I decided to do a small one-shot inspired by the comic "Swordbending" from the lost adventures comic book. As a note, I am not a huge fan of the comics (I think everyone acts a little too OOC for my liking).
Want to give all these characters a moment to shine. This will only be this one chapter. I have already started working on the fourth and final arc of the Ember Island series before the Ember Island Players. I am really really looking forward to posting it! For now, enjoy this little one-shot "Two Swords & A Fan" I rambled a bit and am not too proud of the chapter, but it was really fun to write at the very least.
Sokka was getting frustrated. His head was completely healed up and he was starting to become restless. It was the third week at Ember Island, and the group was starting to slack off on the daily duels after the incident at the cave. Instead, the afternoons were spent sneaking around the market, swimming, napping, or just day-to-day goofing off. Aang and Zuko were still training, of course, and Katara and Zuko still spent every morning sparring (seriously, what was that all about?) but everyone else had just started to relax.
Even Suki, who had been continuously showing him hand to hand combat techniques, had started to slack off. She had a growing friendship with Toph and the two were spending more and more time together doing who-knows what. Sokka had tried to tinker around the house, but his contraptions hadn't worked out that great (He had been effectively banned from the kitchen when his pressure cooker nearly blew up half the house. That...could've gone better). So it was because of boredom that when Sokka woke up one morning before Aang, he ventured outside down to the beach. The sound of the early morning spar rose above the sound of the crashing waves. Sokka found a good seat to watch the match and settled down with a sigh.
The speed of the attacks had increased over the past few weeks. Katara was learning to predict Zuko's moves which was making it harder on Zuko to pin her down. When they got close to each other they engaged in hand to hand combat, but just when Zuko thought he had her cornered Katara would escape and they would be back to square one. They had yet to end a spar in a draw, but this morning it just might happen.
He fired a volley of fire her way and while her vision of him was blocked, he ducked and rolled to the right. When the steam parted Zuko was about to pounce on what he thought was an unsuspecting Katara. As if she had eyes in the back of her head, she whirled and with one quick motion took his feet out from under him with a kick. He hadn't landed on the sand for a second when he was frozen in place, his abdomen was squeezed so tight so that he couldn't move to exhale to melt through. Katara iced his hands and feet and cut him off from being able to use his Breath of Fire technique, and he was powerless. And she knew that. She stood above him, fist outstretched.
"Yield" she commanded. Zuko didn't have a choice. He nodded and the ice suddenly melted around him. In spite of his defeat he grinned. She had really taken the lesson from the week before to heart. Her reflexes were blindingly fast, almost Toph-like.
"How did you know I was behind you so fast?" he asked as he stood up. Katara looked hesitate to answer for a moment.
"I...sensed you. Like how I sensed your heartbeat before" she finally admitted. Aha! So this was her new secret.
"Woohoo! Go Water Tribe!"
Katara and Zuko turned to see Sokka cheering on the edge of the beach.
"Sokka?" Katara asked. "You're up? Before noon? Are you sick?" Sokka snorted and walked over to the two.
"No, just bored out of my mind" he responded. "Who would've thought? We've been traveling the world for the past year and the first time I get bored is in the Fire Nation. That's just ironic."
"What if you did a supply run while it's still early?" Katara asked. The responsible one. Sokka shook his head.
"Toph and Suki just went yesterday. We won't need to go again for another week" said Sokka.
"How about a duel?" Zuko offered. Sokka made a face. Facing Zuko was the most frustrating thing. Not only was he more skilled, but he also used his dual broadswords, which just wasn't fair if you asked Sokka. It always felt as if Zuko was only giving half his attention whenever they sparred. It wasn't just annoying, it was plain insulting.
"No thanks" Sokka said. Katara let her hair down and starting walking back up towards the house.
"Aang should be down here any second. I need to start on breakfast. You can help, Sokka. Since you're so bored" Katara said with a sidelong glance at him. Sokka sighed and shrugged. He followed Katara up the path just as Aang emerged from the house.
"Morning, guys." Aang yawned. He looked tired and was dragging his staff behind him on the way to the beach. Even Momo looked lazy as he draped himself around Aang's shoulders. Katara sighed. The mood was becoming contagious. She needed to get breakfast on before the only thing she wanted to do was take a nap. The lesson didn't take as long as usual. Katara hadn't finished cooking when Aang and Zuko appeared in the kitchen. Sokka was busily cutting up different fruit.
