Here we go: start of the second act. Game on.
Once Upon a Teashop
Zuko slunk through dimly lit halls, keeping himself melded to the shadows. For such a secret, important Dai Li base, the place was surprisingly poorly guarded. Then again, secrecy was probably their main source of defense. Wrenching the name Lake Laogai from that unfortunate guard had been entirely more work than he had expected. Add to that, finding out the entrance, and, well…half of Zuko's night was gone already. Which was less than ideal: he wanted Sokka gone sooner rather than later, and would much prefer it if the water tribesman didn't feel the need to come in to the teashop in the morning.
Of course, with the way things were going right now it looked like that wasn't going to be happening any time soon. This base was a sprawling mess underneath the giant lake. Zuko didn't know how long he'd been darting around down here, but he'd born witness to some weird things. If he thought some things in the Fire Nation were messed up, well, at least they didn't brainwash women en masse into thinking their names were all Joo Dee. But that had been at least an hour ago, he'd seen that, and at this point he wasn't even sure if he was headed in the right direction. He still knew where the exits were, but this deep in the base, he didn't think it was a good idea to try and grab any of the Dai Li to get them to talk. That just seemed like a sure fire way to get himself captured, and not find Appa.
Hurried footsteps from around the corner suddenly caught the banished prince's attention, and he ducked into an enclave right as several Dai Li agents turned into the hall. The one in charge looked furious, and stormed past with a notable limp.
"The Avatar is turning into more trouble than he's worth," the man said, and the mention of the Avatar was more than enough for Zuko to pay attention. And then the guy stopped and pulled up the edge of his robe, examining a nasty bruise that ran up his calf. The man scowled at the sight before dropping his clothes back down and continuing. "And make sure you muzzle that beast – I won't have him biting me again!"
"Of course, Long Feng, sir," one of the agents with him replied, and then they turned into a different hall. Zuko stepped back out of hiding. It looked like he was going the right way, after all.
xXxXxXxXxXx
A sharp rapping from outside jerked Sokka out of his sleep. He looked around, wondering what had made the noise, but, predictably, all he saw was blackness. He waited a few minutes, but when nothing further happened, he shrugged and laid back down. Maybe he'd just misheard. Just as his eyes closed, the sound came again, faster and more impatient than before. Ah! Sokka realised, now that he was awake and could pinpoint things more accurately. The window. It was coming from the window. With a yawn, the water tribesman drew himself up and dragged himself out of bed, idly wondering who could be trying to get his attention like that right now. He stopped to pull his clothes on really quickly, as he refused to answer the window for who knows who in the middle of the night in his underwear.
Sokka pulled a shutter open, letting out a yelp when he was greeted with that terrifying blue mask immediately in his face, and then abruptly yanked out the window.
"Zu—mmph!" was all he managed to get out before a hand firmly clamped itself over his mouth, and the other boy held a finger over the mask's mouth to shush him. How Zuko managed to imbue that one action with more irritation than Sokka felt in a week, he would never know. But then Zuko pointed to several of the roofs of the adjacent houses and light bloomed in front of Sokka's eyes as he realised what the other boy was trying to indicate. Dai Li. He nodded, and was relieved when Zuko let up because he had inadvertently licked that glove and the thing tasted nasty.
"What are you doing, yanking me out of bed like this in the middle of the night?" Sokka whispered frantically. "Especially when you know we're being watched by the Dai Li, like, all the time, come on, couldn't you just wait until you see me in the morning? That's less than six hours away. And a lot of those are sleep. I like sleep. "
Predictably, Zuko didn't bother responding, just grabbed a handful of his shirt and pulled him along in the shadows. Sokka wasn't liking this mask very much. Zuko was normally grumpy, but it seemed like Blue Spirit Zuko took taciturn to a whole new level.
"Are you going to tell me what we're doing?"
Silence.
"Can you at least tell me where we're going?"
No answer.
With a forlorn sigh, Sokka resigned himself to following along. And then he wondered when he'd reached the point where Zuko could get him out of bed in the middle of the night and then yank him out of a window, not say a word, and get Sokka to follow him. Without Sokka suspecting that this was some bizzare, strangely convoluted plot to capture Aang using him as bait, at that. Maybe Toph had a bit more of a point than Sokka was willing to admit.
"You know, you seem like you might be kinda mad still." Zuko's shoulders stiffened a bit, and he started walking with a bit more ferocity, but still, Sokka got nothing.
"Look," he tried again, "I get that whatever's between you and Jet and whatever bad decisions you may or may not be making are entirely your decision to make, but…can't you just at least think about what I told you? Somehow – weirdly – you've become my friend, and even if you don't agree or even feel the same, I do actually care about you, okay? Just know that." Still no response. No reaction at all, which was kind of weird given that Sokka felt he was over here baring his soul. Talking to Zuko like this was like talking to a rock. Except the rock was friendlier.
