While the dragon cradled her unborn child, Kuzon ran up and grabbed my shoulders before aggressively shaking me in joy.
"Please, calm down; you're giving me whiplash." Said Aang lightly as he looked at Kuzon while his head violently bobbed back and forth, prompting him to stop while sheepishly smiling.
"Hehe, sorry, I was just too excited!" Remarked Kuzon with a smile as he rubbed his head while glancing at Aang, only to turn around and gaze at the giant green dragon.
While Kuzon debated whether it was smart to interrupt the dragon's little reunion with her child, I couldn't help but rub my throat in pain; using sound bending required one to have a very powerful voice, something I've been training to achieve, though I was still quite far away from that, so using sound bending strained my vocal cords, making me experience pain whenever I spoke.
'Well, it is a small price to pay for a mother to reunite with her child.' Mused Aang lightly as he glanced at the dragon before gently shaking his head and approaching her, his presence snapping her out of her little daze.
"I'd like to apologize for our intrusion into your home, but I couldn't allow those poachers to take your child. Besides, my friend was very eager to meet a dragon." Stated Aang softly as he clasped his hands and bowed towards the dragon, his words causing her to lower her head before licking his face, displaying her show of affection.
'Haa, of course, you also show your affection by licking.' Thought Aang blandly as he glanced at the dragon, who was licking Kuzon, before sighing.
With the dragon walking forward, I moved out of the way, allowing her to place her egg in its original spot, which was in a small nest seemingly explicitly made for the egg; once she finished checking upon her child, she turned and looked at us, prompting Kuzon to finally run forward with a hopeful expression.
"Hey, Ms. Dragon, can you take us back home!?" Asked Kuzon with eyes full of hope as he stared at the large green dragon, who narrowed her eyes before plopping on the ground.
"Haha, yes!" Added Kuzon in joy as he ran towards the dragon, only for a vortex to suddenly lift him into the air, preventing him from approaching her.
"I suggest you take a second look before daring to climb onto her back." Said Aang lightly as he stared at Kuzon, who frowned before doing as he told, only for him to gulp with an awkward expression.
"Hehe, y-yeah, I-I see it now. Thanks for warning me." Stated Kuzon softly as he landed on the ground and backed away from the dragon, who was staring at him with a hardened gaze.
The dragon's action of plopping onto the ground wasn't a signal for Kuzon to get onto her back; she was merely resting. I'm sure she was probably mentally exhausted and annoyed after everything she'd dealt with today; I know I would be, which means we should probably leave before we further annoy her.
"Come, let us leave, Kuzon; we shouldn't try to push our luck." Said Aang lightly as he glanced at Kuzon, who sighed before nodding, prompting him to wave at the dragon.
"Bye! I'll visit!" Stated Kuzon with a smile as he exited the cave and waved at the dragon, who gently growled in response.
Once Kuzon had exited the cave, I waited for him to turn the corner before I looked at the dragon, only to clench my fist as I stomped my foot onto the ground and thrust my arm forward, expelling a pathetically small fireball; however, my intention wasn't to attack the dragon, no, it was to simply inform her of my avatar status, and seeing how she raised her head in surprise, it seemed like I succeeded in getting my point across.
"I don't have much to say, but I hope you can take my words seriously as this concerns your safety and your child's. In the near future, poaching will be the least of your worries; fire benders with the goal of proving their strength will come to hunt you dragons for a sense of false glory. I understand this is your home, but I urge you to leave the Fire Nation; the longer you stay here, the more dangerous you and your child's life will be; in fact, for all I know, these dragon hunts may already be happening." Stated Aang solemnly as he gazed into the dragon's eyes, his words causing her to furrow her brows while she aggressively growled and spread her wings.
