CHAPTER TEN
"Come on, brain, shut off!" I whine, turning over onto my stomach and burying my face in one of the pillows on my bed. "I want to sleep!"
I lie still and listen to the loudest silence I've ever heard for a couple of minutes; then I give up and, with a groan I'm too tired to stifle, sit up again and turn my head to the right to look out the window. I see a full moon and wonder if, back at Air Temple Island, Mom and Kya are outside, practicing a particularly challenging waterbending move under the light of Yue… but then I realize that it's probably around two o'clock in the morning and that that they're almost definitely asleep.
I walk over to the window and lift up the glass, then stick my head out and glance up at the moon. "Why can't I sleep, Yue?" I ask.
She doesn't respond, but as I stare at her I realize what's been keeping me awake: Uncle Sokka. I've been thinking about him ever since Izumi and I returned from the beach earlier.
While Izumi and I were swimming, I saw a Water Tribe ship in the distance. It reminded me that I should have gone ice dodging already. It's a time-honored tradition that serves as a rite of passage for children of the Southern Water Tribe. When a child turns fourteen, their father takes them out on a boat to go ice dodging. Grandpa never took Uncle Sokka because he had left to go fight in the war before Uncle Sokka came of age, but his second-in-command, Bato, took him, Mom, and even Dad when they met up with each other in some Earth Kingdom village. It went flawlessly, but that was because Uncle Sokka knew how to sail and told Mom and Dad what to do. Uncle Sokka offered to take me last winter, after we had returned to the South Pole for winter break, since I had turned fourteen a few months prior, but I, still scared of the water, declined the offer.
I'm not scared now, though, and I want to go. There is nothing I want to do more than go ice dodging and earn my mark — but how can I ask Uncle Sokka to take me when I've refused to speak to him for almost two years? I don't know how to apologize to him, much less ask for a favor.
I take one last look at the moon, then walk out of the room and down the corridor, towards the kitchen. When I peek my head around the wall, I see Uncle Zuko sitting at the table, sipping from a teacup and playing with the chain of his gold necklace. I start to head back towards my room, but when he calls my name I feel obligated to enter the kitchen. When I do, I keep my head bowed, afraid to look at him because I have no idea if he's still mad at me for getting all hands-on-y with his daughter before.
"You can have a seat, Bumi," he says with a roll of his eyes. "I don't bite."
"Yeah, no, you just burn," I retort before I can stop the words from escaping my lips.
Uncle Zuko chuckles, then gestures to the seat across from him. "Yes, well, I wouldn't burn you to teach you a lesson. I'm not my father," he replies.
I sit down at the table and direct my gaze downwards, ordering myself not to look at the burn scar his father gave him for speaking out of turn at a war meeting.
"You don't have to be afraid of me, Bumi," Uncle Zuko continues, his tone serious. "I can't and won't pretend that I like seeing Izumi with someone. I don't. She's my little girl, even if she is turning sixteen in a couple of days." He takes a sip of his tea, then sighs. "If she has to be entertained by anyone, though, I'm glad it's you. She has a lot of boys fawning over her, and I can't help but fear that they're just trying to get with her because she's the Crown Princess — but that's not the case with you. I know that. You're a good kid. You treat her well and you make her happy. I don't want you two being all touchy-feely in public because such behavior would disgrace the Crown, but I give you permission to do whatever she wants behind closed doors. I trust her… and I trust you."
I release the breath I've unknowingly been holding and meet Uncle Zuko's gaze. "Thank you, Uncle," I respond softly, partly to avoid waking anyone up and partly because I'm surprised that I gained his approval so easily.
"You're welcome." He grabs another teacup from the set on the table, then pours me some tea. "Here." He slides the cup towards me. "What's on your mind, kid? You look upset."
"I couldn't sleep, that's all," I answer, accepting the cup with an appreciative nod. "Why are you up?" I ask, raising the cup to my lips to take a sip.
"I was doing some work. I'm on vacation, but that doesn't mean I don't have to lead my nation." He strokes his beard with one hand and stares down at the teacup in front of him. "We've discovered a new group of Ozai loyalists on the outskirts of Capital City, and from what I understand, their leader is using my current absence as evidence of my disloyalty."
"How can anyone be loyal to Ozai?" I wonder aloud. "He was a dictator, a monster!"
