Katara
The next morning, our converged group eats breakfast of dried meat and fruit and converses by the fire, waiting for the rest of the assembled people. Toph's students had met her out here and we sent our students to a safe far side of the temple together to explore. Toph, Suki, and I sit next to each other on the ground, Iroh chats with Zuko about tea, and Sokka grills Gran-Pakku about the Northern Water Tribe weaponry as more people come in from a storm. Those being: the rest of the Kyoshi warriors led by an excited Ty Lee, the Freedom Fighters (or what was left of them), Haru and some of his Earthbending friends with his father, and Teo accompanied by his father the Mechanist. As well as an unexpected group that Zuko had problems with.
"Uncle! Who are these people that said that they're with you?"
Iroh calmly welcomes men and women from the pouring rain, carefully using his Firebending to dry them off, "Nephew, these are simply some of my best workers from The Jasmine Dragon. I felt that everyone could use tea during this meeting."
I stand and assist him with bending the rest of their soaked garments.
"The White Lotus allowed this?" Zuko spins to the significant members. Piandao, the swordmaster, Gran-Pakku, my grandfather/master waterbender, Jeong Jeong , Aang's old Firebending teacher, and King Bumi, a powerful aged earthbender. They simply shrug as if to say 'it's Iroh and his tea. You can't stop it'.
"Iroh is the grand lotus." Gran-Pakku states, as if anything Iroh would do is perfectly normal, even if he might light someone on fire.
We still had a few more people to go.
Two women are the last to enter, both giggling with each other, the wet hoods they wear obscuring their faces. "Lee?" They say simultaneously when they look up.
"Jin? Song?" Bewildered, Zuko gapes at the girls. Both of them were from the Earth Kingdom, green eyes, and dark hair. Jin had tanner skin while Song was pale.
Suki leans in and whispers, "Who's Lee?" at the same time that Sokka mouthed the same inquiry at me.
I had no idea.
…
Zuko
They stare at me as if I'm some kind of specter, a ghost.
How could I ever make this right? Would they forgive me for lying to them?
"Can I speak with both of you in private?" They nod and we distance ourselves from the curious group.
Jin speaks first, "Why do you have a Fire Nation crown on?"
I clench my jaw. The most painless way would be fast, "Because I'm the Fire Lord."
"Fire Lord Zuko?" Song gently inquires.
All of the wrongs I had yet to correct. It made my head ache just by thinking about it. I stole an innocent woman's ostrich-horse when she was just trying to help me. Then I was involved with Jin and never gave a full explanation why I departed so suddenly. Now I had to set this right. My honor depended on it. My decisions had caused many people so much pain.
I gather my courage, "Yes."
"Hold on, I know that Iroh was Mushi but you're the Fire Lord?" Jin scrutinizes my Fire Nation regalia.
"Yes. I know I've done terrible things in the past and I hope that both of you can find it in yourselves to forgive me for lying and my untoward treatments."
Jin taps her chin, "It all makes sense. You fell off the map the time of those rumors of the avatar's demise."
Ashamed, I attempt to straighten the record, "I wasn't involved in that. Well, I was partly at fault. Anyway, I wanted to formally apologize. Jin, I lead you on and that was wrong of me. Song, I stole from you when you opened your heart to me and tried to reach out. I want to make it up to you by giving you the best ostrich-horses the palace has. Jin,-"
She bluntly stops me, "Look, Lee… Fire Lord… Fire Lord Zuko, Iroh offered me a job and that's good enough for me. The pay is great and I can take care of everything or anything that I want or need."
Song serenely intervenes, "And he already gave me three ostrich-horses. Please, I think we've all had enough anger. I forgave you the day after you left."
"Yeah, let's just let bygones be bygones Lee- Fire Lord."
"My friends call me Zuko. Both of you must be tired. Shall we?" I gesture back to the fire.
Just when we reach the rest of the amassed crowd, a large shadowy creature with two riders stands at the entrance of the Air Temple.
Its' two riders dismount and come in out of the pouring rain.
Mai.
The second person I register is June. And her shirshu Nyla. Though I was the one who summoned them, I was still unprepared for the sight of her.
