Burn My Dread Complete
By Iain R. Lewis
Disclaimer: Characters and concepts belong to Nickelodeon, some of the concepts are similarly inspired by Persona 3 and Persona 4, property of ATLUS games.
"I guess it all depends on how you going to behave in the moment, huh, the moment of truth, tell me what's really happenin'.."
-- Backside of the TV
Month 6: Judgment
The Voice Someone Calls
"We'll fight."
His voice caught afterwards, and he didn't find the strength to say anything else. Tenchi looked at Aang, his eyes weary and sad. "Aang, I must advise you to consider your decision more carefully. Do you know what you're fighting against?"
"You've told me," Aang said, quietly, "But my friends trust me to make the right decision. They all told me they'd be behind me, no matter what. And every last one of them won't give up until they can't fight anymore."
"Please, Aang, do not do this. I do not want to hurt you all. Will you kill me now, before I return to the Spirit World?"
"What will that accomplish?" Aang asked, "It won't stop it, and we'll lose half a year of our lives in the process. Even if we can't win, we have to try. We have to give people hope, even if it's in secret."
Aang felt Tenchi step back. "This is the last time I'll ask," he said, his skin beginning to sear under undying flames, and the skeletal frame remained beneath it. He loomed over Aang, the appearance he took seemed dragged out of his nightmares.
He was standing before Agni, in his true form. "Do it now!" he shouted, "I do not want to fight my friends."
"I'm sorry," Aang said, "But the answer's still the same. We'll fight Agni, no matter what the cost."
Then came the most terrible thing Agni could do, he simply stared at Aang. The blue flames deep within that seemed to act as his eyes flickered coldly, and he moved closer to Aang.
He stopped close enough that Aang could feel the heat radiating off of him, casting menacing shadows along the rooftop.
And he nodded.
The illusion of flesh and bone returned, uncharred, and Tenchi brushed a bit of soot off his shoulder. "I understand. I hope you don't come to regret this decision, my friend. The Tower, Yomi, will be opened to you." His shoulders heaved.
"Thank you, Iroh," he said.
"Do not thank me," he said, "I haven't done you any favors. I'm only doing this because you feel so strongly about this. I will be atop the tower on the Solstice, awaiting the full awakening of Agni. That will be your only chance, so do not be late, once Midnight tolls, Agni will awake and the world will be washed in flames. This is the only chance you possibly have, so do not be late."
"I know," Aang said, "We'll be there."
"I know," Tenchi said, sadly, "I have not, in many years, hoped for anything. But tonight, I hope you succeed. Goodbye, Aang. I wish you the best of luck."
And he was gone. There was no flash of light, no sudden cloud of smoke, just that he was there and that now, he wasn't there. Aang headed back downstairs, and the others looked at him, expectantly.
"So?" Sokka was the first to say.
"We'll fight," Aang said.
"Great!"
Aang picked up his cell phone, and looked at the caller -- Yue. When he answered, she seemeed excited, incredibly so. "What is it, Yue?" He nodded as she talked about how the tower suddenly opened up just a few minutes ago. "That's great, I know. Tenchi will be up there, waiting for us."
"The tower?" Katara asked, in a whisper. Aang nodded in affirmation, and then said his goodbyes quickly.
"She said it's open. All the way to the top -- the real top. There's only one barrier left, the gate to the roof of the tower."
"The final destination," Zuko said, "After so long, we'll finally be there."
"Are you really okay with this, Zuko?" Aang asked, "We'll be fighting your Uncle."
"I know," he said, "But I just have to hope he believes in me enough to know I'm doing this for the right reasons."
Aang nodded, "Katara, are you okay with this?"
"Yeah," she said, "I'm relieved you chose that, now. I was a little bit afr
aid, before, but, I don't want to give up all of this. My Waterbending, it feels like a part of me, and if I lost that, I wouldn't feel whole."
"So, we climb the tower now," Toph said, "We get to the top, and then we beat up Agni and save the world!"
"Yeah," Aang said, "We save the world."
The next morning began a new month, and there remained twenty-one days until the Solstice. Aang tried to keep his best face on, and went to school expecting anything but what he arrived there to see.
There, painted on the wall of the clocktower, was the Symbol of Agni.