"Sokka, I need this water boiled" Katara said without turning around to see Zuko or Aang. Sokka reached for the pail of water.
"I've got it" Zuko and Aang said in unison before Sokka could even grab bucket. They looked at each other for a second before Aang quickly waterbended some water into a pot and super heated the oven quickly with firebending.
"Here you go!" Aang said proudly. Katara gave him a smile and poured some grains into the water. Sokka frowned. He did not object to someone else helping out, but the fact that Aang could do it so much faster...
"Sokka, I need some more wood..." Katara began. Sokka got up and dashed outside.
"Got it" Zuko said. He stood by the stove and kept a steady stream of fire into the underside. Katara grinned. She was used to Zuko helping, but the extra hands were very much appreciated.
"Here's the..." Sokka trailed off as he saw Katara cooking while Zuko powered the stove. He frowned and dumped the wood in the wood box.
"You should make sure Toph and Suki are up" Katara said to him as she started getting out bowls. Sokka grinned. He liked being able to wake Suki.
"I've got it!" Aang exclaimed.
"No wait, I-" Sokka began
"Wake up you guys!" Aang called using airbending to make his voice carry into the house. He grinned at Zuko's surprised face at the small trick.
"The monks would use that to call us all inside for supper. It's a neat little trick" Aang explained. Sokka just stood there fuming in silence for a few minutes while they waited.
"That's nice, Twinkletoes" Toph said grouchily as she walked into the kitchen. Her face was blotchy and her eyes were still puffy from sleep. "Your voice suddenly screaming into my ears...It's the only thing I want to ever wake up to." She kicked her foot and sent all of the small particles of dirt and sand on the floor of the kitchen into the back of Aang's head.
"Youch!" Aang yelped.
"Hey, no earthbending in the kitchen!" Katara hollered.
"Better listen to Mom" Suki said with a laugh as she walked into the room stretching her arms. Katara's eye twitched.
"Hey, Katara made everyone breakfast. Show a little gratitude" Zuko huffed as he starting pouring food into the bowls. Katara smiled. At least she had one person on her side.
"Ooooh, look out Suki. Now you're on Dad's bad side" Toph needled. Now it was Zuko's turn for the eye twitching.
"Listen here Toph" he began. He didn't finish as a stone tile from the floor lifted up, tripping Zuko forward. He just managed to catch himself on the edge of the table.
"I said, No. Earthbending." Katara repeated in exasperation.
"How about no bending whatsoever?" Sokka finally burst out. Everyone turned to stare at him. Except for Toph, of course. She was already reaching for her bowl. Sokka sighed. "Look, you know I don't feel so left out anymore now that I have my sword and everything, but it'd be nice if we had just one normal day. A day where people heat stoves with firewood, and pour water with a bucket, and not fly everywhere on a glider while someone else has to run to catch up..."
"That would be interesting" Suki added. Katara, Zuko, Aang and Toph just stood there in silence. Stop bending? For a whole day? "It could be like a challenge or a bet" Suki offered. Toph perked up her ears. "All of you have to not use bending for the rest of the day. You all would have to live like me and Sokka do. We could all spar tonight without bending and you guys would have to do everything by hand. No shortcuts."
"Why would we do that?" Zuko asked, not impressed with the idea.
"Yeah, what's in it for us?" Toph asked. "And I use my earthbending to see. I'm not going to stop doing that."
"If you all can manage to do it, no cheating, for a full day, then Sokka and I have to do all the chores for the rest of the week" Suki offered. Sokka whipped his head around as his jaw dropped.
"Now hold up just a sec..." Sokka began.
"And Toph, you can use your bending to see, but nothing else" Suki finished. "If any of you bend, though, then Sokka and I get the royal treatment for the next few days...and I mean the royal treatment. Foot rubs, pampering, meals made and delivered, the works."
"Ok, not such a bad idea" Sokka muttered.
"I think that's a great idea" Katara said. "I can totally go without my bending for a day. I wouldn't mind someone else doing all the housework around here."
"Yeah, that's easy" Aang said.
"We'd have to take a day off teaching" Zuko said as he glanced at Aang.