Toph, Katara, Sokka, and Suki all watch with pointed gazes glancing back and forth between Mai and me, sensing that something was off. They weren't wrong.
Absent-mindedly, I notice she has the same bag from that night she came to visit me.
"Zuko, I think it's better if we separate. Hear me out before you say anything. You work and I get that but we never talk anymore. I can feel you keep things from me… I started this wrong, I'm sorry, this isn't a blaming game. You're an amazing person, you're overcome things, mentally and physically, that would break any other person. And when I say that it's not you, I really mean it.
"It's me. I've always been the person everyone else wanted me to be. I don't think I've ever truly been alone, ever done something for myself. My parents have always wanted a perfect, educated, silent Fire Nation beauty to try and snag the Fire Nation prince. I did the best I could. Azula wanted a fearless, merciless warrior. I may have failed her on the merciless count. And… you.
"Don't question yourself until I'm finished, let me say that I chose to be with you and I wouldn't have changed that decision for the world. I want to support myself, see the world. I almost wish that we could be together. And you may think this strange, but I know you're in love with someone else. You've gotten so good at defiance that you don't even know. In the end, I know you'll find each other. I could say that I hate her and that she broke us up and that she's terrible. But she's a great girl. You're both so imperfect for each other that somehow, together you both make a perfect whole."
"Mai…"
"Nothing you can say will make me change my mind. Don't offer me help either. My pride wouldn't stand it."
"…Who is she?"
"Nuh, uh. That's where your adventure begins."
Mai and I face each other stiffly. Finally, her lips quirk sardonically and we meet for a friendly hug.
…
Katara
"That was tense." Mutters Toph.
I nod in agreement. Across from me, Smellerbee comfortably sits next to Longshot. I always forgot they were together. The Duke, Pipsqueak, and Sneers eye the biscuits lying out. None of them had changed very much, only gotten taller.
"Dad!" Sokka leaps from his chair to welcome the five men walking in.
With a squeal, I race towards my father and wrap my arms around his neck while he laughs at his two children almost tipping him over.
I recognize three of the five: Bato, my dad Hahkoda of course, and… Hahn? I think that was his name, I think he was engaged to Yue once upon a time according to Sokka. I couldn't imagine why dad brought him here.
Sokka voices my thoughts when he becomes aware of him with a scowl, "What are you doing here?"
"Sokka, be nice. This is-"
"I know his name."
Hahn cordially offers his hand that Sokka simply glares at. He rescinds it with a small nod, "Sokka. Good to see you."
"I'm not sorry to say that I don't think it's good to see you."
What? Eh, it was Sokka. And double negatives weren't my forte.
"Well… Katara, right?" Hahn politely turns to me. He didn't seem like the same guy at all.
I smile, "Yeah."
"Don't speak to my sister. Don't even look at my sister. In fact don't even think about my sister. Because I'll know," Sokka glares and points his fingers at his eyes and back at Hahn in the universal sign of 'I'm watching you.' Sokka circles him while doing it, squinting with his lip pooched out.
"Snoozles, would you cool it with that? You're making my feet dizzy."
Zuko Firebends a small flame into the air and calls out, interrupting the conversations, "Alright. Is everyone here? Good. Let's get started on why I summoned most of you here. Toph, would you mind?" He kindly asks and she bends a table to suit all of us, "Thank you. Now, everyone please have a seat."
Toph grabs my arm and I sit in between her and Zuko. Sokka was by dad and Suki across the table.
Zuko calmly straightens and projects loud and clear.
"Aang is gone. More importantly, the avatar is gone."
"What?!-" "What does this mean for us? What does-" "The Nations, what will happen-"
The groups' tittering continues for a few minutes.
"Enough!" Zuko slams his hand down upon the stone table hard enough to make crimson fire flare up from his clenched hand and burn the rock. Pride fills me when I notice that he's never looked more in control and like the Fire Lord than right now. Not like his father looked with his cruelty but someone of royalty and importance. Gripping the bridge of his nose, he breaths deeply, "I don't know what will happen. Right now, I'm hoping for the best but expecting the worst. I know that we need to assemble and train an elite alliance to retain calm within the people, somehow hide Aang's vanishing act until he either returns or we find him with the search, and like I mentioned before about a search, we will need a group that goes out for Aang. I know this is shocking news. We'll break for tea to let this sink into everyone's mind and start to come up with ideas. Anyone has any thoughts or wants to be assigned a specific role, come to me or any of the White Lotus members or the Avatar's friends."
