Me: YES! YESYESYESYESYESYES!
Lupe: What?
Zuko: What's wrong with you!
Lupe: Hey! Chill!
Zuko: NO! I'VE BEEN LOCKED IN A CLOSET FOR THE PAST THREE WEEKS! ALONE, AND IN THE DARK!
Me: … I have no free time! It's not my fault! Blame soccer!
Lupe: You had enough time for my birthday!
Me: OH YEAH! EVERYBODY IT WAS LUPE'S BIRTHDAY LAST SATURDAY! :DDD
Zuko: Cool! Back to my problems
Me: Don't be selfish! And YOUR problems always take a back seat to mine. Like the fact that I haven't been out with my friends in like three weeks! :O
Zuko: *sarcastic* poor you.
Lupe: Yeah I've been bored!
Me: Me too! Damn geometry and biology D:
Zuko: Are you seriously talking about school! I WAS TRAPPED IN A CLOSET!
Me: Well now you're out so cheer up!
Zuko: IT DOESN'T MATTER IF I AM OUT OF THE CLOSET OR NOT! IT STILL HURTS!
Me/Lupe: *looks at each other* Think about what you just said…
Zuko: Oh God! I AM NOT GAY!
Me: If you were gay…
Zuko: What are you-
Me: That would be okay!
Zuko: Okay, funny now-
Me: I mean CUZ HEY!
Zuko: Are you se-
Me: I LIKE YOU ANYWAY!
Zuko: I am not-
Me: Because you seeeee
Zuko: Are you hi-
Me: IF IT WERE ME!
Zuko: Are you les-
Me: I would feel free to say that I was gay! But I'm not gay!
Zuko: I think that's denial.
Lupe: I'm trapped in here with two idiots…
Will they find our hiding place?
Is this our last embrace?
Or will the walls start caving in?
Resistance- Muse
Chapter 10- Resistance
Sokka was having a crappy day, but on the contrary Zuko's day was going unnaturally well. Sokka and Zuko's out looks on life were due to the cause of one thing, actually a person, and Zuko was currently holding hands with that person, which is probably the reason that Sokka's day was going so poorly.
"Now don't go gloating or anything to Sokka, because I know you will." Katara said forcibly. Zuko smiled but didn't respond and Katara shot him a look. "I'm serious, don't."
"I know you are." He responded a bit mockingly. "But…" Katara cut him off before he got started.
"No." He put on his best puppy dog face and she smiled. "That's adorable but still, no."
"You think I'm adorable?" Zuko teased, Katara smiled.
"I'm not going to say, your ego is big enough already." Zuko shrugged concluding it was fair point.
They were easily strolling around in the streets of Zhejiang still not close to the influx of shops that would suit Zuko's purpose better than any street vendor that came from the country, and he was scared of who would recognize him.
He had been to a small farming village just north of the town, and the last time he had made quite an impression. He distinctly remembered the entire population coming out to make sure he left, even after he got rid of the pathetic Earth Kingdom soldiers. He smiled as he thought of the little kid Lee.
"We came to this place before." Katara remarked. Zuko looked down at her. "The people were a lot friendlier." He did notice something different. He and Katara were not being called out to by the scared merchants on the streets, mothers pulled their children closer to them as they walked, there wasn't anyone who wasn't armed in some way, and they were getting very dirty looks, especially Zuko.
"They're just tense from the war. A year isn't that long for old prejudices to past." He reasoned, though it wasn't particularly true, hatred maybe some of the problem but there was something else, lurking just below the surface.
"Where are we going to look anyway? Where would your mother stop at?" Katara looked around at the milling people, most avoided her gaze.
"She would have at least stayed in a town like this for several weeks. It would have let her learn the Earth Kingdom styles and customs, she would have learned what to do. That was the biggest problem for Uncle and I, we were always asked 'where are you from' well that and –"Zuko babbled nervously. This is where he could possibly find his mother; just maybe she heard about the war ending and had stopped in this town on her way back to the port. And the constant staring of the town's people was setting him on edge.
"Shh… calm down." Katara said squeezing his hand gently. "You're making me anxious alright, look there's a shop lets go ask."
"Okay," Zuko felt embarrassed that he let himself ramble like that. "Remember my name is Lee, and your name is-"
"Sapphire Fire." She giggled, and Zuko rolled his eyes, he had been informed of the joke earlier and thought that the whole idea was completely stupid, which only hid the utter shame in his country that their brightest adult could not recognize the Avatar even when he's right under their noses.
"Suit yourself." He teased slightly.
"It's better than Junior." She muttered. Zuko whipped hishead towards Katara who looked innocent.
