Sorry it took so long again,but I'd like to see you guys write a ten page chapter and get ready for high school then we'll see how long it takes you.
Anyway this is mostly filler (.) and I almost scrapped it, but one very important plot point saved it. What is it? If I told you that would take away all the fun.
The next chapter is shorter (YAY!) and has a little more plot. Once I get to a certain point the chapters will be filled with nothing but plot. But until then, there's a few more filler chapters.
(Disclaimers)
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The Truths Come Out
Zuko sat under the blood red canopy to busy sulking to notice how beautiful the day was. The sea was calm except for the wake the boat and sea lion left behind. There was hardly a cloud in the sky, and Zuko had his girlfriend right beside him.
Out toward the railing were Azula and Tylee. Azula leaned against the railing with her arms crossed and Tylee wore her characteristic wide smile.
"I'm so excited to spend the weekend on Ember Island," she said,"It's gonna be great to hand out on the beach and do nothing." Tylee put herhands behind her head.
"Doing nothing is a waste of time," Zuko said bitterly,"We're being sent away on a forced vacation. I feel like a child." He walked to the rail and and stared at the water. It was like he was banished all over again.
"Lighten up. So Dad wants to meet with his advisors alone...without anyone else around. Don't take it personally," Azula told him. Zuko turned his head further from his sister.
"Doesn't your family have a house on Ember Island?" Tylee asked.
"We used to come every summer when we were kids." Azula answered.
"That must've been fun!" Zuko scowled at the hollowed out pain in his chest.
"That was a long time ago," he said.
"Hey, look!" Tylee said happily, "We're here!"
Zuko looked back up and sure enough, there was the red-roofed bungalows that dotted Ember Island's shorelines. As they pulled in to the dock he saw Azula's mentors. The elderly twins Li and Lo. They smiled when the boat reached the dock.
"Welcome to Ember Island, kids," they said together. Zuko looked past them at the small shabby cottage behind them. He frowned along with the others.
Their frowns only deepened when they entered the house. It was not only filled with junk but with brighttacky patterns and a surpriseing amount of pink. Zuko wrinkled his nose against a musky smell.
"It smells like old lady in here," he said. Mai rolled her eyes.
"Gee, I wonder why," she said sarcastically.
"Who are these two beautiful women?" Tylee asked. Azula, Zuko, and Mai all approached her to look at a painting that showed two young twins in a seductive pose. Zuko felt his neck and face heat up a little as he viewed the peice.
Li and Lo stood on either side of the painting, smiling.
"Can't you tell?" they asked as they struck the seductive pose, "It's Li, Lo and me." Zuko put a hand to his mouth when he felt bile rising in his throat. Oh Agni! he thought. How could he have been attracted to them?!
The more the teenagers exaimined the house the more they disliked it. Everyone, of course, but Tylee. Although that wasn't very surprised. She spotted one of the beds and lay down on it.
"Ooh, I love this seashell bedspread," she said as she snuggled a pillow. Mai walked over to her and gave the marroon sheets a skeptical look.
"Are you serious? It looks like the beach threw up all over it." Zuko glanced at the blanket and shrugged. He'd seen worse. Li and Lo gave them a look.
"We know you're upset that you were forced to come here this weekend. But Ember Island is a magical place," one of them said. Zuko thought it was Lo,"Keep an open mind."
"Give it a chance...," Li continued.
"...and it can help you understand yourselves and each other," the sisters said together. Lo picked up one of the smooth even the most ragged edges." they said alternating who spoke. Zuko looked down, letting in sink in. Beside him, Azula yawned.
Li and Lo smiled, made a few edusicastic movements, and stripped off their robes revealing their bathing suits.
"Time to hit the beach!" they said. Zuko stared absolutly paralized. Wordlessly, Mai covered his eyes with her hand. Li and Lo chuckled and walked out the door to the beach. Tylee, being the most edusicastic of the four of them, already had her bathing suit on underneath her clothes. She slipped them off with a smile on her face and followed the twins out the door.
The others turned to their trunks which had been sent here eariler. Zuko opened his and began to search for his bathing suit. As he pulled out his shirt something fell out of it and clattered to the floor. Zuko looked down and discovered it was Avaa's pendant. He reached down to pick it up but Mai beat him to it.
