Chapter Eleven
Azula sat perfectly poised in her chair, index finger slowly tapping the arm rest as she stared at the grinning, bumbling thief in front of her.
"Where did you say you last saw him?" She asked coldly. The thief wrung his hands and looked at the ceiling.
"Two days ago, at The Fish Waste." He said, his grin revealing a mouthful of missing teeth. Azula rolled her eyes.
"This town has more pubs than Uncle's anecdotes, and each one stupider than the next." She looked to Ty Lee, who smiled appropriately.
"Good one, Azula!" She giggled. Mai glowered in silence. Azula smirked and turned back to the ratty man in front of her.
"What did he look like?"
The man paused as before, wringing his hands and looking at the ceiling before answering.
"He had sandy brown hair, and green eyes. He was taller than me, and very muscular." The man gulped as Azula's golden eyes flashed dangerously.
"Any idiot from an Earth tribe could match that description. I need something more concrete," she nodded to the muscular man at the door, "You are dismissed."
The guard moved forward and gripped the thief by the forearm. The thief stumbled forward.
"Wait! Wait! I remembered something!"
Azula raised an eyebrow. With a nod, the guard released the thief.
"He had a long scar, from a dagger no doubt, crossing his eye and cheek! And-and he had an amulet! On it was inscribed the four symbols of the four elements!"
Azula's smile widened.
"Now that is something I can use. You may go."
The guard tossed the man two gold coins, and ushered him out the door. Once the door was firmly shut with the guard stationed on the outside, Ty Lee turned to Mai and Azula.
"The Avatar is here in Banyan, Azula!" She exclaimed. Azula smirked and nodded, pleased with their discovery. The description matched that perfectly of all the others. She stood up, preparing to leave.
"Well, Mai, Ty Lee, we are done for the night. We shall-" A knock at the door interrupted her speech. She turned fiercely to the door.
"What is it?" She called.
"My lady, Goku is here to see you. He says it's important."
Azula stood in silence, debating whether or not to turn the man away.
Finally, she called "Let him in."
Returning to her seat on the raised platform, she sat and faced the messenger. Goku was a thin man with a long, drooping face and continuously darting eyes. He had agreed to spy in her service in exchange for the safety of his family. She scoffed at his naïve notion of family, but welcomed the valuable services he provided.
"What is it, Goku?" She asked, impatient to be done. Goku bowed.
"My lady, you told me to report to you if anyone else begun to ask of the Avatar's whereabouts. Such an incident occurred yesterday noon." He spoke in a high, reedy voice.
Her interest piqued, she waved her hand for the man to continue.
"A travel worn character walked into The Nag's Head a fortnight ago. Since then, he has, discreetly of course, been asking about the Avatar. He thought he had not been heard, but I heard him, my lady." A hint of pride colored his tone.
"And what did he look like?" She nodded to Mai and Ty Lee and they returned the notion, aware to be paying attention, as they would attend to this man tomorrow.
"He had raven black hair that brushed his eyes, which were a strange amber color. He is tall for these parts and from the looks of it, an adept fighter. Also, he had a rather nasty burn scar on the left side of his face, which he usually covered with a headband. However, one night he was careless and left it off…"
Azula's eyes bulged as the man continued. How could her brother be here, in Banyan? How did he escape her notice when Mai and Ty Lee had been circling the city's perimeter? And searching for the Avatar, no less?
She felt a rage coming on, and swiftly cutting the man off, turned to Ty Lee.
"Ty Lee, who was on patrol of the perimeter a fortnight ago?"
Ty Lee turned thoughtful.
"I think it was Mai, Azula."
Azula turned to Mai, whose eyes were wide.
"How did he escape your notice?" She growled, almost feral. Mai shrugged.
"It is impossible to notice everyone who passes through Banyan. It might not even be your brother." She said apathetically. Azula stood up and walked down the steps. Pacing for a few moments, she turned back to Mai.
"Well, tomorrow, you will follow Goku to the Nag's Head, you will apprehend my dear brother, for this boy is my brother, and you will bring him back to me."
Mai looked at her for a moment, before giving a curt nod of her head. Calmed, Azula turned back to Goku, who looked stunned by her reaction to his news.
