I have an announcement to make. I am going to fine-tune some of my previous chapters. I'll be editing out mistakes and adding some more stuff. I already finished fine-tuning chapter one, and you might want to take a look at that one because I made some major changes with Tikaani's part of the story. Some things regarding the fact that she was a completely competent waterbender when she had zero experience, so I made things harder for her so that she's not perfect and stuff. That's all for now.
Tikaani's POV:
"Look at those clear skies, buddy!" Aang mused. "Should be some smooth flying!"
"No more walking?" I gasped. We had just left the Great Divide behind and I was sick of walking. If I had to walk one more step my legs might turn into paper.
"Not so fast." Katara said. "We need to stop at a market. We're out of food."
"I told you not to give all of our food to those giant spiders, but does anyone ever listen to Tikaani?" I questioned. "No!"
"Guys, wait, this was in my dream!" Sokka exclaimed. "We shouldn't go to the marketplace!" Aang and Katara looked at him curiously. "Food eats people!"
"You're idiot." I stated simply.
"Also, Momo could talk! You said some very unkind things!" Sokka grumbled, glaring at Momo. The lemur's ears flattened and he looked guilty.
Ryuu's POV:
"There is a storm coming. A big one!" Iroh muttered as he took a deep breath in through his nose.
"You're out of your mind, uncle!" Zuko snapped. "The weather's perfect, there's not a cloud in sight!"
"I think we should trust your uncle's nose." I concluded, even though no one was listening.
"The storm is approaching from the north. I suggest we alter our course and head southwest." Iroh suggested.
"We know the avatar is traveling northward, so we will do the same." Zuko sneered. I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Prince Zuko, consider the safety of the crew!" Iroh urged.
"The safety of the crew doesn't matter!" Zuko snapped.
"Excuse me?" I judged. Zuko turned around to look in my direction. He slowly walked over towards me, trying to look intimidating. It didn't really work, considering that we were the same height. I wasn't scared of Zuko.
"Finding the avatar is far more important than any individual's safety." He sneered before heading towards his quarters, slamming the door behind him. I stared after him, my eyes narrowed.
"He doesn't mean that, he's just all worked up." Iroh convinced. I didn't buy it.
Tikaani's POV:
"Out of food and out of money! Now what are we supposed to do?"
"You could get a job, brick head!" I chastised. Sokka narrowed his eyes at me.
"We shouldn't go out there! Please, the fish can wait!" I turned around to see the two fishers arguing. The next episode is the Blue Spirit! I realized. "There's going to be a terrible storm!" The old woman cautioned.
"Gah, you're crazy, it's a nice day!" The old man grumbled. "No clouds, no wind, no nothing, so quit your nagging, woman!"
"Maybe we should find some shelter?" Aang suggested. I could tell he was nervous because of the bad dream he had last night.
"Are you kidding?" Sokka criticized. "Shelter from what?"
"My joints say there's going to be a storm! A bad one!" The woman argued.
"Well it's your joints against my brain!" He reasoned.
"Then I hope your brain can find someone else to haul that fish, cause I ain't coming!" The woman spat.
"Then I'll find a new fish hauler and pay him double what you get!" The old man concluded.
"I'll go!" Sokka volunteered.
"I volunteer as tribute!" I hollered. The others looked at me oddly. "What? I want a job too! And may the odds be ever in my favor!" I said in Effie Trinket's voice.
"You're both hired!" The old man said. We began to load the ship and soon, storm clouds started rolling in.
"Sokka, Tikaani… Maybe this isn't such a good idea." Aang advised. "Look at the sky." I looked up at the clouds and shrugged.
"So? It's just a little rain? What's the worst that could happen?" I asked, knowing all too well that Sokka and I would be sick and hallucinating in the next episode. I knew that the next episode was one of my favorites. It was The Blue Spirit. I needed to be sick when the episode started, though. If I wasn't sick in the next episode, I might be tempted to go watch Zuko. That could put the entire episode in jeopardy. I had to be sick… And I had to suck on a frozen frog, whether I liked it or not. I actually kind of want to try one… I have a natural curiosity.
"The boy with the tattoos has some sense!" The woman jeered at her husband. "You should listen to him!"