"Oh, lighten up, Zuko" Katara said as she patted him on the back. "You've been going full blast with the training for over the past month. One day won't kill you two."
Toph was the only one not pleased with the arrangement. She didn't hardly do any chores as it was. Bending was second nature to her. It would be like asking her to stop breathing.
"Fine. I'll do it. But I expect a full clean on my room, Snoozles" she said as she pointed a finger in Sokka's direction. "Every speck of dust and sand off that floor, and you better go over it with a fine tooth comb, because I'll know."
"You guys have to win the bet first, Toph" Sokka said as he grabbed his breakfast bowl. "And I'll paint my boomerang pink if you guys can actually go without bending."
"Pink boomerang? Oh, I'm totally in" Katara laughed. The grand duel would take place at dusk right before dinner, and the group settled down outside to eat breakfast. Aang and Katara were talking about the habits they would have to stop for the day. Aang regretted that he hadn't already taken care of Appa. Combing out the large bison would be a lot harder without the use of airbending. Katara was lamenting that she hadn't taken a shower yet that morning. Apparently, washing was going to be so much more difficult. Suki had to stop herself from rolling her eyes.
"I really wish I had my fans" Suki said to Sokka as they ate. "Sparring would be so much easier with them."
"Why don't we make you some?" Sokka asked. "Can't be that hard."
"They're made of metal, Sokka. You wouldn't be able to build a forge that quick to make them" Suki said.
"Oh, if only you had a friend who could, I don't know, bend metal with her mind." Toph said, butting in to the conversation. "Oh wait, unfortunately I have taken a vow not to use my bending today. What a shame." Suki glared at her friend, but Toph only chuckled.
"It's got to be fair, Toph" Sokka said "You can't expect Suki to use her full potential fighting when she doesn't have her number one weapon."
"Aww, go ahead and make them, Toph" Zuko said "They're going to lose anyway. Make it so they don't have any excuses." he said as he smirked at Sokka.
"Sokka, let's make Zuko be the one to cave and use his firebending" Suki said. Sokka grinned and pounded Zuko on the shoulder.
"You're going down, buddy" Sokka told his friend. Katara only listened to half the conversation. All she could think about was how much harder doing the dishes was going to be without her waterbending. The timing of this bet could've been better. Thankfully, as she started to grab the bowls, she was happy to see Zuko seemed intent on helping her with the dishes, as usual.
She filled a pot of water on the stove and grabbed some wood to turn up the heat. Typically, she bended the water over the dishes and Zuko heated it up. Then she would bend the dishes up, scrub and rinse them with a torrent of water before passing them on to Zuko who steamed them dry and put them away. But this time, she stared at the pot of water on the stove and waited for it to boil for dishwater.
"Hey, we can at least scrub the food off the plates" Zuko offered. Katara shrugged and the two stood side by side in front of the large sink and started to use the cold water to rinse off the cooking dishes.
"You know, Sokka and Suki are in the other room. We could just cheat" Zuko said after a moment of trying to pull dried food off a pot. Katara feigned a look of horror and stared at him.
"Why, Prince Zuko, I couldn't image you would come up with such an idea. It is hardly honorable!" She emphasized the honor and Zuko looked just stared at her as his brain slowly caught up to the fact that one, yes she was flirting with him again, and two, she had just made an honor joke. He suddenly burst into laughter and Katara joined him. She didn't hear his laugh often enough and she decided she loved it. It was right at this moment that Aang walked into the room.
"What's so funny?" he asked as saw the two laughing heartily at the sink. He got the feeling he just missed out on a good joke and he was curious.
"Nothing," Katara said as she looked at Zuko with a laughing twinkle in her eye. "Just doing the dishes without bending." Aang looked at Zuko surprised. He had never seen Zuko laugh before. He was glad his friend had been fully accepted into the group. It really made him happy. But as Aang's eyes dropped to see how close his two friends were standing together with Katara brushing up against Zuko's side and playfully elbowing him when he unintentionally splashed cold water on her arm, he did not feel that warm, happy feeling.
"You know Katara, Zuko is always helping. I want to help for once. I promise not to bend!" Aang offered suddenly. Katara turned and gave Aang a funny look.
"You want to help with dishes...willingly?" she asked. Aang grinned and nodded.