Students were lined up in the courtyard, and teachers were frustrated, moving in the students one at a time, and pulling in stragglers. Jeong-Jeong looked at it with a great deal of anger. "First the administration building, and now this?" he muttered. "What manner of foolishness is this?"
"I promise you, I'll find whoever is responsible, sir," Long Feng said, "And see that he is given a quick expulsion."
"Uh," Aang said, "I don't think they're going to care, sir." Long Feng turned angrily to Aang, and seeing who it was, his expression lightened somewhat.
"Ah, Aang, good to see you on time today," he said, "But what do you know about this graffiti?"
"I've seen it around town, before. I think the guy I saw painting it last had Apathy Syndrome," he lied. He'd never seen anyone paint it, but it was true. The Spiritless were the culprits. He just never saw one so large before.
"Apathy Syndrome, you say?" Jeong Jeong said, nodding to Long Feng, "I'll speak to Mr. Aang about this privately. Please inform his instructor that he will be late, Long Feng."
"Yes sir," Long Feng replied, looking distastefully at his superior. For a moment, it seemed like he would be complain, but he gave in without a word, and hustled into the building to attend to some of the more stubborn students.
"The Spiritless are responsible, then," Jeong Jeong said, "What a disaster this all is. I had read Sokka's research on Agni, but I did not think the symbol would so brazenly be put before us."
"There's something you should know," Aang said. "About everything."
"It seems a very heavy burden you carry, Aang," Jeong Jeong commented. "We'll talk more after school. You had best get to your class. But before that, I have to wonder, how they painted it and when? I did not see it last night when I left the building."
"I don't know," Aang said. "I have a feeling this is only the start."
"I see," the Chairman sighed, "Get to class, Aang. We'll be trying to get this cleaned up all day, I can just see it now."
Long Feng awaited him behind the front door. "I see you've managed to make it in good with the new chairman. A man after my own heart, Aang, indeed, I knew there was a reason I took a liking to you."
"Uh, thank you, I guess," Aang said. Long Feng always made him nervous.
"You remind me of myself when I was your age. Still not ready to do what was necessary, but starting to see the necessity."
Aang tensely stared at Long Feng. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, of course, that you still cling to those rules and laws that exist to keep people like us from really ever making anything of ourselves. I wasn't exactly born into a position where I could rise up the Phoenix Group ladder. Maybe this isn't the glamorous side of the ladder, but it is just one rung."
"I see," Aang said.
"Soon, I'll be climbing another, and another, until I finally reach the top," he said, "Which is why I think we'll be seeing a lot less of each other after this semester. I've just received a promotion. I hope you do keep in mind my offer to join the Disciplinary Committee, I think you could learn a lot."
"I'll, I'll think about it."
"Don't think, Aang, act," Long Feng said. "There, your classroom is in the middle of the obligatory 'Don't Panic' speech, as your instructor so -- eloquently -- put it."
"Okay," Aang said.
When Aang sat down, he shuddered, "Long Feng is creepy," Teo observeed, before turning back to attention. Bumi's speech wasn't particularly long, but it was, amazingly, effective at calming the class down.
He turned a strange phenomenom into a mere act of vandalism easily. Of course, Aang and Toph shared a brief exchange of whispers. They knew better. It made him uneasy, but he decided to wait.
He sent a text out to the others to meet on the roof, and settled in to his class.
"The modern city of Ba Sing Se, as you know, was built by refugees from the war. That accounts for our rather unorthodox layout. Which distinction is the most -- well -- distinct! Aang, your arrow tattoos just look like they're pointing at you all the time, so you answer that one."
Aang panicked.
"Uh, well," he thought hard about it, briefly, and he could hear Bumi humming a theme tune from some old trivia game contest. "Well, I guess, the two major rings?"
"Ding ding ding, we have a winner!" Bumi said, excitedly, "The Lower Ring was where most refugees ended up. It's our most populous sector, and it's where most people say the city really is. Sure, the Upper Ring, where the richer residents stayed, like merchants and nobles, is known as a tourist locale, but to really live in Ba Sing Se, you got to hit the Lower Ring."
He paused for a beat, then added, "This message brought to you by the Ba Sing Se Tourist Board. Ba Sing Se, the Big Kumquat."
