"The library?" Toku said, fear and disdain apparant in his voice. He couldn't see himself reading a book, much less visiting the library. "You seem like you got it pretty well covered. You can do the libraring, while I can do the Avataring, and together we'll be the perfect team," he said in jest, though he didn't actually think it sounded like such a bad plan. 

Rest did sound good, and the beds were the best Toku had ever lain in. They'd been out all day, and they were equally exhausted. The whole Avatar business could wait a few hours, he reckoned. He lay awake for a while, thinking of everything the Fire Sages and Jael had said, and what it all meant. It didn't take long, however, before his eyelids sagged shut and sleep found him. 

It was a restless sleep; dreams bordering on nightmares haunted him throughout the night. In one of them the Fire Sages threw him into a blazing hearth as a sacrifice, all the while explaining it had to be done to fulfill a prophecy. The next had him running from an avalanche of rock and water, and there was no air to breathe. In another he was sitting on a throne with everyone hailing him as the Avatar, but it changed, and he was suddenly fighting to keep the weights on an enormous scale balanced. After that, he was talking to one of his past lives in a library, but they were interrupted when they were crushed beneath a huge book. It went on like this, from one impossibility to the next. 

When he was abruptly wakened, the sheets were drenched in sweat. He could remember much of what he'd dreamt, which was strange, because he never did otherwise. He tried putting all the absurd images out of his mind and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Jael was still sleeping. The room was lit by the early morning sun. And at the foot of his bed stood Kozai, inspecting Toku with a concerned frown. Toku yelped. He threw himself out of the bed and was on two legs in no time, jutting his fists at Kozai. "For flarin's sakes, man," Toku said, breathless, "you could have knocked!" 

Toku realized he was just in his briefs, while Kozai was fully dressed as the government official he was. He lowered his fists, his cheeks reddening. The first day of being the Avatar, and this was how it started. He looked over at Jael, who he seemed to have wakened. 

Kozai chuckled, noticing Toku's obvious embarassment. "Adolescent shyness doesn't suit an Avatar," Kozai said. 

Toku remembered then that he was the Avatar. No. He was at least, probably, maybe, the Avatar, he allowed himself to think. There was no one who could prove otherwise. "I'm not-," he began, but was cut short. 

"I bring important messages from the Fire Sages," Kozai said. "You must both keep the fact that you're the Avatar silent. The Fire Sages have decided that you're not ready to be announced as the Avatar just yet. In due time, the public will know, but only when the Fire Sages deem you are ready. Furthermore, training sessions in Firebending have been scheduled for you by Fire Sage Faedric himself, who will take the place as your Master while you stay here. The first session begins immediately after you've gotten dressed. I will take you there. Your friend can come along, if he won't interfere with the training. Finally, they said to tell you that they are looking for an Airbender to train you once you've mastered Fire. Got all that? Good. Get dressed. Oh, and I did knock. Several times." 

Toku shook his head. It was a lot to take in, but he got on his red shirt and orange trousers. He hadn't imagined the difficult stuff to begin so soon. He already disliked being the Avatar. No, not the Avatar. Maybe the Avatar. It was definitely staying as a maybe, because this whole deal seemed too rough a bargain. Once dressed, they followed Kozai through the palace and onto an elevated walkway which led straight from the palace, across a gorge, and through the archway of a walled-off area. A large gate shut behind them. "This is Fire Sage Faedric's private grounds," Kozai explained. "There will be no eyes to watch you here, and it's arguably one of the safest places in the whole city." An impressive mansion made the main focus of the grounds, but Kozai led them instead to a secluded courtyard of stone. It looked more like a place to hold an Agni Kai than anything. There, Faedric, clad only in black trousers, waited for them. Now that his torso was exposed, Toku thought the man was the biggest and strongest he'd ever seen. He felt tiny in the brute's presence, who seemed to tower over everyone. Before getting close, Kozai whispered to Toku. "Remember that Faedric is one of the Fire Sages, and thus to be treated with respect. Do as he says, and don't talk back. It's a great honor to have him teach you. He hasn't taken on a student in years. I will leave you now. Good luck," he said, and hurried off, probably on some other pressing errand. 

"Ah. My new pupil has arrived," Faedric said when he saw Toku. "It's a pleasure to meet the new Avatar eye-to-eye like this. We didn't get much time to get acquainted last night. You know who I am, but we haven't greeted properly. My name is Faedric, but as long as I am training you, you will know me as your master," he said, nodding a formal greeting to Toku. The young boy bowed clumsily. "Now. We are losing daylight. Let us begin."