"Hm. I don't remember your mom having this," she said as she exaimined it.
"She didn't." Zuko told her.
"Where'd you get this then?"
"It was Avaa's," he said. Mai's pale gold eyes hardened as she frowned even more deeply than usual.
"That Earth Kingdom girl from Ba Sing Se?" she asked. Zuko nodded hestiantly. The pendant seemed trigger alot anger from Mai.
"Why do you still have this?"
"She gave it to me as a gift. It was one of the last things she did with me before died," Zuko told her. Mai scowled.
"You're my boyfriend now, you don't need this peice of junk," she said as she waved the pendant in his face. Now it was Zuko's turn to scowl.
"It's not a peice of junk! It's a keepsake. And Avaa wasn't just my girlfriend she was my friend," he told her in a raised voice," Yes, she is dead. That's why you shouldn't feel threatened by this." Mai glared at him, then rolled her eyes.
"Whatever," she said before she let go of the pendant and let it clatter to the floor. Mai picked up her bathing suit and when into the other room to change. As soon as she left the room Zuko bent down and picked up Avaa's pendant. He picked up his trunks and put the pendant in his clothes trunk.
Avaa stood a few feet away from Sokka with her sword at the ready. Sokka's space sword was also in battle postion.
"Ready?" he asked. Avaa smirked.
"When you are," she replied before charging. She swung her sword at Sokka's chest, but he blocked her blade. As soon as he pushed her sword away Avaa swung again. Sokka deflected that blow also and returned the strike. Avaa blocked the attack and tried to twist Sokka's sword away but failed.
Sokka thrusted at her making her step backward but she blocked the strike. Sokka struck a few more times, all of them blocked by Avaa. He extended his arm and sword for a particularly long thrust. Avaa stepped backwards to get out of the way, but her foot only met air. Avaa lost her balance and fell into the lake. When she sat back up Sokka was pointing his sword at her head. Avaa looked up at him.
"I win," he said. Avaa smirked as she picked herself up.
"Yeah, but we'll have plently more training sessions which gives me more than enough chances to kick your butt," she told him. Sokka smirked back, unfazed.
"You say that but you know it's not going to happen." Avaa scoffed and rolled her eyes.
"I think Avaa has the right idea though," Aang said. Avaa turned to him confused. He grinned and took off his clothes except for some trunks,"Swimming!"
Avaa smiled as Aang ran to the water and jump in. Katara shrugged and stripped down to her underwear. Avaa stepped out of the water and took off her clothes too. After she lay her wet clothes on a sun baked rock she joined the others in the water.
Their campsite was in a giant crater. The lake must have been made of collected rainwater. It certainly felt crisp and cool like rain. Avaa surfaced facing Toph, the only one of the group not in the water.
"Aang, I know swimming is fun and all," she said,"but do really think you should be exposing yourself like that? Cover up!" Aang, who was floating on his back with Momo on his chest, sent her a confused look.
"What? I'm wearing trunks."
"I know it's your tatoos I'm worried about. What if someone sees you?" Toph told him.
"There are walls all around us," Katara told her,"We're completely safe." Avaa turned away and done back under the water. She smiled as she swam foreward, feeling the water roll around her.
The four bathing suit clad teenagers walked down the crowded beach. Azula and Tylee lead the way and Zuko held an umbrella over his and Mai's head. Zuko stole a glance at his girlfriend. She didn't look very happy, although that wasn't excatly a rare occurance. But this time Mai seemed more displeased than usual.
Azula spotted the perfect spot for them, but there were two young boys building a sand castle in it. In a very Azula fashion, the princess lifted her foot and brought it down on the castle. The boys looked up at Azula before running off in fear. Azula smiled and kicked their bucket after them. Zuko felt their pain. Theirs wasn't the first sand castle she had destroyed.
Zuko turned away from Azula and walked to a patch of snad a small distance away.
"Hold this a mintue," Zuko told Mai, refering to the umbrella.
