25
Kagemi stared out at the ocean, watching the blue waves lap against the side of the ship. She heard footsteps behind her, but didn't bother to see who it was.
"You look so sad." A voice said, Kagemi turned around, and growled lowly when she saw it was Ty Lee. She turned back to the ocean.
"And you care?" She sneered.
"Well, sure I do." Ty Lee said, coming up beside her, not hearing how she growled in her throat at the new closeness, "I mean, you're with us now. A friend!"
Kagemi hissed at her, "I don't need friends." She spat out the word as if it were a nasty poison. She looked back at the ocean, "I know you're not the brightest candle lit, girl, but can't you tell when someone wants to be alone?" Ty Lee frowned.
"But, you just seemed so sad, I thought you might be lonely." Ty Lee said.
"I'm not lonely." Kagemi said, she kept her eyes on the ocean, "I've just never seen the ocean before."
Ty Lee gasped, "What?! How could you never have seen the ocean before?"
"When you've never been in control of your life," Kagemi said, looking at the moon's reflection on the water, "You tend to miss out on a few things…"
Kotaro adjusted the cloak around his shoulders. He sighed as he looked out at the ocean as he and the others travelled on a Fire Nation ship along the waters through Chameleon Bay. He looked down at his wrist, seeing the blue plated bracelet Hoshiko had given him. His heart beat painfully in his chest, his heart still feeling like it was missing some part of itself. It hurt to feel it beat in that hollowness, to feel it cry out every time it moved, crying out for its other half. Kotaro's eyes began to well up in tears, but he quickly wiped them away and covered the bracelet with his hand. He didn't want to think of Hoshiko. Not now.
"You alright there?" Kotaro looked up to see Sokka standing a few feet away from him. He nodded his head, turning back to the ocean, leaning his arms against the railing. His hand still covered the bracelet.
"Yeah… I guess." He said. Sokka came up next to him, resting his arms on the railing beside him.
"You're lying." He said, Kotaro let out a humorless laugh.
"Yeah, I am." He said, "I'm not alright." Sokka frowned sadly.
"I'm sorry about Hoshiko." Sokka said, "She was a good friend." Kotaro nodded in agreement.
"It's… hard to keep on moving after losing someone you care about." Kotaro admitted, his hand tightening around the bracelet.
"I know the feeling." Sokka said, "But, hey, you're here now, right? Hoshiko would want you to help us with the invasion." Kotaro nodded once, still looking out listlessly at the ocean. Sokka's eyes fell to his bracelet and saw how he was gripping it, "You know, there's an interesting story behind that bracelet."
"Is there?" Kotaro asked, keeping his gaze on the ocean.
"Yeah, it actually belonged to a friend of Hoshiko's before it was hers." Sokka said, "It was a birthday present to Princess Yue when she lived in the North Pole in the Northern Water Tribe."
"Yeah?" Kotaro said, turning to Sokka.
"Yeah," Sokka nodded, "She was Princess Yue's bodyguard, but they didn't really seem like protector and protectee when you saw them. They were more like best friends." Kotaro saw Sokka's face light up slightly, "I knew the princess, too… I really liked her…"
"Did you love her?" Kotaro asked, Sokka shrugged.
"I don't know, I don't think I was around her long enough for it to be, like, love, but…" Sokka sighed, "It was pretty close. Anyway, long story short, Yue ended up sacrificing herself for her people, and she became the moon spirit." Kotaro gave him an odd look, "No lie. She became the moon spirit. And when she left," Sokka pointed to the bracelet Kotaro was covering, "She left this behind. When Hoshiko saw it, she started crying like crazy." Kotaro looked down at the bracelet on his wrist, "Since then, she's been hanging onto it. It's the only piece of her friend that she had left, and she didn't want to let it go." Kotaro's fingers traced over the plate on the bracelet. He let out a thoughtful hum. "And, I guess, because of that, Hoshiko and I became pretty good friends. I mean, having that connection through Yue kind of made us… get each other a little bit, I think. We got pretty close." Kotaro's ears pricked at his words.
"How close?" He asked seriously, Sokka looked over at him, and when he saw the serious look on his face, he looked at him in surprise.
"Not like 'close' close!" He said, "Just, y'know, like brother and sister close. Not that kind of close! No, no. We even talked about that once. Hoshiko said she wouldn't be like that with me because…" Sokka trailed off, trying to remember what happened that night.
"Because…?" Kotaro egged, wanting to know his answer.
"Because she said her heart belonged to someone else." Sokka said. Kotaro looked at Sokka with wide eyes, and Sokka gave him a friendly smile, "I guess she meant you, buddy." Kotaro's spirits didn't seem to lift as he gazed down at the bracelet. He let out a shaky sigh and hung his head, bringing his hand up to his eyebrows and rubbing them. Sokka looked at him in surprise as Kotaro's face tightened up, as if trying to squeeze his eyes shut so no tears would fall from them.
"She really said that?" He asked, Sokka looked at him pitifully and rested his hand on his shoulder as Kotaro let out another shaky breath, "I miss her…"
"Yeah, me too." Sokka said. A clattering noise behind them caught their attention and they turned around. Sokka, thinking it might be an enemy, put on the mask that went with his soldier's uniform. They looked to see Aang lying on the ground looking in front of him to see Sokka's father and Bato giving Momo some food.
"Momo?" He asked in surprise. Momo chirped happily and ran over to Aang, jumping up on his head.
"Twinkle Toes! That's gotta be you!" Toph cried happily as she and Katara ran over to him as he stood up.
"Aang, you're awake!" Katara said happily as everyone came over to him.
