Thank you so much everyone for your quick responses. My other stories have had reviews and whatnot before, but man, you Zutarians are fast! Of course, I have to repay you by keeping up with your pace. Lucky for me, I had this chapter written already. Thank you all again! Especially AnnaAza, Untilthemoonrises, Aipom4 and MiraiMangaka for being my first four reviews! I dedicate this chapter to you. And don't worry, AnnaAza, I promise your wish will be granted one day! Comments on the chapter at the bottom.
Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, any of the characters here or the scenes referenced.
It took Appa three trips to fly everyone to the docks. With the number of them travelling to Ba Sing Se, it would've been cruel to make the poor bison fly all of them there. He was a strong beast, but he had a weight limit. He was going to swim alongside the ship until they reached the next port. Then he would have to take multiple trips to fly everyone safely across Serpents Pass without disturbing it's occupant. After that, it was a short walk to the city's outer wall.
Iroh was of course going back. The Order of the White Lotus had a lot of work to do in the city, including teaching the Earth King about the war he had been oblivious to and finding him some advisors that were actually trustworthy. Beside, he was eager to reopen The Jasmine Dragon. Iroh missed his precious tea shop and was already dressed in his Earth Kingdom robes to prove it. He was already on the boat, preparing tea for everyone. "What better way to start a journey than with a soothing cup of tea?"
Toph had told the old man to save a cup for her, but was still sat on a mound of earth on the mainland, choosing to remain on solid ground for as long as possible. The ground in front of her was shifting, small towers of earth rising up and back down again, smooth as if it had never been disturbed. She was in her usual attire, comfortable in the familiar green and yellow outfit. She was barefoot as always and her toes were wriggling in the fresh air.
Suki and Sokka were currently stood just beside the ship arguing about a large chunk of meteorite that Sokka insisted on dragging all the way to Ba Sing Se. He was determined to replace his lost space sword, which meant taking the material to his Master. Suki had argued that it was bad enough that he'd used Toph to drag it all the way to the palace in the first place, but somehow Sokka had managed to get a hold of a small barge that could be pulled along behind the ship. Which admittedly would be useful for a lot of their luggage. Sokka was dressed in his Water Tribe clothes, the lower layer that would never be seen at his home, due to the need of much warmer layers. His leg was still in a cast from the fall he'd had while trying to destroy the Fire Nation fleet. Suki often mocked that not only had she not been injured during her fall, but she'd come back with control of an airship and used it so save him. She was back in her Kyoshi Warrior uniform. The greens robes with black padding. A gold headdress rested on her short brown hair and the traditional make-up had been neatly done.
"Let's just get on the ship, Sokka," Suki said dismissively, grabbing him by the hand and pulling him. He hobbled after her, giving a thumbs up to a Fire Nation guard as they passed him. The man nodded but seemed as busy as two of his comrades who were tending to Mai.
The young woman had perched herself on a crate, resting her head on her one hand, the other draped across her lap. She was in her favoured black and red dress robe, smart and practical. She had an expression of pure boredom, although truthfully she rarely had any other expression. Her current boredom was probably due to the fact that Zuko was already on the ship with Aang, talking to the captain about their course.
Katara stood with her father, Hakoda, both in their usual Water Tribe attire. She had an arm around his waist and could feel the weight of his around her shoulders. Hakoda had only come to see the ship off. He would be staying behind to inform Zuko's advisors and council on the traditions of the Water Tribes. When everyone returned from the Earth Kingdom, they would be bringing the Earth King and other representatives with them. They would then meet the Water Tribe Chiefs and representatives at the palace for meetings to talk about world affairs. With the currently uncertain peace, it was best to avoid accidentally insulting any of the cultures.
"You should get onboard, Katara. You don't want to get left behind," Hakoda said, releasing her from his grip and moving to look at her. Katara smiled up at her father, a little reluctant to leave his side. Even though the war was now over, the family still didn't get to spend much time together.
"The ship wont be going anywhere without Toph," Katara pointed out, gesturing to the gangway to the ship. The bottom of it seemed to have melted into the ground. In reality, Toph had used a combination of her Earth and Metal bending to make sure the ship didn't leave without her say so. Hakoda gave a soft chuckle and then gestured over to Mai, who was now on her feet, pacing back and forth.
"But it does look like your friend could use some entertainment."
Katara frowned at the use of the word 'friend'. Even though they were on the same side now, they had barely spoken directly to each other. How was she supposed to simply be friends with someone who was once determined to embed daggers in her flesh? She doubted that she'd forget that in a hurry, but… she had forgiven Zuko for all he'd done. And he had done much worse. Why was it so hard to do the same for Mai?
"You're right," Katara finally replied. "I'll get her on the ship. General Iroh probably has the tea ready by now." She gave him a quick, warm hug. As she turned to go, he caught her face by the chin and held her there. He stared down into her big blue eyes, before sighing and letting go.
"Make sure you get some rest during your journey, your eyes look tired," Hakoda told her, pulling her into a big platypus-bear hug. "Take care of yourself, Katara… and your brother." Katara laughed and pulled away again.
"I will, Dad." She waved over her shoulder as she ran towards Mai. "See you in a few weeks!" Hakoda waved back, smiling proudly at his daughter. She was so much like her mother. He watched as she approached Mai, waving rather awkwardly. From what he could tell at that distance, the Fire Nation woman looked surprised to see Katara.
"Katara…" The water bender was greeted with the simple mention of her name. The Fire Nation guards had taken the welcome opportunity to move away and get on with loading the ship. Katara breathed a sigh of relief. Despite knowing they were under Zuko's orders now, she still couldn't feel entirely comfortable around people in those uniforms.