"Sure," she said in a slightly annoyed tone. Zuko unrolled his towel and lay in on the ground, making sure it was nice and straight. He took the umbrella back from Mai and postioned it next to the towel so it would be shaded. Without a word Mai sat down on the towel. Zuko joined her and together they sat in an uncomfortable silence.
Zuko drummed his fingers on his knee, trying to think of something to say. Mai was still mad at him and he had no idea what to say. In a desperate attempt to find inspiration he looked down at the sand beside him. Zuko smiled when he saw a cream colored seashell. If that wouldn't make ammends with Mai nothing would.
"Here," he said as her picked up the shell and presented it to Mai,"This is for you." Mai gave it a look
"Why would I want that?" she asked. Zuko's smile disappeared.
"I saw it and thought it was pretty," he told her, "Don't girls like stuff like this?" Mai crossed her arms and turned away from Zuko.
"Maybe stupid girls." Zuko scowled.
"Forget it!" He threw the shell back in the sand, feeling insulted. That was the second gift Mai had refused and in refusing it she had insulted two women who had been very close to Zuko.
Once again Zuko sat with Mai in an uncomfortable silence. Zuko's attention was drawn to a cart a little further down the beach by some kids running towards it. A few others walked away, happily licking away at their ice cream cones. Zuko's eyes brightened. That might work.
"I'll be right back," he told Mai. She made no response but watched as he stood up and walked to the cart.
Zuko came back with two leechee ice cream cones. He sat back down beside Mai.
"I thought since it's so hot..." he said. Zuko held out a cone for Mai to take,"Here." Mai just looked at it as the ice cream fell off the cone and into her lap.
"Thanks," she said, "This is really refreashing." She picked up the ice cream and tossed it into the sand. Zuko scowled and also threw his away.
"Zuko!" Azula said, suddenly. He looked up and saw her and Tylee standing beside a Kuai ball court. Zuko stood up and threw shirt and made his way to the court.
Once Mai joined them she and the others formed a huddle.
"See that girl with the silly pigtails?" Azula said gesturing across the net. They all looked at the pigtailed captian of the other team,"When she runs towards the ball there's just the slightest hesitation of her left foot. I'm willing to bet a childhood injury has weakened her. Keep serving the ball to her left and we'll destroyher and the rest of her team. Dismissed!" They broke the huddle. Tylee and Mai ran to the back while Zuko and Azula stepped apart a few paces.
Zuko watched as Azula served the ball to the other team. The ball landed on the left side, completely missed by the opposing team. The pigtailed girl recovered from the miss and served the ball to them. Zuko ran foreward and kicked the ball high into the air. Azula approached it with a spin and smacked it toward the pigtailed girl. The girl dived for the ball but missed it. The ball landed by two boys lounging on the beach.
They looked at the ball, then at the muscluar boy the other team sent to retrive it. The boy tossed the ball to the pigtailed girl who served it back toward Zuko, Mai, Tylee, and Azula. Tylee jumped for it and kicked it back, landing on the net like a tightrope walker.
Again the team served to the four teenagers. Mai ran to the ball this time and sent it back with her knee. Zuko bent over a little as the ball came flying toward him. He felt Azula run up his back, jump, and kick the ball to the other side with all her might. Zuko sheilded himself from the explosion his sister had caused.
Azula stood at the net, now being eaten away by the flames. She faced the other team.
"Yes, we defeated you for all time! You will never rise from the ashes of your shame and humiliation!" she said. The pigtailed girl and her team looked horrified. Zuko was unfazed. Azula always got this competitive. He was just grateful he had been her team.
"Well, that was fun," Azula told him, Tylee, and Mai.
The two boys from earlier walked up to Tylee.
"I'm having a party tonight," one of them told her,"You should come by."
"Sure," Tylee said happily,"I love parties." The other boy with hair covering part of his face gestured to Mai.
"Your friend can come too."
"What about me and my brother?" Azula asked them. She crossed her arms,"Aren't you going to invite us?" The boys gave each other a skeptical look,"You don't know who we are do you?"
"Don't you know who we are?" the first boy said,"We're Chan and Ruon Jin."
