Disclaimer: I unfortunately don't own any of the characters used in this story.
I wanted to update this story as quickly as possible. I've been able to think about the story some more and I was able to write this chapter. This chapter will have some more twists in it as well as other surprises.
Chapter 8
Sokka was completely exhausted from his previous encounter with Azula and her friends, and both his body and his pride were greatly damaged. He regained conscious, and tried to get his bearings, only to hear a familiar female voice.
"Well, well, it looks like Snoozles is finally awake." Toph said to Sokka as he sat up.
"Huh, who's there?" Sokka said as he rubbed his head.
"Who do you think?" Toph answered him.
Sokka had noticed that he was sitting by a campfire and that Toph was holding a teapot and pouring what appeared to be jasmine tea into a cup she was holding. He also noticed that Katara was lying next to her, still unconscious.
"What... Toph? What happened?" Sokka asked her as he rubbed his eyes.
"Oh don't you remember? We were about to head back to the campsite and have something to eat, but were attacked by Azula and her friends, and the rest is history." Toph said.
"Is Katara alright?" Sokka said with concern.
"Yeah, don't worry about her. She's just sleeping, and I can hear her breathing normally so everything's fine. She'll probably come to any minute now." Toph said before she sipped some of her tea.
"How long was I out... and where did you get that tea?" Sokka asked.
"Oh, I'd say about an hour or so. While you were asleep, I awoke and saw a friend of mine who made this campfire, and this tea." Toph told him.
"A friend of yours?" Sokka asked her as she handed him a cup of tea.
"Yeah, he's an old guy who said that he had go look for his nephew who was training by himself. Before he left, he made this tea, and said that we could keep the pot and cups he left. I guess he made jasmine because it was his favorite kind." Toph said.
As Sokka sipped some of his tea, he looked around the area, and noticed something important was missing.
"Wait a minute, where's Aang?" Sokka asked Toph.
"You must have gotten hit harder than I thought, Sokka. Your "girlfriend" took him away, along with Azula and that other girl." Toph replied.
"Well, Katara always told me I had a hard head. I guess she was right...but that's not the point! I already told you guys before, Ty Lee is NOT my GIRLFRIEND!" Sokka said in an irritated tone.
"Really? You would never know it considering how much I overheard you calling her name and apologizing to her in your sleep!" Toph said with a smile.
Sokka would have continued his argument with Toph, but he knew she was absolutely right. Sokka was still feeling responsible for Ty Lee's sorrow, and now it looked like his friends had paid the price, especially Aang who was now a Fire Nation prisoner. He knew he had to fix this situation and fast, but didn't know how until he saw something on the ground.
"Hey, these footprints are still relatively fresh." Sokka said as he observed the trail ahead of him.
"What does that mean?" Toph asked.
"It means that the Fire Nation girls didn't bother to cover their tracks, and they favor speed over stealth." Sokka explained.
"I don't blame them. My ankle is still too sore for me stand right now, so I don't think we'll be chasing them anytime soon." Toph said as she rubbed her foot.
"Katara will be able to help you when she wakes up. I'm going ahead to see if I can delay Azula and her friends." Sokka said as he stood up.
"Are you sure you're in any condition to be chasing those girls alone, Sokka? Why don't you just wait for Katara to heal your injuries first?" Toph asked.
"There's no time for that now Toph. Those girls already have a huge head start on us, and if I don't go now, it might be too late to save Aang." Sokka said.
"I really don't think that's such a good idea. You shouldn't go looking for trouble right now." Toph said as she poured some more tea.
"Hey, I didn't say it was the smart thing to do, but it is the right thing to do. Besides we don't have a choice." Sokka said.
"Well, if you put it that way, I guess your right. Just...be careful Sokka." Toph replied.
"Don't worry, I will Toph. I'm counting on you to look after my sister while I'm gone. I'll leave a trail that you can follow once you two able to follow." Sokka said as he looked at the two girls.
"Sure, I can take care of her Royal Sweetness for you. We'll catch up with you as soon as we can." Toph stated confidently.
"I'll see you later." Sokka said as he ran off.
Sokka rushed off as fast as he could following the trail of footprints that Azula and her friends had left behind. Sokka used his boomerang to cut into the trees so that Katara and Toph knew which way to go in order to catch up with him. He wasn't fully healed from the previous battle, but he wasn't concerned about that the time.
"I just hope I'm not too late." Sokka said to himself.
While it was true that Sokka wanted to save Aang, that wasn't his only reason for going after Azula and her friends. Even though he didn't let Toph know it, she was completely right about his desire to apologize to Ty Lee for hurting her. Sokka felt guilty for doing so, and felt that it was his responsibility to make amends.
"I've really done it this time." Sokka said as cut some more trees. "I just hope that I don't run into any MORE trouble today."