"We should get on the ship," Katara told her, being as bright as she could. "Aang and Zuko have got to be almost done talking to the Captain by now." Mai nodded at her and they both moved towards the gangway. Katara could feel an almost icy silence between, so took the time to admire the scenery instead. It was the perfect day to set sail, even though Fire Nation ships had engines not sails. The sky was a clear blue, like her own robes, with wispy white clouds stretching across it. There was a playfully light breeze that showed promise of later becoming a strong wind. The water below them was calm, the waves moving almost lazily. The port itself was alive and bustling with people. A lot of families waiting for soldiers to return home. It was evidence of how even the Fire Nation had suffered to sustain its own war. Which really explained why so many people welcomed Zuko to the throne. It really was a wonderful corona-
"I've been meaning to thank you." Katara almost stopped in her tracks, instead she turned to stare at Mai as they walked, the confusion clear on her face.
"Thank me? What for?"
"For saving Zuko," Mai replied simply. It was strange how her voice still had such a monotone in a phrase that must have held a lot of emotion. Katara sighed.
"You really don't need to thank me for that, Mai. I would have done the same for any of the others," she insisted. She really was getting tired of the little tug of guilt she felt every time someone acknowledged her so-called heroics.
"It's not just that. You were there. You were able to save him because you stood by his side against Azula in the first place." Mai looked at her pointedly and gave the smallest possible smile. At least, Katara assumed it was a smile. "I thank you for that." The water bender didn't answer her. She couldn't explain that if she hadn't been there, Zuko wouldn't have been hurt. Instead, she simply returned the smile and hoped Mai would soon go back to not paying her any attention.
Now that they were on the ship, they could see that Iroh had set himself up just to the side of the entrance to inside of the ship. Katara and Mai moved over there, sitting down on the deck and gratefully accepting the tea. Iroh started telling them about how to make the perfect cup of tea. Katara actually listened intently, curious to understand why he loved tea so much. On the other hand, Mai quietly sipped her tea and stared off into the distance.
Iroh had just moved on to the different types of tea, when the door to the left of them opened. Out stepped Aang and Zuko, still in conversation. Aang was still wearing the monk robes that he had worn to the coronation. Katara hadn't had the chance to ask when and where he had gotten them, but if the beads and amulet were what she thought they were, he had probably returned to the Sothern Air Temple for them. Zuko was in his Fire Nation robes, usually worn under the royal amour that his council had insisted on him wearing during the trip. Now that they weren't around, he had obviously abandoned the armour until he needed it. They had also insisted that he had his hair pulled up in the traditional Fire Nation style with the royal crown on top. But as he was speaking, he was pulling it out, letting his dark hair fall over his face, partially covering the burn mark on the left side of his face.
"It's a longer route, but at least that way we'll avoid angering the serpent," Aang finished the conversation, a wide grin spreading across his face as he spotted the small tea party just by the door. "Hey guys! We're leaving as soon as Toph is ready." He wasted no time in hopping into the space between Katara and Iroh, eagerly accepting his tea. Zuko took his place next to Mai and his Uncle and accepted his tea with less enthusiasm. Katara caught his eye before shifting her gaze quickly away. She had to wonder if he noticed.
"Everything is prepared. We should leave while the weather holds," the Fire Lord said simply, staring out to the ocean. Mai was leaning on him now, her tea abandoned. Iroh let out a loud chortle.
"As Avatar Aang pointed out, I believe that decision is left to young Miss Toph." Just as he finished speaking, there was a loud shout.
"Move out of the way you dunderheads! HI-YAH!" Following this was a loud crash and the splash of water. Everyone exchanged confused and worried glances until Toph appeared on deck. The young earth bender stomped her way over to them, an extremely displeased look on her face. Her clothes were dripping with water.
"Toph? What happened?" Katara asked as she got to her feet. She used her water bending to draw the water out of Toph's clothes and off the ship, back into the ocean. So thankfully the earth bender was left completely dry.
"Your brother happened!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms. "Those Fire Nation soldiers couldn't get that chunk of space rock onto the barge, so I used earth bending to move it and the force of it almost sunk the barge and made a big wave that splashed me." She threw her arms back for emphasis, then stopped to look around with her feet. "I'm going to give him a piece of mind!"
"Suki is making him settle in his room so he can rest his leg," Zuko tried to tell her, but she had already stormed off through the door, slamming it behind her. Zuko turned back to face the others, finding Katara and Aang trying to contain their laughter. Mai and Iroh both looked as perplexed by it as he was. "What's so funny?" It was Aang who found breath first.
"Sokka, Toph, Katara and I once pushed that rock all the way to Master Piandao's place when it was twice the size!" He managed to get out before bursting into laughter.
"Your soldiers really need to work out more, Zuko!" Katara added before covering her mouth to stifle her own laughter.
"I'll be sure to tell them," Zuko muttered darkly, suddenly becoming very interested in his tea. "At least we can leave now. Someone should go tell the Captain."
"I'll go. I'm already up," Katara offered, finally getting over her giggle fit. She needed to get away from the group anyway. She had a feeling that she'd keep staring at Zuko if she stayed much longer. Someone might get the wrong idea. She was through the door before anyone could object or offer to join her.
Somewhere below deck there was a loud creaking of metal and a strangled yelp from Sokka.
A/N: No dreams this time! I not trying to torture you all with the lack of Zutara, I promise! I'm just a strong believer in subtlety and progression. I apologise in advance to anyone concerned about me causing further injury to Sokka. Don't worry, I wouldn't do any lasting damage to one of my favourite characters! I've been told in the past that I need to work on my descriptions, so I really did try on this one. I had some trouble in regards to their clothing, mainly not knowing what most items are called. If anyone wants to help me out, feel free. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one!