"He used schools to spread his pro-war propaganda, and he and his father and grandfather indoctrinated the nation's youth," Uncle Zuko replies. "When generations of people are taught one thing about something, it's hard to believe that someone who says the opposite is telling the truth." He shakes his head sadly, then continues. "We're a proud people, and we don't like being humbled. I understand that, under the new world order, some citizens feel like we've lost our power, our significance… but what they don't understand is how little their lives were worth to my father." He takes a sip of tea and shrugs, behaving as if he has this conversation every day. "It is what it is, and I do what I can to try to improve things, but it'll take time. It's been twenty-odd years since I declared the war to be over, but it's impossible to undo a hundred-odd years of propagandizing and war in a fraction of that time."
Does that mean I'll have to spend two years trying to make up to Uncle Sokka? I don't…
"Bumi?"
"Yeah, Uncle?"
"What are you thinking about? You look miserable."
"Oh." I drag my finger along the rim of my teacup. "I just… I want to go ice dodging."
"You want to go do what?" Uncle Zuko asks, staring at me as if I've lost my mind.
"I want to go ice dodging." I sit up straighter and meet his gaze. "It's a rite of passage for Southern Water Tribe children. When a child turns fourteen, their father takes them ice dodging — but since Dad isn't Water Tribe and doesn't know how to sail, Uncle Sokka was going to take me. We were supposed to go last winter, but we didn't because I was still scared of going sailing, of going in the water." I glance down at the elaborate design on the teacup for a second, then return my attention to Uncle Zuko. "I was so afraid of drowning, of being powerless, that I didn't realize until today just how much I missed being in the water. I love the water and I love the feeling of the ocean breeze on my skin… but it's been years since I've said more than two words to Uncle Sokka. How am I supposed to apologize for how I've treated him since the accident? How am I supposed to convince him to take me ice dodging when I've treated him like crud for so long?" I continue, blinking away the tears that are threatening to fall. "I just… I don't know what to do. I'm afraid that things will never be how they used to be between us."
"I've never known Sokka to be unforgiving, Bumi," Uncle Zuko remarks, reaching across the table and placing his hand on top of mine. "And I've known him a long time. I would be extremely surprised if he did anything besides hug you and ask when you want to go." Uncle Zuko withdraws his hand and shoots me a sincere look. "Sokka loves you, Bumi, as much as if you were his own son. I have no doubt that he'll forgive you and take you ice dodging."
"How can you be so sure?" I ask.
"I've been in your position before," he answers.
"You have?" I ask, once again surprised by the amount of things Uncle Zuko and I have in common, despite our many glaring differences.
"Yes. When I was still attempting to capture your father…" Uncle Zuko chuckles at the thought, which seems so ridiculous now, then gets serious again, "I… sort of stabbed my uncle, Iroh, in the back — not literally, of course," he adds, seeing my horrified expression. "I said all sorts of cruel, horrible things to him, and then renounced him as my family in favor of Azula and my father. I acted heartlessly. Uncle Iroh was the man who had been a real father to me, and I essentially told him to stick his you-know-what where the sun don't shine.
"When we stumbled across the White Lotus encampment right before the arrival of Sozin's Comet, I was terrified," he continues. "I didn't want to face him. I didn't know how to apologize, and I didn't think he would forgive me for all the things I had said and done… but I knew what had to be done, so off to his tent I went. He was sleeping when I got there, but when he awoke, words came pouring out of my mouth like water from a fountain. I didn't give myself a chance to think; I just said what I felt. I said that what I did to him was my biggest regret and my greatest source of shame, and before I could even finish apologizing he enveloped me in a hug and told me that he had never been angry at me.
"I was shocked by how easily Uncle Iroh had forgiven me, but after some thought, I realized that that was just the love he had me — and that's the same love that Sokka has for you, Bumi. Sokka will forgive you as easily as Uncle Iroh forgave me, and you two will pick up right where you left off, just as my uncle and I did."
"You mean to tell me that he just forgave you, no questions asked?"
"Yes."
I drink some tea and contemplate Uncle Zuko's words. Uncle Sokka loves me — that much I know. I've never doubted that Uncle Sokka loves me, and it seems like he loves me like Great Uncle Iroh loved Uncle Zuko. Uncle Sokka's tried time and time again to bridge the gap between us — but could he really forgive me so easily?
I hope so, I think as I shift to look out the window.
"While I was in the water, I saw a Water Tribe ship — or what looked like a Water Tribe ship, at least," I admit, my gaze fixed on the scene illuminated by moonlight. "It seemed to be headed north, so it was probably coming from the Southern Water Tribe and heading to Republic City." I drag my finger along the rim of the teacup in my hands, then shake my head as if to scold myself for getting off track so easily. "When I saw that ship, it made me remember that I've never been ice dodging, even though I'm old enough to go. It also made me realize how much I've missed sailing. I… I've realized that what I want to do is sail."