"How do you know about that?" His face was a mask of shock and horror. She slyly smiled, but didn't reply. They walked into the store and they looked around. Zuko had explained this all to Katara earlier. They would buy something and mention the woman in passing. People would be more likely to talk if they are getting money.
"This is pretty." Katara said. Zuko looked down and saw a scroll that depicted an Earth Bender lifting a rock over his head, colored with paint splatters
"It's unique." He admitted. He always thought art was useless though.
"Kind of useless though…" Katara debated. Zuko smiled tightly.
"That's what I was thinking." Katara laughed.
"Can you read my mind?" She asked and Zuko pressed his fingers to temples. He opened his eyes to find nearly the whole store looking at him, Katara was flushed and tugged at his arms giggling.
"You're strange, and people are staring." She said though the urgency was lost in the laughter. He lowered his hands and took one of hers again.
"Be lucky I didn't start to chant." He warned with an entirely straight face. Katara laughed, but then stopped as she saw he was serious.
"You really wouldn't do that would you?" She asked, a bit of concern crossing her face.
"Immediately and without hesitation."He was expressionless. Katara creased her eyebrows, and he gave a cheeky smile.
"Great." She said a bit nervously.
"I'm kidding." He laughed. "How about this?" He held up a scroll depicting an intricate Earth Bending move. "Toph would like it!"
"Toph can't read." Katara frowned at her boyfriend, sometimes he could have his blonde-moments, she noted.
"Aang could read it to her and show her how… though I don't think she needs more ways to kill people…" He hesitated about to set down the scroll. A woman came near them and was about to pick up the scroll but after looking at it set it back down.
"Well we need to buy something. Why not buy something for everyone." Katara offered. Zuko quickly picked up the scroll again in answer and they walked towards the clerk who smiled falsely at them. Actually he only seemed to notice Katara, he completely ignored Zuko.
"Did you find everything alright?" The clerk said speaking only to Katara, which pissed Zuko off a bit. He was used to being the center of attention, whether it is being glared at or bowed down to.
"Just fine," Katara answered oblivious to her being singled out.
"Three silver pieces please." The clerk said. Katara looked at Zuko.
"Lee, do you have money?" She asked though she already knew the answer.
"Sure," He pulled out the money and laid it on the counter. The clerk looked at it suspiciously, as if it was poisoned. Katara noticed the obvious distain towards Zuko.
"Actually three silver pieces seem like a lot, we can always just leave." She said tactfully. The clerk looked at Katara and instantly started to worry.
"No, I'm sorry, just… your friend… he's Fire Nation isn't he." The clerk seemed nervous and eyed Zuko's sword nervously. Again the clerk never spoke directly to the owner of the swords.
"Yes. I am. I'm not a bender though." Zuko lied easily. The clerk still looked uneasy.
"There… there have been a lot of… dislike towards Fire Benders… even after the war…" The clerk seemed uncomfortable saying this to Zuko. Zuko accepted this as a perfectly legitimate excuse though. He knew prejudice against the people who repressed the Earth Kingdom citizens was going to be hard to get over. His first few months in office were spent rounding up so called 'nationalist' groups who would try and raise a militia to start a coup and take over a small town somewhere in the fire nation.
"That's why I left the Fire Nation two years before the war ended." Zuko lied again smoothly. The clerk visibly relaxed.
"That's strange I haven't seen you around here, I'm Tao." He started to warm up and that was exactly was Zuko had been hoping.
"I'm Sapphire, and this is Lee. We're not from around here. We're actually looking for someone and stopped in the town for supplies, and just happened into your lovely shop." She gave Tao a bright friendly smile. She's always so kind, and Zuko felt a warm surge of happiness as he remembered she was his.
"Well, who you looking for? I know just about everyone in the town." Tao offered. Zuko broke in, eagerly.
"A woman, my mother actually, I lost her when we were fleeing the Fire Nation, she would be about forty maybe, pale with long black hair, thin and tall? She would have just passed through maybe for a month." Zuko's palms felt sweaty as Tao looked down at the counter his face screwed up with thinking. Katara gave his hand a squeeze for luck.
"No, sorry. No one I know is like that. Good luck with your looking though." He gave a cheery wave of his hands and thrust the bag with the scroll into their general vicinity.
Zuko couldn't help but feel discouraged as he took the bag. The words 'I know just about everyone in the town' kept bouncing around his head. He had had the unrealistic hope that his mother would be living just down the street from the shop and he would walk in to find her knitting or making tea or something and she would run tearfully and hug him…
Maybe…
"It's just one person, we'll keep looking." Katara soothed.
"Okay," Zuko said, slowly and just a little discouraging. And his discouragement kept increasing with the passing of the day.
