Haru sat next to the river that ran by his village, dipping his feet into the water. Now that he'd finished all his chores, what else was there for a 18-year-old to do? Sure, he could have been like some of the other boys in the village, impressing the girls with their Earthbending skills, but he found that to be slightly juvenile. After all, he knew he could trounce them if it came down to it. Plus, if he decided to do that, he knew that the girls would choose him over any other boy because he wasn't just Tyro's son, but he was one of the best looking boys in the entire village. His skin had a light cream tone that accentuated his handsome features perfectly, and he wasn't too tall, but he wasn't too short, either.

Bored, he balled his hand into a fist and pounded the ground. A bunch of pebbles shot out of the water, dripping as his hand flew out to catch them. Shaking them dry, he got up and took the stance he knew all too well. Focusing his energy and concentrating it in his core, he threw the rocks in the air one at a time. Using a technique he learned long ago from his father, he used the stepping motion that looked more like a lunge and used his flat palm to shoot the rocks away from him. When they were all gone, he wiped some sweat and a strand of wet black hair from his face. His green eyes gleamed as his heart raced, as it did every time he practiced Earthbending.

He stopped as he recalled a time when he couldn't Earthbend in public...when the Fire Nation occupied his village. He remembered how they'd taken every Earthbender, including his father, aboard a floating metal prison. It struck him as funny that the Fire Nation would see Earthbenders as a great threat, and they weren't entirely mistaken. He'd heard tales when he was little from his mother about the great Earth Kingdom city of Ba Sing Se and how only one man, General Iroh, had ever managed to breach its walls.

Thinking about the Fire Nation Occupation brought to mind another person: Katara. Before she came to his village, he'd been forced to practice Earthbending in secret so he wouldn't get taken away by the Fire Nation. She'd caught him and he'd run away, not wanting to take any chances.

Still, there had been something about her...something that reminded her of his father. Her indomitable spirit had been what had saved them all that day on the ship when he'd been captured. She, along with her brother and the Avatar, had been the one to inspire every Earthbender on that ship to take a stand. They had, and they'd also succeeded in driving the Fire Nation out of their village, all thanks to Katara.

Taking back his village could have been the best thing to ever happen to him. Since then, he'd become more confident...more like his father, who exemplified Earthbenders. Strong, solid, stable, everything he thought an Earthbender should be. His father's leadership skills had rubbed off on him too.

Still, something told him that he'd always be that quiet boy who practiced Earthbending in secret. After all, the Fire Nation was still taking over. Who knew? Maybe they'd try to take over his village again, but he knew that the Earthbenders would be ready for them.

Turning towards the village, he adjusted his bracelet. His father had made it for him by bending coal into a ring shape and polishing it with sandstone until it was as smooth as glass. Of course, Haru could take it off by striking it with the heel of his hand and breaking it, but he could always put it back together again.

Taking his focus off his bracelet, he walked slowly back to the center of the village to watch the boys try to impress the girls with Earthbending. Maybe he'd show them a thing or two.