"Yeah, go outside and get some fresh air Zuko. I'll help with the dishes" Aang suggested. Zuko shrugged and turned back to the sink.
"I'm good, Aang. But I'm sure there's other stuff that has to be done. Pretty sure there's a good reason you and Sokka keep the bedroom door closed all the time" Zuko said. Aang turned a little pink. Now he was even more determined to do dishes.
While this little exchange was going on, Sokka and Suki were sitting down to sketch out the blueprints for Suki's fans. Suki described how they were constructed and Sokka made a rough sketch on paper. However, Sokka's sketching skills left something to be desired and Suki was trying to hide her frustrations. Apparently, Sokka had the inability to draw straight lines or true right angles. He did, however, have great ideas to improve the speed of the closing of the fan.
"Honey, this is great, but maybe I could get Zuko to do the sketching" Suki finally suggested. Sokka frowned, but as he looked back at his sketch he nodded. Suki got up to go the kitchen. She had learned that if she looked for either Aang or Katara, she would find Zuko. She walked in just in time to hear Aang insisting his room was spotless. Now there was the lie of the century.
"We trained all morning, Zuko. You're probably tired. I really don't mind helping in here. My room is clean already" Aang was saying.
"Aang, he's fine" Katara laughed as she turned to the pot that was finally boiling on the stove.
"Uh, I was wondering if Sokka and I could steal Zuko for a minute" Suki asked, making her presence known. Zuko turned, wondering suddenly if Aang had asked Suki to interrupt. He knew exactly what Aang was trying to do, and he had zero plans to leave the kitchen. Katara was in a good mood, and for once, so was he, and he was enjoying the conversation. Even if nothing could develop between him and Katara, he still liked her a lot and enjoyed her company immensely. He hoped against hope that she felt the same. She didn't seem particularly eager to wash dishes with Aang.
"What do you need?" Zuko asked Suki.
"Your drawing abilities" Suki replied. "Sokka and I are trying to sketch plans for my Kyoshi fans, and while he's great at ideas, he's less great at drawing them out." Zuko sighed. It was a legitimate request and he always wanted to give Sokka a hand.
"Sure, Aang take over for me." Zuko finally said after a moment. Aang was so happy he nearly airbend jumped across the room, just stopping himself at the last minute. He settled next to Katara by the sink and gave her a big smile. Katara smiled back and poured the hot water into the plugged half of the sink.
"Ok, start scrubbing" she told the young airbender. Zuko watched the two for a second before following Suki out of the room. It was glaringly obvious that Aang had a crush on Katara. Everyone knew that. Suki touched Zuko's arm and he almost jumped.
"I'm sure you'll get time with Katara later" Suki said, giving Zuko a knowing smile. Zuko stared at the Kyoshi warrior and Suki just shrugged.
"Don't worry. I'm perceptive and Sokka is as dumb as rocks when it comes to that sort of thing, while I'm pretty sure Toph just doesn't care. Wanted to let you know I think it's cute, and I'm rooting for you" Suki told him. Zuko let out a breath and ran a hand through his hair.
"Well as long as Aang is dumb as rocks too then I'm good" he finally said.
"Does she know?" Suki asked. Zuko just stared. Boy, this girl was perceptive and blunt.
"I...don't know. I can't say for sure if she likes me too, but honestly, Suki. I can't do anything. We shouldn't do anything. A rock would be a more eligible boyfriend at the moment." Zuko said. Suki nodded, understandingly.
"The timing sometimes is never right, though" she said after a moment, pausing outside of the sitting room where Sokka was waiting. "If we survive the summer and after that, don't regret anything that you could've done, but didn't." Zuko nodded as Suki spoke one of his deepest fears aloud. Regardless, he was happy to just be Katara's friend for now. It's what she needed. It's what he needed.
"Sokka," Zuko said as he walked into the room, "Let's see what you've got."
Later on, when the fan plans were done, Toph, Suki, and Sokka went searching for some metal to make Suki's fans. Zuko retired upstairs to meditate on the balcony, while Katara and Aang headed down to the beach for some fun.
"How about this?" Sokka asked as he pulled a shovel out of the stable.
"No, the metal is too heavy. I need something light" Suki explained. Toph was walking around stomping her feet.
