Chapter 2
He watched the sun change the sky from shades of blue to light yellow. There were no clouds to catch the brilliant sunlight as it poured across the scene in front of him. There was no mistaking the rising pillars adorned with flame patterns, the pagodas' roofs arching like fire, and the red silk billowing in the cool, morning breeze. There was only one place he could be. The fire nation palace. All the beauty of the sunrise was lost on him as he whispered.
"Probably a dozen, maybe two dozen, archers ready. No other reason she'd have kept me here with the window unguarded."
"Hmmm, you're up early." Her sonorous voice was like velvet between the curtains.
"Yeah." Was all he could say. He looked back out over the rooftops gleaming with fresh sunlight.
"So, do you feel better now. No more bad dreams." Her voice was at his ear and he jumped at the unfamiliar proximity.
"What are you doing! Get away from me!" Sokka yelled, jumping back and holding a vase up to throw it at her.
"Kuzon, what is wrong with you!" This time she wasn't scared. She was angry. "You've never behaved like this! Not even that time when you had the cactus juice!"
"Ah ha! See!" Sokka felt a rushing pounding of lightheadedness. "You do remember! I'm not Kuzon! I'm Sokka! Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe!"
Azula paled visibly as he said this. Her lips were a thin line as she looked at him closely, frowning slightly. She took a step forward and he took one back. She held her hands open and apart, and took another slower step towards him. He did not back away this time. They were close enough for their warm breaths to mingle in the space between them. Her cool hand rose like a milky white dove and settled on his forehead.
"You do feel a little warm. But I don't think you have the fever." She sighed audibly, "Whatever is wrong with you it's not that."
"What are you talking about?" Sokka lowered his guard for a second then jumped back again, "No! Wait! This is just some sort of trick, isn't it!"
"Kuzon, why would I want to trick you? Listen, let's go to the healers and have them take a look at you." Azula's fingers were about to curl around the hem of his hastily put on robe when he jumped back again.
"What's going on! Where's Aang and Katara and Toph! I want to see them! I want to see them now!" Sokka felt like a child as he threw the vase down but he didn't care.
Several firebenders ran into the room, fists raised.
"Who?" Azula asked, raising a brow.
"You know. The people who were with me when you were chasing us trying to capture the Avatar." Sokka's throat went dry as he saw the look of confusion wrinkle her brow. "You know. When you chased us across the Earth Kingdom all the way to Ba Sing Se."
"Ba Sing–– oh, you mean New Iroh." Azula laughed a tinkling laugh, "It hasn't been called that since my Uncle took it during the war."
Sokka held his head as a pounding headache began in his head. This was wrong, all of it, was so so wrong. He tried to steady himself but everything started to spin and the edges of his vision was turning dark. He reached his hand out to steady himself, and that was the last thing he could remember.
The boy lay on the red, silk sheets, surrounded by candles flickering in the incensed breeze. His body was covered in beads of sweat and his body shook with fever. Delirious words babbled faintly and incoherently from his parted lips as he struggled to breathe. The fire sages stood around his prone body, chanting to the Dragons and the spirit of the Sun for guidance.
A door creaked open and for a moment the chanting ceased as the ancient heads turned. An old monk walked in on blistered feet, shuffling along the floor, walking with his hands held before him. A blood red candle carved with ancient words and designs was in his hands, its wick unlit. He approached the boy reverently and placed the candle on the boy's chest.
All held their breaths.
Then there was a shudder in the boy's chest and the wick of the candle sprang to life. It flickered slightly off time to his breathing. But with the room's occupants all silent now–– no more chanting, no more speaking–– they could just barely hear the boy's heart beat in time to the flickering flame resting on his chest.
"Sage Kazo, how went the journey." The eldest finally spoke.
"Grand Master Azo-lun, I journeyed through the scorching fields and over the path of coals and returned the candle. The spirits had nothing else for me to aide him with." The sage hung his head as he spoke.
"Sage Kazo, you have done well." The Master spoke as he turned back to the boy.
"But, Master," Kazo spoke hoarsely, "Sure there is something we can do for him."
"No, we have done all we can." He said looking down at the boy, "All we can do now is hope. Hope that the Avatar is strong enough to push through the fever before it's too late."
She watched the change of the guards and waited, almost without a breath. Normally she wouldn't be this stealthy. But times had changed and it required a certain amount of finesse to fight against the firebenders now. Especially now that they knew the tell tale signs. Like that tonight there would be a full moon. A night when her powers would be at their fullest. She squinted and looked at the walls and tried to judge the best angle and the distance between footholds. Then she was gone, as if she has melted into the shadows.
There were darkness and shadows all around him. Sokka sat up and looked around. Then down at his body. He was glowing faintly blue. Just great. He was in the spirit world again.
"Wait, maybe that's it!" he yelled jumping up. "I'm here so maybe I can find someone to help me and explain what's going on."
