Animation Source Forums

Rue matched her move for move easily, adding an extra loop. "Airbender? What's that?"

Setsuko stared at Rue like she'd lost her marbles, the landed delicately on the thickest branch she could spot. If this crazy kid didn't even know what an Airbender was, they were going to need a serious talk--and Setsuko didn't feel like doing that over the wind.

"I'm not crazy," Rue insisted. "You probably don't believe me when I say that though, huh?" she added as she landed softly beside Setsuko.

"Not at the moment, no," Setsuko admitted flatly. "If you want me to believe you're not crazy...well, it's getting harder and harder."

"I'm honestly feeling the same," Rue confessed. "You keep talking about Airbenders and the Southern Water Tribe. I've never heard of either. I'm starting to wonder whether you hit your head too."

"Says the one talking about airie-zonuh and unit-states," Setsuko replied rather matter-of-factly. Her face took on a slight expression of confusion. "So you really don't know what an Airbender is?"

"Arizona and the United States," Rue corrected. "And no. I haven't ever heard of an Airbender.

"Hmm." Setsuko hummed, not in a mean way, but more like with a perplexed tone. She twirled her right hand and fingers casually, causing a small, delicate display of Airbending. But how did you explain Airbending? She tried to come up with the right response.

"An Airbender is...well, someone who bends air. I don't really know how else to describe it."

"Cool," Rue replied, breathing out a small sigh as a gust of air tugged at her dark hair. "But how do you get...Airbending? Are you sure you haven't heard of the School?"

Setsuko blinked. "What do you mean, how did I "get" Airbending? I got it the way anyone else would get bending--I was born with it. And I already told you, I don't go to a school."

Rue nodded slowly. "Okay...is it only you who can Airbend? Or are there others?"

"Well, there are very few of us left," Setsuko admitted. "Only me, my dad, and two of my siblings. But there are other benders in the world, of course. The rest of my family are Waterbenders, and my cousin's an Earthbender, and I know these two kids who are Firebenders, but they're annoying." She shuddered inwardly at the thought of Wayra and Vesa, the children of Fire Lord Zuko, a friend of her father's. Well, maybe just at Wayra. Ves wasn't so bad, most of the time.

"Okay," Rue said slowly, taken aback by this information overload. "I can't believe that there are benders all over the world, but no one has ever heard of them..." she added.

Setsuko stared at Rue with the most crazed, confused expression yet. "What? No one heard about them? I really think you hit your head a bit too hard, Rue. Everyone's heard about them, well, except you, apparently, and they're in every Nation. I mean, come on!"

Jaci gave a snort of agreement from below the tree where he listened to the conversation, though he wasn't sure if they could hear him.

"Every nation?" Rue parroted. "First off, it would be every country. And no one has heard of them! I travel a lot, Setsuko, trust me. And I've never heard of any kind of bender."