Aang sat down and exhaled. "That was close," he said.
"You still got it, though," Teo said, "I would have guessed the spiraling expansion of the outer limits of the city, behind the wall, and the relative lack of development outside."
"You're both idiots," Toph said, "He said distinctions, means two things, and there's two rings. Easy."
"Good for you, Toph," Aang said.
"Wow, Katara must be tutoring you, Toph, you're a lot smarter than you were a couple of months ago."
"Shut it!"
Teo laughed, but he was surprised when Aang didn't join in, "Okay, you two have to admit, that was funny, right?"
"Huh? Oh, sure," Aang said, but his thoughts lay on the graffiti outside. "It was funny. I just didn't hear it at first."
"Oh, got it," Teo said, "Thinking about something? Hm, I wonder what Aang could be daydreaming about."
"Uh?"
"Katara, maybe?" Teo teasingly asked, prodding him.
"No," Aang said. Katara was the furthest thing from his mind, he had to keep it that way, "Not really."
"They're having issues," he heard Toph whisper, "So lay off or I lay into you."
"Got it," Teo muttered, "Sorry, Aang, ignore me, okay?"
"It's fine," Aang said. "You didn't know."
Teo hesitated, and sighed, looking down at his desk while the class continued. Outside, the bustle of the clean-up crews distracted the students sitting by the windows. And Aang glanced over every now and then.
The bell rang.
"Lunch time," Bumi said, "A good time for you to get your mind off of all this nonsense about vandalism. Maybe you can offer a hand in cleaning it up, or making some new graffiti, if you're so inclined."
Aang headed to the roof. He was the first one there, and Katara was next to arrive. He grimaced. This was the last thing he wanted to deal with. He wondered where Toph got off to right after class.
"Oh, Aang, hello," she said, though it was clear the awkwardness between them was still there. "I can't believe that someone would do that, even a Spiritless. It just seems so strange."
"Yeah, really strange," Aang agreed. They didn't say anything for a couple of seconds. "Did you see the others?"
"Sokka and Zuko were talking to Mai, something about Ty Lee, I think." Katara fidgeted, "And Toph, well, I thought she'd be up here with you."
"Me too," Aang said.
The door flung open, and Toph stomped onto the rooftop, "Sounds like that thing isn't coming off no matter what they do. They're going to paint over it," Toph said. "But who could have gotten up there and painted it? I doubt a Spiritless person would just grab a ladder and --"
"Maybe that's what they did, though," Aang said. "You know they've been more and more active as time went by."
"That's right," Katara agreed, "They definitely seemed a lot more alert than before."
The door swung open again, this time Sokka and Zuko came through, looking a bit pale. "Did you hear about the hospital yet?"
"What?" Toph asked, "Did Azula wake up and burn it down?"
"No," Zuko said, "Azula's still out. But her entire ward was full of Apathy Syndrome patients. Well, last night, a bunch of them apparently started a small -- well, kind of a small riot."
"That's bad," Aang said.
"A bunch of them escaped, but the rest have been put into higher security," Sokka said, "Elopement risk wasn't really a big concern when all they used to do was drool and stare at the ceiling. Ty Lee was there this morning, and one of them nearly bowled her over trying to get out."
"Told the gangs to keep an eye out for any suspicious behavior out of known Apathy patients," Zuko said. "But this is bad. I guess this is the first part of the end of the world."
No one said anything else, they just looked down at the courtyard. The amount of work going on down there was incredible, "Do you think," Aang said to break the silence, "They have any idea what's going on?"
"No," Katara said, "But with luck, they won't have to know. We've been working in secret up to now, I don't see why we should stop."
"You're right," Sokka said, "A mass panic at the idea of the end of the world wouldn't be good. That's of course if anyone would believe us. Besides, even if we fail, they won't know what happened."
The group nodded, slowly. "We can't fail," Zuko said, "Too much is counting on this."
"So what do we do now?" Sokka asked, looking at Aang.
"We should probably try and find our way to the top. I doubt Agni is going to sit by and let people walk into his tower, even if Iroh wants to help us do it."
"Yeah, we have to clear a path," Sokka said. "We don't know what Agni is really capable of, but we know he's powerful. Who knows what the tower's like now."