"What about over there?" Toph asked, pointing in the direction of the water pump. Sokka ran over and inspected the parts in the pump.
"Uh, this might work Toph, but we kinda need the pump. You can't flatten it" he told her.
"No, but maybe she could flatten this" Suki said as she pulled out a pipe that was leaning against the wall of Appa's stall. The pipe was used to direct water from the pump to the old troughs in the stables. The troughs were rusted and dirty from disuse, but the pipe was still remarkably shiny.
"Brass maybe?" Suki asked. Toph grabbed the pipe in her hands and suddenly the metal squeaked as she compress it together.
"How big do you want these fans?" she asked Suki. Suki handed Toph the paper cutouts that had made of each part of the fan that needed to be made of metal. Toph felt the paper with her hands then took the ball of metal and flattened it out as thin as was needed. She took the paper pattern and laid it flat on the metal, tracing the edges with her finger and bending out pieces of the pattern. It didn't take a long before all the parts of a set of Kyoshi fans were sitting on the patio.
Suki's eyes shone as she picked up the pieces and handed them to Sokka who immediately ran back into the house to assemble the weapons.
"Thanks a lot Toph, now back to no bending" Suki said. Toph snorted and blew her bangs out of her face only for the black strands to immediately drift back down to where they were.
"You can thank me later when we win this bet and you're making my bed and picking up my clothes for the week" Toph responded. She turned and headed down to the beach to join Katara and Aang. Suki went into the house to help Sokka assemble the fan.
"I really appreciate this, Sokka" Suki said as she settled down next to her boyfriend. Sokka was using a small tool to tighten the folds of the fan together so they would open and close smoothly. He looked up and gave Suki a charming smile.
"Hey, pass me that green ribbon" he said, pointing to the table. Suki handed it to him and he glued the soft fabric to the ends of the openings of the fan like a lining. He would make sure these were the best, prettiest fans Suki had ever owned. When that was done he opened a bottle of green paint and painted the handle a bright green color. He set the set of fans down to dry before reaching for a gold paint. Suki watched him silently, her eyes shimmering with sudden tears.
She missed her warriors and had been so scared when she was separated from them and sent to the Boiling Rock. But now she knew it was truly the best thing, otherwise she wouldn't be seated next to Sokka right now.
"Sokka, do you know what happened to my old fans?" Suki said quietly. Sokka put the paint down and lifted his head to look at her. He knew she had been captured by Azula, but he had yet to ask all the details.
"They burned, Sokka. The ancient wood handle was destroyed and the tiny hinges were blown apart by Azula's fire. I had to protect Appa. The fans were originally Koyoh's. She left them to me when she passed away, and they were so special to me" Suki explained. Sokka looked down at the fans he made. They suddenly seemed so boring and unimportant, like they were unfit to replace the fans that were Suki's mentor's. But Suki continued.
"Now these fans" she said as she touched the new handles lovingly "Will be so special too." Sokka looked up in surprise as Suki continued. "I had to open a new chapter of my life. I had to get out of my comfort zone and leave Kyoshi. They represent all of that. When I look at them I will remember how I traveled the world and fell in love with a handsome Water Tribe warrior." Sokka blushed but took the opportunity to slide closer to Suki and hold her hand.
"That is special, Suki." Zuko's voice surprised Sokka, who was a little disgruntled that Zuko had ruined a moment between himself and Suki. Zuko sat down across from them and studied the fans on the table. "Not only are they evidence of a new path for you, but they have been fashioned from materials in the Fire Lord's own house. I can't think of a more powerful symbol than that."
Zuko was right and Suki regarded the fans in a new light. It was so ironic. The Fire Nation took away her fans, and now she was here, in the Fire Nation homeland, across from the Fire Prince who was now a good friend.
"And tonight," Sokka said "Suki will use these fans to beat the butt off of the Prince of the Fire Nation. You're going down, Zuko!" Sokka cheered. Zuko didn't smile, he just stared down his best friend until Sokka squirmed uncomfortably in his seat and reached for the gold paint. He silently took a brush and painted the fans quickly. The finished result was beautiful and Suki couldn't wait to try them out. It wasn't even lunch time, yet, though. They had some time to kill.
"Nap?" she asked Sokka.
"Snack?" Sokka countered.
