Yuck Factor: 0
Sokka flung the mud from his shoes as he sat down. He threw the shoes off and rubbed his feet. Aang entered the room, shutting the door behind him and let out a sigh. Sokka looked up at the boy with a grin.
"I'm hungry." Aang frowned with mock irritation.
"You're always hungry." Sokka shrugged and stood up. He stretched his arms out to his side and popped his neck. He was entirely to sore for this. He needed a good day's rest in a nice inn with beautiful women surrounding him. He could smell the meat sizzling on the open fire pit. His stomach growled obnoxiously.
"I want a great big slab of nicely grilled meat, just a little bit bloody." Aang's face paled as he shot Sokka a dirty look. Sokka grinned.
"I forgot. Vegetarian." Aang flung his water pouch at Sokka and shook his head. Aang still had the memories and the vivid taste of his friend's blood that coated a side dish of berries. He shivered as he pushed back the thought. Sokka moved over to look out the window, pushing the wooden slat blinds to the side. He dug into his pocket and pulled out the crinkled letter. He pulled the paper open again and read over the scribbled words. He frowned and folded it again and pushed it into his pocket. Aang frowned as he watched the other boy.
"When are you going to tell me what this is about?" Sokka smirked and turned to look at the young Avatar.
"When you get hair on your chest." Aang furrowed his eyebrows. Sokka was always picking on him about his silky smooth chest. Not a hair in sight and here he was almost marrying age. He sighed and shook his head. Sokka laughed and rubbed his stomach.
"Let's go get something to eat." Aang nodded. A nice hot bowl of noodles and steamed vegetables sounded good, with the largest pot of tea he could find. Sokka frowned and shook his head.
"Noodle house won't be open for another three hours."He felt back on the large chair and folded his hands behind his head. Aang sat down on the floor and crossed his legs. Appa had to stay behind this time around. It seemed for the last year and half everywhere they went they were found primarily because of the large bison. So he had decided to leave Appa with their trusted friend, Teo. He and the Duke had left them before the rush on the Fire Lord. They had elected to hide out in the Eastern Air Temple. Aang jumped as a knock came at their door. Sokka had his boomerang in hand out of instinct in a fraction of a second.
Who the hell… He moved over to the side of the door and listened. Aang jumped to his feet and positioned himself diagonal from the door and poised himself for an attack. Sokka pulled the door open slowly.
"If you hit me, I swear to the spirits I will barbecue your ass." He knew that voice. Sokka flung the door open with a wide smile.
"Zuko!" Sokka grabbed the fire bender and hugged him tight. Zuko patted the boy on the back and
tried to breath.
"Sokka, the ribs." Sokka released the fire bender and turned to look at Aang. Aang smiled widely as Zuko stepped inside. He pulled his hat off and looked at the Avatar.
"You were supposed to meet us at the foot of the hill." Aang frowned. Zuko narrowed his eyes.
"I saw you two ride in. I was restless." Aang smiled and shook his head. He shook the fire bender's hand. Zuko's face turned serious as he looked back to Sokka who was bolting the door He propped himself up against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Your letter was entirely too serious for you. What is going on?" Sokka ran his hand over his patch of fur on his chin as he sat down. Zuko frowned as the boy seemed to think of how he was going to word his answer.
"I have sent you letters about the other men." Zuko nodded. Sokka stopped and thought for a moment again as if he weren't entirely sure as to what he was trying to say.
"Things have happened, and I am not entirely sure they have anything to do with the war." Zuko unfolded his arms and looked at the boy.
"What do you mean?" Sokka let out a deep sigh.
"I believe that some of the happenings have more to do with... a certain mad doctor." Zuko shook his head.
"It can't be. Xia is dead." Sokka shook his head.
"I'm not so sure about that. You didn't see the bodies. They had his name all over them. Not literally of course." Zuko cocked an eyebrow.
"No, couldn't write his name on them literally, that would be too easy." Sokka smiled at Zuko's sarcasm. Sokka soon frowned again as he continued.
"Logically it is impossible. But ..." Aang frowned as he looked at Sokka. He stood up and walked over to stand next to him.
"Sokka, now is the time to let us know what was in that letter." Aang half demanded half asked. Zuko blinked and his ears perked. This was news to him. Sokka could never keep anything to himself. Sokka looked to the ground and shook his head. He looked back up at the two and frowned.
"I don't know what to tell you. All I know is that I got a letter scribbled in handwriting I didn't recognize, saying that we needed to meet Toph at a small shambled house on the down slope of those hills." Zuko frowned and shook his head. He walked over and sat down at the table. He pulled a map out of the pack on his back and uncurled it over the table.
"I have been all over those hills over the past three days, and I didn't see any houses, not even signs of any. All I saw was a few loyals." Sokka shrugged and pulled the crinkled letter from his pocket.
"That's what it says. I could very easily be a trap." He said as he tossed the letter on table. Aang picked it up and carefully unfolded it. His eyes scanned it and shook his head. That was all it said. Not a word more.