Zuko grinned, "It'll be easy. Nine, right? I'm going to go check around town after school. I'll meet you there."
"Okay, Zuko," Aang said, "Nine on the dot, everyone. Don't be late."
After school, the graffiti seemed to be gone, and the school courtyard carried on without a worry. Things seemed to return to normal for the majority of the students, but Aang still couldn't get over the feeling of terror he felt when he saw that there.
He was about to leave when he remembered the Chairman wanted to talk to him. The impromptu office in the library was crowded with visitors, and Jeong Jeong seemed rather out of sorts. Reporters were everywhere.
"I know, the vandals will be caught, however," he began. "No, we don't have any leads at this time. We suspect that may be suffering frmo the Apathy Syndrome. Please, no more questions at this time."
When he said that, the reporters seemed to sink a bit, and slowly filed out. Jeong Jeong rested his head in his hands. "What a disaster."
"Sir?"
"Oh, Aang. I apologize, this has been a very busy day. What was it you wanted to see me about?"
"It's about earlier," Aang said. "The last full moon, actually --"
"I assume things went well?"
"Yes," Aang hesitated, "But also not really."
"Go on," Jeong Jeong said. "Tell me everything." And Aang began to tell him everything. The fight with Ozai, and the intervention of Iroh, Tenchi's true identity, and the nature of the Unification.
Jeong Jeong's face sunk deeper as it went. "Iroh was that boy? I see. I don't know how such a thing could happen, but it isn't too far removed from the basic idea of an artificially induced bender."
"Yeah," Aang said.
"But in those cases, the human was the dominant partner, but it seems the opposite is true, in this case." He thought about it for a bit. "The Unification will end the world as we know it, you said?"
"Yeah," Aang said, "Agni will wipe out everything and start over."
"That's dire news," Jeong Jeong said. "And we have only twenty-one days until then."
"We're going to fight."
"That's your decision,": Jeong Jeong said, "I can't stop you."
"Thanks for understanding," Aang said, "It wasn't an easy decision."
"No, I can't imagine it was," Jeong Jeong answered, and frowned. "This is a lot to deal with. Thank you for your time, Aang. Have a safe trip home."
Aang stood, and left the library. The hallways were so quiet, and Aang felt a little nervous walking them alone. He could see people hurrying to a club activity or something, and he felt a little jealous that they were still living their lives normally.
"Aang," someone called, and he turned to see Mai approach him. "You're still here. Good."
"Good?"
"I wanted to ask you a favor," she said. "I can understand if you don't want to, after the last month, but --"
"Sure," Aang said, "What is it?"
"Ah," she said, taken off-guard, "Well, to be honest, it's Ty Lee. She didn't show up in class after lunch like she said she would. It's probably nothing, but still, I'd appreciate someone there with me when I go see."
"Oh, right," Aang said, "All the Apathy Syndrome patients getting restless."
She nodded. "Ty Lee's holding out hope that Azula will wake up. I hope she doesn't."
"Why not?"
"She threatened my family," Mai said, "And I wanted to give her a second chance. I'm not going to be fooled again."
Aang sighed, "Yeah, I can understand that."
Mai walked with him to the hospital. There was a surprising amount of police hanging around the parking lot, and Mai's face paled even further than usual when she saw them. "Are you okay?" he asked her, but she didn't respond. Also, a large number of news vans were parked across the way.
At the front door, the receptionist looked at them strangely, "If you're here to see the so called Apathy Uprising, I hate to tell you this, kids, but it's already been taken care of."
"Uh," Aang said, "We're just here to visit Azula."
"Oh, Sleeping Beauty, right?" the receptionist said, her posture relaxing noticeably, "She's been moved to the third floor, private wing. Visiting hours are almost over, though."
"We won't be long," Mai said. She took off down the hall, and took Aang by surprise. He had to jog to keep up with her. "This is ridiculous. Ty Lee probably just didn't want to go to class knowing her."
"Oh," Aang couldn't think of anything more to say. They boarded the elevator, and she looked hikm over.
"You seem a lot older than when you first came here. Like a man now," she said, frowning, "Kind of depressing, really. You're younger than me. But I got a glimpse of what you see all the time. I'm surprised you don't look older."