"Are you sure?" Aang asked, "I feel like I'm dreaming." Katara went over to him and pulled him into a hug.
"You're not dreaming." She said happily, "You're finally awake."
"Aang, good to see you back with the living, buddy!" Sokka said, giving his friend a quick hug.
"Sokka…?" Aang questioned quietly, and then groaned.
"Uh-oh, somebody catch him, he's gonna-!" Toph didn't finish as Aang fainted against the floor of the ship. Kotaro went over to the young monk, who now had a nice patch of hair on his head, and put his arm around his shoulders.
"Come on, let's get him back in his bed." He said, standing up. Katara took Aang's other arm around her own shoulders and they walked Aang back to the room they had put him in so he might be a bit more comfortable when he woke up.
Kagemi stretched her hands out as she walked down the hallway. She looked around the metal hull of the ship, feeling a certain feeling she had never had the pleasure of feeling before.
Boredom.
She hadn't really experienced boredom while she was locked away, because the entire time she was in there, it was more like she had been sleeping deeply. She had never had to figure out something to do to buy her time. It was hard trying to figure out what would entertain her other than fighting (Most, if not all, of the soldiers on board the ship seemed terrified of her, so she couldn't get any of them to say yes to a little practice battle).
"Aren't you cold?" Kagemi's eyes turned to where she saw Prince Zuko and Mai standing close to each other near a balcony railing on the ship.
"I've got a lot on my mind." Zuko replied, "It's been so long… Over three years since I was home. I wonder how things have changed… I wonder how I've changed." Mai yawned.
"I just asked if you were cold, I didn't ask for your whole life's story." She said, smiling at him. Zuko didn't smile back. She went over to him and moved his head so it would face hers, "Stop worrying." She kissed him gently, and moved away. She didn't notice Kagemi as she went through the door she stood by. Kagemi gave the girl, who was now happy in a way she found eerie. She looked over at where the prince still stood at the railing, looking out at the moon.
She crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe, looking at the prince's back, "You humans are such odd creatures." Zuko turned around at the sound of her voice, and his golden eyes met her white, cold ones, "Aren't you the banished prince? The one who's been dying to go home ever since you were banished? And now, all of a sudden, you're worried about what's going to happen you go home." Kagemi shook her head, "And then there's that Mai girl. She's normally miserable, yet around you she's happy, in a very creepy way, I might add."
"Wouldn't you be worried if you were returning to the home you'd been sent away from for three years?" Zuko asked, "Don't you worry about what other people might say about you when you return?" Kagemi's face was expressionless as she looked at the prince.
"I don't have a home to return to." She said, her eyes narrowed slightly in a glare, "Your father's soldiers made sure of that." Zuko looked at her in surprise.
"I'm sorry…" He said quietly.
"Don't be." Kagemi scoffed, "It's war. Sacrifices had to be made." It's not like they wanted me around, anyway. She finished in her head.
"You know, you're pretty odd yourself." Zuko said, Kagemi raised her eyebrow delicately at him, "I mean, only a few weeks ago, you were travelling with the avatar and going by the name-" Kagemi moved at an inhuman speed, dashing to Zuko in the blink of an eye.
"Don't you dare say her name in front of me!!" Kagemi growled, suddenly in front of the prince. Zuko looked at her with wide eyes as she glared at him, her teeth bared, "Don't. You. Dare." She took a step back from him, "I am a different person from when I was then. I am Kagemi now, I no longer go by a name like Hoshiko." She spat out the name. She turned around and stalked away from the scarred prince, who watched her leave with wide eyes.
"Why are we on a Fire Nation ship? Why is everyone dressed this way? And why am I the only one who's completely out of it?" Aang fired off question after question once he regained consciousness from fainting. Kotaro rested against Appa as he watched and listened to the conversation between him and Katara.
"You need to take it easy, okay?" Katara said, holding out her hand to stop him from talking. "You got hurt pretty bad." Aang's face fell as his hand went to the bandages around his waist, stomach, and shoulder. "I like your hair." Katara said, trying to make Aang feel a little better.
"I have hair?!" Aang asked, his hands going to his head to feel the still growing fuzz on top, "How long was I out?"
"A few weeks." Katara said, Katara glanced up as a man came up to them.
"Everything okay?" He asked. Katara looked away from him with a scowl on her face.
"We're fine, Dad." She said.
"I'm Hakoda," He introduced, holding out his hand to Aang, "Katara and Sokka's father." Aang was about to reach for his hand when Katara stopped him by putting her hand on his shoulder.
"He knows who you are. I just called you 'Dad' didn't I?" Katara asked, giving her father a pointed look. Hakoda's smile fell slightly at her words.
"I guess you're right." He said, Aang moved Katara's hand and reached up, taking Hakoda's and grasping his forearm the way all Water Tribe members do to greet each other.
"Nice to officially meet you, Chief Hakoda." Aang said with a smile, Hakoda smiled back.
"It's an honor to meet you." Hakoda replied.
"Great, great. Now you guys have finally met, so would you mind giving us a little privacy?" Katara asked, sounding a little peeved at her father. Kotaro quirked a curious eyebrow at her behavior, knowing that she missed her father a lot when he left, from what the others had told him.
"Of course." Hakoda said, he turned and walked over to Appa, where Kotaro rested.
"Are you mad at your dad or something?" Aang asked, Katara stopped glaring at her father's back to turn to him.
"What? No, not at all." Katara asked, sounding genuinely surprised that he had asked, "Why would you say that?" Aang, not really sure what was going on between the two, only shrugged, then flinched as it caused him some pain in his abdomen. Katara looked at him concernedly, "Maybe we should go upstairs. You need a healing session." Kotaro watched as they left, then looked over at Hakoda, who petted Appa's head as he fed him some hay from a small pile nearby. He looked over at Kotaro, who looked away when their gazes met.