"Yeah," the boy who Zuko assumed was Ruon Jin said. Zuko scowled at them. They think they're so special! He took a step foreward with his fists clentched. Azula put out her arm to stop him.
"Fine, you're invited," Chan said,"Just so you know though, some of the most important teenagers in the Fire Nation are gonna be at this party so...try and act normal." Zuko clentched his fists harder. He was such a conceited jerk.
"We'll do our best," Azula said in her evil, silkly tone.
Zuko sat at the table with all of his female compainions, eating dinner. They ate on the balacony since it was such a nice evening. Zuko had been worried that Mai was still mad at him until she leaned her shoulder against his.
Smiling inwardly, Zuko turned to Azula who sat across from him.
"Why didn't you tell those guys who we were?" he asked.
"I guess I was intrigued," Azula replied,"I'm so used to people worshipping us."
"They should," Tylee told her. Azula smiled.
"I know and I love it! But for once I just wanted to see how people would treat us if they didn't know who we were."
Li and Lo looked at the table solmnly.
"Like waves washing away the footprints on the sand, Ember Island gives everyone a clean slate," they said. Zuko glanced at Mai who looked questioningly back. It looked like she was willing to forgive and forget.
"Ember Island reveals the true you." Li and Lo continued. They suddenly smiled and clapped,"To the party!"
It didn't take Zuko very long to change. He was in his party clothes and sitting on the couch in less than five mintues. Of course the girls, being girls, were taking awhile. Mai was the first to finish getting ready. She walked into the room in a dress that consisted mostly of draped cloth. Zuko smiled at her.
"You look beautiful," he told her. Mai smirked and joined him on the couch. Almost immediantly after Azula poked her head through the doorway, hair down.
"Mai, could you help me?" she asked. Mai rolled her eyes and stood up.
"Fine," she said in a very annoyed tone. Azula's head disappeared into the hallway along with Mai.
A mintue or two later Tylee entered the room with a bounce. She looked very proud of herself.
"Whaddya think?" she asked Zuko. Zuko looked at her, surprised and impressed that she wasn't wearing any pink. Although the ample amount of ruffles made up for that.
"Pretty g-" he stopped when he was what was hanging around Tylee's neck,"Where did you get that?" Tylee blinked, confused for a moment before lifting up Avaa's pendant.
"This?" I found it when I climbed those rocks. It looked like someone had thrown it away I thought it was pretty so I kept it." she told him. Zuko stood up.
"It's mine," he said. Tylee tilted her head, confused.
"Really?"
"Avaa gave it to me."
"Avaa..."Tylee murmured trying to think,"Oh! That pretty Earth Kingdom girl?" Zuko turned his eyes away sadly.
"Yeah," he answered. Tylee was silent for a moment.
"You still love her don't-" she started but Zuko cut her off.
"Look, I really don't want to talk about Avaa," Zuko snapped at her,"Please just give me the pendant back." Tylee looked at him with pity reflecting in her gray-brown eyes. She took off Avaa's pendant and held it out to Zuko. He snatched it from her hand and placed it into his trunk.
When they had asked Chan where his house was he told them it was 'the biggest and greatest house on the island.' Zuko didn't believe it for one second, but he gave the house a chance to impress him. It failed.
Chan's home was no bigger or greater than any other on the island. Zuko could even think of some that were better. Espically one in particular.
Zuko watched as Azula tapped on the front door with the gold door knocker. After a few seconds Chan opened the door. He looked less than happy to see them.
"Um...You're a little early. No one's here yet."
"I heard you telling someone you'd be partying from dusk 'til dawn," Azula told him. She turned and gestured to the darkening skybehind them,"It's dusk so we're here." Chan looked at her with annoyance.
"But that's just an expression."
"We are the perfect party guests," Azula said,"We arrive right on time because we are very punctual." Azula brought her hand into her palm as she said 'punctual'. Chan looked at them skeptically for a moment, before shrugging and let them inside.
"Alright, listen, my dad's an admiral. He has no idea I'm having this party, so don't mess anything up," he told them.
Zuko rolled his eyes. An admiral, like that was the most important rank in the Fire Nation. As he and the others looked around the room Ruon Jin pulled himself away from his reflection long enough to greet Zuko and Mai.