"Didn't Katara ban you from the kitchen?" Zuko asked. Sokka frowned.
"Not if I'm actually cooking" he responded.
Sokka was adamant that he show Suki that he did in fact know how to cook, just in case they lost. Suki didn't want to have to do all the meals. He brought his cuisine out to the porch, proud as punch of the arrangement on the plate.
"Wow, Sokka. This pig-chicken looks delicious!" Suki exclaimed. The piece of meat was golden brown and sat on a delectable arrangement of salad. Even Zuko looked impressed. He took his first bite and suddenly made a grave effort to hide the look of disgust on his face. The bottom of the meat was charred black.
"Yeah, it's fantastic" Zuko managed after he swallowed. "Flameo, as Aang would say."
Flameo indeed. If this was the cooking, maybe one of us benders ought to lose on purpose.
~0~0~0~
"Oh come on, Katara. Sokka and Suki will never know. I need a big wave!" Aang said as he swam over to the beach where Katara was sun bathing. She had pulled off her Fire Nation outfit and lay sprawled out in her wrappings, letting the sun kiss as much skin as possible. Aang had stripped down to his trunks and had tried to sun bathe next to her, but she seemed sleepy and not very talkative. He had quickly opted to jump into the waves.
"You and Zuko both! You're such cheaters!" Katara laughed as she sat up to look at Aang. "I'm playing by the rules. We're non-benders today and that's that. Don't you dare be the reason I have to play suck up to Sokka the rest of the week."
"You like Zuko a lot, huh." Aang said suddenly as he relented and sat down next to her in the sand. Katara almost jumped and her cheeks turned pink.
"No! I don't like him! That's ridiculous, Aang! Zuko's just a friend, nothing more!" Katara spluttered out quickly. Aang looked at her strangely.
"Uh, I meant you've become good friends with him lately" Aang explained. Katara breathed a sigh of relief.
"Well then, yeah. Don't get me wrong, I love joking around with you and Sokka and Toph, but Suki and Zuko have been a really nice addition to the group. Suki is just great all around and Zuko has been good for me. I can talk to him about anything, which is what a good friend does." Katara explained. She left out the part about finally not feeling like the only adult in the group.
"You can talk to me about anything too, you know that, right Katara?" Aang asked quietly. Katara turned to him, suddenly realizing why he looked so bothered. She reached out and grabbed his hand, smiling brightly at him.
"Of course I know that, Aang. You were my first friend after my brother. And I admire you so much. You've grown so much in the past year" Katara said, trying to ease the worry on his face. It worked, and Aang brightened up.
"Really? Your first friend?" he asked. Katara nodded.
"Not to mention a very powerful bender" Katara said, thinking back and letting another blush rise up into her cheeks. Aang caught the look on her face and grinned.
"Thanks, Katara!" he exclaimed. The encouragement was refreshing. He didn't get a lot of "good jobs" and complements from Zuko when they were training. The prince was sometimes a harder teacher than Toph, and that was saying something. Speaking of Toph...
"Hey beach bums!" Toph called, arriving on the beach and wiggling her toes in the sand. She grinned and pulled off her tunic revealing the bathing suit top and shorts beneath. She felt so much more comfortable on the beach now that she had gotten better at sandbending. "Last one in is a rotten platypus bear egg!" She ran forward and plowed into an oncoming wave without hesitation. She tightened up the particles of sand around her so she could get a good look at her surroundings. She was surprised when she realized Aang hadn't jumped in after her.
"Come on, Aang!"
Aang looked at Toph in the waves. That did look like fun. But Katara was still holding his hand and she looked really pretty lying on the beach. He wasn't ready to leave. Katara's blush had faded away and she was watching Toph splash about.
"So after I defeat Ozai" Aang began. A cloud suddenly darkened over Katara's face as a pit landed in her stomach. She didn't want to talk about that.
If...no, not if. When Aang defeated Ozai, everything would change. Zuko would have to deal with Azula, Sokka and herself would probably go back to the south. Aang didn't even have an air nomad family to go back to. Maybe he would come south with her? But Aang hated everything about Water Tribe culture. He hated the animal furs and seal jerky. Even the vegetarian sea prunes were something he stuck his nose up at. Aang would not be happy in the south. It was a mix of happy and sad things after the war. Katara was overwhelmed just thinking about it.