"Yeah, we, uh, we manage."
"You seem to thrive," she said. "I guess I'd gotten bored to the point that I thought it'd be more exciting with Azula. Now I think I've had enough excitement. Go me."
"Mai?"
She sighed, "We're here."
The private wing was surprisingly full. A lot of patients were moved there following the excitement downstairsd, and several reporters were talking to people about their eye-witness account.
It seemed that for the news world, business was booming.
The room with Azula's name on it was at the end of the hall, by a window. It was a small, one-bed room, and there wasn't much activity near it. Inside, the constant sound of the EPM and the static of the electrical equipment around her, seemed louder than it was, and she was entirely silent in that bed.
To her side, Ty Lee looked despondent. "Oh," she said, hearing the door creak open, "Is it that time already?" She blinked when she saw Mai and Aang approach. "Oh, oh no, I totally forgot! I'm sorry, Mai, please don't get me in trouble with Long Feng, I won't do it again --"
"What happened to your head?" Aang asked. She paused, then felt her head. She felt the bandage under her fingernails, and her face lit up with understanding.
"Oh, that? Nothing, really. One of the patients pushed me down. That was the second group. The first group I got lucky. They wanted me to stay for a bit, so I did. I guess I missed class, though, so please don't be mad, Mai!"
"Why are you still here anyway?" Mai asked, "She threatened you, too."
"Oh, I know that," Ty Lee said, "But there's a small part of me that hopes she'll come back to the way she was when we first met."
"Bossy, egotistical, and deranged?"
"Well, I meant not evil," Ty Lee said, "But okay, you're right, she's always been a little, a little nasty."
"I think there's a good person in there," Aang said.
"She killed you, that's not exactly what I expected you to think," Mai said, angrily. "How can you two think there's anything worthwhile there?"
"Because," Ty Lee said, "Because she's my friend."
"She didn't see us that way," Mai warned.
"I know. But if I didn't keep trying, I wouldn't be your friend, would I."
Mai hesitated, and frowned, sitting down, "I guess there's really no alternative." Ty Lee shrugged. "I'm going to make sure you don't get hurt again, Ty Lee. I swear, ever since we were children, you did stupid stunts like this."
"Sorry --"
"Aang," Mai said, "Thanks."
"What for?"
She sighed, "Being you, I guess."
"No problem. I should get going. Kind of got a world to save, you know?" He tried to smile, but somehow, the smile wouldn't come through. Ty Lee walked up to him and hugged him. "What's this for?"
"You looked like you needed some reassurance. I was always rooting for you, even when I was fighting against you, Aang. You can do it, I know it."
Twenty-one days were left for them to live normal happy lives, Aang thought. If he failed, anyway. But he felt somehow that the bonds he made with them had survived worse than the end of the world, now.
"Thanks, Ty Lee, that means a lot."
Zuko had never seen the Upper Ring look like this before. Jun had given him a tip on some activity around the mall, but he didn't think that it would be so devastating. The interior of the mall was riddled in graffiti, the words 'Unity' and 'The end is coming' were written on the wall, and the symbol was painted on the floor.
The reporters were having a field day with it.
He wasn't so happy.
The Spiritless were in the halls, leaning against them, looking vacantly forward. He grabbed one by the collar. "Okay, talk."
"...time...is..."
"Still, nothing? You're responsble for this, right? All this panic?"
"Must...Agni..."
"Make sense!"
"Whoa, cool it, hotshot," a familiar feminine voice called. He turned and saw Jun approaching, "He's not going to tell you much."
"Jun, thought you were following up other leads?"
"I was, but then I saw you harrassing a guy for no reason," she said. "You seem really curious in what these people are doing nowadays. I've seen the news, but, I don't know. Something doesn't seem right."
"Okay," Zuko said, "What do we do? Let them make a mess of our city?"
"For now, yeah," Jun said, "Don't know what else to tell you."
He sighed, and leaned against a wall. "Well, what were you all the way up here for?"
"Nothing much. After this morning's excitement, these ones seem to be calming down. Call it woman's intuition, but I think it's going to get worse as things go on."
"Tell me about it."