One of the male tea-makers shouts, "Why you?"
"Well, as you can see, Aang doesn't seem to be here right now." Zuko sounded scarily like Gran-Pakku with that deadpan tone. Of course, Zuko could have invented that tone.
"You're the Fire Lord!"
"The crown makes it too obvious?"
"You Fire Nation scum are going to try and retake all the ground you've lost. I bet you're behind the avatar going missing!"
Furious, I stand with authority, "You assume to judge a wise, caring, and loyal man? My friends and I have been through the best and worst of disasters with The Fire Lord and you come up here making assumptions? This honorable man fought his beliefs and potentially his future in aiding us, especially if we failed. How dare you arbitrate him by his past and his ancestors and not the courageous actions and diplomatic, fair ruler he is today. If there is anyone who can stop everyone from falling into panic, it is with no doubt that I say it's The Fire Lord that I have complete and utter faith in. When you have dueled in an Agni Kai against Princess Azula and won, come and tell us how we should do things. He risked his life in that arena for me and I would do the same for him in a blink of an eye if he asked it of me. So back off."
I sit as the man slinks back into the crowd of staring people. I lean over to whisper to Zuko in the uncomfortable silence, "Why are they watching us?"
Zuko studies my face in rapt attention, his eyes flicking over me, "You. They're watching you."
Sokka calls out in the stillness, "Hear, hear!"
"I second that. And anyone who wants to mess with Zuko, come find Toph Bei Fong, Metal Bender and Earth Rumble champion, before-"
"Let's let the Fire Lord finish." I hastily interrupt.
Zuko clears his throat with wide, wonder-filled eyes still directed at me, "The White Lotus has important news to share with all of us if we are going to keep all the citizens composed and safe. Break!"
…
My brother feasts on meat and a question pops into my brain, "Sokka, why did you send that message to Zuko early and then lie to me about it?"
I lean against the stone wall and tuck a piece of hair behind my ear.
Stilling, he sets down his meat and I know it's serious, "…I had no clue what to do Katara. No plan, I panicked," He sighs and clutches his head, "You know, I forget that you're the younger sibling sometimes. Did you know that's the first time you have ever admitted to needing anyone's help when Aang left since you were eight? That time you couldn't carry your pack home because it was too heavy. You take care of everyone Katara, especially me ever since mom… For once, I wanted to take care of you.
"I was so focused on myself that I stupidly missed what you might be feeling entirely. In my head, I always thought that you never needed help. You and Aang? Heck, I thought you guys would be together forever. So I went to Zuko. He's one of my closest friends; he helped me to save Suki and dad from the prison. Didn't blink an eye. He went with you to Yon Rha's village and never told you what he thought was right or what he thinks you should do. Not to mention he's the Fire Lord, he can have servants scouring the nations and he has connections to a lot of people. Hell, if Mr. Obsessive, 'I must find the avatar to restore my honor' can't track down Aang, who can?"
I lean over and hug my brother tight. It wasn't often that I saw the deep, sensitive side of Sokka.
"You're my brother Sokka, I love you. You have always taken care of me, don't be silly. And the whole Aang thing? Well, that was kind of a split decision."
A/N: Fourth chapter successfully served! Special thanks to KimberlyT, who is a great fanfic writer, (go check out her Zutara stuff! And her other stuff!) for her informative reviews! (I think I fixed most of the mistakes)
Guest: You'll just have to wait and see about Appa ;)
The reason these are taking so long is because I want them to be how I imagined them.
P.S. Iroh would totally bring in total strangers to serve tea. I'm just sayin'. It's why he's one of my favorite characters. (He's also the grand lotus! I'm not making that one up!)
Just to warn my younger readers out there, there will be smut in this. (If I don't wimp out that is) There will be sufficient warnings. I'm trying to challenge myself, especially into different things, so we'll see how that works…
Hope you enjoyed!