A New Kind of Strange
Chapter 1: Foe
A/N: I really wanted to create a new and interesting AU or use the one I started last Zukaang week, but I didn't have the time to work on it, so I had to just stick to canon. I hope this can still be an enjoyable read. I also really wanted to do a long story instead of a bunch of oneshots. This way I get to start with friendship and move to more, gradually. Happy Zukaang week day one!
The first week after Zuko officially joins their group, Aang feels like he's going insane.
Well, the first few days are okay. Zuko's mannerisms are so awkward and clearly uncomfortable that Aang is constantly reminded of the fact that, yes, Zuko is a new guest there, and someone who seemingly does not fit in and shouldn't be there. So the fact that he's let Zuko into their group is always at the forefront of his mind. Of course, Katara is constantly thinking of this; she does not need any reminders. Sokka adjusts surprisingly well to new situations, his comedic personality allowing him to turn the whole situation into an awkward joke, and he is glad to have a target for some of his new material. Toph is also pretty tough, and likes to help Sokka make fun of Zuko (teasing someone is, of course, the ideal punishment when they have tried multiple times to capture you or people you love).
It seems like it can only get better with time, but that proves wrong. As soon as Zuko starts to be more comfortable around everyone, he starts to act like his old self. He walks more confidently, the way he always has when he was hunting them, and he speaks more loudly, gesturing with his hands. He practices firebending, a safe distance away but still visible.
His new level of comfort is what throws Aang off. Not consciously. Aang is a kind-hearted person who wants nothing more than for everyone to get along famously.
One day for lunch, because they have run out of meat, Katara makes Aang's favorite vegetable stew. He is running excitedly towards it from the other end of the temple at a speed only an airbender can dream of. When he gets close, suddenly Zuko moves out from the shadows of the main room, and Aang reacts without thinking, sending a powerful gust of air in his direction without a hesitation. Katara drops the ladle she was using to serve; everyone else just drops their jaws. Secretly, Katara is a little pleased that Zuko is receiving more of Aang's attacks, but he is horrified at himself.
"Sorry!" is the first thing he can possibly say, as Zuko rights himself enough to painfully stand up. Maybe he's okay being around here, but certainly not enough to tell Aang off and risk being told to leave.
"What was that for?" he asks instead, his voice surprisingly calm with only the barest amount of indigence. Aang holds up his hands in front of himself apologetically.
"I just was… surprised. When you came around the corner like that. I couldn't see you, and I didn't know anybody would be there… I'm sorry." The excuse even sounds gratingly fake; Aang is an awful liar, and his nervousness at the situation is not helping in the slightest.
"And as a peaceful monk your first instinct was to attack the cause of your surprise."
"Um… yes?" Aang is trying so hard not to admit the truth that Zuko just pretends to give him the benefit of the doubt to not crush his spirit. This effort is noticed by everyone else in the vicinity, especially Toph, who only avoids saying something because she thinks it will play out more interestingly if she refrains. (And, as often happens, she is right.)
"Okay," Zuko says, and that's that.
The rest of the week goes in much the same manner. Aang gets to the point where instead of actually attacking Zuko, he just moves into position, and then tries to play it off as stretching, or jumping, or running, anything that he can possibly do to make it seem like he was not just about to incapacitate Zuko with one surprise attack. And Zuko, for his part, just sits back and lets it happen. The rest of the group is completely used to this routine, letting it go on for their own individual pleasures, whether humorous or hopeful of actual violence.
But unsurprisingly Zuko is the first one to tire of it, and eventually the feeling is so strong that he is even tempted to confront Aang. Alone.
He walks up to him when he is (relatively) alone, brushing Appa's fur. It has never occurred to them that this would be necessary; Appa seems to be mostly self-sufficient. Maybe it's just the kind of gesture of kindness toward animals that reminds them that they are pets more than convenient flying vehicles. Either way, for Zuko, it is an opportunity to strike.
Since no one else is around, as a slightly vengeful gesture, he walks up to Aang in a sort of fighting stance, and it works as planned. Aang immediately grabs his staff from his back and brings it down in one fluid motion, sending a powerful blast that would have taken most enemies down, but Zuko is used to fighting Aang, and he is prepared. He dodges, and then smirks slightly when Aang realizes again what he is doing.
"What's up?" he asks, forced-casually, as though he did not just attack someone, and has been brushing his pet the whole time.
"Not much," Zuko answers, wanting to force as much casualness into the conversation as possible, but also with no desire to draw it out. "Could you maybe stop attacking me every time you see me?"
"You, uh. You noticed that, did you?"
"A bit, yeah."
"Heh. It's just. I'm sorry! I'm not used to having you around. Before, whenever there was an enemy that I was worried about, it was you. You were in my subconscious, my nightmares. It's so easy to see you and think of the guy who was chasing us around during our whole journey, the guy we always ran from or attacked. I can't get used to you being here, where we're supposed to feel safe. It doesn't work, and I wish it did, and I'm sorry,"
Zuko cuts Aang off mid-rant, by putting his hand on his shoulder. It is such a sudden, foreign, friendly gesture that Aang just lets it happen without even noticing that it could be odd. It brings his attention to Zuko, and they are looking right at each other when he speaks.
"It's okay," he says firmly, as though trying to get this through his head. "Just stop worrying so much! If you calm down, it'll stop happening. Meditate; I bet you're good at it. You were right a long time ago. We can be friends." And if there is a surefire trick that can be done to make someone calm down, it would be to compliment them and tell them that they were right. So Aang does, a little.
Zuko leaves after that, the touchy-feely actions becoming too much for him quickly. Aang's shoulder feels weird where his hand used to be, so he replaces it with his own, curiously. It is not the same.