"Maybe you should let us handle this," Jun said, "You handle the monsters, we take care of the details." She paused as she was walking off, "Good to have you back. Your girlfriend wasn't exactly my kind of partner."
Zuko looked blankly forward.
"The Water Tribe girl."
"She's not my girlfriend!"
"Whatever," Jun said, waving, "You get back to your monster hunting."
He looked at the clock. Six at night, he had plenty of time before the mission. He looked over at the Spiritless, and noticed one sneaking away. The most peculiar thing was when his eyes and Zuko's met, he moved quicker.
Three hours, and a suspicious target. He had the time, and things were just about to get interesting.
When Aang returned to the dorm, he didn't see anyone there. The place seemed different, emptier than usual. Everyone was busy making the best use of their time, he figured. He stopped by the main desk.
Sokka left a note, detailing where everyone was. He'd taken Suki on a date, and Katara and Toph were going to do some 'girly-bonding' in the meantime. Aang checked the clock. It was only five, and he had plenty of time.
So he sat down and turned on the television.
"Everywhere you look, Ba Sing Se has been overtaken by vandalism," the pundit shouted, "This is what our ministers are encouraging."
"I don't think it's fair to blame the government for the actions of a few individuals."
Another, interrupted, "It's a sign, a sign of the end."
"So you keep saying," the pundit sneered, "But really, all you've got is some old books and a degree in anthropology, what do you really know about this?"
"The Sign of Agni is, is, a death cult's symbol," the expert said, "But this is unlike any I've ever seen, the sheer coordination."
"These symbols look like anti-Phoenix Group propaganda," another commentator asserted, "They take the famous symbol and mix it with some old mumbo-jumbo -- no offense."
"But I'm certain --"
Aang flipped the switch, and turned off the television. He collapsed on the couch and groaned, "This is bad. There's going to be a panic if this continues."
Momo hopped atop him, and peered at him curiously.
"Hello, Momo. Did I wake you up?"
The lemur purred and hopped off of Aang, proceeding to claw at the kitchen door. "Hungry, huh? I'll get you something, buddy." He opened the cupboard and got a treat out for Momo to snack on. He took the biscuit greedily and threw it into his mouth as fast as his little bites could take it.
Aang smiled enviously at his pet. "You're so lucky, Momo. You don't even worry about the Solstice like we do. You just live each day without a care in the world."
The lemur titled his head, curiously.
"Well, don't worry about it. It won't matter soon, one way or the other."
Zuko was beginning to doubt this person had Apathy Syndrome at all. The way he was moving, he was scared out of his wits. And Zuko couldn't really blame him, he had a tendency to unnerve people when he walked around town.
But he was in a full run, and so was his target.
Zuko knew this city well, but this man had obviously never been to the Lower Ring. He was walking into a part of town where the buildings literally were assembled wherever there was space, and the walls formed dead-ends more than they formed streets.
And he'd just walked into one of the many dead ends.
"That was fun," Zuko snarled, "But that's as far as you're going."
"Please don't hurt me," the man whimpered, "I was just seeing, you know, the Spiritless in the mall are the most active, and I thought maybe if I stayed they'd reveal some new mystery to me --"
"Wait, what did you call them?"
"The -- The Spiritless, you know, the Apathy Syndrome patients. We believe they don't have any spirit so --"
"I know that, but how do you know that?" he snapped. The man whimpered. "Answer me!"
"A man, he told me about them. He said they were going to herald a new age," he whimpered. "I'm just a guy, really. I'm just -- I don't want to die --"
"So you hang around the mall with the freaks? That doesn't sound very normal. Who is this man? Where did you meet him?"
"Work, he said, he said after the Phoenix King disappeared, that there wasn't any other hope," the man said, "President Ozai, I met him once, he was a great man and --"
"I know President Ozai." He grinned. "Don't you know who I am?"
"You're a very scary delinquent?"
He gave the man a toothy grin. "My name is Zuko Houou. I'm more than just any delinquent."
"You're President Ozai's son -- then, you must know, your father, he was going to save the world--"
"Shut up!"
"Ah! I'm sorry," the man whimpered. "I didn't realize you were his son, that's all. Then you must know about the Sons of Agni."
"How do I know you know anything about the Sons."
"Ah, ah, well, our leader, that's who you can talk to."
