*Updated 3/27/2017 to fix the inscription on Zuko's knife, I have no idea how I screwed that up.*
Hey everyone, it's acw28 here with a new story!
So like many of my stories, the idea for this one can be blamed on nostalgia. A day of random YouTube videos leads me to Iroh's segment of "Tales of Ba Sing Se", and of course you can't just watch one of those so I watch the rest of the segments and decide to look up some good Avatar fics, which lead to looking at the crossovers. There I didn't find a story but rather a few plot bunnies posted by Korvon. A few struck my interest, so I combined them to form this story. Also just a small warning, there will be a few time skips in this chapter. Also be sure to vote in the poll on my profile when you're done reading.
So with that, I hope you'll enjoy the first chapter of An Exiled Spirit.
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar, neither the movie or the animated series.
With his back to the ancient statues of the Air Nomads, Prince Zuko stared off into the distance with his one good eye. It had been a week since the fateful duel with his father, a week since he'd been banished, a week since he'd been scarred for life. Despite being in the right to defend the lives of the new recruits he's still lost everything; his home, his honor, his friends (although he couldn't exactly blame Mai and Ty Lee as they had to answer to his sister). As these thoughts went through his head, the one person he hadn't lost made themselves known.
"What a lovely view." His Uncle, General Iroh, the Dragon of the West, said as he walked behind his nephew.
Playing the part of the dutiful prince, Zuko stated, "The only view I'm interested in is the Avatar in chains."
Zuko choose to ignore his Uncle's sigh of disappointment as the old man placed a hand on his nephew's shoulder, "You know the Avatar hasn't been seen for over a hundred years, the chances are slim that you would find him here."
"Perhaps," Zuko began as he walked forward, stopping at the edge of the drop off, "but if he's not here we will search the other Air Temples before searching across the rest of the world. No matter what remote place he's held up in we'll find him."
"Prince Zuko, it's only been a week since your banishment. You need to rest and heal." Iroh advised his nephew.
Instead of the biting insult that was expected, Zuko instead said, "The sooner we find the Avatar, the sooner the crew can go back to their lives." Turning to his Uncle, Zuko surprised the man with a quick hug as he said, "Thank you for coming with me Uncle, I know what you had to give up to help me."
The retired general smiled as he returned the hug, "Think nothing of it nephew, it's what families do."
For a brief second Zuko's heart skipped a beat before he corrected himself, muttering, "Family, yeah." Releasing his Uncle, Zuko turned back to the horizon while saying, "It is a nice view. The crew should be done search the rest of the temple by now. Uncle, could you ensure they made it back to the ship while I enjoy the view a bit more?"
Delighted that his nephew was seeing things in a positive light, Iroh said a quick yes before heading back up the stairs. Perhaps the prince was more open minded then he originally thought, perhaps he would soon be able to introduce his nephew to his special friends in the Earth Kingdom. Unfortunately such events would have to wait for another day.
Once more left alone, Zuko gave one final look back towards his home nation before beginning his plan. Unsheathing the knife his Uncle had gifted to him so long ago, the banished prince once more read the inscription, "Never Give Up Without a Fight." Never before had it seem so hard to live by that phrase. His Uncle was right, it was almost impossible to find the Avatar, assuming he was still alive. Even if he did accomplish his task what reason was there to return to the Fire Nation? To a sister who delighted in seeing his failures? To a father who would burn his 13-year-old son? Despite his best attempts, it was clear to Zuko there was no place for him at the palace. He had resigned himself to a life as a wonderer, but he could not sentence that life to the men who were dragged down with him, especially not his Uncle. Iroh had already lost so much in life, Zuko would not be the one to make him leave the peaceful retirement he deserved.
His mind made up, Zuko grasped his ponytail before cutting it off at the base. The task complete, the exiled prince sheathed the knife before pulling out a letter he'd written the night before and placed both items on the ground where they were sure to be spotted. Just to be sure he also moved a small stone on top of them to ensure the wind wouldn't blow them away.