I didn't know exactly what she was saying, but I understood the gist of what she was trying to convey, something I noticed that all air nomads could do; we had very keen senses when it came to communication with other species, such as being able to somewhat understand them. The dragon before me was a little upset about my words, both about the concept of dragon hunters and the fact I had doubted her strength. I had no question she was powerful, but even so, humans were stronger; after all, only two dragons had remained after a mere century.
"I understand, but even if the humans aren't individually stronger than you, what can you do against ten of us? Or what about today? You're not foolish; I'm sure you could imagine various ways they could've used your child to defeat you. Or what about this?" Remarked Aang softly with a frown as he furrowed his brows, gazing at the dragon while touching his fists together, only for him to continuously expel a tremendous amount of air.
Displaying my might, a torrential wave of air continuously forced the dragon back, nearly slamming her against the wall, yet before that happened, I stopped; I was merely trying to show her the strength humans are capable of achieving.
"Try not to be stubborn; your child's life is far more important than your mere pride." Stated Aang solemnly with a hardened gaze as he stared at the dragon, who was looking at him in slight shock.
"Anway, I apologize for my sudden behavior; I shall be leaving now. Please relay my words to other dragons; if any of you require protection, come to the Southern Air Temple. I'll be more than willing to protect you all." Added Aang softly with a faint smile as he clasped his hands and bowed towards the dragon, only for Kuzon to suddenly peak back into the cave.
"Aang, you coming?" Asked Kuzon curiously as he looked at Aang, who nodded.
Saying farewell to the dragon, I left her cave, hoping she had taken my warning to heart; I wouldn't wish for such an intelligent species to go extinct from man's greed and a sense of false glory and honor.
"What was taking you so long? Were you trying to flirt with that dragon?" Asked Kuzon with a faint smirk as he nudged Aang, who blankly looked at him before simply ignoring him.
"Shall we return?" Said Aang lightly as he backtracked his path, taking the way they had initially walked to get here.
"Yeah, I got to get home before it gets too dark, or my parents will be furious." Said Kuzon with a nod as he quickly chased after Aang, the two heading back to the Fire Nation Bazaar.
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Gracefully landing on the ground, I glanced at Kuzon, who suddenly hugged me, causing my face to twitch at his overly friendly gesture.
"Thanks, Aang. I wouldn't have been able to meet that dragon if it weren't for you, and although I didn't get to ride a dragon, I still had a blast!" Remarked Kuzon passionately as he tightly hugged Aang, who slightly nodded while forcefully separating from him.
"Well, I'm happy you enjoyed today." Said Aang lightly as he glanced at Kuzon while fixing his clothes, causing Kuzon to smile.
"Anyway, I've got to get going; if I don't get back soon, I'm going to be grounded. Seeya Aang!" Stated Kuzon with a large smile as he waved at Aang while running down the street, his figure slowly vanishing under the night sky.
Seeing Kuzon leave, I headed back to Appa, and when I arrived a few minutes later, I saw Monk Gyatso snacking on an apple alongside his companion and Appa, who promptly lunged towards me when I approached.
"Ouch, gentle, Appa, I'm quite fragile compared to you." Remarked Aang with a soft smile as he rubbed Appa's head.
"Hehe, I-I mean, ah, Aang, there you are, I've been worried sick." Said Gyatso softly as he quickly hid his laughter while approaching Aang with concern, causing him to look blankly at him.
"Real funny, Monk Gyatso; I'm laughing so hard right now." Said Aang blandly as he stared at Gyatso, who sighed in relief while patting his shoulder.
"This isn't a laughing matter, Aang; I had lost you; do you know how dangerous it is for a child such as you to wander a city by yourself?" Asked Gyatso seriously while suppressing his laughter, causing Aang's expression to constantly twitch.
After a few moments of me blankly staring at the absolute shamelessness of Monk Gyatso, he finally couldn't hold it in and erupted into a boisterous laughter; not only him but even his companion joined.
"You as well? Unbelievable." Asked Aang in disbelief as he stared at Gyatso's companion before shaking his head and ignoring them as they laughed to their heart's content.