The Dream.

So apparently Ba Sing Se was landlocked… but they had a river connecting them to the sea. Xiao paid a merchant five gold coins to bring him with him on the way to the North Pole.

It was expensive but reasonable considering the journey.

Apparently it would take a good month to get there, so Xiao got comfortable in his room, which was basically Hauser storage. He used a fishing net as a hammock and laid down there, closing his eyes and falling asleep.

"Where am I?" Xiao muttered to himself as he looked around.

He was surrounded by lush green fields. A clear blue sky was above him.

Xiao took a deep breath. 'The air's so sweet!' He thought in surprise.

"This is way too real to be a dream…" Xiao muttered as he took in all the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings that were assaulting his senses at this moment.

"That it is little Xiao." A voice said from behind him.

Xiao whipped around, seeing a familiar old man smiling at him. "Master!" He yelled excitedly, running over and hugging the man.

"Xiao, you've grown so much! I sea you've been eating well!" Iroh said with a warm smile.

Xiao nodded. "Yes! I've been traveling the Earth Kingdom for the past year and a half! I'm on my way to the Northern Water Tribe as we speak!" Xiao said excitedly.

"Tell me all about it." Iroh said with a smile as they sat down on the grass and Xiao explained his journey thus far.

"I haven't seen a lava bender in forever, and these people you've met along the way seem like very good friends. I am proud of you, Xiao." Iroh said once the boy finished.

Xiao smiled. "By the way Master, where are we?" He asked. Iroh looked around, a serene expression plastered to his face.

"This, little Xiao, is the Spirit World." Iroh said as he spread his arms at the beautiful landscape.

Xiao gaped.

"It's so beautiful! I've never breathed such sweet air!" Xiao exclaimed in shock. Iroh chuckled.

"This is why I spend so much time meditating! I love it here, the peacefulness and serenity of it all is wonderful! And the spirits brew one great cup of tea!" Iroh said with a laugh.

Xiao smiled.

"Go and explore, Xiao! There is so much to see and do here! However I must warn you, though it is beautiful here, there are many ancient and powerful spirits in the spirit world that have long come to despise humans. You must avoid them and their territories at all costs or you may be trapped here forever." Iroh said seriously.

Xiao nodded his head, his expression grim. "I will be careful." He said as Iroh waved goodbye to him, fading away like a mirage.

Xiao then turned around and started wandering around the seemingly endless field.

"Where are all the spirits?" He wondered aloud. Xiao had a habit of talking to himself when he was alone. It was the only way he didn't feel lonely.

"They're all hiding from you, of course!" A voice emanated from behind him. The voice was playful and childish.

Xiao whipped around. Standing there was a young boy, looking to be only a year older than Xiao himself. The boy wore a large hat, along with an odd set of clothing Xiao had never seen before.

The boy's right eye was covered by paint in the shape of a star.

(It is a tuxedo and top hat).

"How do you do? My name is Tom!" Said the boy as he swept his hat from his head, revealing a head of short blonde hair.

"Hello Tom. Nice to meet you. I'm Xiao." Xiao's said politely, bowing slightly.

"Wow! So respectful! Much more than I thought a human would be!" Tom exclaimed as he jumped up into the air and started floating around Xiao, looking him over.

Finally the boy stopped. And stood in front of Xiao once more with a cheeky smile on his face. "Are you a spirit?" Xiao asked curiously. Tom laughed. "What else would I be? We're in the spirit world after all!" Tom said jokingly. Xiao rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "My bad. Stupid question."

He said.

Tom laughed once more. "Although I can see where you're coming from, after all, I took the form of a human as to not freak you out. Do you like it?" Tom asked, gesturing at his outfit.

"Very… unique. I've never seen anything like it before." Xiao admitted as he looked the boy up and down.

Tom smiled hugely. "That's what I was going for! Great!" Tom said excitedly. "You don't seem too bad. Everyone! He seems to be a decent person! Come on out!" Tom yelled.

Upon his words various creatures sprouted up from the surroundings. Xiao was surprised as they all seemed to come out of no where.

"Hello. Im Xiao but you probably already know that. It's nice to meet you guys." Xiao said as he gazed around himself. There were massive frogs, humanoid creatures with various plants on their heads and masks, and also a panda.

The panda leaned in and sniffed Xiao, before licking him on the face, smearing slobber all over him.

"We stop it!" Xiao laughed as the panda continued to lick him.

