Just a quick note, I don't think I described Ice very well in the next paragraph so a great pic of how I pictured him in my Avatar. Hope you enjoy =3 ~Saki

ஜ۩۞۩ஜChapter 6ஜ۩۞۩ஜ

ஜ۩۞۩ஜ Teaching new tricks ஜ۩۞۩ஜ

Andrew was on the floor gasping for breath, Sophia stared in horror at the man's pain. "What did you do?" She panicked and tried to step forward, Lilly and the browned haired twin looked at her, Justin's eyes never strayed from the withering man. A series of pops and snaps drew everyone back to Ice, Temperance smiled and said to him, "You do realize how much more powerful I am than you. It also wouldn't hurt if you would stop fighting it." He glanced up at her in between his white locks of hair. With a sigh he gave in, it looked like an implosion made up of white, and sitting in Andrew's place was a large ball of white fur.

Temperance stood and scooped up the fur ball, she stroked a bit here and there, then set down the creäture on the piano. It was slightly larger than a house cat, his eyes were the color of melted silver, the same as Andrew's. It's ears were round teddy bear, it's nose button black, "He's so CUTE!" Sophia burst out, no one else said it, but they all agreed, Ice as an arctic fox, was adorable. The fire elemental smiled, "Small, cute, and non threatening, perfect for going with the kids." Lilly stiffened like she was going to say something, but held her tough, smartest thing to do with the twin's mother.

"Well, that's settled. Ice go with your daughter and stay undercover." With that she up and left the four children and the extremely powerful member of the bounded. Austin smiled a bit "What possibly happen alone on the islands, correct Mum?" Temperance poked her head back in and winked, then diapered once more around the door frame. Once they believed she was out of hearing range, Andrew's voice whispered through their heads 'She's insane.'

Under her tan skin Sophia paled, "Don't say stuff like that in my head!" She put her finger tips to her temples and her eyes widened. Lilly studied Sophia as she giggled, "You know, before yesterday I could count the number of words I ever heard you say on one hand. Now, I know you really do have personality, once you stop being so shy Sophie." The daughter of earth looked at her blue-eyed friend, "You said my name wrong, but why did you think I was shy?"

As the girls got deeper into their conversation, the twins spoke to Andrew, but not in the voiced way. 'Can you show us, we heard you speaking before, but seeing can sometimes be better than hearing in times such as this.' Austin and Justin's minds seemed to work simultaneously, one may start the thought, but the other would finish it. Doing this the two voices mended together as one to Ice's mental hearing. 'How do you do that?'

'What?'

'Think and act so perfectly on time with each other all the time?'

'Its not on purpose we just do, we feel like something is good to say, so we say it, it just happens at the same time. It could also be a twin thing, we're not sure. Now back to the original question. Will you show us?'

And so the flood of images passed between the three minds. A desert of snow, in the distance snowy mountains. A thick swamp with old trees and crocodiles buoyant in the murky water. A man standing on one of the stretched out roots. Then he wasn't a man, he was a black demon with red eyes. Fangs snapped around their throat and the struggled to breath. A haunting voice cooed the threat on their life. "Oh little snake, little snake, even with scales so blue, and eyes like ice. You can not beat me, even with Coal, Smoke, Fire, Water, and Air. Defeat will rule your fate. Might as well go ahead and die."

The visions cut off abruptly and the boys sat in shock at the images they had seen. "You know, we've never seen him before." It was Justin who whispered this. Ice cocked his head to one side, 'That can't be right, then who taught you to play?" Austin glanced at the fox, "No one, we mostly play by ear. We can read sheets music, but that came naturally." Andrew gave them a fox smile, 'Just as I would expect from His sons. You don't hate him do you, like the way Lilly hates me, do you?' The boys looked at each other than stood, "Not really, you can't hate someone you've never meet." Ice nodded and the dark-haired twin scooped the white fur ball in his arms.

With Lilly and Sophia in tow, the group set off to the stables in the small village next to the hospital. The houses were simple and small, mostly doctors and nurses lived there, the stables were the largest buildings next to the clinic. Lilly would sometimes randomly made a side trip, so Andrew sat on a saddle bag they hitched to her seat. They all headed for Ember Island, and then the library, and as predicted, Lilly decided to make a pit stop at her place before meeting up with them.

River easily trotted through the slim paths of the jungle and to the western edge of the main island, almost all without a command from her girl rider. Andrew argued with himself about speaking to his daughter, but still couldn't think of the best words that might help him ease her anger towards him. His mind tossed and turned with anything to say and 'It's nice this morning, very sunny and warm.' He then mentally his himself for such a thing, the weather, of all things. Lilly didn't seem all that disturbed, "Ya, its been like this all week. Not much rain is coming through, I hope we're not having a drought, I don't think the plants could handle it." Ice's ears perked, a real conversation, not just a few exchange of words, they were really saying full sentences! 'Being circled by water it I would believe it not to big of a problem keeping them watered.'

"Wow, that is some really proper English you're speaking." Ice was about to respond when suddenly he was falling through the sky. He twisted and looked above him just to see a Harris Hawk swooped up and away from him. Andrew caught a glimpse of the hawk's eye and anger boiled in his stomach, it was Smoke, with his smokey grey irises. He seemed to laugh at Ice as he fell, instinct kicked in and the fox shifted in to a white falcon, then darted up to pierce the hawk's wing. Smoke screeched and dropped, stunned by the retaliation.

Andrew's smaller falcon form was faster and lighter, able to flash towards Smoke, then away. 'Roy, just go home. There is no way for you to out fly me like this.' Calling Smoke by his given name seemed to snap him into what he was doing. The dark hawk cupped his wings and hovered in place the way no natural bird could do. 'Things are starting up in your absents, bad things. Everything thrown out of balance. You have no choice but to come back with me, He is willing to forget about your punishment for leaving.' Andrew twisted and faced Roy Smoke Song, the anti-air, the mind reader, father of Melody. In his human form he was thin and lanky, pale skin, dark messy hair, thin rimmed glasses, and normally a lazy sarcastic smile.

Without warning, Roy moved, much to fast normal and grabbed Ice with his talons. Binding his wings to his sides and then proceeded to hook his beak into Andrews eyes. The little white falcon screamed as his feathers quickly became painted red, blinded and in pain Ice thrashed, mouth open trying to injure his attacker in any way. He struck Smoke's chest and the hawk released him letting the little white bird fall to the earth once more.