They visited all the shops on the main street and accumulated a granite ball for Toph, the scroll for Aang, and a wrist band for Sokka that had an etching of a leopard-tiger. Zuko wanted to get him something that he himself had picked out but Katara didn't think it would be nice.
"I still say we should have gotten him that lovely necklace." Zuko said, the necklace in question was for five year olds, it included a pretty carving of a flower with a butterfly.
"You need to be the bigger person here." Katara said rolling her eyes. Zuko gave her an odd look and a smile.
"When have I ever been the bigger person? I'm a spoiled brat." She giggled despite herself. "Wait here for a second."
"Why?" Katara asked.
"Trust me?" He didn't say anything more, and Katara just nodded, still a little suspicious.
"I'll be right back." He promised, and before he left, brought Katara's hand to his lips. She blushed and before she could protest, Zuko had whisked away into the crowd.
Katara felt awkward just standing there, and so went to sit down on a bench. She watched people until someone came and sat down beside her. She glanced over and it was a man in his twenties. Katara settled back to people watch when… "Hey, you. What's your name?"
"None of your business." Katara replied coolly, she was used to dealing with these types. They were unfortunately in abundance in the South Pole.
"You were with that Fire Nation guy earlier right?" The guy inched closer, she could tell that he was obviously Fire Nation too with pale skin and pitch black hair.
"Yeah, and I don't need him to protect me so why don't you just leave me alone." Katara said and she got up. The man just looked after her as she stalked in the general direction Zuko went. He shook his head in annoyance. It wasn't her they wanted, why couldn't she see that?
"Hey," Zuko said as he saw Katara marching towards him. His grin slowly dimmed and the rose in his hand suddenly lost its romance. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, just some guy. Forget it." Katara brushed it off. Zuko looked around and tried to see him.
"Who was it?" He had an angry glare on his face. "He didn't bother you did he?" Katara rolled her eyes.
"I'm fine, I don't need you to fight my battles." She said and he looked a bit hurt.
"Yeah I know, I'm sorry, it's not that I don't know you can it's just that, I don't want you to have to. If that makes sense…" He felt a small blight of remorse for his off handed comment but Katara smiled a bit and she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Thanks. I understand what you mean." He smiled and lifted the rose.
"You missed, if I give you this, will your aim improve?" He had a smirk on his now preoccupied lips. This was turning his day from depressing to better. A lot better. Katara broke apart from him insisting that people were staring and she tucked the rose behind her ear.
"It really is beautiful. Where did you find it?" She asked fingering it. Zuko gave a small glow of pleasure, he never was very romantic with Mai, she never was into the mushy crap, and knowing he did something right filled him with a warm feeling.
"In a little shop, my mother wasn't seen…" He informed, his voice fell in disappointment. Katara sighed.
"I'm sorry." She said gently. Zuko shrugged but said nothing. He knew it was a slim shot but his hope was still raised.
They walked a minute in silence. Until finally Zuko broke it. "We still have an hour to kill. What do you want to do?" Katara looked up and he grinned down.
"I don't care, whatever you want, you said you've been here before right? You were probably here longer than us." Zuko squirmed uncomfortably.
"Well… when I say here, I mean a few miles to the north… not a good experience." Katara was quiet for a second then bounced back.
"We can go to the market and just look around." She suggested half-heartedly.
"Or we could just talk." Zuko suggested nodding to a bench. Katara smiled.
"I like that better." She admitted. They made their way to the bench but noticed a small disturbance around them.
"Hello." A voice behind them said. They spun around and Zuko's hand went to his swords and Katara's to her water skin. It was the same man from earlier.
"Get out of here." Katara hissed. The man held up his hands in a sign of peace.
"I want to talk to you." The man, unlike most of the population only addressed Zuko. Zuko in response snarled.
"You creep on my girlfriend, you bother us and you have the nerve to come up and demand that I talk to you? You have two seconds to turn around and walk away before I make you."
"You're Fire Nation aren't you?" The man called ignoring his warning. Zuko's hand flashed to his own face before realizing the paint was still intact. Katara looked up frowning at him and slowly shook her head.
"Why should you care?" Zuko said and continued to walk away, Katara gave him a small nod.
The man came up behind them and put his hand on their shoulders and pushed them apart so he could get in the middle, at the same time he began pushing against their back forcing them to the space between two shops. Katara turned around and punched the man in the stomach. Zuko whippedhis swords out, except the man had done his job, two men rushed out and dragged them backwards. The man picked Zuko's swords up from where they fell out of his hands and stuck them in the ground of the mouth of the alley crushing the rose that fell from the girls hair.