"Okay. What's wrong with that?" Uncle Zuko inquires, shooting me a curious look.
"I don't know how I'm supposed to fit sailing into the big picture," I answer, turning back around to face him even though I'm well aware of the frustrated expression on my face.
"What do you mean?"
"I'm the Avatar's son, Uncle," I whine, tugging at my wild hair. "I'm the Avatar's nonbending son, but still. I have to uphold his legacy. I want to uphold his legacy — all of your legacies. Dad, Mom, Uncle Sokka, Aunt Toph, and you did the impossible and restored balance to a world devastated by what then seemed like a never-ending war, and it's my job as a child of Team Avatar and as a member of the next generation to maintain the balance you all established. I don't know how I can do that as a nonbender, though. I mean, everyone else's future has been all but set in stone since their bending abilities became apparent. When you abdicate the throne — or die — Izumi will succeed you as the Fire Lord. Kya will become a healer. Tenzin will have children and repopulate the Air Nomads, and eventually train the next Avatar in airbending. And even though Lin is still a toddler, we all think that she's going to join Aunt Toph's Metalbending Police Force. But me?" I shoot Uncle Zuko a desperate, frustrated look. "What am I supposed to do? I'm not a bender, so I don't have a set destiny like everyone else. I can fight and I can sail, and that's about it. What can I do to help maintain balance with that scanty set of skills?"
"Well… what about the military? You ever consider joining the United Forces?" he asks.
"No, not really," I answer. "I can't consider something I know next to nothing about. All I know about the United Forces is that it's some sort of military."
"It's the world's military," Uncle Zuko tells me. "When Aang and I were creating the United Republic of Nations out of the old Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom, Sokka suggested that we establish some sort of military to protect it, since there were rebellions going on still in some of colonies. I agreed immediately, but Aang was more hesitant, due to his pacifist nature. 'I don't want the United Republic to have a military. The Air Nomads didn't have a formal military,' he'd said. 'And look at what happened to them because of it,' I'd answered.
"While he acknowledged that I had a point, he still insisted that the creation of a military would undermine our goal of the United Republic serving as a beacon of hope that we can all coexist peacefully. We talked about the situation with Sokka and Earth King Kuei, and Sokka came up with the idea — a compromise of sorts — that a military would be created, but it would serve sort of as the military of the world, rather than as just the military of the Republic. It would serve as a supplementary force to whichever nation's military was in need of its assistance, while also serving as the military of the Republic in the sense that it would fight first and foremost for the United Republic in the event of an international war, since the United Republic doesn't have its own formal military like the other nations do."
"Wow, that's… brilliant!" I grin. "It… it ensures that the United Republic is protected, but it also encourages integration, international cooperation, and peace."
"Yes, exactly." Uncle Zuko takes a sip of his tea, then continues. "While the United Forces serves as the United Republic's first line of defense, its larger purpose is to help maintain balance throughout the world — so while the United Forces is formally affiliated with the United Republic, soldiers in the Forces go wherever they are needed, and are consequently deployed all around the world.
"The United Forces is composed of two branches," he elaborates. "The Army consists of five battalions, each with about two hundred and seventy-five soldiers. The Navy, which is the larger branch, consists of two divisions, each containing about a thousand soldiers." He shoots me a pointed look. "You could join the Navy, Bumi," he suggests. "You'd get to sail around the world while enforcing peace and maintaining balance — and since the United Forces was created by Aang, Sokka, and I, it's directly connected to our legacies."
I don't attempt to hide the smile that tugs the corners of my lips towards either side of my face. "How old do you have to be to join?" I ask excitedly.
"Sixteen."
When I go to respond, Uncle Zuko holds up his hand to signal me to be quiet. "You can join when you're sixteen if — and only if — you have parental permission. Aang, for reasons I still don't understand, insisted on upping the age requirement to eighteen. I consented… on the condition that people could join at sixteen so long as their parents gave their written consent."
"What? Why would you do that?" I whine, my voice indignant. "My mother will never consent to my joining the Forces!" I cross my arms over my chest and pout. "She was devastated when Grandpa left to join the war efforts. She'll never let her son do the same."
"Well, perhaps Aang can convince her to consent when the time comes," Uncle Zuko replies, shrugging. "You've still got a while to wait in the meantime, though, Bumi. You don't even turn fifteen for another couple of months — which is good because joining the United Forces is a serious decision. Once someone enlists, there's no getting out until their contract is up. If you join, you'd be giving your life to the organization four years at a time. You ought to think long and hard about—."
