I do not own any of the original Avatar characters.

Ba Sing Se

Sado walked along the street in silence, ignoring the Dai Li agents that were tracking him from the rooftops. They were stealthy and nearly impossible to notice, except that he knew they were there. They had been all day, too. It was already starting to get late. Toph and Katara had spent the day as a girls' day out, so Sado had spent it seeing the sites, shopping for a new outfit, eventually deciding to only trade his tee shirt for a sleeveless black shirt and get a new pair of shoes, since his were starting to get worn out. The only other place of note he had managed to find had been a park with a waterfall creating an endless rainbow.

Finally, Sado stopped as he spotted a tea shop. He shrugged, having no better plans, and walked in, only to stop as he saw Iroh and Zuko working as the tea maker and server respectively. Zuko glanced over and froze, staring at him with his eyes wide. Aside from the three of them, there were only a couple of people present, but it was still enough to keep Zuko from making a scene. Sado walked calmly into the shop, sitting down in plain view of the other customers. After a few moments, Zuko walked over, teeth gritted and fist clenched, ready for a fight but resisting.

"Can I help you?" Zuko growled.

"Just a water," Sado said. "And you can relax, I'm not going to attack you."

Zuko glared at him before walking away. After several moments, Iroh walked over with the water.

"I am surprised to see you here," Iroh said.

"Yeah, I could say the same," Sado said. "Probably more so than you two."

Iroh chuckled. "I suppose you are right."

"May I speak with you?" Sado asked. "Privately? I...I need advice."

"About your condition?" Iroh asked.

"Sort of, I suppose," Sado said. "But also about something else."

"I see," Iroh nodded. "Alright. Follow me."

Sado nodded and they walked through a door at the back of the shop to a small room where Iroh set out a pair of stools and a small wooden crate, beginning to pour them both tea. After he was done, Sado picked up his cup, sipping at it and grimacing.

"Not a fan?" Iroh asked.

"It's delicious," Sado said. "It just...reminds me of my family."

"I see," Iroh nodded.

"So, you're in Ba Sing Se, how'd that happen?" Sado asked.

"We needed a place to rest where the Fire Nation couldn't find us," Iroh said. "I'm Mushi. Me and my nephew, Lee, were driven out of our village by firebenders."

"I see," Sado nodded. "What happened to your nephew's eye?"

"He was burned by a firebender while trying to protect his sister," Iroh said. Sadly, he was unable to save her."

"He does have the general mood and bearing to pull that off, doesn't he?" Sado smiled.

"So, I have to ask," Iroh said. "Is the Avatar also here with you?"

"No," Sado said, smile fading. "We got separated in the desert to the south. I haven't seen any of them since, except Toph, the blind earthbending girl. It's just been us for weeks."

Iroh nodded. "So, you said that you needed advice."

"Yeah," Sado said. "I guess. Well...I think before I ask, I should tell you how it came about that I needed the advice."

"Alright," Iroh nodded.

"We had to take the Serpent's Pass to get here, but...partway along, my condition reached the point when I couldn't walk on my own," Sado said. "Toph helped me most of the way until we reached a section that was underwater. We began to swim, or, well, I did while Carrying Toph, since she can't swim, and we were attacked by a giant sea serpent. In order to protect Toph, I had to bend. But...because my condition was so advanced, bending used up the remaining time I had."

"Wait, then, you mean to tell me that..." Iroh trailed off, staring at him.

"I died," Sado nodded. "Then, I was revived by a spirit. Something called a dragon bird?"

Iroh's eyes widened impossibly. "A dragon bird? You've seen one?"

"It's living in my head now," Sado said. "Why?"

"Dragon birds are beautiful creatures, and are like guardians spirits for those they deem worthy," Iroh said.

"I see," Sado nodded. "Anyway, I was revived by the dragon bird, and realized I could bend, because I found my will. I want to protect Toph. She's my family. I'd do anything for her."

"That is an excellent reason," Iroh smiled.

"Yeah," Sado said, staring at his long-since cold tea. "The problem is...she likes Sokka, the Avatar's Water Tribe friend."

"I see," Iroh said. "And because of that, you haven't told her how you feel."