"Was there an old man with this stranger?"
Goku shook his head.
"No, my lady. He was very much alone."
Azula smiled.
"Good."
And this time, Zuzu, you won't have Uncle to save your pathetic life.
OoOoO
Zuko sat at a table in the Fish Waste, his index finger slowly tapping the table as he watched the Avatar gamble in front of him.
He was a big boy, barely old enough to be called a man. Probably one or two years older than Zuko, he estimated, putting him at twenty. He was muscular, but Zuko was unafraid of the bulk. He could easily beat the Avatar he assumed, after he noticed the softness of his hands. He would be a poor fighter. A long scar crossed his cheek, which Zuko figured he had acquired after someone found out he cheated them.
Zuko had been watching the Avatar as he traveled from pub to pub, learning his secrets so when they crossed paths, Zuko knew he would win.
After ten more minutes of waiting, the Avatar let out a whoop of excitement. He had won. The man he had been playing stomped away angrily, swearing as he went. Zuko smiled to himself. The man could not have known that he was the Avatar. He hid it well. Zuko would not have noticed if he had not been trained in the art of bending himself.
"Is there anyone else who wishes to oppose me?" The Avatar asked in a laughing voice. The room grew silent and no one stood. The Avatar began to laugh to himself and started to collect the money on the table.
"I thought as much." He chuckled to himself. Zuko, smirking, stood up.
"I'll do it." He said, a sneer on his lips. The Avatar looked him up and down. He shrugged, sitting down at the table. He spread out three cups on the table. He opened his arms as an invitation to sit down.
"Be my guest."
Zuko nodded and crossed the length of the room to where he was sitting. Not taking his eyes off the Avatar, he sat down. The Avatar held up a lump of earth for everyone to see. He then picked up the middle cup and placed the pebble under. Zuko nodded that he agreed with the terms.
And so it began.
The Avatar began twirling the cups back and forth. Zuko almost laughed at how obvious the airbending was after his time spent with Jinju and Tashi. The Avatar had grown careless in his time with the thieves, and was ill prepared to gamble with Zuko. The cups flew up on the edges, exposing the pebble periodically, which the Avatar would then move with earthbending. Zuko watched, his eyes flashing as blurs as he watched the elusive pebble.
Suddenly it came to a stop. The Avatar leaned back in his chair, pleased with himself. Zuko leaned forward on the table, resting his chin on his fingertips. After a moment's pause, he pointed to the outer right cup.
Smirking, the Avatar lifted the cup up. His eyes bulged as the pebble lay on the table where the cup had once been. He looked up at Zuko in amazement.
"That's the first time I've been beaten in a very long time." The Avatar admitted incredulously. Zuko smiled wryly.
"It helps when you've traveled with Airbenders." He said softly. The Avatar's eyes widened further.
"Who are you?" He asked, brow furrowed.
"I'd like to ask you the same thing." Zuko said, the intensity of his gaze frightening the Avatar. The Avatar nodded slowly.
"Let's go for a walk." He said. Zuko shrugged and they made their way out the door. They walked in silence down the dingy street. Then the Avatar spoke.
"I'm Ruon." He said quietly. Zuko debated on whether or not to tell him his real name. In the end, he decided to play it safe.
"I am Lee."
"Well, Lee, how did you figure out about my airbending?"
"The way you moved your hands. It was a form I saw an…acquaintance of mine use once."
He thought of Jinju, redirecting a wind so it would blow on them on their sweaty trek through the forests to his tribe, many months ago.
It's almost been a year since we've said goodbye, he thought, the idea alien to him. He could hardly believe it had been almost a year since he last saw Katara and Jinju. Ruon looked at him curiously.
"I also know you're the Avatar." Zuko added quietly. Ruon shrugged.
"I'm sure it's not that hard to figure out, really, once you learned about my airbending trick."
Zuko shook his head.
"Why are you in Banyan, Ruon?"
The Avatar shrugged.
"I got sick of wandering from tribe to tribe. I've always wanted to visit a city." He added thoughtfully.
They continued to walk into the night, Ruon doing most of the talking, and Zuko doing most of the listening. After a lull in the conversation, Zuko spoke up.