"That's Fu Tang. He doesn't talk much, but he's a good judge of character. Glad to see you're one of the few good ones out there!" Said a large squirrel in the voice of an old woman. The squirrel had brown fur and held a wooden stick that she used as a cane. She was heavily hunched over and gazed up at Xiao with eyes that were fading in color.

"Well then, hello Fu Tang!" Xiao said excitedly as he reached out and rubbed the panda behind the ears. The spirit seemed to enjoy it as he leaned into his touch, eventually turning over so the boy could rub his belly. Xiao complied.

"I've never seen a human before!" Said a green rabbit with leaves on its head as it came over to Xiao and used its wings like propellers, allowing it to fly.

"My name is Floof. Nice to meet you!" The rabbit said in the voice of a young girl. Xiao smiled. "Hi floof!" He said warmly.

"So what do you think of the spirit world Xiao?" Tom asked him after he had spent the past three hours getting to know the various spirits that came to meet him.

"I love it! It's beautiful! And the spirits are so fun!" Xiao said truthfully. Tom smiled and sat down next to the boy.

"This part is nice, yes, but that is only because I rule over this section. Other parts of the spirit world are much worse than this one. There are areas where if you enter, you will forget yourself, and how you got there. There are others where you simply die upon entering.

This is one of the few peaceful areas in the spirit world. Others have been corrupted. Even now, this very plains is under the threat of the corruption. Humans with bad intentions visit this place and attempt to attack or sometimes even kidnap the spirits. This causes them to get angry. One thing you never want to do is anger spirit." Tom said somberly.

"And lately it's been worse. Many spirit's homes are burning in the mortal realm. They attack the humans for vengeance, only for another's home to be burned in retaliation! It's an endless cycle!

I hate to say it, but we may need the Avatar." Tom said regrettably. Xiao scoffed. "What's so funny?" Tom asked curiously.

"The Avatar has been missing for a century. No one can find him and the cycle has not moved on from that of the air nomads. Many believe it to be broken." Xiao explained.

Tom thought for a moment. "If that's the case then we are truly screwed. Eventually the war between humans and spirits will be so bad that we will destroy each other. It is inevitable." Tom said somberly. Xiao thought for a moment.

"Why do you need the Avatar?" Xiao asked. "He is the bridge between your world and the spirit world. With the Avatar, we may be able to establish peace and balance back to both realms, like HE wanted…"

Tom explained, trailing off at the end. "Who?" Xiao asked. Tom waved him off. "An old friend. He's long gone now." Tom replied cryptically. Xiao decided not to press the spirit on the matter, probably something personal.

"I should get going." Xiao said sadly as he got up. Tom smirked. "Im not fun enough for you?" The boy asked. Xiao chuckled. "It's not that, I just have to go somewhere. I'll visit every once in a while if that's alright!" Xiao's aid as he waved goodbye. Tom nodded. "Fu Tang would appreciate that!" The boy said, gesturing at the panda who looked sad to see Xiao go. Xiao smirked.

Just before he could leave though, Tom stopped him.

"Before you go, I wanted to tell you something." Tom said seriously. Xiao nodded. "What is it?" He asked.

"In the North, where you are going, there is an extremely powerful spirit, close to being on par with me, named Koh. Koh is known as the 'face stealer,' and is the son of an even more powerful spirit, called the mother of faces.

Both of them are ancient beings that could squash you like a bug with but a look. I recommend to steer clear of both of them. If you do run into one though, tread carefully." Tom said gravely. Xiao nodded and slowly faded away.

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Asked the grandma squirrel. "I'm not sure granny." Tom muttered.

"Fu Tang, why did you line him so much?" Tom asked as he looked at the panda. This particular spirit could tell whether a human's nature was I inherently good or evil. He guarded a first in the mortal realm with this ability against humans who wished to cause it harm, and did the same here as well.

"~The mother of faces blessed us with a human such as that. I am grateful." Fu Tang replied in a voice giving no hint as to the spirit's bender, age, or feelings. It was strangely comforting and off putting at the same time.

'What the hell does that mean?' Tom thought inwardly as he sweat-dropped

{A/N}

Pretty good if I do say so myself.

Getting involved with spirits.

I have plans for a few of them…

I've been thinking about this for a while now. This fic will be a mixture of the spiritual side of ATLA and the more physical side as well.

It won't be entirely cannon, but it won't be completely off the main path either.

And no, the MC is not going to simp for Aang.

Thanks.

Adios.