The hardest part accomplished, at least in his mind, Zuko then set about removing his armor, throwing each piece over the edge into the deep valley below. The last item he removed from his person was the bandage that covered the left half of his now scared face. Before he could loose his nerve, Zuko quickly pulled the bandage away. Although less than pleased that the burn still stung some, the exiled prince was relieved to still have his eyesight in his bad eye, he'd need it in the coming days.
Satisfied that his Uncle wouldn't search for him, Zuko then shimmied his way behind the central statue where he'd stashed a few items last night while the crew were asleep. With great care the teen retrieved his duel Dao swords, a weapon he'd almost mastered some years before but never demonstrated to his father in fear of being punished for learning such a "barbarian" skill. With less care he grabbed the dull red clothes and straw hat that would allow him to easily blend in once he made it to the colonies. Once dressed the boy gave one last glance to the aging ship he'd been provided before setting out to the other side of the island where he had tied off a raft last night. It would be a long trek, hopefully his Uncle wouldn't come to collect him too soon.
As he made his way through the forest, Zuko began to curse at the fact his royal education didn't cover map reading too heavily. Sure he could chart a route accurately, but he never realized just how vast a difference he would have to cover. He never expected his aimless journey to be easy, but this was ridiculous! At least he'd stayed relatively near a stream, the fish proved to be a semi-regular food source.
Before Zuko could bemoan his situation anymore, he heard something rustling in the underbrush. Turning quickly, he just managed to duck as something orange and white flew above his head. Ordinarily the teen would have turned around to judge whether the mystiques animal was a threat or not, but right now he was more concerned with whatever was chasing the creature. As expected another creature bounded out of the surrounding woods, this one coming up to his hip with a pure black coat, a grey strip down its back, large fore claws, and piercing yellow eyes. A badger wolf if Zuko ever saw one, and a good specimen at that.
Zuko really should have just stepped aside and let the predator go after it's prey. Nature could be cruel in a way, but he'd already learned that lesson, he wasn't a little boy anymore questioning the morality of an animal trying to get a meal. Yet something didn't feel right to the exiled prince, a closer look at the beast revealing it was foaming at the mouth and moved in jerky motions, signs the beast were rabid. Almost before Zuko could decide what to do, the badger wolf lunged forward, only for the teen to quickly draw his knife and jam it between the diseased animal's eyes, a quick end to its suffering. Once the body dropped, Zuko removed his blade, cleaned off the blood and used a quick burst of Firebending to burn the body, not wanting the disease to spread to any scavenger that may stumble upon the corpse.
As he stayed by the body to ensure the blaze didn't get out of control or bring unwanted attention, Zuko felt something rub itself against his shin. Careful not to move too rapidly incase the creature decided to attack, the teen glanced downward and finally saw what the rabid badger wolf had been chasing. The creature had an orange coat with a white underbelly, its paws and tail where a deep black, save for the tip of the tail that was also white. In place of forelegs, the animal had relatively large wings made of a thin skin membrane covered in fur, this strange mix would mean that the animal's walk would probably resemble more of a hop but provide excellent speed an maneuverability in the air. Taking in all the features of the creature, Zuko couldn't believe he was seeing a fox bat, they were said to be incredibly rare, many in the Earth Kingdom never seeing one in their lives, and yet this one was rubbing against his leg like they were life long friends.
As the body of the badger wolf finished burning out, Zuko softly pushed the fox bat away with his leg, only for the animal to walk back and nuzzle against the limb. Zuko repeated the process again and again, achieving the same result every time. Finally the exiled prince tried to reason with the animal, "You don't want to be near me, I just end up bring trouble where ever I go." In response the animal just continued its own actions as well as begin to purr. Knowing he wasn't going to win this argument against nature, Zuko sighed before saying, "Fine, you can follow me but don't expect any handouts." Zuko was unprepared for the animal to suddenly jump onto his shoulders, but his years of training allowed him to keep his balance.
