Redbayly does not own Avatar the Last Airbender.

Fire Light

The Fire Lights Festival was the most important festivity in the entire Fire Nation. It was a celebration of life and the history of Firebending. And above all, it followed a legend surrounding the royal family. According to the legend, a Fire Nation princess, named Sheu-fuh, became the first person to Firebend. It is said that the world had once been engulfed in darkness, and Sheu-fuh wanted to bring light to it. She heard stories of the beings, known as dragons, who could create light at their whim. Sheu-fuh journeyed many months before she finally found the dragon's cave. A voice echoed from it, asking why she had come. She said she had come to bring light to the world. Then, from out of the cave, a dragon emerged. He was the largest dragon ever known, with brilliant golden scales that glowed in the darkness. The dragon addressed himself as Agni, he then led her to the cave of his brother and sister, the original dragons, Ran and Shaw. Together, the dragons taught Sheu-fuh Firebending. Her education complete, there was one final test for Sheu-fuh; Agni transformed himself into a human and challenged her to a Kai, a duel. As the two fought, they created such an astounding amount of fire, that in order to save the world from being consumed, they had to launch the fire into the sky, creating the sun. By the end of the duel, Sheu-fuh was victorious. However, when Agni told her to deliver the final blow, she refused and spared him. If legends can be believed, Agni stayed in his human form forever, and eventually married Sheu-fuh, and ever since then, the Fire Lords have been their descendants.

Dancing had always been a key feature of the Fire Light Festival. The city had a special square specifically for the purpose, though in the past one-hundred years that element of the celebration had been played down dramatically. Ever since the restoration began, though, dancing had once again been brought back into popular culture.

"Come on, Zuko. Let's dance."

"Katara, are you sure that's a good idea, with your condition and everything?"

"Zuko, I'm just pregnant. Are you just trying to make an excuse because you can't dance?"

"What? I can dance!"

"Prove it."

Even though Katara was quite obviously pregnant, the young Fire Lord and Lady danced better than anyone. As they danced around the lantern-lit city square, their friends and family watched in admiration.

"Hmph, we could dance better than that." Azula said indignantly. "Sokka, ask me to dance."

"Huh?"

Not waiting for a better reply, Azula grabbed the young Watertribesman by the hand and dragged him to the dance floor.

"Hey Toph."

"What, Twinkletoes?"

"Would you pound me if I asked you to dance with me?"

"Maybe. But, only a little."

"I'll take my chances."

Aang took Toph's hand and led her to the dance floor. Iroh and Ursa watched the three couples dancing in the pale glow of the lanterns.

"They really are beautiful couples, aren't they, Iroh?"

"Indeed they are."

"Since we're still having wagers, which of our two unwed couples do you think is going to be the first to get engaged?"

"Definitely the young Avatar and Miss Bei Fong."

Ursa smiled.

"I place my money on Sokka and Azula."

Iroh burst out laughing, only to stop when he realized she wasn't joking.

"Oh, you were serious?"

"Very."

On a stage, a man and woman stood before a large crowd. They both wore golden outfits in the form of dragons. The man and woman put on a magnificent display of Firebending, moving in perfect harmony and illuminating the night.

"Hey, Zuko."

"What is it, Aang?"

"Don't you think there's something eerily familiar about that Firebending form?"

"You're right. I'd know that anywhere. They're doing the Dancing Dragon. But, how is that possible?"

"Maybe they went to see the Sun-warriors."

"I don't know, weren't we the last ones to do that?"

When the two performers finished their routine, they removed their dragon masks. Zuko felt as though there was something about them that seemed odd; their skin appeared to glow a faint golden color, Zuko just attributed it to stage makeup, but the man's eyes were red, as red as like rubies. Zuko quietly snuck away from the others, careful not to attract any attention to himself, he followed the two performers as they walked off. Although everyone had been amazed by their performance, Zuko was surprised to see that he was the only one following them, it really seemed as though no one but he could even see them. They led him to the imperial gardens, and stopped right in front of the pond.

"How do you two know the Dancing Dragon?" He asked them.

They turned and smiled at him. Suddenly, the pond was illuminated by hundreds of floating lanterns. The woman walked up to him and placed something in his hand. When Zuko looked at it, he saw that it was an ornate dragon pendant. Zuko realized that it looked a lot like the ancient symbol of Agni, a royal symbol that had been around since the beginning of Firebending. When Zuko looked back up, he saw two glowing forms drifting across the pond amongst the lanterns.

Ooh, supernatural, ain't it? I just thought there wasn't enough Spirit World hooha in the story. Sheu-fuh is Chinese for 'elegant phoenix'. Hope you liked it.