Zutara Week Day 10 prompt: Legend
A/N: Sorry for the inaction this past week. I went to a conference and I was having a hard time getting this piece to shape up the way I was hoping. But here it is. Thanks for reading.
They walked through the ruins, hand in hand, slowly picking their way through the rubble of toppled stones and pottery fragments. "Will you tell me where we are going yet, Zuko? I thought this place was booby trapped."
"I told you, Katara, you will see when we get there, and this isn't the ruins of the Sun Warrior capital Aang and I went to. Did you not notice how close to the palace we are? The Sun Warriors had numerous towns and cities before their empire went into declined," Zuko said as he hopped over a toppled column.
They were almost to the mosaic. He had been waiting for the right moment to bring Katara here. The three year anniversary of the war's end seemed appropriate. So much had changed since then. He ruled a country; she was an ambassador and continued to travel the world. She was still extremely close to Aang, but they had drifted apart over the years as Zuko had grown closer. Stealing moments together was risky and it was hard to sneak off with her. Zuko would often simply long for her from the shadows where no one could see. Today was different though. He chanced stealing her away, hoping no one would see.
They neared the grove of trees that sheltered the small temple and Zuko stopped. Katara turned and looked at him. "Is this our destination? What's so special about the temple?" Katara asked with an air of curiosity.
Zuko leaned over and whispered into her ear, "It isn't the temple that I want to show you. It's what's inside," and guided her to the grove and through the temple door.
She gasped when she saw the treasure concealed from the world inside. Beyond the door was the largest and most intricate mosaic Katara had ever seen. Almost every color she could imagine was before her. Blood deep reds, shimmering blues, dazzling yellows, brilliant oranges played across the wall creating a story. "What is this place?" she all but whispered.
"A small offering temple. The mosaic tells a legend of the gods and spirits. Do you recognize any of the faces?" he questioned with a small smile.
There were so many figures dancing across the wall, but she realized that many of them were the same two. They were not completely familiar, but perhaps the origins of two spirits she knew all too well. One was dressed in black with blockish, blue, fanged face that had large round eyes. The other was shrouded by a veil and looked as if she were floating.
"They look similar to the Painted Lady and the Blue Spirit, but somehow they are different. Not quite the images of how I know them."
"It is them. Those two spirits are very old. They come from a Sun Warrior myth that the people of the Fire Nation tell even today. The first time Uncle told it to me as a boy he brought me to this temple. He said the mosaic could tell the tale better than he ever could," Zuko said in a hushed tone.
"Will you tell it to me? I am unfamiliar with the lore of the Fire Nation."
He nodded then started the same way Iroh had all those years ago.
"Long before our time, humans roamed this earth when it was dominated by the gods and great spirits. A great war amongst the spirits broke out and humans became casualties; vessels in which spirits would hide and use against each other. To protect them, the great lion turtles offered to house them on their backs. It was many years until the war ended and by that point humans had stopped going into the spirit wilds. Time ticked away and it was decided that the human and spirit worlds should be divided. But when they were, five spirits chose to keep a mortal form. Those five spirits were the masters of the elements. Tui and La took the form of koi in order to teach the change of water, Agni took the form of the dragon to teach the power of fire, Drdha took the form of the badgermole to teach the substance of earth, and Deva took the form of the air-bison to teach the freedom of air." As Zuko spoke he pointed out mosaics near the ceiling that showed the elemental spirits shifting into their mortal forms.
"With the division of elements also came the division of lands. This is how the four nations were born. Some spirits, however, wished to remain on the earth and not go to the spirit world. They were scattered across the nations and told to stay. But two spirits, the Painted Lady and the Blue Spirit, who were deeply attached to the earth and had no wish to part from it, were separated. The Blue Spirit was to go to the land of ice and water, the Painted Lady to the land of lava and fire. These two spirits, however, were deeply in love and could not bear the thought of being parted.
They pleaded with the great elemental spirits to let them stay together, but the elements refused, their spirit abilities were the most adaptable to where they had been placed. This broke the Painted Ladies heart. She went to the land of lava and fire giving the Blue spirit one last kiss. The Blue Spirit, however would not accept this. He wanted to make it back to his love. On the journey to the land of ice and water when their ship stopped; he hid ashore unseen, for he was a master of stealth.
The stop had been in the land of rock and earth. He knew that the vast ocean lay between him and his love. He wandered for many months along the shore of the earth country, until he spotted a sailor that looked to have come from the land of lava and fire. He stowed away on the ship praying that La would not realize his presence and Tui would not see him from the night sky. Little did he know that Tui could see even when people thought she was sleeping. But Tui did not tell anyone what she saw, for she had taken the Blue Spirit's love to heart. She made sure to bring the spirit safely to the shores of fire so that he could meet his love again. The Blue Spirit, however, never knew this and he continued to hide in the shadows day and night searching for his love.
He finally found her in a small village that lay upon a river. Her face still tear stained from the day they had been separated, but she was strong and had taken to her new position as protector of the village. Still fearing the moon's discovery, the Blue Spirit remained in the shadows quietly helping in any way he could. Whispers of a vigilante started to circulate. The Painted Lady knew there had been someone protecting the weak of her village, but knew not who. Then, one night, she caught his figure from the corner of her eye. The she-spirit could not believe it was him. He had gone so far away from her, yet he was before her now in the deep blue velvet of night.
She ran after him calling his name. The spirit knew he had been seen and slowed down turning to her. When she reached him, he took her in his arms, holding her for the first time in months. From that moment on they were never far from each other, but the Blue Spirit remained shrouded in darkness as to not be caught by the light of the moon. Yet, even in hiding he never stopped helping those who were too weak to help themselves."
Zuko ended with his hand hovering over the image of the Blue Spirit's mask. "These two spirits are considered the protectors of the weak."
Katara stood soaking in the silence, eyes dancing across the wall recapturing the tale just told. Then she turned to him. "Is that why you wear his mask? To protect the weak?"
"Partially. My father hated this legend. He thought the Blue Spirit was cowardly for hiding, but I see his mask as a way to protect the people he cares for."
"Luckily as Fire Lord you don't have to wear a mask to protect those whom you love," Katara glanced up at him.
"But I do have to remain in the shadows to be with one," he whispered, cupping Katara's cheek in his hand, searching her eyes for a hidden answer.
Katara turned from his gaze only to look back and be sucked into his golden orbs. The distance between them closed slowly and their lips found each other. First hesitantly, then finding confidence, the kiss deepened.
When they finally broke apart, heads still touching, Katara whispered, "Our time in the shadows may be done," a soft smile gracing her lips enticing Zuko to kiss them again.
A/N: Ok, so this wasn't as good as I was hoping. As you can see this piece was inspired by many different things. One of the main things are the Sun Warriors. Being an archaeologist, I love ancient history and civilizations, so I couldn't resist. The Blue Spirit and the Painted Lady images that come to my mind are actually related to two Aztec gods. The Blue Spirit reminds me of some of the Tlaloc iconography (he is a rain god). And the Painted Lady reminds me of Chicomecoatl (a very specific image for her done by ladycat17 on deviantart). I am not sure if posting links is acceptable, but if you are interested in the images I used please PM me!
I hope that you enjoyed this, and a shout out to the ever fabulous SoapDuck. I would love to hear any feedback, and remember to stay awesome.