As the fox bat nuzzled against his unscarred cheek, Zuko finally got a look at its eyes and was once more surprised. "Purple eyes? That's pretty uncommon." The boy mussed to himself before continuing the thought, "They aren't quite lilac, more of a violet really." The animal seemed to perk up at one of those words. "Violet? Do you like that?" Zuko asked the animal, which he could now see was a vixen. In response the fox bat licked his cheek. Resisting the urge to smile, the teen instead scratched his new companion behind the ears as he continued his journey.
It was another three days before Zuko and Violet reached the colony. Despite being one of the first colonies, this one had remained small. Already getting looks for having Violet resting on his shoulders, Zuko was sure to keep the brim of his hat low, it wouldn't bowed well for him if some distant relative of Ty Lee saw a boy with a large scar and have word spread back to the Fire Nation.
A quick glance around showed that most of the colonies upper class where at least descended from the original colonists while the rest of the population seemed to be Earth Kingdom folks. This actually turned out to be a stroke of luck for the teen as he made his way to a tailor. Seeing the casher asleep, Zuko cleared his throat to get his attention. After the man flailed around for a second, he turned to the boy and asked, "How may I help you?"
"How much would it cost me to exchange my clothes for something green?" Zuko asked, knowing he needed to blend in better for his travels and not having the luxury of carrying something extra.
"Two silvers." The man said with disinterest until his eyes fell on Violet. "If you're short on cash I know of a few people who would gladly trade for your little friend there."
As the fox bat growled, Zuko put one hand around her chest protectively while the other dug in his wallet for the allotted coins. Placing the metal on the counter with a bit more force than necessary, the teen stated, "She's not for sale."
The man accepted the answer, although there was a hint of wanting in his eyes as he collected the money. He then jerked his thumb to the store's general selection as he said, "Find something that fits and leave your old stuff in the changing room."
It only took Zuko a few minutes to find simple green shirt and a pair of brown pants that fit reasonably well. Once more out in town, the exiled prince looked over his map as he planned his next move. From local gossip it sounded like he should head to the city of Ba Sing See, he wouldn't need to fear being recognized so far away from his homeland and apparently refugees were always welcomed, but he was a bit hesitant on what would happen to Violet once the pair were in the city. Maybe Omashu would be a better choice, it was a bit harder to get in but tended to be more accepting if rumors were to be believed. Either way he'd need to head East.
As the internal debate continued, a commotion brought Zuko's attention back to the outside world. A man wearing green was on his knees before a Fire Nation soldier, the lack of a faceplate signifying his status as an Officer. From the distance the teen couldn't hear the conversation, but he did see the Officer laugh with a few other soldiers before sending a fire blast in front of the poor man before walking off while casually folding and unfolding an elegant hand fan.
The situation only served to make Zuko scowl. Aside from the waste of life, this was why the prince hated war, were a few men got it in their heads they were better than those around them and used their position to abuse the common folk. There was no honor in this, it was just being a bully. As he made a point to walk away in the opposite direction, Zuko caught Violet glancing at him. "Don't look at me like that." He ordered. When his companion didn't comply, Zuko continued, "If I did anything it'd just draw unwanted attention."
As he continued walking his gaze chanced upon a stall selling masks. He was slightly surprised to see a mask he recognized from his summers on Ember Island, and an idea formed in his mind. "Maybe I couldn't do anything then, but that's not to say I can't do anything later." While the shopkeeper's back was turned, Zuko quickly swiped the mask off the display, being sure to leave a few silvers that should more than cover the cost.
As he walked away from the crowd, Zuko stared down at the mask he held in his hands. The blue wood had its eyes outlined with white circles, a single white eye brow stretched across most of the item. The nose was also painted white while painted on features suggested a large white mustache. The teeth of the mask were white while two fangs poked out from the ends of the top row. Finally, a white crown and rectangular "ears" gave the rather poor impression of a dragon. It was a common enough mask for street festivals and holidays, but Zuko had a feeling after tonight it would become rather scarce.
In the dead of night, Zuko jumped from roof to roof. For what he had in mind he'd left most of his supplies outside of town, trusting Violet to guard them. Right now he just wore he black clothes, his duel Dao on his back, his knife on is hip, and the mask on his face. As he made his way closer to the Fire Nation barracks, the exiled prince couldn't help but think of how his need for privacy in the palace had helped him out in life, after all if you wanted to avoid Azula you needed to be a master of sneaking.
