A/N: Piandao is up first. For anyone just clicking on this story, you might want to read my story "Before The Dragon" first, but it's short so it won't be too difficult. And I know there was no proof that Piandao was a spy during the war, just bear with my imagination on this one. As always, I don't own Avatar or any related characters.
I really liked doing this story, and I hope you enjoy reading it. And I'm dedicating this story to George Takei. I follow him on Facebook, his pictures always put a smile on my face. Rock on, man; it's okay to be Takei!
"A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." - Proverbs 17:17
"Too bad no one is going to believe this," Piandao said as he looked at the strewn men around him.
The 19-year-old had become an expert at warfare. Half a dozen men in Earth Kingdom uniforms lying dead around him at present. They were a scouting party, taken down by a scrawny teenager with a sword. He thought for a moment of scalping them, like the others in his troop would. As picked up his own pack he made his way to the nearest soldier. While he was rummaging through the fallen's pack he found a meager amount of gold coins, a cabbage roll that was promptly eaten, and a small package.
Piandao opened it gingerly, keeping an eye out for more soldiers, and was surprised to find a picture of a young man and woman. A rock dropped in his stomach. Family, maybe? He took a close look at the fallen soldier. The warrior had a thin face and skinny frame, even with his armor. He looked back at the picture; he saw a different man, who had a careless smirk that was set in a full face, and broad shoulders that portrayed a capable worker. The woman was a dark haired Earth Kingdom maiden with a voluptuous body. There was exquisite writing:
"To Lok, who always lives up to his name; something to remember me by, your loving Wen…"
Piandao stared at the picture a long time, and then looked solemnly at the soldiers around him. He deftly refolded the picture and put it in his own pack. He quickly looted the other bodies and decided against scalping, choosing instead to take the leaders helmet.
As he walked back into camp carrying the ornate helmet under his arm, another soldier called out, "Hey, Piandao, you got mail."
"Thanks, Haru. I'll get it in a minute." He went straight to his Commander's tent. The Commander had his back to the door of his tent-even hunching over the table he was a foreboding man with a face full of gray hair.
"What is it?" Commander Yamada snapped, without turning around.
Piandao stuck out the helmet, "I took out the scouting group."
"Leave it," He motioned to the end of the table, "I'll tell you your next mission after I sort things out."
Piandao left the helmet and walked out. He walked towards the main campfire, where there was a large pot of stew brewing. As he walked up, Haru-a scrawny young man with a light face and easy smile-put his arm around his shoulder and stuck two letters in his hand.
"I didn't know you were so popular," Haru grinned as he let go of Piandao and poured himself some stew.
"Neither did I," Piandao said. He opened the first letter.
"Piandao,
Got your last letter, glad to hear you are safe. As for advice, it sounds like I need to talk to you in person about that. You are lucky, I have learned that our ship is carrying more soldiers to your camp. It seems you army boys are dropping like flies. We should arrive within a week of you getting this letter; we'll be staying overnight, so we'll have time to get together and have a drink and talk. Don't get yourself killed in the meantime.
-Jeong Jeong"
Piandao smiled softly as he folded it and stuck it in his pack. Haru stood by him-he was too short to read over the taller man's shoulder, so he leaned in as far over as he could as Piandao opened the second letter.
"Dear Piandao,
Thank you for the gift, the baby will look adorable in it. We had a boy! I'm so grateful every time I get a letter from you and to hear that you're doing alright. Be safe.
Lots of love,
Kaida"
"Baby?" Haru asked, surprised. Some of the other soldiers picked up on this and gathered around the duo.
"It's not mine, crazy," Piandao chuckled.
"That's what they all say," Haru rolled his eyes.
"I believe it," Another soldier said, "When was the last time you heard Piandao talk about women?" The group laughed.
"When am I ever here?" Piandao said nonchalantly, "Besides, Mother Nature is the only woman I need."
"Because Mother Nature's the only woman that would love you," Haru said, and the whole group laughed before the rest of the soldiers dispersed to other parts of the camp.
"I'm actually glad they don't have me fighting with you guys." Piandao said quietly to Haru, "I'm not a bender, the thought of being on the front scares me."
"Don't worry about it, my friend," Haru put his hand on Piandao's shoulder. "You may get on the Commander's nerves, but you're good at what you do. They're giving you all this extra training and attention for a reason."
"Yamada hates me." Piandao said, forlorn.
"Yamada hates everybody. Stop being so serious."
One of the better parts of spy training for Piandao was the ability to sneak into the nearest town to hook up with locals. He dressed plainly and made his way into the bar at dusk. After a moment of searching for a good partner, he walked casually up the nearest native.
"Haven't seen you around here before," The stranger smiled.
"I keep a low profile," Piandao artfully smiled back.
"How low?" The stranger raised an eyebrow in interest.
Piandao leaned forward, "All the way."
"Prove it," The stranger gave a smile that was more fitting for an eel-shark.
The next thing he knew, Piandao was standing in a bathroom stall, pants around his ankles, a mouth attacking his crotch. Piandao finished, the stranger stood to clean up. As Piandao pulled up his pants he said sternly, "Get out of town."
"Huh," The stranger asked.
"Just," Piandao paused to lean against the wall, knees still weak, "trust me."
The next morning
...
"Boy, get your ass in here." Commander Yamada barked out.
"Someone's in trouble," Haru said mockingly from his mat.