"No," Sado said. "I can't. I already know she doesn't feel the same."

"You can never know for sure," Iroh said. "Sometimes, you must take a leap of faith in order to find that which you seek."

Sado nodded.

"What about your condition?" Iroh asked. "You said you can bend now?"

"Yes, but the condition's still there," Sado said. "It's only held at bay for as long as I keep my desire to protect Toph in the forefront of my mind. As you can imagine, that's not exactly an easy task outside of battle."

"I can imagine it wouldn't be, no," Iroh agreed.

"I shouldn't be surprised that it's killing me, really though," Sado said.

"Why is that?" Iroh asked.

"Because fire destroys," Sado said. "It consumes. That's all it is. Destruction. A weapon. You can't really defend someone with it like you can with earthbending, you can't heal with it like with waterbending. It's not useful for travel or helping with everyday life like airbending. It's just a double-edged sword that you're hurling at a spinning target and hoping you don't hit the guy tied to the target."

"A weapon?" Iroh asked. "What is a weapon to you?"

"Something used to kill someone," Sado said. "Something whose sole purpose is to take life."

"Is a sword a weapon?" Iroh asked.

"Yes," Sado said.

"Wrong," Iroh said. "Can you block attacks with a sword?"

"Yes," Sado said.

"Can you block attacks with a spear?" Iroh asked.

"Yes," Sado said.

"Then by your own definition, a sword, or a spear, are not weapons," Iroh said. "And they are not. They are tools. They are extensions of your body. You can block a blade with a sword as surely as with a shield. The only difference is how you hold it, and where. Swords can be used for multiple things, and so can fire. You believe fire is purely for destruction, and yet you use it to defend Toph."

"You can only defend with fire by destroying something else," Sado said. "Make a ring of fire and no one will run up and try to stab you because they don't want to be burned. But then they can still attack from a distance."

"Fire is more than destruction," Iroh said. "Fire is used to cook food so that we can eat, or to heat tea. It is used to keep you alive in the cold, and it it used to light your way when it is dark. Fire is so much more than a weapon. Fire is life. It is energy. How you use that energy is what determines whether or not it is a weapon."

Sado stared at his tea before smiling, lighting his hand on fire and heating his tea. He drank it quickly and stood, bowing to Iroh. "Thank you. Both for the advice and the tea. It was delicious. You should teach Zuko to make tea. Maybe it would calm him down."

Iroh smiled. "Perhaps you are right. Good luck with your friend."

"Thank you," Sado said.

Then, he left the shop, heading back to the house, finding the others were all still out. He dropped onto one of the beanbag chairs and sighed, tilting his head back and staring at the ceiling. After a moment, he raised his head, lifting his arm and staring a small flaming tornado over his hand. After a few minutes, the door opened and Toph and Katara walked in, both with eyeshadow, lipstick, and blush on their faces. It looked good, but it didn't quite suit Toph's personality, or her outfit. He let his flames go out, smiling slightly before remembering his talk with Iroh and sighing.

"What's wrong?" Katara asked.

"Nothing," Sado said. "Just got some advice that's taking me a bit of time to adjust to."

Katara nodded and walking into her room, Toph sitting down beside Sado. They two sat in silence for a while, Toph relaxing and Sado practicing controlling his firebending. After a little while, the door opened again and Sokka and Aang walked in.

"Hey guys," Sokka said, glancing at Toph. "Looks like someone had a fun day."

"It was alright," Toph shrugged.

"I think I have an idea about how to go about looking for Appa," Aang said, just as Katara stepped into the room.

"Really?" Katara asked. "How?"

"We can make posters," Aang said.

"That's a great idea," Sado said. "I saw a printer a couple blocks over."

"Forget that," Sokka said. "I can make the posters easy."

Sado stared at him for a moment before returning his attention to Aang.

"You can go ahead and make some Sokka," Aang said. "We'll start tomorrow."

"Good idea," Katara said.

"I think we should all rest," Sado said. "I have a feeling it'll be a long day tomorrow."

The others nodded and they all began to get ready for bed, Katara helping Toph wash the makeup off first. Then, they all went to bed and were asleep within minutes.

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