Settling in a tree, the teen waited for the two sentries on the outer wall to pass by one another before giving a quick jump, landing behind both men, and then jumping down to the roof below. Most people would consider it lucky that Zuko landed on the Officer's quarters, the teen just called it careful planning. Silently making his way down to the edge of the roof, the boy grabbed the edge before dropping down, shimming along until he found an open window. Swinging himself into the room, Zuko was relieved to see that he had gotten lucky as his prize was sitting on the desk. Yet his luck soon ran out as the door opened, revealing the Officer from earlier that day.
The man had a look of shock for a split second before he spoke up. "Well what do we have here, a little thief?" Zuko didn't respond, too preoccupied with thinking of a solution as the room was too small to effectively use his swords. Perhaps thinking the teen was being disrespectful with his silence, the Officer asked, "Do you know what happens to the puma goat that tries to steal a komodo chicken? It gets punished!" As the finished his statement, the man punched the air in front of him, launching a fireball at the intruder.
Zuko reacted calmly, bending backwards to allow the fireball to sail over him. Before the Officer could prepare another attack, the teen quickly straightened up and rushed forward, grabbing the limb that had launched the projectile and roughly pulling it behind the man's back. As the man grunted in pain, Zuko quickly swatted off his helmet and delivered a single chop to his temple, knocking the man out before he had the chance to call for help. As his opponent collapsed in a heap on the ground, Zuko quickly grabbed the hand fan and jumped out the window, not wanting to encounter any more surprise.
It was quick work scaling the perimeter wall and getting back into town, it took longer than Zuko cared to admit to track down the man he'd seen earlier that day. Once he finally found him walking down a deserted ally, Zuko released a sharp whistle to gain the man's attention. At seeing the masked teen with weapons, the poor man stumbled backwards and was about to run until Zuko threw the hand fan to him. Barely making the catch, the man stared in wonder at the priceless family treasure that had been stolen earlier that day. He hardly heard Zuko say, "You should keep that hidden or leave town." before the boy disappeared back into the shadows.
His mission done, Zuko quickly made his way back to Violet and his supplies. As he slipped on his green clothes, put his swords on his hip, and stashed his mask in his travel bag, Zuko was unaware that he'd inspired a new legend. For months to come the civilians would praise the name of their silent defender while Fire Nation soldiers would bitterly curse the one who had made fools of them. Soon wanted posters were produced in the hopes that some bounty hunter would catch the Fire Nation's newest nuisance, the Blue Spirit.
As Zuko wondered around through the woods, he couldn't help but wonder once more where he was. In the two and a half years since he began his travels it almost seemed like he'd walked from one end of the continent to the other, but he wouldn't know it as he lost his map after a raid on a bandit camp. All he knew was that he was close to the Si Wong Desert but not having the necessary supplies choose to skirt around the sand so he kept to the forests and hills. Despite the misfortune of being lost, Zuko still counted himself lucky Violet choose to stick with him.
Neither Zuko or Violet had changed much over the years, the only difference being a few extra inches in height and Zuko's hair regrowing as he'd stopped shaving his head. Finally after what seemed like hours the pair found a road, which Zuko followed up a rather large hill, perhaps it was more of a small mountain really. Once he reached the crest of whatever he was climbing, he was able to look down into the deep valley below, which sported a few prairies, some rather large rock spikes, and a large town.
"What do you say Vi? Should we head into town?" Zuko asked as he scratched his companion's chin, smiling as he received a series of happy yelps in response.
It took Zuko the rest of the day to walk into town. Honestly, the exiled prince could say he was impressed. The buildings were of top quality and the roads were actually paved with stone instead of being allowed to stay in their natural dirt state. The people also seemed happy, and everyone was dressed in fine clothes that suggested they had a bit of money saved up. 'It's almost as if the war never happened.' Zuko mussed to himself before he heard something crash. Curious, the teen stopped just short of an ally before a body flew out of it. Zuko was slightly concerned, until he heard the man groaning. Now intrigued, the exiled prince rounded the corner and was surprised at what he saw.