"I hate it when he does that," Piandao said, and groaned out of his mat. He was still tired from the night before. As soon as he was inside the tent he noticed a detailed map set up on the table.
"We need you for a covert mission. Right now their army outnumbers us nearly four-to-one. We need you to sneak into General Li's tent, kill him, and confiscate anything of value. We need to be prepared when our back-up troops arrive. Once they get here we can cut down their forces and move into the city."
"But won't killing their general warrant immediate retaliation? We should wait-" Yamada cuffed him.
"Don't question me. Just do it."
The next night Piandao sneaked his way into enemy camp. It took every ounce of skill to avoid the soldiers posted on the outskirts of camp; luckily most inside the camp were asleep. From information he had gathered earlier, Piandao was able to make out the relative location of the General's tent. He stayed crouching outside the back of the tent, checking for movement. There was none. After a short prayer he crept around to the front and made his way inside.
It was definitely a tent fit for a general, or Piandao needed to switch sides. There was a nice mat in the corner-which was gracefully empty-with a sturdy trunk next to it, and a table with papers everywhere. Piandao decided to use this time to pilfer. He grabbed as many maps and documents on the table as could fit in his bag. He made his way to the trunk. The first thing he came across was a loosely bound book. He brought it close to his face to read the familiar lettering closely marked on the cover:"Li Wen, Journal"
"No way!" A wave of excitement and dread came over him. He opened the journal and glanced at meticulous symbols. As he turned the pages he noticed sloppier writing, and on the last page a single sentence, scrawled almost illegibly.
"They found Lok today, dead." At that moment, Piandao realized he couldn't follow through with the entirety of his mission. Maybe if he brought back the journal, his commander wouldn't be as angry with him.
Then there was a commotion outside. He froze; the noises died down. He stuffed the journal in his pack before slipping out of the tent and out of the camp.
One week later
…
The Bay had been fought for by the warring nations from the beginning of the war. It was secured fire nation territory for a solid month.
"I see them!" Piandao called out. The teen was standing on the edge of the farthest dock with binoculars. Haru rushed to the edge of the dock to stand by his friend.
"You really know someone in this fleet?" Haru questioned as Piandao gave him the binoculars.
"Yes," Piandao said raptly, "he's a captain."
"Why aren't you in the Navy? If you're friends with this guy it'd probably be easier for you." Haru looked at him curiously.
"I get motion sickness."
"Poor baby," Haru said jokingly, "I'd hold your hair for you."
"Shut up, fool," Piandao punched him in the arm. Haru laughed and punched back.
"Both of you better shape up before they get here," Commander Yamada yelled from the beginning of the dock. "Be ready to help unload."
The ship came in quickly. Yamada came out on the dock, and Piandao stood as close as the Commander would allow him. The ramp came down, and Jeong Jeong was the first to step off and stride up to Commander Yamada.
"Where is your commanding officer?" Yamada asked.
Jeong Jeong shoved a scroll into Yamada's chest. "You are relieved of your duties."
"Says who?" Yamada shouted.
"Says your outranking officer!" Jeong Jeong shouted back, before composing himself. "I am an Admiral. From what I have heard you should have been relieved weeks ago for your ineptitude. You should have taken this city already."
Yamada stood there, dumbstruck. Someone called from the ship, "Should we unload, sir?"
"Yes," Jeong Jeong said, then turned back to Yamada.
"You really think my troops are gonna help your pompous ass?" Yamada scowled.
"I'll helpyou," Piandao chimed in.
"Idiot, don't get into this," Yamada barked.
"You, shut up before you're court-marshaled." Jeong Jeong spat out. He walked up to Piandao and smiled weakly, "It's good to see you."
"Admiral, huh?" Piandao smiled back.
"I'll explain later," Jeong Jeong sighed, "it's been a long week."
Haru called out as he walked up, "You brought women! Praise the gods."
"They are just as capable soldiers as any man," Jeong Jeong said shrewdly.
"I'm gonna try to talk to one," Haru said.
"A good way to start a conversation is to see if they need help unloading," Jeong Jeong said.
"Dibs on the brunette with the cleavage that could choke a skunk-bear," Haru said as he punched Piandao in the arm again, and then ran on board. Piandao knit his eyebrows and was about to follow when Jeong Jeong caught his arm.
"One of the hardest things in life is having words in your heart that cannot be uttered," Jeong Jeong said solemnly before letting go.
"You're sounding like Prince Iroh," Piandao tried to smile, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You wanted advice?" Jeong Jeong said softly as soldiers swarmed around them. "Don't embarrass yourself by trying to play his game."
Piandao hung his head and sighed, "Do you know how hopeless it feels?"
"A wise man once said, 'hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.'" Jeong Jeong paused to let the words sink in.
"How long have you known?" Piandao asked, looking up.
"Since the day I met you." Jeong Jeong smiled as he caught the teens eye "You've always been awkward around women."
"Men just seem...right..." Piandao thought for a moment, "Thanks for understanding."
"Don't thank me. Just live your life the way you want to live it."
"Iroh would be proud." Piandao said as he and Jeong Jeong stared out over the water.
…
A/N: I stand by what I write! I actually have read a few stories where they put him like this, I don't know what it is about him… If you don't like it, tough rocks. And that little quote near the end, the 'words in your heart' thing, is from James Earl Jones (changed slightly to fit Jeong Jeong's speech pattern), and the second one is from good ol' Solomon. Reviews would be awesome (bring it on, flamers XD) considering that's the only form of payment I'm getting for my stories.