Age of Maikka - Behave
Really, Mai was going to earn herself a reputation if she continued this way. Traveling alone, in the middle of nowhere, with two different teenage boys? Mother would be scandalized, but likely only if news got out amongst the other nobles. (Mai had long been aware that her parents' wedding had been held less than nine months before her own birth, but had never inquired into the dirty but surely disappointingly mundane details.)
Still, mother could hardly object if Prince Zuko had asked for her company, right?
Mai had heard from her uncle, who could be trusted to have experience with such things, that one of the most psychologically damaging things that could be done a sane person is to lock them up without human contact. It was the fastest method the Fire Nation had on record for destroying someone's peace of mind, and the implications were that it wasn't always possible to recover from the damage.
Mai had always figured that was for normal people. The idea of a week or month or several years with no one to bother her (but with something else to do to keep her occupied, of course) sounded like the closest thing she could get to a treat.
That was before she had escaped from the swamp and realized she had no idea where Azula and Ty Lee were. And she was technically in Earth Kingdom territory. And she wasn't exactly experienced at translating what she saw on a map to the actual landscape around her.
At least Sokka had given her a map. It was filthy, but it was a nice thought. And Mai found the use of little red frowny faces to label Fire Nation territory to be ironically amusing.
Azula had been leading Mai and Ty Lee to Ren Yi fortress when they had received word of the Avatar sighting that eventually led them to The Hated Swamp, so that's where Mai decided to head. After three days of walking through boring grassy fields and dusty former riverbeds, with no change of clothes, and nothing to eat but some gifted jerky of unknown origin, with not so much as another human being in sight, and Mai was starting to consider the attractiveness of just giving up and going insane.
That's when she found the track lines in the grass. Something metal had to have made them. Metal meant the Fire Nation. The Fire Nation meant a hot bath and proper food. Oh, and her friends. An hour into following them, she was overtaken by a man on an ostrich horse. When he reached her, he brought his mount to a halt and hopped off. She hadn't recognized him until he took his hat off, and even then, she only realized his identity thanks to her recent hallucination in the swamp. The memory of his burning face made her flinch as soon as she saw his scar.
Zuko's face hardened, and she knew she had hurt him. "Hello, Zuko."
"Mai. It is you. What... how... ?"
Leave it to Zuko to pick up on the most uncomfortable questions. "My family is administering Omashu. Azula came by to recruit me on a mission. We... well, we were supposed to be hunting you, but we got sidetracked by the Avatar."
"Are you going to attack me?"
Mai allowed herself a sigh. "I don't particularly want to. Azula doesn't have to know about this. It's not the first secret I'm planning to keep from her."
His face was so stone-like, like it had been carved into a permanent scowl. What had happened to the Zuko who wore his every emotion as plain as an unpleasantly bright day? When had he become as unpleasant as herself? "These tracks belong to Azula's latest toy, and she's on the Avatar's trail right now, towards Gaoling. I've been following them."
"Why? Zuko, Azula is going to get the Avatar, sooner or later, and then she'll turn her attention back to you. I'd recommend going to one of the Water Tribes, but I wouldn't actually wish that fate on someone I don't hate. But you should still run as far as you can."
He just stared at her, and then stepped back towards his ostrich-horse. "I have to restore my honor. I'll give you a ride if you want, and let you down just short of wherever Azula makes he camp. But I won't stop following. Will you... tell her?"
Mai knew she might have to, but couldn't bring herself to say it. So much for childish fancy. "Let's go."
"MAI!" It was appropriate that the first greeting was a high-speed pink projectile. It wasn't the first time she had nearly been knocked off her feet in such a manner. "You made it out of the swamp!"
Mai gave the small return hug that would signal Ty Lee to let her breathe. "You mean you weren't sure?"
Ty Lee started to say something, stopped, frowned, and then shook her head. "Azula spotted the Sky Bison flying away and didn't want them to gain too much of a lead."
"Charming."
Azula was in the biggest tent, of course, and smiled when she saw Mai. She claimed she knew Mai would get out all right, claimed to appreciate having Mai back, and then claimed that Mai needed a good, long bath.
The princess was right about the last part.
"Hey, fancy meeting you here."
"Who were you expecting?"
"I was being sarcastic."
"I know."
"So, do we have to do this?"
"Yes, but I promise to try not to draw blood."
"I appreciate that. Really."
"More sarcasm?"
"You... aw, no, Azula is here?"
"Not necessarily. Maybe I just wanted to hang out with you."
"Really?"
"No."
"Dangit."
"You know, you're killing my sister."