"Are you alright?" He asked, Kotaro shrugged.
"As alright as I could be, I guess." He said. Hakoda looked down at the young man concernedly, then sat down next to him.
"I understand your friend didn't come back with you." He said, Kotaro's face fell and he nodded once, "Sokka told me she was a kind girl."
"She wasn't just kind." Kotaro said, "She was kind, and smart, and funny, and strong, and… beautiful. She was perfect." Hakoda looked at him sadly.
"You loved her." He said, Kotaro's gaze turned to the floor, nodding his head, "Did she know?"
"I've been saying I loved her for a long time." Kotaro said with a bitter laugh, "I'm pretty sure she knew. She loved me back, as well." Hakoda nodded once.
"I know the pain of losing those you love." He said, putting his hand on the Shinjun's shoulder, "I'm sorry." Kotaro hung his head.
"I could have stopped it." He said, "I could have refused the idea to separate us and gone with her. Maybe I could have changed what happened." Kotaro gripped at the roots of his hair, "I could have stopped it! Why didn't I?"
"Kotaro," Hakoda began gently, "We can't focus on what could have been in life. We can only focus on the now, because there's nothing we can do that can change the past."
"I know that. I know, but…" Kotaro gripped at his hair even tighter, "Damn it, I want her back!" He slammed his fist against the metal floor beneath him hard enough to make a small dent. Appa grunted in surprise at the sudden noise of his hit. Hakoda looked down at his hand, seeing that it was now forming a bruise on the side, then looked up at his face where, even though his eyes were hidden by the darkness of the night as his head was bowed, he saw tears of frustration and anger streaming down his cheeks. He said nothing, letting the young man be as he got up and left him alone, leaving him to cry out his frustrations in silence. Momo, who had been resting in Appa's saddle, looked down at the young Shinjun and crawled down to be beside him, chirping and purring softly to get his attention. Kotaro looked down at the lemur and petted his head as he wiped his tears, giving him something to do to distract himself. Momo crawled into his lap and made himself comfortable, purring softly as he kept petting him. Momo reached for the bracelet that Kotaro wore and looked up at him. Kotaro looked in surprise at the little lemur, as his big, green eyes seemed to sadden, as if saying he missed Hoshiko, too.
"After what happened in Ba-Sing-Se, we had to get you to safety." Sokka said, as he began to explain everything that had happened while Aang was passed out the next morning, "We flew back to Chameleon Bay, where we found my father and the other Water Tribe men. The Earth King decided he wanted to travel the world in disguise, so he set off alone- Well, not completely alone. He did have Bosco with him. Soon, the bay was overrun with Fire Nation ships, rather than fight them all, we captured a single ship, and made it our disguise. Since then, we've been travelling west," Sokka pointed to a body of water on the map in front of him, "We crossed through the Serpent's Pass a few days ago. We've seen a few Fire Nation ships, but none have bothered us."
"So… What now?" Aang asked.
"We've been working on a modified version of the invasion plan." Kotaro said before slurping up some of the noodles he was having for breakfast, "We won't be able to mount a huge invasion without the Earth King's armies, but the solar eclipse will still make the Fire Nation vulnerable."
"So, we're planning a smaller invasion." Sokka said, "Just a rag-tag team of our friends and allies from around the Earth Kingdom. We already ran into Pipsqueak and The Duke." He gestured over to the large young man, and the much smaller, younger man sitting on his shoulders.
"Good to see you again, Aang." Pipsqueak said in his deep voice.
"And the best part is, the eclipse isn't even our biggest advantage!" Sokka continued, he lowered his voice to a whisper, "We have a secret: You."
"Me?" Aang asked.
"Yep! The whole world thinks you're dead." Sokka said with a smile, "Isn't that great?!" He stood up in joy of his words. Aang stared at his friend with wide eyes.
"The world thinks I'm dead?!" Aang asked standing up in shock, "How is that good news? That's terrible!"
"No, it's great!" Sokka said, "It means the Fire Nation won't be hunting us, anymore. And even better, they won't be expecting you on the Day of Black Sun."
"No, no, no, no, no." Aang said, shaking his head, "You have no idea…" He grasped at his head, "This is so messed up!" He looked back up at Sokka, "And I know there's no way I'm not the only one thinking this. Hoshiko will agree with me," He looked around, "Right?" His eyes widened when he didn't see the panther Shinjun anywhere, "…Hoshiko…?" He looked at his friends' faces, seeing how they all fell. Panic and worry began to fill him at the absence of his friend, "Where's Hoshiko?"
"Aang…" Katara began gently, "Hoshiko stayed behind to protect us from the Dai Lee when we escaped… She never made it back." Aang's eyes widened considerably.
"So… then is she just a Fire Nation prisoner?" He asked, turning to everyone.
"Hoshiko would sooner cut her own throat than return to the Fire Nation," Kotaro said, making everyone turn to him, "If she was taken as prisoner, she killed herself in the prison cell." He looked over at Aang, "She's dead." Aang's eyes began to shine in sadness.
"No…" He collapsed onto the floor, and Katara went over to comfort him. Sokka looked over at Kotaro, and frowned at the sight of his expression. He looked frustrated, sad, and distant all at once. Sokka was almost worried he would cut his own throat right then and there.
Kagemi followed the princess as they walked through the palace. She glanced occasionally at the art adorning the walls, and even gazed at the murals of all the Fire Lords up until Fire Lord Ozai.