Standing in the center of eleven nine men was what appeared to be an eleven year old girl. wearing a white and green dress. She was light skinned with her black hair in a rather large bun; however the feature that drew Zuko's attention were the girl's white eyes, indicators of blindness.
Even if she was disabled, the girl certainly didn't act like it as she stood in a strange stance that Zuko hadn't seen before. He soon got his explanation why as one of the men tried to attack the girl from behind, only for her to lift a foot before slamming it down, a small wall of Earth popping up under the man's foot, causing him to loose balance and preform a split. The girl didn't waste the opportunity as she struck her arm forward against the earthen wall, propelling both it and the man out of the ally.
Seeing enough, Zuko made himself known as he said, "Where I'm from it isn't considered very nice to gang up against someone, especially a little girl."
Instead of being intimidated, the men just laughed before one asked, "And what are you going to do about it little man?"
In response Zuko stepped forward and was going to draw his knife only to mentally curse himself for once more forgetting he'd given it away a little over a year ago after that one night, that girl did need it more than he did. Not breaking his stride to alert the men of his slight mistake, Zuko reached behind his back to draw his swords. While everyone had their eyes on the blade, the teen allowed his grip to loosen on one of the Dao as he tossed it up into the air, providing a distraction as he rushed forward and slammed pommel into the temple of the nearest man. As his opponent collapsed, Zuko caught the air born blade with his free hand. With everyone's attention on him, the boy asked, "Whose next?"
Unsurprisingly the men collected their fallen comrades before rushing away, leaving Zuko, Violet, and the girl alone. Huffing, the girl said, "I had that under control."
"Clearly," Zuko said with sincerity, "but I thought it best to finish the fight as soon as possible. Shouldn't you be at home?"
The girl seemed to want to Earthbend Zuko away, but instead fired back, "I could ask the same about you Sparky."
"Sparky?" Zuko asked about the nickname.
The girl shrugged her shoulders before saying, "You haven't given me your name and your feet feels hotter on the ground than everyone else."
Quickly understanding, the teen stated, "You see with Earthbending, you sense the vibrations of from the ground."
The girl actually looked impressed as she said, "Wow Sparky, you actually are smarter than you look." The teen had to resist the urge to growl as Violet jumped off his shoulders and walked over to the girl. "Who's your friend? I don't think I've ever seen anything like her." the girl asked as she bent down to pet the animal.
"She's a fox bat, her name's Violet after the color of her eyes." As the girl continued to pamper his companion, Zuko asked, "Could I get your name?"
After a moment of silence, the girl replied, "Toph."
"Well Toph, don't you think your parents are worried about you?" Hesitantly, Toph gave a nodded, "Don't you think it's time for you to go home?" In response, the girl shrugged her shoulders. "Well come on then." Zuko stated as he held out his hand. When Toph raised an eyebrow, Zuko explained, "I'm guessing you don't want everyone to know you can "see."
Hesitantly, Toph accepted the outstretched hand. As the pair started walking away, Violet jumped onto the girl's shoulders while Zuko asked, "What town am I in anyway? I lost my map sometime ago."
"Gaoling," Toph replied as she lead Zuko through the winding streets, "although soon we'll be outside the village."
The pair walked until dusk until Zuko saw a large estate. On the gates was a painting of a winged boar while outside the compound, with a number of guards dressed similarly to Earth Kingdom soldiers, save that their uniforms had white tunics instead of tan. Standing by the guards was a man with a small mustache dressed in a fine kimono, beside him was a woman with her dark hair in a bun wearing an equally fine kimono and a number of expensive jewelry. As Zuko drew close, he heard the man's orders, "I don't care how long it takes, find my daughter!"
"Dad!" Toph yelled as she waved her free hand, "I'm over here."
Instantly the guards bolted into action, surrounding Zuko while the one in charge stated, "I don't know who you are stranger, but I suggest you let go of the girl."
