In the Si Wong Desert, a week after Renji and Team Avatar's departure...
On the dune that once held the great Library of Wan Shi Tong—
A burst of sand suddenly erupted from beneath the surface before a small silhouette shot out from the dunes.
Landing gracefully on all four paws, she took a few steps forward before shaking her entire body, sending clouds of sand flying in every direction. The brown grains slowly fell away, revealing patches of white fur beneath.
But no matter how vigorously she shook herself, some of the sand stubbornly remained trapped in her fur.
Frowning, she gave herself one last vigorous shake before finally giving up. Looks like she couldn't get it all out on her own!
She lifted her head toward the sky and gave a soft yip.
For a brief moment, nothing happened.
Then, a patch of the bright blue sky began to darken as a massive shadow slowly stretched across the orange sands below.
Shira's ears perked up.
She trotted toward the approaching shadow and waited patiently as it grew larger, blocking out the scorching sunlight and casting a cool shade over the dune.
Only when the temperature finally began to drop did she sit down and wait.
For the first time in over a century, drops of water formed in the sky and began falling onto the dry desert below. The rain was confined to the small patch of land where she sat, barely enough to wet the surrounding sand.
Feeling the cool water wash over her body, Shira happily lapped up the clean rainwater to quench her thirst while pawing at her head, working the stubborn grains of sand from her fur. Little by little, the brown sand disappeared, revealing the snow-white fur underneath.
Though she couldn't clean off the sand clinging to the parts of her body she couldn't reach on her own, she had at least managed to clear away a good amount of it. Looking down at her snow-white fur, her eyes curled into crescents as she yipped toward the sky in thanks.
When the rain cloud that had sheltered her finally dissipated back into the bright, sunny sky, she gave herself a vigorous shake before trotting northward.
Toward Ba Sing Se, she goes!
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It took her an entire day to escape the desert that had been her home for so long, thanks to a group of Benders capable of Bending the sand. Hitching a ride while remaining hidden was simple enough for a creature of her stature!
Once she was certain no one had followed her, she lowered her head and began sniffing the ground, searching for any tracks she could pick up and follow.
It took a good while to lock onto the trail. That human must have been very paranoid to go through the trouble of concealing his tracks. Too bad his companions hadn't been nearly as thorough in covering theirs.
Pleased that she had managed to pick up his scent, she quickly set off, stopping only when she needed to rest or hunt the rare delicacies that were hard to come across outside the desert.
So much delicious prey!
Ah. She wiped the drool from her muzzle with her paw.
Stay focused, Shira! Food later!
Eventually, after days of following the trail, she reached a massive, cave-like enclosure filled with all sorts of animals.
Just like Mister Human.
Lightly growling in thought, she studied the animals moving about, carefully considering her options.
After a moment of consideration, she decided to simply walk into the den filled with animals that shared the same species as Mister Human.
Greeted by a chorus of excited squeals and coos, she was eventually scooped up by a group of girls from a large family.
There was also a strange old female animal yelling at her about something, but Shira paid her little attention, her focus instead drawn to the large platter of cabbages sitting a short distance away.
Eventually, she was led through a stone gate and into the inner enclosure, where a large object—a ship!—floated in the distance.
Soon, she was loaded onto the ship in the hands of a younger girl from the family.
The destination...
Ba Sing Se!
Shira the Snow Fox was on her way, Mister Human!
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