"Boy with tattoos?" The old fisherman mused. He turned around to look at Aang. "Airbender tattoos. Well I'll be a hog monkey's uncle. You're the avatar, ain't ya?" The old man asked.
"That's right!" Katara chimed. Her and Aang smiled.
"Well don't be all smiley about it! The avatar disappeared for a hundred years! You turned your back on the world!" He yelled.
"Don't yell at him!" Katara nagged. "Aang would never turn his back on anyone!"
"Oh, he wouldn't, eh? Then I guess I must have imagined the last hundred years of war and suffering." The old fisherman muttered sarcastically.
"Aang is the bravest person I know! He has done nothing but help people and save lives since I met him. It's not his fault he disappeared, right Aang?" Katara asked. Unbeknownst to her, Aang was slowly backing away. "Aang what's wrong?" She asked when she noticed. Aang opened his glider and flew away.
"That's right, keep flying!" The old man hollered.
"You're a horrible old man!" Katara insulted.
"Hey! They left without saying goodbye!" I shouted.
"You're friends ain't too polite, are they?" The old man asked. Sokka joined us on the deck.
"I know! This one time I was-" Sokka began, only to be interrupted.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah… Get below deck!" He ordered. Sokka did so without hesitation.
Ryuu's POV:
"Looks like your uncle was right about the storm after all." I grumbled as Zuko walked onto the deck. Thick gray storm clouds lumbered ominously on the horizon. I could here the thunder rumbling even from such a distance. This was a big storm, I could tell.
"Lucky guess…" Iroh shrugged, trying to break the tension in the air. Just then, Zuko glared at me.
"Peasant!" He shouted, stomping over to me. "You better learn some respect or I'll teach it to you." He threatened. Zuko began to walk off, but I wasn't going to let him walk away that easily.
"What do you know about respect?" I sneered. Zuko froze, but he didn't turn to look at me. "The way you talk to everyone around here, from your hard working crew to your esteemed uncle shows you know nothing about respect!" I could see Iroh wincing behind me, but I paid him no mind. "Besides… I only give respect to those who deserve it. The way you've been acting ever since I boarded this ship just proves that you don't deserve my respect. You don't deserve the respect of anyone else on this crew and you don't deserve the respect that your uncle gives you! What would you care, though? You only care about yourself! What else would I expect from a spoiled prince?"
Zuko's eyes narrowed and he whipped around to face me. I narrowed my eyes as well. Both of us got into a fighting stance and headed each other off. Both of our hands started smoking as they heated up. I was prepared to give Prince Hothead a matching scar on the opposite side of his face.
"Enough!" Iroh exclaimed as he stepped between us. I stepped down immediately, but Zuko continued to give me dirty looks. "We're all a bit tired from being at sea so long. I'm sure that after a bowl of noodles, everyone will feel much better." Iroh winked at me when he said noodles. He knew how much I enjoyed food. I turned and walked away, but I could still hear Zuko's voice.
"I don't need your help keeping order on my ship!" Zuko snapped. Iroh tried to calm his nephew down by placing his hand on the young prince's shoulder, but he gave his uncle the cold shoulder. Get it, cause… Oh, never mind… Who does Zuko think he is? I grumbled to myself as I made my way to the mess hall. The room was surprisingly empty. I sat down at the table in the corner where I usually sat. I looked around to make sure no one was listening before I started talking to myself.
"I'm sick of taking his orders and I'm tired of chasing his avatar!" I seethed. "I mean, who does Zuko think he is?" I slammed my fist down on the table and took a swig of jasmine tea.
"Do you really want to know?" Iroh's voice startled me. I spit my jasmine tea clear across the table.
"General Iroh!" I stuttered. Whipping at the tea with my sleeves and trying not to look stupid. My efforts were futile as I made myself look even more stupid. "I was just-"
"It's okay." Iroh assured. "May I join you?"
"Of course, sir!" I nodded vigorously, tea still dripping from my face. Iroh walked over and sat down across from me.