"Where can I meet him?" he asked, pinning the man to the wall, "And what do I call him?"
"Grand Master," the man said, "I don't know much else. A guy I work with, he talks to him, sometimes, and he says he's been working in the project -- you know, the big project."
"The Spirit World project?"
"Yeah, that one!"
"I need a name, something to go on."
"Mu-- Shu-- Ju -- something, I don't know. I've never met him."
"Fine. Get lost." The man scurried away, and Zuko looked at his phone. The merry chase had cost him about an hour, and it was now getting on seven. Frowning, and upset, he headed back towards the dorm.
"This is nice," Suki said, as they approached her dorm. "We don't get to do this too often with your club activities taking up so much time. Let me guess, you're going to be so busy I'll barely see you outside of school, now."
"No," Sokka said, "If you want, we can do this again tomorrow."
"Okay, maybe, but seeing too much of each other isn't much good either,' Suki laughed. "What happened to the real Sokka?"
"What do you mean? Just because I'm spending time with my girlfriend I must be some sort of alien imposter bent on world domination?"
"I didn't say anything about that," she said, faking suspicion. "I knew it!"
"You've caught me!" Sokka cried out. "But seriously, is it so bad that I want to spend some time with you, Suki?"
"No, just," Suki paused. "It's nothing, never mind."
Sokka sighed. "Life's too short. Can't waste time"
"Sokka, are you hiding something from me?" Suki asked. "You've been acting strange all day. At class, while we were in the park, the restaurant -- you can tell me, I'll believe you."
"Suki, do you trust me?" he asked, and she looked at him. She knit her brow, and nodded. "Then leave it at that. It's nothing to worry about."
She was about to protest, but the intensity of his eyes caused her to back down. "All right. I trust you."
"Good," he smiled, "Don't worry, soon, everything will go back to normal."
"I hope so. I'm getting tired of going to bed at night wondering if you were going to be in school the next day."
"Yeah," he said, "It'll be over soon."
"Okay, we've done your fortune, you happy?" Toph asked, angrily. She felt like a porcelain doll with all the make-up on her face. The clothes weren't exactly her usual thing, either, since they clung a little too close to her skin. "You know, when you said hanging out, I didn't exactly get the memo about the make-overs."
"No! We've got more to do," Katara said. "And don't be such a baby."
"Yeah, sure, we'll just completely ignore the end of the world."
Katara looked out across the grafitti stricken mall, and sighed, "No way of that happening, Toph. Look, we should just have fun, and we've never really done a girl's night together, just us two."
"And I'm glad for it!"
Katara shook her head, "Just try and have fun, Toph. I think you look great."
"Well, I can't argue that," she said, "Because, first of all, I'm awesome in every way, and second of all, I can't see!"
Katara was about to say something when a couple of girls in the Phoenix School uniform passed by, "Hey, Katara, I thought you said you were busy this afternoon."
"Oh, hi, Rin. A little," she said, "Toph and I were just --"
"Bei Fong? I nearly didn't recognize you. You look like a -- like a girl, I guess." Rin frowned, and looked to her friends. "Katara, why are you wasting time with this first-year."
Toph's feet began to twitch, "Because, sempai, she's a nice person, unlike you."
"As if," she said.
"What does that even mean? Do you listen to yourselves?" Toph mumbled, but she wasn't heard. The usual outspoken first year faded behind Katara, looking a bit out of her league.
"Come on, Katara, we were about to hit the Ichiban Street. Ditch the runt and let's go."
Katara sighed, "I'm good, Rin. You go ahead."
"You're not choosing the runt over us, are you?" Rin asked, off-put.
"You know what?" Katara said, smiling down at Toph, a gesture maybe lost on her, but the intent somehow carried through in the vibratins on the floor, "Yeah, I am."
"So go on!" Toph shouted, "Get moving, prissy-pants!" Rin looked flabbergasted, and Toph started away, "Come on, Sugar Queen, let's go." She began to walk off, and felt Katara turn and follow her almost immediately.
When out of sight, Toph hopped onto the nearest bench she could find and growl somewhere deep in her throat. "I hate girls like that," she said.