"I didn't throw anything at her!"
"No, I mean all the sewing I have to get her to do on my shirts and pants."
"I could start aiming for your face, if that would make her feel better."
"Hn. So, are you just going to hang out here and leave me stuck against this tree?"
"If Azula asks, tell her it took a lot longer to pin you than it really did."
"OW!"
"Sorry! Sorry!"
"You hit me! With a club! What is that thing made out of, anyway? Tell me it wasn't once part of an animal!"
"I was trying to knock the knife out of your hand! It's not my fault you moved!"
"I wasn't going to stab you with it!"
"Well, how was I supposed to know that?"
"Why would I stab you?"
"It's your job!"
"And yours is to hit me?"
"Hey, I appreciate your good attitude about all this, but you do help your princess attack us all the time."
"Good attitude?"
"Well, yeah, you're fun enough to hang out with."
"...that's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. I forgive you for hitting me."
"The nicest... no one ever told you that you're pretty?"
"Why would I believe them?"
"Hi."
"Wha-!"
"I don't know a Wha. Is Wha a He or a She?"
"How did you find us?"
"You didn't hear this from me, but your Bison's shedding."
"Oh. Oh."
"What?"
"That means Appa is going to be in the danger area. Danger is bad!"
"And?"
"And, normally, we like to keep him away from the Firebenders. Azula may not have your aim, but she can probably hit the broadside of a Bison."
"Oh."
"Yeah. Oh. I gotta go help. And, uh, you didn't find me?"
"Drat. I have terrible night vision. I didn't see any of the Avatar's allies."
"Thanks!"
"Is Wha prettier than I am?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
One time, before Yue and Toph and Mai, Sokka had tried to get Aang and Katara to try walking to their next destination, instead of riding the giant fluffy bison with an arrow on its head over Fire Nation territory, where anyone could see it. He had, of course, been ridiculed. True genius was never appreciated in its own time.
Sokka thought perhaps that he preferred those simpler, No-Appreciation Times. Back then, it was all about getting Aang and Katara to the North Pole, no other complications. They had been pursued by Zuko, but he was pretty stupid for a recurring antagonist, and Zhao was even worse. Even better, the bad guys had been bad guys, and that was that. Zuko certainly hadn't kept popping into his thoughts in completely inappropriate ways. (Suki had, infrequently, but that certainly didn't carry any feelings of guilt with it.) Still, that last part was becoming kind of fun. Mai was almost as diverting when she wasn't around as when she was.
Back then, Sokka didn't really know the price of failure.
The Water Tribe boy followed the flashes in the night sky, and the closer he got, the worse the sounds were. They were the FWOOM of Firebending, the WSSSH of Airbending, the QRRL and KLSH of Waterbending, the BRGGG of Earthbending, and a manic female voice cooing over how fluffy the Sky Bison was. The worst sound was heard just as Sokka arrived at the sight of the main battle, when Appa let out an agonized roar over the blue burst of fire that had just landed on its tail.
Ten tons of flying Sky Bison fell from the sky and landed with a BOOM.
Fortunately, he hadn't been too high up, so he was probably mostly okay, except for the burn. Unfortunately, there was a greater danger than either a fall or an evil crazy Firebender.
The night began glowing blue, the light emanating from a devastated twelve-year old monk. Sokka squinted his eyes against the sudden glare, and made out the confused faces of Toph and that Ty Lee girl, Katara's horrified expression, and an evil smirk of evil satisfaction on Azula's evil face.
Aang rose into the sky.
Azula moved one of her arms in a wide arc that dipped close to the ground.
Aang's eyes and tattoos glowed blue.
Florescent electricity crackled between the ground and Azula's fingers.
Sokka raised his hand to throw Boomerang, and knew he'd be too late. That's when a blur flew passed his head, carried onward towards the main scene without appreciably slowing down, and smacked Azula right in the center of her forehead. The Fire Princess dropped to the ground like a sack of cabbages, and didn't move.
Sokka turned to see Mai, grimacing, with one of her hands empty and the other holding a fist-sized rock. "You?"
"Run. I'll blame your boomerang."
"You run, too."
"Why?"
"Aang is about to let loose with the full power of the Avatar."
The wind picked up, yanking at Mai's hair. "Yeah, I think we'll go."
She dashed over to Azula, threw her over her shoulders, and ran back past Sokka, calling for Ty Lee to follow her. Sokka, in turn, dashed over to Toph, grabbed her by the shoulders, and began shoving the shocked Earthbender along to safety.
Katara, he left in they eye of the storm, where she'd be safest.
END