"Try to understand… My nephew is a complicated young man." Iroh started. I nodded. "He has been through much. When Zuko was thirteen, he wanted to attend a war meeting. I told him it was not a good idea, but he pressed for it. I let him into the war meeting. When we were in there, Zuko heard a dreadful plan from one of the generals. His plan was to use a battalion of new recruits as bait while the experienced soldiers launched a sneak attack from the rear. Zuko spoke out against the plan. He thought it wrong to betray them in such a way. Zuko was right, you see, but it was not his place to speak out and there were dire consequences. After Zuko's outburst in the meeting, the Fire Lord became very angry with him. He said that Prince Zuko's challenge of the general was an act of complete disrespect and there was only one way to resolve this." Iroh looked away sadly.
"An Agni Kai?" My eyes widened. "He didn't order a thirteen-year-old kid to fight an Agni Kai…" I was horrified.
"He did. Zuko looked upon the old general he had insulted and declared that he was not afraid. But Zuko misunderstood. When he turned to face his opponent, he was surprised to see it was not the general. Zuko had spoken out against the general's plan, but by doing so in the Fire Lord's war room, it was the Fire Lord whom he had disrespected. Zuko would have to duel his own father."
"What?" My eyes widened. "He… He had to fight the Fire Lord?" Iroh nodded.
"When Prince Zuko saw that it was his father who had come to duel him, he begged for mercy. He refused to fight his father. Ozai did not hesitate. He decided to teach Prince Zuko a lesson that day… I looked away…" Iroh closed his eyes to finish his tale. That was when I realized that Zuko hadn't obtained his scar under normal circumstances. His father had given it to him.
"I… I always thought that he'd been in a training accident…" I trailed off.
"It was no accident. After the duel the Fire Lord said that by refused to fight, Zuko had shown shameful weakness. As punishment he was banished and sent to capture the avatar. Only then could he return with his honor." Iroh finished.
"That's why he's so obsessed… Capturing the avatar is the only way he can return home. It's the only way he can restore his honor. It's the only way for things to return to normal." I mused. Iroh shook his head.
"Things will never return to normal, but the important thing is that the avatar gives Zuko hope." Iroh said. I was about to nod, but suddenly I heard a loud crash. "The storm!" Iroh cried. We ran onto the deck. The rest of the crew, along with Prince Zuko, had already gathered.
"Where were we hit?" Zuko shouted through the wind and rain of the rumbling typhoon.
"I don't know!" I tried to look around, but there was dirty rainwater in my eyes. Suddenly I noticed a wisp of smoke up by the helmsman's peak. "Look!" I pointed. The lookout deck was completely destroyed and the helmsman was hanging off the edge.
"The helmsman!" Zuko called. Zuko ran over to a ladder that led up to the helmsman's peak. I followed him up the ladder. Suddenly, the ship hit a large wave and the helmsman slipped. He fell, but Zuko grabbed his arm and lowered him down to me. Lucky for him, he was skinny and light. I looked up at Zuko. He smiled. I smiled and nodded. We saved the say! I thought excitedly to myself. We brought the helmsman down to the deck. Some guards took him below, where it was dry. We were about to follow them. "The avatar!" Zuko cried. I looked towards the sky to see the sky bison flying through the storm.
"What should we do?" I asked Prince Zuko.
"Let him go." Zuko ordered. My eyes widened. "We need to get this ship to safety."
"Then we must head directly into the eye of the storm." Iroh smiled.
Tikaani's POV:
For the record, this was a terrible idea. I lost my breakfast over the edge of the ship. How does Zuko do it? I thought as we hit another wave. I was like this before we left port, before the storm even started. As the waves increased, so did my seasickness. Never again. No more boats. EVER. I promised myself, hoping never to break the promise. Come on Aang, please save us…
"I'm too young to die!" Sokka cried.
"I'm not but I still don't wanna!" The old man cheered. Just then, Appa showed up and I leaped through the air, grabbing hold of Appa's rains and climbing my way into the saddle. I curled up in a fetal position and promised myself that I'd never get on a boat ever again. Aang brought Sokka and the old man onto the saddle.
"Wave!" I cried. A huge tower stretched over us. If I die in the anime, do I die in real life? I wondered as the wave crashed down on us. We were swept into the ocean. We all would have died, had Aang not entered the avatar state and saved our friggin' butts! We flew off, into the sky. I looked back at Zuko as he watched us fly away. He was so sad… I wished I could slap that scar off his face… He'd probably like that… I giggled to myself and collapsed onto the saddle, unconscious.