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| - In a field near a body of water, Aang finds a whale's tooth scimitar, which Sokka quickly identifies as a Water Tribe weapon; the discovery prompts Team Avatar to search for any other traces of the passage of Water Tribe warriors through the area. Sokka finds a burned arrow and further evidence of a fight between firebenders and the warriors of the tribe; their search eventually leads the trio to the shore, where Katara finds a beached boat. She and Sokka recognize the vessel as part of their father's fleet. On his own ship, Zuko and his uncle are drinking tea. Iroh remarks to Zuko that "a moment of quiet is good for your mental well-being"; immediately after he speaks, the ship rocks suddenly, causing Zuko to spill his tea. Angrily making his way to the deck, he and Iroh find a bounty hunter named June mounted on a large animal called a shirshu. After a brief altercation between herself and Zuko's soldiers, June states that she is looking for a stowaway, contrary to Zuko's adamant denial of the accusation. The beast tears a hunk of metal from the deck with its strong teeth and, following the stowaway's scent, finds its prey. The fugitive tries to escape, but is stunned by the beast, which uses its whip-like tongue to paralyze him temporarily. As June prepares to mount her shirshu with the fugitive in her custody, Zuko inquires as to how she knew of the man's hideout, to which she replies that the shirshu's smelled him. This leaves Iroh impressed with both the animal and its owner. Later that night, Sokka remembers the day that Hakoda, his father, left the Southern Water Tribe, leaving him to take care of his little sister. At that moment, Bato, a friend of Hakoda's family and a native of the South Pole, appears at the group's campsite next to the boat. Bato explains that he was injured and left behind and takes the party to his current home in an abbey of nuns who make perfumes and cures. Excited over the reunion, Sokka and Katara share stories about their tribe, but they unintentionally leave Aang out, causing him to feel excluded. In the meantime, Zuko hires June and her pet shirshu, Nyla, to capture the Avatar, using the scent of Katara's necklace, which he perceives to be compensation for the damages to his ship. June attempts to decline, only to change her mind when Iroh offers to pay her weight in gold. She accepts under the condition that the price is changed to Iroh's weight in gold. Back at the abbey, Bato states that a message is arriving soon about their father's whereabouts, so Katara and Sokka might be able to see him. Aang runs off, feeling hurt that Katara and Sokka might leave him to go find Hakoda. However, Aang does not hear the last part of the conversation when they reject the offer, saying they must travel to the North Pole with him. While Aang is contemplating their possible departure, a messenger arrives, giving him a rendezvous map from Hakoda. Instead of giving it to Katara and Sokka, Aang, not willing to be separated from his friends, hides it; he returns to Bato's home with an air of guilty awkwardness. Meanwhile, Zuko, June, and Iroh search for Aang in the ruins of Taku, worrying the herbalist who thought her cat, Miyuki, had gotten into trouble with the Fire Nation again. The next day, Aang hides the footprints of the messenger's ostrich horse when Bato takes Sokka, Katara, and himself on a coming-of-age ritual called ice dodging. Because of the lack of ice in that region, they are forced to navigate through jagged rocks instead. Meanwhile, Zuko continues his search, arriving at Aunt Wu's place in Makapu Village. Back on the ice-dodging ship, with help from the bending of Katara and Aang under Sokka's conduct, they pass the test; afterward, on the beach, Bato gives each of the group's members a ceremonial mark: the mark for wisdom for Sokka, bravery for Katara, and trust for Aang. When Aang receives his mark, he rejects it, believing himself to no longer be worthy of trust, and reveals to them the rendezvous map. Sokka, infuriated by Aang's deception, yells at him angrily while Katara expresses disappointment; they leave Aang to find their father. Soon afterward, the shirshu arrives at the abbey, closing in on its prey. Katara, traveling with Sokka and Bato to find Hakoda, hears a wolf howling. Sokka suggests that the wolf is hurt, but Bato tells them that it has simply been separated from its pack. He explains that he can relate to this, telling Sokka and Katara that he had never felt lonelier in his life than the day he was left in the abbey by his fellow warriors to heal after being wounded in battle; this reminds Sokka of the day Hakoda left to fight abroad. Sokka and Katara realize their mistake in leaving Aang and turn around to find and apologize to him, who is preparing to leave when Mother Superior warns him of Zuko's approach. Zuko, Iroh, and June find Katara and Sokka, quickly finding that the Avatar is not with them. The shirshu paralyzes the siblings as they try to escape and finds the map, which has Aang's scent. Following the scent, they return to the abbey, where they find Aang waiting for them. Flying on his glider, he manages to take the beast down. June quickly rises and, once on her shirshu, tries to attack Aang, but is stopped by Appa. Aang and Zuko start fighting, eventually creating a large explosion. Nyla attempts to paralyze Appa with his tongue while nearby, Zuko recovers from the explosion and starts firebending at Aang, who is also being chased by the shirshu. Appa tries to aid his owner by firing air blasts at his chaser, albeit unsuccessfully. Zuko resumes his duel with the Avatar, the latter of whom notices Katara's necklace in Zuko's fist and, after dodging his fire whips atop a well, manages to recover it. Appa tries to reach Zuko, who is shooting fire at Aang, but June and the shirshu manage to paralyze the bison after numerous attacks. Meanwhile, Zuko and June finally corner Aang against a wall. Sokka devises a plan and directs the nuns to pour out all their vats of perfumes; Katara starts waterbending the perfume into a thick mist. Since the shirshu can only "see" with its nose, the excess of different scents acts as a smokescreen, causing it to become overwhelmed; blinded and panicking, it lashes out haphazardly with its tongue, striking and paralyzing Zuko and June. Iroh pretends to have been paralyzed as well in order to get close to June, holding her in his arms as he lies on the ground, to her annoyance. As their opponents lie immobilized, Aang, Katara, and Sokka use the opportunity to escape. Later, when the group is flying away on Appa, Aang asks them about their current plans. They inform him that they will travel to the North Pole: he has become part of their family and they need each other. Aang returns Katara's necklace to her, saying that Zuko asked him to do so. Katara understands the joke and kisses Aang on the cheek. With that, Aang blushes and twiddles his thumbs as they fly off into the sunset.
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