The man who had just kidnapped the couple were pretty smug right now, Manchu was his name, the man who had distracted them. Except they had forgotten Katara, which was the first of two mistakes they made.
The first mistake was probably the bigger of the two. Katara still had complete use of her hands since the people dragging her, held her under her armpits. She created the water whip and sent it flying back into the face of her captor, then into Zuko's.
The second mistake was forgetting how dangerous a Fire Bender can be when pissed off, and Zuko was pissed off. He just wanted to have a nice date with his girlfriend, finally after months of pining he finally gets to treat her like a lady and like his. And maybe finally find his mother and these sons of bitches were not going to take that away from him.
Once Katara knocked down the man holding him, Zuko sprang up and sprinted towards the entrance, Manchu's fist began to glow and he punched. Zuko's instincts kicked in he ducked the fire not coming anywhere close to him, and picked up his swords. Manchu looked at the swords and then to grave look on Zuko's face. He had a feeling that this man wouldn't hesitate to kill him.
Manchu hesitated and that gave Zuko the chance to slam his hilt against his temple. Manchu was indeed counted lucky by his colleges who were facing Katara.
Katara had her water out and was whipping her stream of water around her and blocking fire blasts and slashing her whip down on her unawares attackers, which was pretty simple for someone of her stature. Until someone hooked their arm around her neck and tackled her.
She elbowed the person in the face but the arm constricted, the heat began to build and Katara started lashing out wildly but the burning pain around her neck limited her movements, his friend began to shout encouragements at him, and jeer at Katara. Not all of them have escaped harm from the Water bender. A flash of iron brushed right in front of Katara's face down the length of the man's arm. Blood spurted from the cut and dripped onto her clothes, but Zuko's action had done it's work. The man grunted and clutched his arm, and released Katara. She stood up quickly and summoned her water again.
"Thanks." She said and tried to ignore the pain on her throat and chest.
"No problem." Zuko said as he blocked a fire blast with his swords.
Conversation was scarce for a few minutes as they both concentrated in order to fight. Until a feminine voice called "Stop!" All the men stopped and stood straight, in a strangely robotic movement. Katara and Zuko, back to back, still kept their weapons out, just in case.
"You idiots, why on earth would you attack this man?" A woman called. In unison the men replied.
"He refused Ma'am." Zuko felt a sudden wave of fear. This woman reminded him of his sister. Cold, calculating, and manipulative, with white skin and black hair pulled back into a top knot, like the Fire Nation style, the only difference was this woman's nose was broken and her eyes were a mahogany. Because of his fright Zuko growled.
"What did we refuse? Your men kidnapped us!" He shouted. The woman frowned and cocked her head in annoyance then turned her pitiless eyes on her soldiers, there are no other words for them.
"You fools! Why would you attack him!" The woman spat and the men flinched and offered apologies. The woman scoffed and brushed them off like bothersome flies.
"They attacked us because you are all crazy! Let us leave if you have any sense at all." Katara yelled. She sidestepped Zuko and raised her water, freezing it into a deadly icicle. The woman brushed Katara off too and, addressing only Zuko, gave a low bow.
"My deepest and humblest apologies Fire Lord Zuko, we are honored to have you fight for my cause."
Anyone else creeped out? :O! I mean if a group of people came up and started attacking your girlfriend and you just happen to be oh the Prince of France or more so JAPAN! And your incognito and the leader of the people just comes up and starts calling you the Prince of Japan, WOULDN'T YOU BE CREEPED! You don't know? Really? This has never happened to you? Really? Oh… Okay…
This is awkward.
Sorry for the really long wait. Soccer has officially killed my social life, and my writing life. Soccer is great only if it wasn't so time consuming! GAR! So that is partly the reason I haven't written in a while… and the fact that I got very bad writers block about half way through…
Anyway, you might have notice how fluffy FAIL this chapter is! I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'm very bad at fluff… it's just awkward for me I don't know why!
The song is about the whole "damn you found my secret out" thing at the end of the chapter. I love muse, and it's my jam! I rock out to it.
I'm very anxious to get on to the next chapter. :P Hope anyone who is like me and are drowning in homework KEEP ON LEARNING!
Thank you for all my reviews THEY WERE AWESOME! Review/Favorite/Alert if you haven't already! Except for the reviews you can tell me anything you want anytime!
The song that I was singing in my above A/N is called "if you were gay" by avenue Q it's hilarious! And I can recite it from memory.
Lupe: We are both sorry for the long wait, and hope this is suffice. Ignore Bridget's down grading comments, help boost her confidence by reviewing and saying that the fluff was good. Which it was! Thanks and keep Reiding/Reviewing/Writing! :D