"I hope she didn't hurt your feelings --"
"Yeah, like she could," Toph said, weakly. "I'm made of stone, remember! Tough, nothing gets through --"
"I think it has to," Katara responded.
"What do you know?"
"A lot. We're friends, Toph."
"So? Doesn't mean you got to like hanging out with me instead of your school friends."
"Sure it does," Katara said. "I've had more fun today with you than I did with any of those other girls. I mean, sure, they're fun, but they don't have your, uh, your charm."
"You don't mean that," Toph grumbled.
"Of course I do."
"The only reason you hang out with me is because I'm an Earthbender."
"No, that's not true."
"That's the only reason anyone's wanted me around."
"Toph, listen," she said, "We all got given this gift for a reason, and I think of this as a chance we wouldn't have had otherwise. We got drawn together, but that doesn't cheapen our friendship any, does it?"
"I guess not," she said.
Katara didn't know what else to say, until she received a sharp blow to her shoulder. "Ow, what was that for?"
"Affection, I don't do hugs," Toph said. "I give 'em to Aang all the time."
"That hurt -- do you always do that so hard?"
"That's right."
Katara rubbed her shoulder, "Aang's shoulders must be made of steel by now."
Toph grinned, "You'd better be good to him, Katara. Or I'm going to hunt you down." She paused, turning pale, and her heartbeat swiftened, "What did you do."
"What? Nothing -- I'm just -- with all this, I can't --"
"That's a lame excuse," Toph said. "You got to commit to something, Sweetness." She paused, a grin creeping onto her face, "Oh well, if you don't want him, I'll take him."
"Excuse me?"
"I'll take him, he's sweet, probably would do anything I asked him to, too," she said, "Real nice guy."
"Toph --"
"Look, Sugar Queen. You've got first dibs, he already likes you, lots. You either take it or you don't. And if you don't choose soon, someone or something will make the choice for you."
Katara fell into silence.
"Let's get going back. We got to get ready," she said, "Especially since you made me dress like this. Yuck."
"Yeah, let's go."
Nine o'clock rolled around the same as any hour, but the Bending Club stood waiting for the clock to tick. Everyone was there, but no one was ready to enter. The catacombs, this dank, forgotten piece of Earth Kingdom history as dark as the cave itself, had become a part of their lives in a way they'd all rather forget.
"We're all here," Sokka began.
"Yeah," Zuko muttered.
"So."
"So."
"So, what's the hold-up!" Toph shouted. "We need to get in there and start climbing."
"You're right," Sokka said, "But first, I've been thinking. We've been the Bending Club for a while, but, that's really Azula's club, not us."
"Yeah," Zuko said, "It was her personal army."
"So," Sokka continued, "I've been trying to think of a new name. The Gaang, maybe?"
"No," Zuko said, "I'm already in deep enough with the normal gangs."
"It has a ring to it," Aang offered.
"Right, okay, scratch that. Zuko's got that whole 'Delinquent Prince' thing squared off that we'd have to promote him to leader just out of deference to his royal punkness."
"You have any other ones that involve the word Aang in it?" Toph asked, "'cause I'm going to save us time and say no."
"But I was going to suggest Boomeraang."
"I said no!"
"Okay, fine, Toph."
"You gave a good one earlier," Aang said. "The Avatar Squad!"
"Yeah, that works," Sokka said. "The Avatar Squad, a tactical group put together with one purpose, the save the world from being destroyed by Agni!"
"Right on!" Toph said, "That sounds awesome!"
"Fine by me," Zuko said. He looekd over at Katara, "You've been quiet."
"Oh," Katara said, surprised, "Well, I guess that fits, well. And Aang seems to like it. Let's go with it. The Avatar Squad."
Aang smiled at her, and she smiled back, but the both of them didn't say anything. Zuko shook his head.
"We don't have time to waste. We need to get to the top of the tower."
"Right," Aang said, "We need to go in. Iroh gave us this opportunity, we can't waste it. We only have twenty-one days to reach the top of the tower."
"We'll make it," Zuko agreed.
"We have no other choice, if we're going to stop Agni," Katara said, "But I wonder if we'll really be able to do anything."
That doubt still persisted in the back of his mind, too, but he didn't want to let them down. They looked at him, expectantly. "We'll win," Aang said, "We have to!"
To be continued.