Thankfully before anyone attacked, Toph spoke up, "Wait, he didn't do anything. He stopped some men from hurting me and helped me get back home."
"Is this true?" Toph's father asked Zuko, to which the teen nodded. "Then I suppose we should thank this young man and invite him to dinner." Zuko was about to protest, until his stomach made itself known.
The silence in the dining room was unnerving. With the large garden, numerous paintings, and fine silverware, it soon became apparent Toph was from a wealth family. This finery extended to the food which was expertly cooked, although Zuko thought it to be a little bland. Almost as if reading his mind, his host asked, "And how are you enjoying the food, Lee was it?"
"It's alright," Zuko replied as he ate another mouthful of rice, "just use to a little more spice."
"I suppose that's true," Toph's father said, "from what I hear a plethora of spices are used for cooking in the Fire Nation."
Instantly Zuko froze, his eyes searching the room for a possible escape. Not seeing the use in denying the accusation, the teen instead asked, "How did you know?"
Calmly taking a sip from his cup, Toph's father began, "We may not be affected by the war directly outside of some taxes, but due to my influence we still hear some of the bigger events of the conflict, such as how the exiled prince threw himself off the cliffs of the Western Air Temple. So I ask you, Prince Zuko, what is your aim in faking your death?"
"If you feel I have some malicious intention, you are mistaken." Zuko calmly replied, "But to answer your question, I did it for my Uncle. He's lost so much in such a short amount of time, I would not be the cause of him losing his homeland. Aside from that, I've taken this as a unique opportunity."
"And that would be?" Toph asked, curious.
"This war has affected so many lives," Zuko said, "but so few people actually see that. I've witnessed soldiers on both sides of this conflict use their positions to bully whoever they want, I've seen families uprooted from their homes, I've seen scared teenagers forced into a fight they don't understand. But I've also seen so many other things." Now knowing he wouldn't be thrown out immediately, Zuko took a second to have a bit of meat before continuing, "Something my Uncle told me was that in times of great sorrow there is also great compassion. This is just as true with the war. I won't say it was right for my Great-Grandfather to start his colonies, but I've seen the people there intermingle both Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom cultures into something new, I've seen soldiers showing mercy and respect to those they've captured, and amazingly I've seen men from both sides throw down their weapons to help the common folk."
"Well that is certainly amazing," Toph's mom said after a brief silence, "but what do you intend to do?"
"First, I'm going to make my way to the Southern Air Temple and ask the spirits of the monks for forgiveness for what my family has done." Zuko replied, "Afterwards I'll travel around helping wherever I can."
"That is certainly admirable, and you're welcome to spend the night." Toph's father said before turning his attention to his daughter, "As for you, we shall have a serious talk about slipping away from your guards, again."
"I apologize if I'm overstepping my boundaries," Zuko started to say, "but I don't think your daughter would sneak away so much if you let her outside your compound every now and again."
Clearly angered, but holding it in, the man asked, "And what do you know of parenting, Prince Zuko?"
"Nothing," the teen freely admitted, "but I'm more than aware of how it feels to have controlling parents." he finished while subtly pointing to his scar. While this statement took the wind out of the man's sails, Zuko could still see his hesitation. "If it makes you feel any better, if you let Toph out tonight I'll keep an eye on her, I'll even have Violet stay here so you know we'll come back."
The room was silent for several moments while the man debated his options. Finally with a defeated sigh, Toph's father said, "Just bring her home at a reasonable hour."
After waiting a few minutes for Toph to change out of her dress and into a dark green shirt with a light green tunic along with a large belt, no doubt cloths borrowed from one of the guards, Zuko followed after the girl as they made their way out of the city and towards the side of a mountain. The exiled prince was confused until Toph explained that they were heading to Earth Rumble Five, and underground Earthbending tournament. As they arrived late they missed some of the early matches and were forced to stand near at the back.
As a badger mole was brought in to sweep the stray rocks away, Zuko bent down to ask Toph, "Are you enjoying yourself?"