"Now, as one of our latest subordinates," Azula began, getting her attention, "You need to prove your loyalty to my father, otherwise he would never accept you." Azula turned her head to look over her shoulder at her as she walked, "I'm sure you understand, being a Shinjun and all." Kagemi bristled slightly when the name of her race sounded weak in the princess's tone of voice.
Instead of telling her off, she only said, "Of course, your highness." They approached the door to a room, and Azula turned to face her before they entered.
"Now, when you meet my father, you have to do whatever he asks of you." Azula said, "And I mean anything. No hesitation at all. If you show it, father will make sure you are put in the slave quarters and shoveling rhino dung for the rest of your life."
"Understood, your highness." Kagemi said stiffly. Azula nodded once, and Kagemi followed her in. Kagemi looked up at the Fire Lord's throne, looking at all the orange flames that surrounded him, and suddenly felt the urge to run forward and cut off his head. Her tail bristled with her urge, but only bowed lowly before him as Azula did.
"Father," Azula greeted curtly before raising her head to him, "This is the Shinjun we spoke of." She turned to Kagemi, "Raise your head." She did as the princess commanded and set her eyes on the Fire Lord, trying her hardest not to glare at him, "She has sworn her loyalty to us, and will do what we ask of her."
"Is that so?" Ozai questioned, he looked at Kagemi, then turned to the side, gesturing someone forward with his hand. The two watched as two guards dragged in a beaten-looking rabbit Shinjun girl. Kagemi recognized her from Hoshiko's memory as Usagi, the rabbit Shinjun she had made friends with while going through the Cave of Two Lovers. "This Shinjun has resisted any sort of force we put upon it, and will not do as we command." Ozai turned to Kagemi, "If you are as loyal as you say you are, then you will kill it." Kagemi nodded once and stood up. She walked over to where the two guards were holding Usagi, and waved them away with her hands, telling them to stand back. Usagi fell against the ground, and her bruised and beaten eyes looked up to see who was standing before her, and recognized her. She smiled hopefully, and tears of relief and joy fell from her eyes.
"Hoshiko!" She cried happily in her high-pitched voice, "Hoshiko, it's you! I'm so glad!" Kagemi glared at her and raised her hand, Usagi's hopeful smile fell, "What are you doing? Hoshiko?" Kagemi snarled as she brought her hand down, taking a razor-sharp curve of shadow with her and cut off Usagi's head. Her ears folded into her face as her head rolled against the ground. The two guards reached down and picked up her remains and dragged them away, leaving a trail of blood behind. Kagemi turned to the Fire Lord and bowed in the traditional Fire Nation way, showing her respect to him. Ozai gazed down at her, and Kagemi did not raise her head until she heard him order her to.
"You killed one of your own kind without any hesitation." He mused aloud, "You were not afraid, and you did not comfort her when she called you by your former name." Kagemi stood stiffly before him.
"My loyalty is to the Fire Lord and his family." She said robotically, "There is not an order that you can give me that I cannot do." Ozai hummed thoughtfully, then turned to his daughter.
"A good choice, Azula." He praised, "She will remain with you until a time where I require her assistance." Azula bowed.
"Thank you, Father." She said. Kagemi followed her out of the room. She felt her hands shaking. She looked down and saw that they were covered in Usagi's blood.
In her mind, she could hear Hoshiko crying.
Everyone looked up when they heard a horn going off. They looked to see a Fire Nation ship coming towards them.
"I'll handle this." Aang said, "The avatar is back." He took a hold of his glider and opened it up, but the sudden motion of doing so caused him pain, and he flinched, groaning. He put his hands on the glider, ready to take off.
"Aang, wait!" Katara said, holding out her hands to stop him, "Remember, they don't know we're not Fire Nation." A couple of beads of sweat fell from Aang's forehead as he closed his glider. Kotaro looked at him in surprise, not realizing how much effort it was taking the young boy to move.
"Everyone just stay calm." Hakoda said as he grabbed his Fire Nation helmet, "Bato and I will take care of this." He put the helmet on his head, while everyone else went to hide in the stairwell that went below deck.
"I hate not being able to do anything." Aang grumbled quietly.
"Hopefully, you won't need to." Toph whispered back to him. They watched as a plank was connected between the two ships and three men, two soldiers and a high-ranked Fire Nation officer, walked across.
"Commander, why are you off course?" The man demanded of Hakoda, "All western fleet ships are to be moving toward Ba-Sing-Se to support the occupation!"
"Actually, we're from the eastern fleet." Hakoda said, "We have orders to deliver some cargo."
"Ah… Eastern fleet…" The head officer said, thinking, "Well, nice of Admiral Chan to let us know he was sending one of his ships our way."
"I'm sure Admiral Chan meant no disrespect, sir." Bato said.
"I mean, how hard is it to write a quick note and send a hawk our way?" The officer asked, Kotaro almost sighed in relief that the man was buying their cover.
"Next time, we'll send two hawks to make sure you get the message." Hakoda said, giving the man a small smile. They bowed to the man and turned away. Kotaro's ears heard the voice of the soldier's beside the head officer as they spoke quietly to him.
"Sir, Admiral Chan has been on leave for two months on Ember Island." The soldier whispered.
"What?" The head officer whispered back, "Why doesn't anyone ever tell me anything?" He looked around the ship, "Something's not right, they should have known that. I think this is a captured ship." He turned around and the two soldiers walked with him going across the plank, "Just stay quiet until we're safely across the ramp. Then we'll sink this ship." Kotaro's eyes widened and he jumped out of his hiding place.