Silence fell between the two. Sokka bit his lip, trying to figure out what else to say. Zuko had to go and make things difficult every single time. In any other situation, he might've just given up and gone back to the house, but something – maybe Zuko's creepy blue mask – told him that this was actually important. That feeling only grew as they snuck through all three rings and down past the Inner Wall.
"How do you even know these passages?" Sokka whispered at Zuko, but, predictably, he got no response. At least not until, after what had to have been at least an hour of walking, they were far enough away from the city that they could barely see any of the walls in any direction.
"I found the bison," Zuko said suddenly – unexpectedly. Sokka stopped.
"Wait; what?"
"The avatar's bison," Zuko repeated in a low, irritated voice. "I found him like I said I would. I'm taking you there."
"You found Appa?! For real?"
"Yes."
"But—how? And where! I mean, we've looked all over the city; who could possibly be hiding an animal that big?"
"The Dai Li," Zuko said. "Specifically, Long Feng, their leader."
Sokka could only gape, stunned that he hadn't put that together sooner. He felt like such an idiot. He was supposed to be the smart one of the group! "Yeah," he finally replied, faintly, "Yeah, I know who Long Feng is."
Silence filled the air again until Zuko, suddenly, with the briefest hint of amusement in his voice, said, "Apparently he hasn't been treating it too well, because the bison – Appa – apparently bit him on the leg. It's a huge bruise, his whole calf. He seemed…really put out." Sokka laughed at that, the image that came to mind of Long Feng hopping around on one foot, the other stuck in Appa's mouth.
Finally, they reached the edge of a lake, where Zuko made a quick whistling noise similar to what Aang liked to use sometimes – which in all fairness Zuko had probably learned from stalking Aang, but at this point, Sokka wasn't going to judge – and across the water, on a small island covered in bush, there was a bit of a rustle and then Appa flew out from behind the bushes, white fur lit up by the moon, and landed hard in front of them.
And then, as Sokka stood in shock, licked a stripe up Zuko's body, knocking the mask off his face as he went.
"Ah! Ew, eughhh," Zuko exclaimed, unsuccessfully trying to wipe bison spit off, well…his whole body.
"Appa! Buddy!" Sokka exclaimed, rushing forward to hug the beast. "Tui and La, Zuko, you're the best! You actually did it."
For the briefest of seconds, Sokka swore he saw a smile on Zuko's face before suddenly his expression hardened.
"So now we're even and you can leave me alone," he snapped all of a sudden. Sokka was taken aback. He stepped away from Appa to stare at Zuko in disbelief.
"Is that what this is about? You found Appa to make me leave?"
"We made a deal; you kept your part, and I kept mine. We're even."
"I haven't kept my side at all! I mean, yeah, thanks for finding Appa, but just to make me leave because you don't like what I'm saying? What is wrong with you?"
In keeping with the rest of the evening, Zuko remained stubbornly silent to that, glaring mulishly as he bent over to pick back up his mask.
"Fine!" Sokka shouted, unable to take this anymore. "Well, you'll get your wish, Zuko.
With Appa back, we can finally leave, and you'll never have to see me again, okay? I hope Jet makes you very happy!" And then, for effect, Sokka turned on his heel and stomped back off in the direction of the city.
"Sokka!" he heard Zuko call after him, but ignored it and kept walking. And then, "The city's the other way you idiot!" Sokka scowled but without missing a beat, turned again in the right direction, determined to leave Zuko behind. That determination was ruined by Zuko falling into step next to him, impenetrable mask back on his face, but, hey, it was the thought that counted.
By the time they made it back to the city – and to the upper ring – it was just before dawn. Not a word had passed between them the entire trip back, and as Sokka climbed back in through the window, that didn't change. He glanced back in time to see Zuko disappear in the morning light and made sure to slam the shutters closed with as much force as possible.
"Have a fun night with Sparky?" Toph suddenly asked from behind him, and Sokka let out an unholy shriek.
"Yue damn it, don't do that!" Sokka yelled. "And no, for the record, I did not have a fun night. I am tired and cranky and angry, and—oh! Oh, I have great news! Oh man, guys, guys!" he shouted, all but running out of his room to bang at Katara and Aang's doors.
"Why are you yelling so early?" Katara groaned as she stepped out, an odd contrast to Aang's oddly chipper morning self who seemed totally okay with being shouted out of his sleep.
"Morning, Sokka! Katara! Toph! What's up?"
"I have something to show you guys, but we've gotta go, like, right now."
"Something like what?"
"Something like a totally great surprise, so get moving, okay, get ready, we really gotta do this and it's a bit of a trip because it's way past the inner walls and Aang can't carry us all."
xXxXxXxXxXx
By the time Zuko made it home, he didn't have time to do much more than wash up and change clothes before heading to the teashop. It was early – much earlier than Iroh made just about anyone else show up to work, but Zuko generally helped him open the shop, and therefore was running late. And given that he hadn't even bothered to show up yesterday…
Well, Zuko wasn't surprised when he walked into the teashop to find Iroh waiting for him, grim-faced, with disappointment practically steaming off of him like he was a kettle that had been slowly heating up over the stove for the past two days.