"These fights are rigged, I mean really what Earthbender would loose to a guy burrowing under ground!" Toph replied, although she had a large smile on her face, "Still, it's fun to watch. And it looks like 'The Boulder' just won." Zuko looked up to find the girls words were turn as the muscular man with the back tattoo pranced around the ring in victory as everyone cheered. Zuko was about to tell Toph it was time to leave until a man with long, greasy hair jumped into the ring holding a large bag.
"It appears that The Boulder is victorious. After a feat like that I'll give 500 gold pieces to anyone man enough to defeat him!" the man challenged the crowd.
Grinning, Zuko called out, "I've got a fighter for you! Get ready to feel the wrath of The Blind Bandit!" finishing by pointing to Toph.
While the rest of the crowd whispered about a child taking the challenge, Toph pulled Zuko down to her level, glaring as she whispered, "Just what do you think you're doing?"
"Like we both don't already know you were going to do the same thing." Zuko challenged, "Your stronger than him, I know it. So get down there and show him what real Earthbending is."
Toph was shocked for a moment at Zuko's faith in her before smirking and launching herself down to the stage. Zuko was too far away to hear the banter between the girl and the large man, but saw how quickly the fight ended, Toph's opponent overextending after launching a boulder at the girl, which she dodged and capitalized by bending a stone into the man's stomach with enough force to launch him into the first row of the seats.
After quickly collecting the money and her new championship built, Toph launched herself back to Zuko who was already walking towards the exit. As the girls fell in step with the teen, she held out the bag of money. Although accepting the gift, Zuko still raised a questioning eyebrow to which Toph said, "I don't really need it, so consider it scouting and management fees."
The teen nodded, accepting the answer before saying, "I know I already asked, but did you enjoy yourself?"
"You bet I did," Toph replied, "and you can bet I'll be back to defend my title." she finished as she proudly knocked on the metal.
After six more months of travel, Zuko found himself at the Southern Air Temple, only to be disgusted as the area was littered with the bodies of Air Nomads and Fire Nation soldiers, he just considered it lucky he didn't find any children skeletons. Still, there was work to be done. As he finished covering up the latest grave, Zuko wasn't surprised to hear something thump behind him. Putting down his shovel, the teen turned to see Violet eating the remains of a messenger hawk, this one with a red ribbon tied around its foot.
Curious, the boy asked, "What did you bring for me this time Vi?" as he removed the message from the tube on the bird's back. Although long and filled with remarks about his father's excellency, the report only had two things of importance to the teen. First, that insufferable Zhao had somehow gotten promoted to Commander and that the Avatar was discovered.
After rereading the message to be sure of its contents, Zuko spoke aloud, "Well then, it appears there's still some work to do. I don't think the Avatar would like to come home to his temple filled with bodies."
He should also probably change into his Blue Spirit persona, somehow he didn't think an Airbender would be very welcoming to someone from the Fire Nation.
It had been a rollercoaster of a day for the Avatar gang. While Aang was happy to show his new friends his old home and relive some of his most precious memories he was deeply angered at what the Fire Nation army had done. After Aang entered the Avatar State and had to be calmed down, the trio of the Airbender, the Waterbender Katara and her brother Sokka had fallen into a somber silence. It was hard for Aang to admit that he not only was the Avatar, but also the last of his people. He cheered up a bit when the newly named Momo, a flying lemur, shared some fruit, but something still didn't feel right to him.
The boy's thoughts were broken when Sokka called out from onto of Appa, the six legged flying bison, "Hey Aang, were good to go so let's get a move on before it gets too dark."
Making a quick decision, Aang replied, "Just wait a few more moments, I want to say goodbye to Gyatso."
Sokka was about to voice his disapproval, only to be stopped by a light punch from his sister. Said girl gave Aang a sad smile as she said, "We understand Aang, take all the time you need."
With a nod of thanks, the young Avatar left his friends and retraced his steps back to the old monk's skeleton, however when he arrived he found the remains gone. Panicking, the boy called out to his friends who quickly arrived at the scene. After a brief explanation, Sokka bent down to examine the ground before getting Aang's attention while he pointed to a set of footprints. "These tracks aren't ours." the boy explained, the implication clear.