"They know!" He had lightning shoot out from his fingertips onto the plank they were walking on, making it collapse and fall into the water, taking the three men with them. Katara used her water bending to make the space between the ships larger by making a huge amount of it grow up into a hump-like shape that was the size of the ships themselves. Then she used it to push the ship back away from them so they could have a better chance for escape. The ship quickly took off, wasting no time in getting away from the fire benders.
Kagemi stretched casually as she strolled around the palace. She looked at every Shinjun she passed, seeing how they all seemed to cower back, away from her.
Word travels fast. She thought to herself, thinking that the other Shinjuns in the palace heard how she killed Usagi without so much as blinking. They must be afraid that she'll kill them next.
She doesn't mind it, in her opinion, it's much better to be feared than loved.
She heard the soft sound of quacking, and looked to see Zuko feeding some turtle ducks in a small pond on the palace grounds. She watched as Azula came up to her brother, and the turtle ducks started swimming away as her shadow was cast over them.
"You seem so downcast." She said to her brother, "Has Mai gotten to you already?" As an afterthought, she added, "Although Mai has been in a strangely good mood lately."
"I haven't seen Dad yet." Zuko said to her, "I haven't seen him in three years, since I was banished."
"So what?" Azula asked. Zuko sent a glare to his sister.
"So, I didn't capture the avatar." Zuko replied.
"Who cares?" Kagemi scoffed, she didn't realize she was speaking loud enough to get the attention of the two royals. When they looked at her, she continued, "The avatar's dead. What does it matter if you have him or not?" She stood up and quirked a curious brow as she noticed how Zuko looked away at her words. She came up beside him, looking at him with a sly grin, "Unless… you think he survived getting shot by a lightning bolt? Made by your own sister, no less."
Zuko turned to her, looking directly in her dark eyes, "No." He said, "There's no way he could have survived." Kagemi stared at him long and hard, and he stared back.
"Well," Azula said, breaking their staring contest, "Then I'm sure you have nothing to worry about." Azula turned away, "Kagemi, come with me, I have a task for you."
"Yes, your majesty." Kagemi said, following her.
The ship lurched left and right as fireballs were shot at it from the Fire Nation ship following them. Kotaro growled in frustration as he tried to stand up straight on the ship by grabbing onto the railing. As one started heading straight for them, he ran up and pointed two of his fingers at it, shooting out a bolt of lightning to disintegrate it before it hit the deck.
Toph raised her hands in an earth bending stance and shouted, "Load the Toph!" Pipsqueak picked up a large cylinder of stone and put it in front of her. She used earth bending to bring up a small portion, then shot it out at the Fire Nation ship attacking them, destroying their catapult. When they fired off another fireball at them, Kotaro raised his hands and shot out a bolt of lightning, destroying it before it landed. Suddenly, the ship lurched as the other ship sent a chained, iron claw down through the water like a torpedo and through the hull of the ship. Katara quickly used her water bending to freeze any water around the hole that was made in the ship, preventing it from sinking.
"I'm gonna give us some cover!" She shouted to everyone, then she suddenly created a huge cloud of fog that was sure to leave the other ship blind. The only problem was, they were blind, too. The fireballs still came at them from the second catapult on the ship. They soon sailed out of the fog into the water once more. A fireball shot out and landed on their ship, making a fire on the steel. Katara quickly bent up some water to put it out.
"How're we doing?" Toph asked over the noise to Sokka.
"Things couldn't get much worse." Sokka replied. Suddenly, there was a large splash behind him, and a loud roar filled everyone's ears as the sea serpent from The Serpent's Pass came rearing up out of the water to face the ship that had dared cross into its territory. Sokka gaped at it, "The universe just loves proving me wrong, doesn't it?"
"You make it too easy!" Toph replied. Another fireball shot out from the ship, and it hit the serpent. It cried out in pain and in anger, and turned to the ship. It dove under the water only to come back up moments later, wrapping its body around the ship twice and squeezing it, like a snake would their prey. It kept the ship stationary as they got away from the fire benders. Sokka smiled widely.
"Thank you the universe." He said gratefully, looking up at the sky.
After the battle, they had found a port to dock in to repair the ship, which should be finished by the end of the hour. Kotaro walked around the ship, stopping when he came to the shut door to Aang's room. He paused at the door, staring at it for a moment, then knocked on it.
"Come in." Aang's voice said from inside. Kotaro pushed the creaking metal door open and smiled at Aang, who gave a small smile in return. Aang was lying down on the bed, his fingers linked behind his head, "Hey."
"Hey." Kotaro returned, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "How're you feeling?" Aang shrugged.
"Okay, I guess." He said, Kotaro nodded, coming in and sitting down on the bed, facing Aang. "What about you?" Kotaro shrugged.
"I've been worse, I suppose." He said. There was a long silence between the two of them, and Kotaro was starting to regret coming into the room, because he and Aang had nothing to talk about without Hoshiko there.
"So…" Aang began awkwardly.
"So…" Kotaro returned, just as awkward as he was. Aang looked at the young wolf Shinjun.
"What happened? With Hoshiko, I mean?" He asked, he saw Kotaro's face fall at the mention of Hoshiko's departure.
"I wouldn't know." He said quietly, "I wasn't there. But you were, weren't you?"
"Oh, yeah, I guess I was." Aang said sheepishly, "I don't really remember much about it, though." His eyebrows furrowed as he thought of a memory, "I do remember one thing, though…"
"What?" Kotaro asked, Aang looked over at him.
"Did Hoshiko ever tell you about Kagemi?" He asked, Kotaro's eyes widened in surprise at the young avatar.