"Hey," he said,"first ones here huh?"
They both kept walking without gving him a response.
"Pft. He thinks he's so great," Zuko said once they were out of earshot. He turned to Mai,"Well, what do you think of him?" Mai answered without making eye contact with her boyfriend.
"I don't have any opion about him," she said,"I hardly know him."
"You like him don't you?" Zuko said. With Mai's way of flirting he couldn't be too sure. Mai sighed and walked away from Zuko. He looked back at Ruon Jin with venom. Ruon Jin was nothing special, at the most he was a pretty face. What could Mai possibly be interested in? Zuko took a breath in an attempt to calm himself and joined Mai on a bench.
Slowly but surely the room was filled with teenagers. Soon it was bustling with probably all of the kids Zuko's age on the island. Zuko sighed. he didn't really want to be here. At this party or on the island. He had only come to the party to keep Mai from Ruon Jin's attention. Mai sighed also and crossed her arms.
"I'm bored," she said.
"I know," Zuko replied, too wrapped up in his own thoughts to say much else. Besides, that wasn't a rare occurance.
"I'm hungry," Mai continued. Zuko turned to her.
"So what?"
"So find me some food."
"Sure," Zuko said as he stood up and walked to the buffet on the other side of the room.
Zuko drummed his fingers on the tray he held in his hand as he struggled to remember Mai's favorite foods. In the end he gave up and put general foods everyone likes on the plate. As he reached for a water chesnut cake he remembered Avaa making breakfast back at the apartment. Zuko shook his head and quickly took a bag of fire flakes.
As Zuko walked back to Mai a boy knocked the tray of of his hand accidently. Zuko immedantly rounded on him, scowling.
"Hey, watch it!" he snapped at the boy," That food was for my cranky girlfriend!" When Zuko looked in her direction he saw Ruon Jin leaning beside her, smirking as he spoke. Zuko's face flushed crimson with anger as he rushed toward them and pushed Ruon Jin away.
"Whoa, what are you doing?" he asked as he striaghtened his hair back into place.
"Stop talking to my girlfriend!" Zuko said.
"Relax, it's just a party," Ruon Jin told him. His calmness only made Zuko angrier. He pushed Ruon Jin hard, sending him crashing into a vase.
Mai grabbed Zuko's shoulder, making him turn to her.
"Zuko, what is wrong with you?!"
"What's wrong with me?!"
"Your temper's out of control. You blow up over every little thing. You're so impatient and hot-headed and angry." Mai told him.
"Well, at least I feel something...as opposed to you. You have no passion for anything. You're just a big 'blah'." Zuko said. Mai looked at him with the smallest glint of hurt in her eyes. She quickly turned away from him and said,
"It's over, Zuko. We're done." Zuko at her back in shock. His heart gave off a twinge as he opened his mouth to apologize, but Chan interupted him.
"Who broke my Nana's vase?" Ruon Jin pointed at Zuko. Chan stormed over to him and pointed at the door.
"That's it, you're out of here," he told Zuko. It took every ounce of Zuko's self-control not to push Chan too.
"I was just leaving," he told Chan harshly. Zuko turned away and walked to the front door.
"Have fun by yourself, loser boy," Ruon Jin called.
"Nice," Chan complimented. Zuko scowled, stepped through the threashold and slammed the door with a satisfying bang.
As Zuko walked down moonlit beach he cursed at himslef silently. He drug his feet through the sand with his head down. First Avaa and now Mai. Chikushou! Zuko thought bitterly at his situation and at the tighting in his throat. That always happened when he thought of Avaa. Zuko ran his fingers through his hair. It killed him that he couldn't let her go, but he had loved her so much. He loved Mai too, but Avaa was different. And he was stupid enough to lose both of them.
Zuko looked up as he walked around a familar pile of rocks. Zuko frowned at the mansion bulit into the mountain face. It was in a state of disrepair but Zuko reconized it. He started to walk up the stone steps, but turned around to look at the ocean. In his mind's eye Zuko saw himslef, his father, and Azula running in a meadow happily. They had raced each other to the beach. Zuko sighed and continued up the stairs. He remembered standing on a cliff with his father, admiring the view, and building a sand castle Uncle Iroh.
