbled and stomped away. I could hear Aang snickering behind me.

*****

I leaned against the wall, watching the exchange between Katara, Sokka, and Tong. Katara and Sokka had found evidence against Chin Village's claims.

"Sorry, but that's not how we do it here," Tong sneered.

Aang frowned, "Then how am I supposed to clear my name?"

Tong smiled, "Oh, that's easy. I'll tell my side of the story, and you tell yours, and then I decide who's right and who's wrong."

We all gasped, and I growled, "That's not fair! Aang has the right to an unbiased jury and a lawyer!"

They stared at me blankly. "I have no idea what you just said, but that's how it works," Tong smirked. "Good luck!" He skipped out of the room, laughing like a maniac.

"What's a jury?" Katara asked.

"What's a lawyer?" Aang questioned.

I smacked my forehead and turned to Sokka. "You better have some strong evidence," I murmured.

*****

Tong stepped into the center of the amphitheater. "Chin the Great was great, and we all loved him for it. Then Avatar Kyoshi came and killed him! The end." He walked over to the bleachers and sat down, an evil smile on his face.

A guard pushed Aang into the center. "You got this, buddy!" I whisper-yelled.

Aang swallowed. "Okay, um ... I have, uh, evidence! That, um, proves that I didn't do it! So, um, first of all ..." He trailed off, trying to remember what to say. I heard Sokka whisper something about a footprint. Aang nodded, "Right, uh, you see, that footprint you have is small, and, uh, I have ... large feet?" He gestured to his small little feet. "Next, uh ... your statue is ... the same as your temple. And, I'm in a painting that's at sunset!" He smiled wide. "So, yeah, I'm innocent!"

Katara and Sokka plastered smiles on their faces, attempting to assure Aang that he did fine. Sokka even gave him a thumbs-up. I just covered my face with my hands.

"Yeah," I mumbled, "he's gonna die."

But Katara wasn't going to give up. "Please, sir, we have a witness!"

Tong snorted, "Witness? No, that is not how we do it."

Katara spread her arms. "But I'm gonna call Avatar Kyoshi!" Everyone gasped, and people started to murmur and mutter and ... other words like that. Aang, who had disappeared a moment ago, was brought back to the trial.

"What is he wearing?" I whispered. Aang was decked out in a full-on Avatar Kyoshi outfit. "Katara, what's up with that?"

She sat down next to me. "I'm hoping that wearing her clothes will, I dunno, call her forth?"

We stared expectantly at Aang, who looked very uncomfortable. After a moment, he brought up his fan and hid his face. "Hi there! It's me, Kyoshi!" he said in a falsetto voice. I groaned and face-palmed.

Tong jumped up and stormed over to Aang. "Enough of this! Avatar Aang, we find you guil-"

He was cut off by a sudden tornado of earth that encircled Aang. When it disappeared, Avatar Kyoshi stood in his place. She then confessed to the murder of Chin the Great, but explained that he was attacking Kyoshi's home. In fact, she herself didn't kill him; when she split the earth, the ground Chin stood on became unstable and he fell. I thought that would be good enough to clear Aang, but had a sinking suspicion it wouldn't be good enough for Tong.

The tornado came back, and Kyoshi disappeared. She was replaced by a swaying Aang. Katara and I ran forward and caught him before he hit the ground.

"Did we win?" he mumbled. I bit my lip.

"Weeellll, you kinda ... confessed," I said, cringing. "I'm sorry, Aang."

Tong walked up to us. "I find Avatar Aang guilty! Let the Wheel of Punishment decide his fate!"

Oh, boy. That doesn't sound good!

The guard next to Aang said, "The Avatar will spin the wheel and determine his fate." Aang turned to look at us.

"I agreed to this. Now I have to do it," he announced. He spun the wheel.

People in the crowd shouted what they wanted it to land on. Katara and I clutched each other and chanted, "Community service! Community service!"

The wheel came to a stop. " 'Boiled in Oil'," the guard grunted.