"I don't care, Uncle!" I exclaim. "I'm willing to give my life to the Forces. If I join, I'll be able to do what I love. I'll have a purpose… and who knows? I might even be able to make a name for myself there besides 'the Avatar's son' or, even worse, 'the Avatar's nonbending son.'"
"I can see that. I imagine you'd be quite successful there," Uncle Zuko responds, a warm smile appearing on his face as he looks at me. "I'm going to meet some of the new recruits in a couple of days — on Izumi's birthday, as luck would have it," he adds, rolling his eyes. "I'll be accompanied by Mai, as is customary, but Izumi usually tags along, too. You should come with us."
"I'd love to!" I cry, jumping up and pumping my fist.
My smile is contagious, apparently, because it quickly appears on Uncle Zuko's face; but as the corners of his lips turn upwards into a smile, he raises a finger to his mouth, signaling for me to lower my voice. I sit down again, my cheeks red and a sheepish smile on my face.
"Sorry," I apologize. "I'm just excited. I'd love to meet the new recruits. I'll be one of them in a couple of ye—wait! Why are you going to meet them, rather than the people on the United Republic Council?"
"While the Council commands the Forces, they don't care about them — with the exception of Sokka, of course," Uncle Zuko explains, dismissing the Council with a wave of his hand. "There are also no training grounds in the United Republic. The Army recruits train in a special military compound in the western Earth Kingdom, while the Navy recruits train in a fortified compound just outside of Harbor City in the Fire Nation Capital.
"The United Forces branches host two six-month-long boot camps: one in January and one in July. The second round of recruits for this year just finished their first month of boot camp, and since the Navy's training grounds are in Capital City, it is my job to visit and thank the recruits for their sacrifice, as well as the current soldiers for their service," Uncle Zuko continues. "I'll be attending their graduation from boot camp, too, but that won't be until the end of the year. You'll have long since returned to Republic City by then."
"Well, that makes sense… but why are the training grounds in the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation to begin with?" I ask, shooting him a confused look. "I get that the Council isn't very concerned with the Forces, but the organization is still affiliated with the United Republic, so shouldn't the training grounds be located in the Republic?"
"Yes… but just because something should be doesn't mean something is," Uncle Zuko answers. "When Aang, Sokka, and I were still discussing the mere idea of the United Forces, we quickly realized that we would need generals and admirals to train the new recruits, as well as experienced soldiers to get the ball rolling until the first batch of recruits were trained. We asked the Earth King, King Kuei, to send whoever he could; and in the meantime, Sokka gathered some warriors from the Water Tribe and I scouted my troops for volunteers. We got some Water Tribe soldiers to join us, but not many, since there weren't a lot to spare. The majority of the men, as well as all of the officers, came from the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation.
"King Kuei and I requested that our soldiers be granted United Republic citizenship, and after the newly-formed Council agreed, we did the paperwork required to transfer our men from our respective militaries to the United Forces. We wanted to make the transition easy on our men, though, so we established United Forces training grounds in our own nations — and it just stuck, since Aang didn't want the Republic to have a visible military presence." He grabs the gold chain around his neck and toys with it for a second or two, then smirks mischievously. "It also allows the Earth monarch and the Fire Lord to have some influence over the United Forces, should it ever turn into just the military of the Republic." He taps his temple with his finger, the devious smirk still on his face. "You've got to think ahead, Bumi. Strategy is important — especially when it comes to military affairs."
"You're a genius, Uncle Zuko," I laugh.
"I wouldn't go that far," he chuckles. "I want to do what's best for the world, but as the Fire Lord, I am obligated to do what's best for the Fire Nation. While what's best for the world is usually what's best for the Fire Nation, I recognize that that might not always be the case — and I have tried to prepare accordingly."
Uncle Zuko takes one last sip of his tea, then, grabbing his cup and the kettle, stands up and deposits them in the sink to be washed in the morning. "Come on, kid, let's go to bed," he urges, walking up behind me and laying a hand on my shoulder. "It's late."
My exhaustion hits me like a brick, and after I let out a giant yawn and set my teacup in the sink, I follow Uncle Zuko out of the kitchen and down the hallway. When we reach the bedroom he let me claim as mine, he gives me a hug; then he continues on down to the master suite he shares with Aunt Mai. I don't wait for him to enter the suite before walking into my own room.
I walk over to the window and say goodnight to Yue, then shut the window and crawl into bed, eager to be lulled to sleep by visions of me commanding a ship full of sailors.