A few failed attempts at climbing over moving tree roots and falling face first into hard as concrete water and Sokka was ready to give up. He lay on the hard water and turned over, his face wet but the water still refusing to let him sink below. He was not expecting to look up into a pair of familiar eyes.
"Katara?" He sat up wide eyed. "Are you in the spirit world too! Thank goodness I was trying to find you and I had this weird dream with Azula and the fire palace and––"
"You are the brother of the girl whose face I wear?" She asked faintly flickering in and out of sight.
"Ummm, yes." Sokka was alert and ready. Aang had told him about a spirit called Koh the Face-Stealer. "And you're not my sister, are you."
"No." The spirit shifted again, her hair growing longer, her robes more full and white and flowing in the breeze. "But I met her once. Not in the world you came from but the world you are trying to return to."
"What? What are you talking about?" Sokka kept his grip on the rock beneath him, even though it wiggled and squirmed in his hand.
"Your sister once did a favor for me. I was the patron spirit of the village who had almost forgotten me completely. They called me, the Painted Lady." She bowed as she introduced herself, "And so I am here to help you, as a way of repaying her."
"Wait, back up, back to the part about the world I came from and the world I'm going to." Sokka held up both hands and the rock escaped, "What's going on?"
"I cannot explain it to you in words you could understand. But there is someone who can. It is the spirit that sent me to guide you." And she slowly changed into a glowing ball of light as she said it, "But now is not the time. You are about to be woken. The day has passed and it is evening in the world you came from. When you awake there will be an attack. Follow the south side stairs of the palace down to the forgotten managerie. There is an old friend who will guide you to where you need to go next."
"Wait, but who sent you? What's going on?! Painted Lady, come back!"
"...painted...lady... come... back..."
"Oh, good, he's coming around." Her voice was familiar in a strange, new sort of way that Sokka couldn't place. "Stand back, let him have air."
Sokka's eyes opened in slivers and he looked around him. There were several people standing around him, a row of guards behind them, and the throne room of the fire lord. The throne room of the fire lord, the thought ran through his mind like hot lead.
"Get- get away–– have to escape––" He struggled as firm hands held him down.
"No, let him go." Azula said, stepping closer, "He won't try to escape from me."
"No time–– attack–– tonight." Sokka felt lightheaded again as he spoke and sat up.
"Attack, what do you––" But Azula got no further.
The side of the throne room shook and the walls cracked as pieces of broken ceiling crumbled down. Guards began reforming as several of the strange people started running away in panic. Only two old woman remained. They looked back and forth from each other and spoke.
"Lord Kuzon has gone to the spirit world and has had a vision of this attack." Wheezed the first old lady.
"And the first moves have been made." Intoned the other one.
"Now, you all know your duty." They spoke as one, "Protect the Fire Lord at all cost."
The line stood ready facing the cracking wall. Sokka looked around, trying to see if Ozai was about to come out somewhere around them. Then he saw Azula stand up and speak pointedly, the way he remembered she used to speak, when she commanded Mei and Ty-Lee to attack them.
"Your duty is first to protect the people outside, not the Fire Lord." She crossed her arms, "Besides I can take care of myself."
Sokka stammered, "Wait, you're the Fire Lord?!"
"Of course, dear." She seemed to dance forward and place a peck on his lips, "Now, come on, we have to get to the bunker."
Then the wall exploded and fragments of wood and plaster flew everywhere as people were carried across the room by the explosion. A line of firebenders were moving forward in perfect synchronized form, a wall of destruction unleashing fire all at once. Sokka felt Azula's fingers close around his own and begin pulling him to the northern entrance.
"Wait! Hold on! We have to go somewhere else!" He yelled over the fire and explosions. "This way! You have to trust me!"
"Of course I do. I always do, my love." And this time the peck was longer and deeper. "Lead the way."
Sokka wasn't sure what he was doing then. Overwhelmed by the smoke and the fire and the screaming and the people and the fact that Azula had just kissed him. Azula. Azula had just kissed him. Him. And then they were at the stairs that led down to the forgotten managerie. They sprinted as fireballs flew over their heads. Somewhere deep inside himself Sokka realized he had crossed a line. He was running with Azula. Saving her. Trusting her. At least for now. And then they entered the dark building. Cages were at odd angles and broken containers of food littered the ground.
"What happened here?" Sokka breathed heavily.
As in answer a loud bellow answered them. He stepped back apprehensively as a heavy crate was thrown through the air, colliding with the wall behind him and smashing into hundreds of small pieces. A dark figure was walking towards them, its massive feet plodding heavily into the thick loam and straw on the floor. And then as the large shaggy head with the short horns and thick arrow shape on it's forehead appeared in the faint light Sokka couldn't help himself.
"Appa!" And then the air bison ran forward and crushed Sokka to death under it's heavy padded feet, Azula screaming somewhere close by.