"No!" I jumped up and ran to Aang's side. "I won't let you hurt him!" I stood protectively in front of him, my fists starting to smoke. The guard tried to shove me away, but I wouldn't budge.

Boom!

I pushed Aang down, crouching over him to shield him from the explosion. I looked up to see the leader of that rhino gang that tried to kill us. "Oh, not you again!"

"Show me your leader!" the man bellowed. "This village is now under the Fire Lord's control!" One of his men sliced the statue of Chin the Great in half. A villager pointed to Tong, who hid behind the Wheel of Punishment with a squeal.

"You two!" he cried, pointing at me and Aang. "Get rid of them!"

Aang stared back at him, a bored expression on his face. "I'm sorry, but right now, you guys are supposed to be boiling me in oil."

"Aang!" I hissed. "Shut up!" He gave me a minuscule wink, then turned back to Tong. I frowned, then slowly smirked when I realized what he was up to.

Tong, trembling, reached up and moved the wheel so that it was on "Community Service." "There! Serve us and make them go away!"

Aang smiled and jumped out of the Kyoshi getup. He faced the man that had destroyed the statue. The man rushed toward him, but Aang opened his Kyoshi fans and spun out of the way. He airbent the man off of the rhino and off the cliff.

"Yeah!" I cheered, then flattened myself to the ground when a stream of fire came my way. The leader of the rhino gang was glaring at Aang, obviously displeased at the defeat of his member.

The man raised his hand and shouted, "Destroy the town, Rough Rhinos!"

Seriously? The Rough Rhinos? That's a stupid name, I thought as I raced after them. I chased one into an alley. Dead end.

The Rough Rhino member charged towards me, and I ducked past him. Now my back was to the dead end. "Nowhere to run, girly," he taunted. I growled and raised my fists, which were now on fire.

"You shouldn't have messed with this town," I snarled and threw a fireball at him. He flailed, then sat back up on his rhino. He sent a stream of fire at me. I redirected it back at him, then launched more fireballs. I finished with a sweep of my arm, which created an arc of fire that hit the man in the chest.

He grunted and fell off his rhino, which promptly ran away.

"Yes! Take that, jerk!" I cheered. I just won my very first bending fight!

"Beth?" I turned to see Aang on a rooftop, gaping at me. I was suddenly reminded of my nightmare, and I extinguished my flames. Aang's face was unreadable for a moment. Then he broke out in a big grin. "That was awesome! You're a natural!"

I smiled back at him. "Yeah, well ..." I rubbed the back of my neck, happier with this reaction than my dream one.

*****

"Today, we celebrate Avatar Day in honor of Avatar Aang, who was not boiled in oil and who defeated the Rough Rhinos!" Tong shouted, and the crowd cheered. I smiled at my friends, then looked at the bowl in my hands.

"Um ... what is this stuff?" I asked as politely as I could.

Tong smiled, "Un-fried dough, the new food of Avatar Day!" I picked one of the dough cookies and saw that it somewhat resembled Aang. "Let it be a reminder that we didn't boil the Avatar in oil!"

Katara looked at her dough cookie. "Well, guys ... eat up!" She ate it, frowning at her bowl. Aang and Sokka ate theirs as well, strange looks on their faces.

I set my bowl down. "I read somewhere that eating raw dough could potentially give you Salmonella, so I think I'll pass ..." My friends glared at me. The message was clear: We had to eat it, so do you! I shuddered and ate a raw cookie, gagging on it before swallowing. "Happy Avatar Day," I muttered.

Sokka held up another cookie, a skeptical look on his face.

*****

I gaped at my friends, at their glaring faces and defensive positions. They launched their attacks, and I brought my hands up, a cry of fear escaping my lips-

"Peace, young one."

A deep sense of calm washed over me, and I floated in inky darkness, the soothing voice echoing around me.

I rolled over in my sleep, a smile on my lips. I didn't know where the voice came from, but it seemed ... familiar ...