"How do you know about Kagemi?" He asked in surprise.
"Hoshiko had a nightmare about her once." Aang said, "I asked her about it, and she told me about how Kagemi is a part of her and everything." Kotaro nodded.
"I've known about her for a while." Kotaro said, "What did you remember?"
"I remembered that, when we were fighting Azula and Zuko," Aang said, "I saw her eyes get all dark, and she was a little more… vicious than usual." Kotaro's eyes widened, "I guess Kagemi took over or something."
"…She…" Kotaro put his hand over his mouth, his eyes still wide. Aang looked at him curiously as Kotaro's gaze stayed on the floor of the room, "She might not be dead…"
"What?" Aang asked, jumping up. He grimaced when the sudden motion caused him pain and his hand rested over his abdomen. They both looked up when the door opened, revealing Katara, Toph, and Sokka.
"Hey Aang." Toph greeted, "We're going into town to find some dinner."
Aang looked down at his stomach as he heard it grumble at the thought of food. "Well, I am pretty hungry. Maybe dinner's a good idea."
"Here," Sokka said, pulling out a red headband, "Tie this around your head, it'll cover your arrow." Aang scowled.
"I'm not going out if I can't wear my arrow proudly." Aang said, he lay back down on the bed, and Sokka sighed.
"Aang, come on. Be practical." Sokka said, he looked over at Kotaro, "What about you, do you wanna eat?"
"Sure." Kotaro said, standing up with a seemingly renewed happiness, "Got a hat?" Toph held up a straw hat and Kotaro put it on his head. He looked over at the young monk, who still lay on his bed. "Aang, it's just a headband. It's not that bad." Aang didn't reply.
"Why don't you guys go ahead without us?" Katara said, coming up to her brother, "We'll catch up with you." Everyone did as she suggested and walked out of the room, Katara came over to Aang's bed, sitting down on it next to him and putting her hand on his shoulder. "I think I understand why being a secret bothers you so much. You don't want people to think you failed."
"You're right. I don't." Aang said, "But the problem is, I did fail."
"Aang, that's not true." Katara said, her hand moving away from Aang's shoulder as he sat up.
"It is true." He said, he swung his legs over the side of the bed, "I was in Ba-Sing-Se. I was there!" He stood up from the bed, "But I lost. And now the Earth Kingdom has fallen for good." He looked back at Katara.
"It's not for good." Katara said with a hopeful smile as she stood up from the bed, "Remember, there's still a plan. The invasion!"
"And I hate the invasion plan, too!" Aang snapped angrily, his hand grabbing the Fire Nation tapestry that hung over his bed. He ripped it off the wall and threw it onto the floor, "I don't you or anyone else risking your lives to fix my mistakes!" He turned his back to her, "I've always known that I would have to face the Fire Lord. But now I know that I need to do it alone."
"Aang…" Katara murmured, going over to comfort her friend.
"Katara, please." Aang said, shaking his head at her, "Just go. Please." Katara, although reluctantly, did as he asked. When she reached the door, she stopped, looking back at Aang.
"Is there anything you need?" She asked him.
"I need to redeem myself." Aang said, "I need my honor back."
Kagemi's grey pupils were wide as she smirked wickedly, her eyes resting on a small mouse that had crossed her path. She sat on her hands and knees, licking her lips at the sight of the rodent, her ears hooding back, and her tail swinging back and forth in excitement. She bent her arms to get down lower as she prepared to pounce on the creature. Her butt wiggled in excitement just before she jumped up and tried to slam her hand down on it. When she missed she swatted at it again and again until she had gotten ahold of its tail. She grinned maliciously as she picked it up by the tail, watching it flail around helplessly, letting out squeaks of distress. She licked her lips at the sight of the tasty morsel in her hands. Hearing it squeak like that made her chuckle.
"Life's not fair, is it?" She cooed mockingly at the mouse as she stood up, still dangling it by its tail. "You see, I… Well, I was locked up in a dark prison for years on end, and you," She chuckled, "You shall never see the light of another day." She let the mouse crawl over her fingers as it tried to escape, "Oh, you can run all you want, but you can't escape the fact that something that's so awful is about to come to an end. All bad things end at one point, after all, good things come to those who wait." She chuckled again, "So, I was released, and I'll save you the pain of being so frightened by me." She chuckled again, "Adieu." She grabbed the tail and dangled it as she opened her mouth, preparing to drop it in. She heard someone groan in disgust.
"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to play with your food?" A voice said.
"Huh?" Kagemi looked behind her to see Zuko, in all his princely garb standing behind her. Taking advantage of this distraction, the mouse bit Kagemi's finger so she would drop him, "Ow!" The mouse quickly scurried away, hiding in a crack in the wall. Kagemi pouted. She looked back at the prince with a small glare, "Thanks. You just made me lose my lunch."
"In all fairness, you've been doing that to me since we first met." Zuko replied crisply as he walked past her. Kagemi flipped him off with an angry expression, even though he didn't see it.
"Just where are you going, anyway?" Kagemi asked, starting to follow him.
"I'm going to see my father." Zuko said, "He's requested to see me."
"Ooh, how fun." Kagemi said mockingly, "You're dad's a regular hoot." Zuko shot her a nasty look.
"What are you doing here anyway?" He asked, "Didn't my sister have some task for you?"
"Yes, she did." Kagemi said, "And I finished it a while ago. So I'm just walking around. Is that so bad?"
"Well, it's kind of weird that you're following me." Zuko said as he walked down the hall to his father's throne room.
"So what?" Kagemi asked, "I want to see the beautiful reunion between you and your daddy." Zuko glared at her as she wore a mocking grin.