Zuko pulled on the door handle to feel the resistance of a lock. He aimed a kick at the double doors, opening them in a puff of dust. Zuko stepped through the threashold and scanned the great room. Nothing had changed excpet the amount of dust.
Zuko turned to another staircase and walked up it. He turned right to face a familar painting hanging on the wall. His family portrait. Zuko looked at his father, then a younger version of himself. He remembered watching the tide come in and out with his father on the cliff side.
Then Zuko's eyes rested on his mother's face. His throat tightened when he remembered playing with her as a baby. She had smiled as she tossed infant Zuko into the air and catching him again.
The adult Zuko turned away from the painting and picked up a disc of motar with a hand print in it. His hand print. Zuko placed his hand over it to compare the sizes. The tiny baby print completely disappeared behind his.
Zuko sighed. Even though he had everything he had always wanted, his honor, his father's love, he still yearned for the old times. When his mother was still alive, when Azula couldn't talk. He even found himself wanting to go back to his time in Ba Sing Se. He should have been happy now, but he wasn't. Something was wrong with him.
Avaa was enjoying her first dream and Zuko-free sleep in weeks when Toph sat up and said,
"Guys, you're all gonna think I'm crazy, but it feels like a metal man is coming." The others sat up, also awakened. Avaa looked at Toph strangely. A metal man? She wondered if sleep had done somethign to her hearing.
Avaa looked around the cliff walls for a human figure, but saw no one. Aang, Katara, and Sokka did the same and seemed to be having the same amount of luck until Aang ran forward. As he ran Avaa saw a beam head towards him, but land on the cliff face, creating an explosion.
Avaa cried out as the explosion sent her and everyone else flying backward. She cried out again when she landed on her shoulder and rolled backward before coming to a stop. Avaa sat up and got a look at their attacker. The man on the cliff was incredably tall and had a metal arm and leg. Avaa squintedin disbelief.
Toph earthbended a group of rocks towards the man, but he blasted through them with another explosion. Wait, did he just do that with his mind? Avaa thought as Aang kept the flames away from her and the others. Katara ran closer to the water and bended a massive wave between him and the metal man. Unfortunatly, the wave was turned into a cloud of steam by another firey explosion. Avaa's eyes widened. He did do that with his mind!
Zuko sat on the stairs outside,run out of the house by his painful memories. He looked down at his baby hand print. Zuko was sure he had developed nostalgia in the short time he had explored the house.
Zuko saw Azula walk up the stairs and stand beside him out of the corner of his eye.
"I thought I'd find you here," she said.
"Those summers we spent up here seem so long ago," Zuko told her,"So much has changed."
"Come down to the beach with me," Azula said after a short pause. She started back down the stairs but Zuko stayed put,"Come on, this place is depressing." Zuko set his handprint down and followed Azula down the stairs and to a patch of beach where Mai and Tylee were sitting. Zuko frowned at Mai.
"Hey-" she started.
"Where's your new boyfriend?" Zuko snapped at her. Mai looked stricken for a second before turning away. Zuko's face softened when he saw her expression and stepped toward her.
"Are you cold?" he asked her softly. He tried to put his arm around her but she slapped it away.
"I'm freezing," Tylee said. Zuko smiled.
"I'll make a fire," he looked up at his old house,"There's plently of stuff to burn in there."
Avaa with the others huddled behind a rock, safe from the metal man. Another explosion rattled them to their bones. Or at least for a little while.
"This is crazy!" Sokka said,"How can we beat a guy who blows things up with his mind?"
"We can. Jump on Apaa. I'll try to distract him." Aang told them.
They did as they were told and took to the skies. Sokka flew them up very high so that all Avaa could see of the fight below were the explosions and the earthbending from Aang.
After a particularly large explosion Aang flew towards them in rock armour.
"Go down!" Avaa shouted at Sokka. He steered Appa so he was just below Aang. Katara grabbed onto his arm and pulled him into the saddle. Aang breathed heavily as Katara held him against her.
"I'm ok," he told her.