"Toph needs all her old friends to meet her at an old house on the northern slope of Yhuan Peak." Aang read out loud. He shook his head again. "I don't recognize the handwriting either." He said handing the paper to Zuko. Zuko looked over it a moment then brought his hand up with a sphere of flame dancing in his palm. He held the parchment up and the flame behind it. He smiled as the fire nation's insignia showed shadow where it was pressed into the paper. Invisible without flames. He tossed the letter down on the table and looked up at Sokka.
"It's not a trap. It has the Fire Nation's mark, hidden in the center as a press mark. Ozai outlawed the use of this technique when he learned that only those in the revolt used it. It was how he tracked down many of the revolutionaries within his own army." Zuko pushed his chair back, leaning it on it's back legs, as he propped his feet up on the table. Sokka waited for Zuko to continue, but it soon became evident that he wanted him to figure it out for himself. Sokka closed his eyes as he thought, then snapped them open as it occurred to him.
"Vitani, or Kilani wrote that." Zuko nodded with a smile. Aang frowned and picked the paper up again, imitating what Zuko had done. He brought the paper down and ran his hand through his dark mud colored hair.
"My guess would be Vitani.." Sokka smiled.
"Yeah. Kilani is a bit more on the proper side. His script would probably be immaculate." Sokka said as he sat back down on the couch. He rubbed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"But what does that mean? Why now?" He ask looking over at the other two. Aang shrugged and found his place on the floor, stretching out his lanky legs.
"Maybe they found a weakness in Ozai's defenses." Sokka frowned and looked at the younger boy.
"You don't think it has anything to do with the murders?" Zuko looked at Sokka blankly.
"The twins wouldn't care a rat's ass about the men that died. I don't blame them. Just another memory to try and forget." Sokka shrugged and leaned back and rested one of his ankles on his other knee.
"But Toph?" Zuko almost laughed out loud at that remark.
"Have you not heard the rumors? She is one of them now. The third part to their triumvirate. She's not going to be the same little smart ass we knew three years ago." Sokka's face went blank. He didn't want to think of it that way. They would see her and she would still be a bossy little blind bender. He didn't want to imagine her changing, or what she would change into. He could still imagine Aang as the awkward bald, lanky twelve year old. He was still awkward and lanky, but he was much taller and had let his hair grow, if only a little. Zuko had put on muscle, grown a foot, and his hair was longer as well, but he hadn't changed much as far as attitude and mannerisms went. He sighed inwardly as he thought of his sister. He hadn't seen her in a year, and there wasn't much to tell him how she had changed. Or the other's for that matter. He would know soon enough, at least.
Katara arched her back as she reached her hands high over her head. The morning was still at least an hour away. She turned and looked back over her shoulder as the small flame came closer from out of the forest. She smiled as Shio and his small orb flame came into her sight.
"Feel better?" Shio flicked his wrist at her.
"Giirrl. I thought I was gonna bust." He laughed. She couldn't help but laugh with him. He was the funniest creature she had ever met. Katara bent down and picked up her bag of supplies throwing it over the saddle of the fire lizard. She smiled and gave the large reptile a nice little scratch between the eyes. The set had been a gift from Zuko. He had stolen them when they had left the Fire Nation capitol. Aang and Sokka had Appa, Zuko had his ostrich horse, and Haru had his, which she assumed he shared with Shia. They had to wait until the sun was up before the lizards would move. Their bodies had to warm up first. Shio fell back on his bed roll and looked over at Katara.
"Tell me again. You've got to." Katara laughed and fell down next to Shio on her stomach and looked at him.
"I've told you hundred of times." Shio cocked an eyebrow at her as a smirk curled over his lips.
"Don't act like you don't want to talk about it." Katara felt the blush light her face and was thoroughly grateful that there wasn't enough light for him to see it.
"Haru. I don't know what to say about him any more than you already know. He's very kind and soft spoken. He was, he did change a little bit after the incident." Shio nodded.
"Yeah, yeah. He's not the one I want to know about."He said rolling over onto his side and propping himself up on his elbow. "Tell me about Prince Zuko. Are y'all still not 'together'?" She frowned at the boy and shook her head.
"You know the answer to that. Zuko didn't think that we should endanger the entire group by our having a relationship. He said it wouldn't be fair. We could get distracted by one another at important times and might cause someone to get hurt." Shio's eyes widened and he set his fingers gently on Katara's arm.
"So he's available!?" Katara laughed and looked at the boy.
"You are something else y'know that?" Shio smiled and rolled over onto his back. He shook his head and let out a small chuckle.
"Tell me something I don't know, girlfriend."
Shio really is something else ain't he? Oh well I had fun with this chapter. A little more history.
Next time on Disastrous Desires: Just what lays in store fore the gaang when the meet with the new and improved Toph? Just what is it they need to meet her for? And why is everyone so nervous?