"He asked to see me only." Zuko said, hoping that would send her away.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." Kagemi said, "You won't even know I'm there."
"And just where would you hide?" Zuko asked, "Behind a curtain?" Kagemi scoffed.
"I would never hide in such an obvious place." She said, "I would hide the same way I can travel." Her form sunk down into the floor until there was nothing but a shadow. It slithered across the floor until it was in front of Zuko, where she popped up in front of him, making him jump back. She smirked, "We shadow benders have a rather large range of talents, your highness." Zuko scowled and walked away from her towards the throne room entrance. Kagemi said nothing as she sunk back into the floor, her shadowy form crawling along the walls to the ceiling, going in before Zuko. He looked up at the entrance to the throne room, and took in a deep breath to help him get ready. He moved through the curtain and looked at where his father was silhouetted on his throne.
He walked to his father, and kneeled before him, his head touching the floor.
"You have been away for a long time." Ozai said, his voice unemotional, "I see the weight of your travels has changed you." He stood from his throne, "You have redeemed yourself, my son." Kagemi traveled up one of the pillars to a beam at the ceiling, coming out of the shadows and crouching down on the beam, watching them from above as Zuko lifted his head as Ozai walked from his throne towards him. "Welcome home."
Zuko felt relief and pride flooding through him. This is what he had wanted, craved, for so long. His father was welcoming him home. Kagemi's tail twitched in interest as she watched the exchange between the prince and the Fire Lord.
"I am proud of you, Prince Zuko." Ozai continued, "I am proud because you and your sister conquered Ba-Sing-Se. I am proud because, when your loyalty was tested by your treacherous uncle, you did the right thing, and captured the traitor." As he spoke Ozai walked around his son, Kagemi kept her eyes on him with every step, "And I am proudest of all of your most legendary accomplishment. You slayed the avatar." Zuko's eyes flashed, but Ozai was behind him and didn't see. Kagemi's eyes widened slightly and her ears pricked so they were standing straight up, her tail swinging excitedly. This was interesting development.
"What did you hear?" Zuko asked, staying where he was and not facing his father.
"Azula told me everything." Ozai said. Aah, Kagemi thought, Azula told him. That explains it. "She said she was amazed and impressed with your power and ferocity. At the moment of truth."
The thoughts in Zuko's mind ran rampant. Why would Azula, a person he's known all his life who would only lie for their benefit, tell his father that he killed the avatar? It didn't make any sense.
Ozai dismissed his son and he left the throne room, Kagemi following him out by hiding in the shadow his body made. When they were outside the throne room, Kagemi came up from the darkness, Zuko saw how some of it clung to her as if she were coming out of a mud pit, as if it was telling her where she belonged. When she was completely out of the shadow, she turned to Zuko with a smirk.
"Well!" She began, crossing her arms across her chest, "Isn't this an interesting turn of events? Azula told your father you killed the avatar."
"There's a reason for this." Zuko said.
"There's a reason for everything." Kagemi said with a dismissing wave of her hand, "So what?"
"Azula has some motive behind this." Zuko said, "I'm going to find out what it is."
"I'll come with." Kagemi said with a growing grin that showed her elongated canines, "I love watching a good sibling spat."
Katara carried a tray of food down the hallway as she headed to Aang's room. They had found plenty of things for him to eat while they were out in town and, although it was a little cold, she was sure Aang would appreciate it instead of the old rations they found in the hull of the ship. She smiled as she came to his doorway and walked in.
"I brought you some food." She said, her blue eyes widened as she looked around the room, seeing that Aang was gone, and so was his glider. "Oh, no…" She knew what he had done. He had run away, so he could face the Fire Lord by himself. The tray clattered against the floor as she dropped it and dashed out onto the deck where her father was. When she approached him, tears were in her eyes. Bato, who had been speaking with Hakoda, looked away.
"I'll leave you two alone." He said, he walked over to where Kotaro had found a comfortable napping spot near the doorway and shook his shoulder to try and wake him up. When it didn't work, he shrugged and left him to sleep, not noticing how he stirred softly a moment after his hand had left his body.
"What's wrong, Katara?" Hakoda asked concernedly, seeing tears pouring down his daughter's cheeks.
"He left." Katara said, her voice strained from her tears.
"What?" Hakoda asked. Kotaro sleepily rubbed his eye as he looked up at where they were talking, thinking their conversation had been what had woken him up.
"Aang," Katara specified, "He just… took his glider and disappeared. He has this ridiculous notion that he has to save the world alone. That it's all his responsibility."
"Maybe that's his way of being brave." Hakoda said.
"It's not brave!" Katara snapped, her tears coming faster than before, "It's selfish! And stupid! We could be helping him! And…! I know the world needs him, but doesn't he realize how much we need him too? How could he just leave us behind?" Kotaro watched the exchange between the two of them with wide eyes. He suddenly got the feeling he wasn't supposed to be there, and that he should leave, but he didn't want to draw any attention to himself, so he lowered his head and tried to fall back asleep and tune them out, but with little luck.
Hakoda's face darkened in sadness, "You're talking about me, too, aren't you?"
"How could you leave us, Dad?" Katara asked in a broken voice, "I mean, I know we had Gran Gran, and she loved us, but…" She wiped away some tears, only to have them be quickly replaced, "But we were just so lost without you." She covered her face with her hands as she began to cry, and Kotaro shifted slightly in discomfort at the sound of it. He tried not to listen, for he felt it was inappropriate to keep hearing them, but what else was there for him to listen to?
Hakoda reached out and put his hand on Katara's shoulder. "I am so sorry Katara." Katara took his comfort for what it was worth and hugged her father tightly, putting her face against his chest.