Quickly the trio followed the trail as it lead to a large mountain ledge. Peaking behind the corner, the group were shocked to see someone dressed completely in black carefully carrying Gyatso's the remains. The three watched as the man placed the skeleton on the ground before removing the monk's necklace. Not willing to allow the stranger to steal the Air Nomad artifact, Aang quickly rushed forward and bent a blast of air that knocked the man to the ground, Katara and Sokka following after him as they got ready for a fight.
Truthfully the group were a bit frightened at seeing the stranger's blue mask. Before anyone could move, the man told Sokka, "Unless you want your face ripped off, I suggest putting your boomerang away."
"And whose going to do that, you?" the teen challenged.
"No, her." The man stated simply while pointing to the snarling fox bat in the tree behind the group. Sokka wisely choose to put his weapon away, the animal instantly growing calmer and flew off the tree and onto the stranger's shoulder.
While the situation was slowly becoming less tense, Aang still had doubts. "Just what were you doing with that…" he couldn't find it in himself to finish the question.
Seeming to know what the Airbender was going to ask, the man pointed to the hole behind him, "I was simply paying my respects, I was going to use the necklace as a grave marker. I apologize if this is not how your people treat the dead, but it's the best I could do." Only know did the group realize how much dirt had been disturbed on the ledge and how many large stones were serving as grave markers.
Before she could stop herself, Katara muttered, "So many monks."
"They weren't all Nomads." The Stranger supplied.
"You buried the Fire Nation!" Sokka accused, shocked someone would treat the evil soldiers so normally.
The group could feel the stranger glare behind his mask as the fox bat once more started snarling at the boy. Calming down his companion by scratching under her chin, the masked man said, "They were men who were forced to follow orders, I'm sure very few found joy in their actions. If we do not respect the dead, how are we expected to be respected when our time comes?" Before Sokka could begin arguing, the man turned back to Aang. Pointing to the remains of Gyatso, he asked, "Where you close to this man?"
Nodding, Aang replied, "He was like a father to me."
"Would you like to help?" Once more Aang nodded. Together the men carefully put the monk in the grave before climbing out. The man was going to use a shovel to fill in the grave, instead Aang used a low powered gust to push the dirt back into place. Once the earth was leveled off, the masked man carried a large rock to the grave which Aang placed the necklace on top of.
After a moment of silence and reflecting on the old monk's life, Aang turned to the stranger and said, "Thank you."
The man just nodded while he said, "It's something that should have been done long ago." He then asked, "When do you plan on battling the Fire Lord?"
"Yeah, about that…" Aang began.
"Aang only knows Airbending, we're on our way to the North Pole to help find him a Waterbending teacher." Katara quickly said.
"Really?" the man asked, the group could tell that he expected more from the Avatar. "Then we better get going, the sooner you master the elements the sooner you can fight the Fire Lord and restore balance."
"And who said you're coming with us?" Sokka demanded.
Before the man could reply, Aang said, "I think what Sokka meant to ask was why do you want to come with us?"
"I've been around the Earth Kingdom," the man said, "I've seen what this war has done to people and I want to help end it as soon as possible."
"Alright," the Airbender said, hearing the sincerity in the man's words, "Well I'm Aang, that's Sokka, she's Katara, the flying lemur is Momo, and Appa is my flying bison back at camp. Could we get your name and your fox bat's?"
"She's Violet," the man stated as he scratched the animal behind the ears, "and you can call me the Blue Spirit."
Well that was a bit longer than I expected it would be.
As you can tell I'm going to be following a lot of the early canon, but I'm setting up for some major changes later on. I really don't have anything other to say other than I hope that everyone enjoyed the first chapter, even if there are a few questions. Questions such as…
Who did Zuko give his knife to?
What will happen when the gang finds out Zuko's from the Fire Nation, and a prince at that?
What trouble will Zhao cause the group?
For the answers to these questions and more, stay tuned for the next chapter of An Exiled Spirit.
But for now, I'm acw28 saying, "until next update."