"Ruon, are you aware of what is going on outside Banyan?"
The Avatar shrugged, conjuring a small flame in the palm of his hand.
"The usual petty arguments and affairs. It doesn't matter to me."
"It should matter." Zuko said, unable to believe he was giving someone else the morality talk.
That had always been Uncle's job, he thought with a smile.
Ruon gave him a look.
"What is with you, Lee? Who cares about what happens to people we've never met?"
Zuko felt anger course through his veins and flames whispered from his fingertips. Ruon looked at him in amazement.
"You're a firebender!" He exclaimed. Zuko nodded slowly.
"You have no idea how grateful I am for another bender around here!" He continued to go on, but Zuko could not hear him. He just thought of Katara and how she had given away his love for people like Ruon. He continued to stare straight ahead until Ruon stopped talking and waved a hand in front of his eyes.
"Hey? You there?" He asked, confused. Zuko snapped out of his reverie and looked at Ruon.
"Have you heard of Ozai?" He asked Ruon suddenly. Ruon pursed his lips.
"I'm sure I have…the name sounds really familiar…"
Zuko looked up at the moon. Yue, please help me, he silently pleaded. He then turned back to Ruon.
"It's getting late. I should head back to my inn." He said calmly. Ruon nodded.
"Yeah…hey! Do you want to meet for lunch? You can tell me more about firebending, if you want! I've learned the basics, but other than that, I'm lost."
Zuko couldn't help but smile.
"Sure. I'm staying at the Nag's Head."
Ruon nodded.
"I'll be there at noon!"
And with that, he whirled into the sky and bounded away on the rooftops. Zuko watched until he disappeared from view and then turned and began to walk back to the inn.
He had been surprised by the Avatar. He had not expected him to be such a gracious loser, nor so boyish. Ruon was older than Zuko in years, but Zuko felt older than him in every other way. He could not figure out, however, how to bring up the main reason he sought Ruon out without the risk of losing him to Azula. Zuko already knew she had sent a reedy man named Goki, or whatever his name was, after himself and Ruon.
Zuko continued to think along these lines as he walked the lonely streets back to the Nag's Head. Out of habit, he fingered the headband covering his scar to make sure it was still in place.
There was also the matter of revealing his true identity to Ruon. Would he accept him, or run away and force Zuko to start his search over again? He hoped it was the former.
OoOoO
Zuko woke to the soft light of dawn, the fire in his blood tingling. He yawned and swung his legs over the side of his bed. He leaned over to begin tugging on his boots when a cough stopped him dead in his tracks.
"Hello, Zuko." A dry rasp filled the room and pierced his heart. He slowly looked up and saw Mai sitting in the chair in the corner of the room, slowly twirling a senbon between her two forefingers.
Zuko sat up straight and watched Mai warily. He felt like cursing. Once again, Azula was one step ahead of him.
"Hello Mai." He said quietly.
"It's been a while."
"It has."
Mai's face had remained impassive up until this point. Sadness seemed to flit upon her face, wary of staying.
"I…I've missed you." She spoke quietly, and had Zuko not grown up around Mai, he would have missed the admission. Then, as suddenly as it had come, the moment was over and she was back to her normal, apathetic self.
"Azula sent me here to capture you." She said blandly. Zuko nodded.
"I expected it would happen sooner or later."
"Will you come willingly?" She asked flatly.
"No." Zuko said. Mai offered a rare smile.
"I thought as much."
And with that, she flung the senbon at him. Simultaneously, Zuko grabbed the dagger by his feet and whipping it up, crossed with the senbon, flinging it into the wall. He jumped to his feet and rushed at Mai before she could gather more senbon. He aimed for the soft muscle between the neck and shoulder, hoping to incapacitate her, rather than seriously injure her. For all the ill Mai had done, he realized that most of it was not her fault. He would save the killing for Azula.
He was too slow though. Mai quickly threw several stilettos at him. He had no time to worry about the change of weapon, but twisted himself in the air hoping to avoid the flying daggers. One caught him in the shoulder and he let out a grunt. He quickly ripped it out of his shoulder and tossed it out the window.