Working in a teashop was seriously starting to mess with the prince's brain.
Still, though, Zuko had the good sense to look abashed even before his uncle opened his mouth to chide him. He hadn't been thinking at all. But then, not thinking was usually what Iroh got on his case about. And Iroh hadn't been home any of the times he had been.
"Nephew, where have you been?" Iroh asked. "You've been gone for two days! I was beginning to worry something might have happened to you." Zuko really, really hadn't meant to make the old man worry at all.
"I'm sorry, Uncle," he said, "I was…I…" Zuko trailed off, trying to figure out how to explain exactly what had been going on the past few days without actually explaining. He really didn't need his uncle's look of disapproval on top of Sokka's nonsense. And also, there were some things a teenage boy just couldn't share with one's uncle, and certain stupid, drunken decisions were one of them. Zuko's cheek went red just thinking about trying to explain that to Iroh. Instead, he went with another truth.
Under his breath, a mumble. "I…freed the Avatar's bison." It was quiet and barely perceptible but his uncle's eyes widened as he replied.
"You…freed the Avatar's bison?" Any disapproval that had been in the old firebender's voice had disappeared. Zuko wasn't stupid. He'd known his uncle had been not-so-subtly trying to push him away from his hunt for the Avatar for months even before Aang had shown back up in the world. Still, the faint tinge of pride in the old man's voice twisted his stomach all wrong.
Zuko gave a faint nod anyway. "For Sokka," he added. To make him leave, he didn't say, but added: "He's not coming back." Iroh was nothing if not perceptive, though, and so his eyes narrowed slightly.
"If I may ask, Nephew – what prompted this sudden change of heart?"
Zuko felt himself get flustered, and he shouted, "Nothing!" And stormed off towards the kitchen, throwing a, "I just did, okay?!" over his shoulder, leaving Iroh shaking his head behind him. He threw himself into his work, helping set up the teashop, and avidly not thinking about Sokka, even as the two other workers Iroh had hired trickled in. It wasn't until Jet showed up that he gave himself a moment, and made to approach him before stopping short and all but running to the back room. This was…he didn't know what to do. This was so far outside his comfort range. But he was nothing if not determined, and he'd made his decision, and by Agni, Zuko was going to stick to it. He steadfastly ignored Sokka's voice screaming warnings in the back of his head. His stomach was curled up in knots as it was – he felt sicker than the time Azula had tried to poison his juice when he was seven. And that had been a crazy kind of experience.
At least he hadn't thrown up yet. Zuko clung to the little things in life.
The firebender took a deep breath, steeling himself for what he was about to do, when the door to the backroom swung open and in walked Jet. Zuko's face heated up almost instantly. It was kind of embarrassing.
"Li!" Jet greeted. "You, uh…you didn't show up yesterday. And I know I've been apologising a lot, but I'm sorry about the festival – that wasn't my intention when I invited you, you know. I did promise no kissing. Although, I didn't promise no anything else we did," Jet winked. Zuko's stomach twisted up more, and the urge to hit the Freedom Fighter suddenly reared its head again. He clamped down on it just this once, though. "In my defense, you kissed me this time," he was continuing, and Zuko still didn't know what to say, all his words had just vanished, so in quite possibly the second (or maybe third) dumbest move he'd made this week, Zuko took a page from Jet's book. He reached out, twisted his fist in the taller boy's shirt, and yanked him forward, touching his mouth to Jet's before he could even think about what he was doing. Of course, if he'd thought about what he was doing, he probably wouldn't have done it.
Jet let out a surprised noise before he realised what was happening. Zuko could feel the darker boy smirking against his lips but Jet was abruptly shoved away the moment he felt an inkling of tongue because just – no. That was still weird. No matter what else might have happened between them this week.
"Look," he began slowly – awkwardly. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth, and he felt like he was tripping over his words, but Jet was suddenly hanging on to every word he spoke. "I…that was…I mean, uh…It wasn't….it wasn't bad," he managed. "What happened. The other night. Uh."
Zuko was starting to regret deciding to do this. The grin Jet was wearing alone was causing him second thoughts but – no. That was just Sokka and his stupid talk about stupidness getting to him. There would be no second thoughts here. Or third, or fifth, or twentieth. He was doing this.
"We could, uh…we could…try?" he offered, and Jet grinned even wider.
"Really?" he asked. Zuko offered an awkward nod. "Sooooo does that mean I can kiss you again?" Zuko paused, frowned, and then sighed, before nodding again.
"Yes!"
It was at least five minutes before the two of them emerged from the backroom, and Zuko pretended not to notice the even more disappointed look his uncle was sending him.
He also pretended that the suddenly noticeable lack of chatter he'd grown used to from Sokka over the past few weeks didn't bother him at all. Not even a little bit.
TBC…
So, uh…it's been a while. Sorry about that. Other than that, I've got nothing. I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! Now shit gets real.