Sokka ran as fast as he could, but he was still feeling his injuries. He rubbed his arms, as he felt Ty Lee's inflictions upon his body. As he followed the footprints, he eventually came to a clearing that was infiltrated by Fire Nation soldiers. He saw tents that had the Fire Nation insignia, and was prepared for a possible ambush, so he hid behind a nearby tree.
"Just ONCE when I ask to not run into any trouble, I'd like to NOT run into any trouble for a change." Sokka said as he peeked behind the tree and noticed something peculiar.
"Wait a minute...everyone's...gone." Sokka said in confusion.
The campsite was completely empty, except for the tents Sokka saw. He observed the area, and could tell that there were soldiers here recently. Sokka just assumed that they were on patrol and were wandering around in the forest, which made him worry about Katara and Toph. Sokka thought he was lucky and continued through the campsite, following the trail of footprints, until he saw it leading to another clearing where he saw a Fire Navy boat docked at the ocean.
"Oh no, I REALLY hope I'm not too late." Sokka said as he approached the boat.
Sokka noticed that there were no soldiers around the boat, and that's when he knew something was definitely wrong. As he slowly approached the gangplank, he became increasingly nervous, but knew he couldn't back down now. When he reached the top he searched the ship quietly until he saw a way to the lower deck.
"This must be where their keeping Aang. Now all I have to do is find him before the ship sets sail." Sokka said as he saw a lightning blast right beside him causing him to fall over.
"Sorry, but that won't be happening." said a cold female voice.
Sokka wasn't happy as he looked behind him and saw Princess Azula, standing between Mai and Ty Lee, who still had the red marks around her eyes from her tears.
"You see ladies, I told you that the avatar's friends couldn't resist saving him." Azula said confidently.
"What? Oh no, this WAS a trap. I KNEW it was too easy to find you!" Sokka said as he took out his boomerang.
"Of course, it was a trap you fool. Did you really think I would make it this easy for you to find me unless I wanted you to?" Azula said in a sharp tone.
"Wait, so you WANTED me to find you?" Sokka asked in confusion.
"Yes, you see it hadn't occurred to me until we actually won our battle against you that the airbender might go into his avatar state that I heard decimated our forces during the invasion at the North Pole. If he was by himself, he wouldn't have any reason to suppress that power, but if his friends were in the area, he would restrain himself from releasing it." Azula explained.
"So the Fire Nation campsite I passed..." Sokka started.
"Was abandoned for a reason." Azula finished.
"You were just playing a game with me so that you capture my other friends as well as Aang?" Sokka asked.
"That's right, and you just lost. I WAS hoping for the rest of your little group to come along with you, but I guess ONE hostage will have to do." Azula said with a wicked smile.
"I don't think so! You think just because you got the best of me the last...couple of times that you'll be as lucky this time." Sokka bravely stated.
"You just don't get it do you, water peasant? How many times do you have to fail before you learn your lesson? Your foolishness even rivals Zuko's! I don't know if that's more impressive or pathetic! " Azula said in haughty tone as Mai made another glare at her.
"I won't let you get the best of me again!" Sokka said boldly.
"Your defiance is truly amusing. After we win the war, you could be a Fire Nation warrior AND a personal jester." Azula replied.
Sokka was enraged at Azula's constant taunting and underestimating his abilities, but he was feeling the pain of his injuries, which hadn't fully healed. He decided to maintain his composure so that Azula and her friends wouldn't notice.
"What's the matter? A little sore, are we?" Azula said trying to feign sympathy
"NO, I'm just FINE!" Sokka shouted as he rubbed his arm.
"Did we hurt you THAT badly? Well don't worry, once we apprehend you water peasant, you'll be able to rest in one our most comfortable prison cells." Azula said continuing her false kindness.
"Apprehend me? You and what army?!" Sokka shouted bravely.
Azula snapped her fingers and a dozen Fire Nation soldiers ran to her aid who surrounded Sokka, which made him nervous.
"This one from the campsite I passed on the way back to the ship. I thought it would be useful to have more soldiers to guard the avatar, while some of them stayed in the forest searching for the rest of you." Azula said extending her smile.
"You know, that was supposed to be a RHETORICAL question." Sokka said as his injuries felt worse.
As Sokka did his best to fend off the advancing soldiers, Ty Lee run up from behind him and numbed his appendages, causing him to fall over. Sokka tried to move,but the pain from his overexerted body was too much for him, and he felt like he could pass out again at any moment. The last image he saw was Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee surrounding him, and he had one final thought.
"This just ISN'T my day." Sokka said as he closed his eyes and hoped that Katara and Toph were better off than he was now.
That's the end of chapter 8. I'm having fun writing this story, so I'll try to write the next chapter quickly. I'll update as soon as I can.