"Your aim has worsened over the years, Mai." He taunted. Mai rolled her eyes.
"Taunts don't work with me, Zuko." She quipped and threw a stiletto at his pant leg, pinning him to the floor.
Zuko fell back on his uninjured arm before regaining his balance. He quickly tore the stiletto from his pants and threw it back at Mai. It caught one of her voluminous sleeves, pinning her to the wall. She looked down at him and her eyes widened with rage. She was unused to having her own weapons turned on her. She turned to rip her sleeve from the wall, but Zuko bounded at her and loosed the hilt of his dagger on the top of her head. Mai collapsed into his arms.
Zuko looked around for something to tie her up with. He knew nothing but steel would be able to hold Mai back for long, but it would still buy him much needed time to find Ruon and escape Banyan. He quickly began to rip his bed sheets into strips and, leaving them on the bed for the time being, moved back to Mai and began removing the senbon and stilettos from the folds of her sleeves. He began to snap the ones he could and tossed the ones he could not out the window, not caring who was below. Finally, he began to tie her up, and then shoved her into the small closet by the bed and tipped the chair in the corner up under the door knob. He felt a tinge of remorse to have to treat her in this fashion, but he shook it off and ducked out of the room.
OoOoO
Zuko flew into the pub he had found the Avatar in yesterday, scanning the crowd for Ruon's face. When he found him, sitting at a full table enjoying his breakfast with a group of ladies, Zuko marched over to the table.
"I need to talk to you." He panted, his shoulder screaming with pain from the running he had just done. Ruon looked at him in fear. The ladies surrounding him tittered.
"Why are you bleeding?" He asked. Zuko waved it away.
"I need to talk to you." He repeated. Ruon excused himself from the table and they walked to a corner. Zuko pressed a hand to his shoulder to quell the bleeding. He sucked in a breath and turned back to the Avatar.
"What happened, Lee?" Ruon asked, confused.
"I was attacked. We need to leave Banyan now."
Ruon gave him a blank look.
"Why?" He asked seriously. Zuko gave him a look.
"Have you met someone named Azula?" He asked, studying Ruon's face for any trace of lying.
"No." He said, genuinely bewildered. Zuko breathed a sigh of relief.
"Then we still have a chance to get out of here. Come on, we need to leave now." He whispered urgently. Ruon stood still.
"No." He said, folding his arms. Zuko sighed. Before Ruon had any idea what was happening, Zuko gripped him by the collar of his shirt and slammed him up against the wall.
"I didn't want to have to use force, but you leave me no choice." He growled. Ruon stared at him, shock registered in his face.
"If we don't leave now, we will die." Zuko enunciated each word carefully, looking firmly in Ruon's eyes to press his point. Ruon nodded nervously.
"Ok, we can go. Just let me grab my pack."
Zuko released his collar, and Ruon's feet thudded as they hit the ground. The pub, which had grown quiet in the apprehension of a fight, grew noisy again. The two benders made their way up the stairs to Ruon's room.
"I'm sorry." Zuko said quietly. Ruon gave him a nervous smile.
"It's all right. I want an explanation though."
Zuko nodded.
"I'll give you one once we're safely away from Banyan."
Ruon opened the door to his room and let out a yell as blue fire rushed out the opening. Zuko groaned. Azula was here.
OoOoO
Katara grit her teeth and blew the runaway strands of hair out of her face. With a flick of her hand, the sweat beading on her forehand evaporated into the air. She stared expectantly at Aang, waiting on his next move.
They stood in the dueling position, next to a raging river. For the past two weeks, she and Aang had been sneaking our here every day from dark until light to practice Katara's bending. Aang spared her no mercy, drilling her on every bending move he knew.
She would have been making tremendous progress, if she had been born an airbender. They still had not found any way to teach her waterbending moves, and her forms lacked the strength they normally would have shown. They both frustrated easily, something she had never seen in Aang before now.
A gust of wind drove her out of her reverie, and she formed a water whip. She lashed it out at Aang, and began to step into a complex form Aang had shown her. She moved her hands around her in an airy motion, trying to get a feel for the water. It slipped out of her hands as easily as would a fish. The water whip collapsed into the soggy grass and Aang remained as dry as ever. Katara let out a frustrated sigh and sat down on a rock, her face in her hands.