"Well, that was random," Toph said.
"I don't think so," Katara said,"I got feeling he knows who we are." Avaa nodded.
"There's no other reason he would've attacked us." Aang straightened up and Katara let go of him.
"I don't know. I just hopw we don't meet him again."
Zuko picked another floor board from the house and tossed it into the fire. He turned around and picked up his family portrait. Zuko gave his mother one last glance before throwing the painting into the fire. Tylee looked at him, completely shocked.
"What are you doing?" she asked. Zuko didn't take his eyes off the flames.
"What does it look like I'm doing?"
"But it's a painting of your family," Tylee told him. Zuko glared at her.
"You think I care?" he snapped. He quickly looked back at the fire and watched the painting burn, arms crossed.
"I think you do," Tylee said softly. Zuko turned to her again.
"You don't me, so why don't you just mind your own business!" Zuko looked away. Why did she care? It wasn't her portrait. It wasn't her family.
"I know you," Tylee said, almost in a whisper. Zuko scowled and looked at her.
"No you don't. You're stuck in your little Tylee world where everything's great all the time." Zuko told her angerly. Mai gave him a grim look from across the fire.
"Zuko, leave her alone," she told him. Zuko ignored her. His anger and bitterness were taking over him.
"I'm so pretty, look at me," he said mockingly,"I can walk on my hands whoo!" Zuko did a handstand and let himself fall into the sand.
"Circus freak!" he said harshly to Tylee.
Tylee looked at him, hurt. Zuko could see tears forming in her eyes. Behind her, Azula laughed.
"Yes, I'm a circus freak. Go ahead and laugh all you want," Tylee said, gesturing to Azula,"You wanna know why I joined the circus?" Azula rolled her eyes.
"Here we go," she said.
"Do you have any idea what my home life was lik, growing up with six sisters who look exactly like me?" she asked, standing up," It was like I didn't even have my own name." She fell onto her knees and looked at the sand as tears rolled off her face,"I joined the circus because I was scared of spending the rest of my life as part of a matched set. At least I'm different now," Tylee looked up and gave Zuko a hard look," Circus freak is a compliment!"
"Guess that explains why you need ten boyfriends too," Mai said.
Tylee stood up and out her hands on her hips. Zuko sat up. A girl putting her hands on her hips was never a good sign. Especially paired with...
"I'm sorry, what?" Tylee asked. Mai turned only her eyes to her.
"Attention issues. You couldn't get enough attention when you were a kid, so you're trying to make up for it now." Mai said smoothly. Tylee clentched her fists at her.
"Well, what's your excuse, Mai? You were an only child for fifteen years, but even with all that attention, your aura is this dingy, pasty, gray..." Mai was silent for a moment, looking at Tylee. For a second Zuko thought she would retailate but she looked back down and said,
"I don't believe in auras." Zuko stood up.
"Yeah, you don't believe in anything," he told her.
"Oh well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy as the rest of you."
"I'm sorry too," Zuko said,"I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once." Mai looked away from him, which just made Zuko step closer to her," instead of keeping all your feelings bottled up inside. She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?" Mai lay back on her rock and looked at the sky.
"What do you want from me? You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well, it wasn't. I was the rich only child who got anything I wanted," Mai told them,"As long I behaved...and sat still...and didn't speak unless spoken to. My mother said I had to keep out of trouble. We had my dad's political career to think about." Azula changed her postion and gestured as she spoke.
"Well, that's it, then. You had a controling mother who had certain expectations, and if you strayed from them you were shut down. That's why you're afriad to care about anything, and why you can't express yourself."
Mai sent Azula a vemonous look and stood up.
"You want me to express myself?" she asked,"Leave me alone!" Zuko didn't think girl were any prettier when they were angry, but Mai looked more beautiful when she had an emotion on her face.
"I like it when you express yourself," he told her as he reached for her. Mai backed away glaring at Zuko.
"Don't touch me. I'm still mad at you," she shouted at him.
"My life hasn't been that easy either, Mai-" Zuko started.
"Whatever," Mai interupted,"that doesn't excuse the way you've been acting."