"I understand why you left." She said, "I really do. And I know that you had to go. So why do I still feel this way? I'm so sad, and angry, and hurt…!" Her voice broke off as she was about to sob again, and held her father tighter. Hakoda wrapped his arms around her, holding her close.
"I love you more than anything." Hakoda said to her, "You and your brother are my entire world. I thought about you every day I was gone. And every night, when I went to sleep, I would lie awake missing you so much it would ache." Kotaro carefully and quietly got up, leaving the two to their time together and went down the hall to his own room so he could try and sleep properly. Just as he reached the door, his formerly half-awake mind suddenly realized something.
Aang, the brave monk who was seriously hurt and could die if he wasn't tended to properly, was out in the middle of the ocean, in the middle of the night, somewhere in the Fire Nation, alone.
They needed to go and find him. Fast.
Kagemi followed Zuko through the halls of the palace until they came to Azula's bedroom, where Zuko pushed open the doors with ease.
"Why'd you do it?" He demanded of his sister once he was in. Azula, who lay on her bed, seemed to be asleep.
"You're going to have to be a little more specific." She said from her sheets.
"Why did you tell father that I was the one who killed the avatar?" Zuko demanded. Kagemi leaned against the doorframe, watching as they spoke to each other.
"Can't this wait until morning?" Azula asked in annoyance.
"It. Can't." Zuko said. Azula sighed.
"Fine." She sat up in her bed and looked at her brother, "You seemed so worried about how father would treat you because you hadn't captured the avatar. I figured if I gave you the credit, you'd have nothing to worry about."
"But why?" Zuko asked.
"Call it a 'generous gesture'." Azula said as she swung her legs over the side of her bed and got up and walked over to him, "I wanted to thank you for your help. And I was happy to share the glory." Even Kagemi could tell that was an outright lie, and she'd only known the princess for a few days.
"You're lying." Zuko said.
"If you say so." Azula replied, she nodded at Kagemi in greeting, "Hello, Kagemi."
"Your majesty." Kagemi returned her nod.
"You have another motive for doing this." Zuko said to Azula, "I just haven't figured out what it is."
"Please, Zuko." Azula said, "What ulterior motive could I have? What could I possibly gain by letting you get all the glory for defeating the avatar?" She looked away slyly, "Unless, somehow, the avatar was actually alive. All that glory would suddenly turn to shame, and foolishness." Zuko glared at her as he realized that naming him as the avatar killer was a back-up plan in case he was really alive. Kagemi nodded at the princess, impressed by her tactics. Azula moved back to her bed, sitting down on it, "But you said yourself, that was impossible." She moved back to lie down on her bed as Zuko walked out of the room, "Sleep well, Zuzu." Kagemi snorted behind her hand as she followed Zuko out, shutting the door behind her.
"Zuzu?" She asked, snickering.
"Just go find some place to sleep." Zuko ordered with a growl as he stormed off. Kagemi shrugged and walked away from the prince, heading to the room Azula had given her.
It was dawn by the time Kotaro and the others had found land. They had flown on Appa, separating from Hakoda and the rest of the invasion force as they searched for their friend. The first piece of land they came to was a crescent shaped volcanic island. After searching its rocky shores for about an hour, they came upon Aang's body washed up on the rocks. Momo, delighted to see his master, went to him first, jumping on his chest and licking his cheek. He slowly stirred from the feel of it and sat up. Katara smiled in relief when she saw him move, and ran over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"You're okay!" She sighed. Everyone came over to where they were. Aang looked around at all of his friends.
"I have so much to do." He said.
"We know." Katara said to him, "But you'll have our help."
"You didn't think you could get out of training just by coming to the Fire Nation, did you?" Toph asked jokingly, planting her hands on her hips. Aang smiled at her, but it quickly fell as a thought occurred to him.
"What about the invasion?" He asked, turning to Sokka.
"We'll join up with my dad and the invasion force on the day of the eclipse." Sokka explained. Kotaro felt something bumping against his foot and looked down.
"What is-?" He reached down to pick it up and grimaced, "Oh." He held it out to Aang, "It's your glider." Aang stood up, taking it in his hands. Aang stared at it solemnly as he held it.
"That's okay." He said, he looked up at his friends, "If someone saw it, it would give away my identity. It's better for now that no one knows I'm alive." He looked behind him at the volcanic veins of the island and used air bending to jump up high. He landed carefully on a small hilltop and stuck his glider through a tiny river of lava. After a moment, the glider caught fire and he jumped back down to join his friends. Katara embraced him again once he was close enough.
"I'm so glad you're okay." She said.
"Me too." Sokka said, going over and joining his sister in the hug. Toph soon followed, as did Appa and Momo. Kotaro stood off to the side awkwardly. He wasn't really part of their group, it would be weird for him to join in their happy little group hug they shared.
Toph's foot suddenly slapped the ground, and Kotaro was jutted forward, stumbling into Sokka, who clasped his arm around his shoulders and pulled him into the hug.
"You're a part of our team now, Wolfie," Toph said to him, "And that means being a part of group hugs."
"Okay." Kotaro laughed, clasping his arm on Sokka's back, and his other arm on Toph's, "I guess I can deal with that." Toph smiled at him, "And I like that name, by the way."
"I thought it was appropriate." Toph said with a shrug. Kotaro chuckled good-naturedly.
Cyber cookies to whoever caught my Lion King reference!
Also, I posted up pics of Hoshiko, Xana, and Kotaro on deviantART.
http:/ popcorngamer. deviantart. com/
Just take out the spaces.