"Aang, this isn't working. I need a waterbending teacher."
Aang frowned and walked towards her. She moved over, making room for Aang. He sat down next to her, barely suppressing a grin. Katara gave him a wary look.
"Aang…what is it?"
He shook his head, a tiny giggle escaping him. Katara folded her arms and raised an eyebrow.
"Aang, I'm going to count to three, and you are going to tell me what's so funny."
Aang shook his head furiously, but is grin did not leave his face. Katara began the countdown.
"One…"
"Katara, I promised Jinju I wouldn't tell!"
"Two…"
"Katara, he wants to be the one to surprise you!"
"Two and a half…."
Aang threw his hands up in the air, and Katara knew she had won.
"Jinju is taking us to the Southern Water Tribe!" He exclaimed. Katara jumped to her feet.
"Aang, is this true?" She half-screamed, barely containing her excitement. He nodded enthusiastically, and Katara half expected his head to go flying off.
"Negotiations have been going on between our tribe and theirs, and Jinju decided to bring us all there!"
"Aang, this is so exciting!"
"Katara, we will be able to find you a real teacher, now." Aang said slowly, the realization dawning on them both. Katara enveloped Aang in a bone crushing hug. He blushed a fierce red, but hugged her back.
They walked back to the tribe, the feeling that nothing could go wrong embedded in their heads.
OoOoO
Zuko was flung against the wall from the force of the blast, and he grimaced as his shoulder wound began to bleed again. It was a shallow scrape, but bled profusely. He groaned, but forced himself to move anyways.
Ruon had been hit harder than Zuko had, and currently lay on the floor, unconscious. Azula stepped out of the room, daintily brushing herself off.
Zuko let out a roar and launched himself at her, flinging a volley of fireballs at his sister. Azula quickly ducked three , but the last one clipped her shoulder. She let out a grunt of pain and looked up at Zuko.
"You've gotten faster since I last saw you, Zuzu." She sneered. Zuko held his tongue and they stared at each other in silence.
Suddenly, Ty Lee cart wheeled out of the smoldering room and in one flying leap, jabbed Zuko's arms and legs. He fell to the floor in a loud thud. He let out a string of curses as Azula neared him. She squatted next to his ear.
"But still not fast enough to beat me."
"You mean your minions." Zuko spat. Azula clucked her tongue.
"If I were you, I'd be begging for my life right now, not spitting out insults. It doesn't inspire my merciful side."
Zuko laughed hoarsely. Azula shook her head and stood back up.
"I really must thank you, Zuzu. You led the Avatar right to me. Unfortunately, we only have room for one more in our little caravan, don't we, Ty Lee?"
Ty Lee smiled brightly.
"Sorry, Zuko! Mai really would have liked to bring you along."
Zuko tried not to groan. Azula smirked.
"So, I think I'll do everyone a favor, you included, Zuko, and end your pathetic life here and now."
Azula sank into a bending position and began to weave her hands back and forth, dividing the positive and negative chi, calling for the lightning. Zuko closed his eyes, waiting for the end. He saw Katara smiling at him from behind his lids and he smiled back.
Azula jutted forth her hand, releasing the lightning. It began to snake forward when a pale hand reached forth and gripped Azula's fingers and wrenched them upwards. Lightning shot forth up and out of the wooden ceiling.
Zuko's eyes shot open as Azula's mouth gaped.
"Uncle Iroh?" Zuko asked weakly, not believing his eyes. His Uncle smiled benevolently at him, before turning back to Azula. He sweeped her legs out from underneath her with a swift kick of his legs. She fell to the floor and Iroh brought a fist down on her head, effectively rendering her unconscious. Ty Lee looked at him in amazement. She threw her hands up in surrender.
Iroh tied her up quickly, leaving her and Azula for the mercy of the innkeeper. He turned to Zuko, a twinkle in his eye.
"It's good to see you again, Nephew."
A/N Iroh finally made his appearance! :D Thank you all again for all the wonderful reviews. Sadly, there went as many as I had been hoping for. So, please review, it takes but five seconds! Thank you!