"Calm down you guys," Tylee said in an attempt to restore the peace,"This much negative energy is bad for your skin. You'll totally break out." Zuko rounded on her.
"Bad skin?" Tylee cringed,"Normal teenagers worry about bad skin. I don't have that luxury. My father decided to teach me a permant lesson on my face!" Zuko said, pointing to his scar. Tylee gave him a sad, meek look.
"Sorry Zuko, I..."
"For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy," Zuko said,"I'm back home, now my dad talks to me. Ha, he even thinks I'm a hero! Everything should be perfect, right? I should be happy now, but I'm not. I'm angier than ever and I don't know why!"
"There's a simple question you need to answer then," Azula told him,"Who are you angry at?" Zuko had never thought about it. His anger didn't seem directed at anything.
"No one," he said as he looked down at his feet,"I'm just angry."
"Yeah," Mai said,"Who are you angry at, Zuko?"
"Everyone..." Zuko covered his ears. No that wasn't it,"I don't know."
"Is it Dad?" Azula asked him.
"No, no!" Zuko told her.
"Your uncle?" Tylee inquired. Zuko shook his head.
"No, no."
"Me?" Azula asked.
"Avaa?" Tylee asked quietly.
"No, no...no, no," Zuko answered.
"Then who? Who are you angry at?" Mai asked him.
"Answer the question, Zuko," Azula said sternly.
"Talk to us," Tylee pleaded. Zuko looked at the girls around him, suddenly feeling like a caged animal.
"Come on, answer the question," Mai said.
"Come on, answer it." Zuko closed his eyes then threw his arms down.
"I'm angry at myself!" The fire erupted into a ten foot column of flame, and quickly burned out, leaving only embers.
"Why?" Azula asked him when the fire had died down. Zuko turned away and looked at the ocean.
"Because I'm confused," he said,"Because I'm sure I know the difference between right and wrong anymore." He heard Azula scoff. Zuko imagined her rolling her eyes.
"You're pathetic," she told him. Mai put her arm around Zuko making him turn to her. She smiled.
"I know one thing I care about..." she told him,"I care about you." Mai brought Zuko closer and kissed him. Zuko kissed back, happy to be forgiven. They broke apart when they heard slow mocking clapping. Zuko and Mai looked behind them at Azula.
"Well, those were wonderful performances, everyone," she said still clapping and smiling. Zuko frowned at her.
"I guess you wouldn't understand," he said as he wrapped a hand around Mai's waist and pulled her close,"would you Azula? Because you're just so perfect." Azula shrugged.
"Well,yes, you're right. I don't have sob stories like all of you," she said, "I could sit here and complain how our mom liked Zuko more than me, but I don't really care." Azula looked at the dying embers in the fire pit," My own mother... thought I was a monster." She looked up at the rest of the group then shrugged again,"She was right of course, but it still hurt."
"What Li and Lo said came true. The beach did help us learn about ourselves." Tylee said. She bent over and pickedd up a stone,"I feel all smoothed. I'll always remember this." Zuko half-smield. He wouldn't admit it out loud but he did feel better. His problem still existed but he felt like he could fix it now.
Azula smiled evily and put a arm around Tylee.
"You know what would make this trip really memorable?"
Azula knocked on Chan's front door. Chan opened it, looking puzzled to see them. Azula smirked.
"We've got some bad news, Chan," she said in a mock- sweet voice.
"Party's over," Zuko said before they pushed past Chan and into the house. Azula ran to a large vase, picked it up, and then dropped it on the floor.
"No!" Chan cried. Zuko smirked and kicked a table full of food in half, sending other guests running. He looked at Mai who cut five tapestries in half with one of her knives. Tylee jumped from the rafters and took two chandeliers with her. Chan looked at the damage the quartet had caused and burst into tears. Smiling, Azula, Mai, Tylee, and Zuko joined arms proudly. Yup, Zuko wouldn't be forgetting this any time soon.
--
Guess who threw Avaa's pendant away. (coughMaicough)
Anyway I know Mai and Zuko were hypocritical about the pendant and Ruon Jin but I don't like Mai so I don't care about her. And as for Zuko...well what do you expect he's Zuko.
Review please.