"Let's...lets not talk about that, Aang. For once, I just want to pretend I'm on vacation with my friends and there isn't a war going on, and I actually know where my dad is." Katara said suddenly, interrupting him. Aang stopped. He wanted to ask Katara about them, about the kiss at the invasion. He wanted to tell her that she was his family and his new home. He wanted to be together, with her. But as he watched the look on her face he decided that maybe now wasn't the best time. Katara just wanted to pretend that everything was ok for a little bit. He understood.
Summoning his courage, and bolstered by the reminder of Aunt Wu's prediction, Aang leaned forward and kissed Katara on the cheek.
"Ok, Katara" he said as she looked at him in surprise. "And about your dad. He's ok. I know it. The Fire Nation doesn't have anything on a Water Tribe genius like Hakoda." Katara laughed. Aang was right. Her father would be all right. She watched as Aang darted towards the water with Toph.
Unbeknownst to her, Zuko was standing behind her about ten feet. He had seen the small exchange and took a step back. Of course Katara reciprocated Aang's feelings. How could he think that she wouldn't? He took a step back. Maybe Sokka and Suki had a the right idea. A nap sounded fantastic. He quietly turned and headed back up to the house.
~0~0~0~
"Ok, you guys know the rules" Suki said. It was evening and the group was spread out on the beach. Zuko had his broadswords and was making faces at Sokka. Sokka held his space sword and looked a bit more nervous than he had expected to be. Suki's fans were beautiful and she held them in either hand. So far, no one had used their bending all day. Aang only had his staff with him and Toph and Katara didn't have anything.
"Toph, Aang, you're up against each other. Katara, you face Sokka. Zuko, you're with me."
Zuko wasn't sure if he could beat Suki. He was skilled in hand to hand combat, but he had seen Suki in action and knew for sure she wouldn't go easy on him. He was in for it. Sokka dropped his sword and raised his fists. He and Katara were pretty evenly matched on these grounds. They had both been receiving training from Suki over the past month, and both were fit and strong. Toph, for once, was nervous. She never did hand to hand. She'd never had to. The only thing she had on Aang were her reflexes. Aang dropped his staff and slid into a stance. He had an opportunity to beat Toph, even if it was without bending, and he was going to give it everything he had.
"On your marks" Suki called. Everyone drew into a stance. "Get set!" Everyone leaned forward a little bit in anticipation.
"GO!"
Sokka sprang forward towards Katara. His speed caught her off guard and she barely dodged out of the way. She resisted the urge to respond to the call of the water in the air and in the waves. Instead, she blocked out the distractions and focused on her moves. She turned and blocked a strike to her side.
Meanwhile, Toph and Aang were dancing around each other. Toph knew easily what was coming and was able to dodge Aang with ease. However, she was not able to go on the offensive at all as all her energy went to dodging Aang's attacks. Aang moved as quick as he could, resisting the urge to air bend, and tried to come at Toph with multiple strikes at once. Toph couldn't dodge the sweep to her legs and the blow to her chest at the same time, and she landed on the ground with a loud "oooff!"
"I won!" Aang said triumphantly, standing over Toph. Toph scowled. She wanted nothing more than to open a hole beneath Aang's feet and feel him fall into it. Then she would cover him in sand up to his neck. Oh well, this fight didn't mean anything. If they all could avoid bending up until after supper, she was going to have a servant for a week. She couldn't wait to torture Sokka.
Meanwhile, Katara was having a hard time keeping up. Sokka was surprisingly quick and more skilled than she realized. All it would take was one slip up. The slip up happened. She dove towards Sokka's middle, (a desperate move, she knew that), and was shocked when Sokka spun from her grasp and in the same motion sent a kick out to her ankles. She tumbled to the sand, landing face first against the rough particles.
"And Katara goes dooown hard!" Sokka exclaimed with a cheer. Two fights down. Only one was still going. Zuko had his broadswords in full action, but Suki was proving a greater challenge than he anticipated. Everyone gathered to watch as Zuko swiped one sword towards Suki. To his surprise, Suki trapped the sword between her two fans and twisted the blade until he had to let go of the handle. He was down to one sword.
Suki used his surprise to her advantage and he just managed to block the next attack. Suki was snapping the fans open and closed, using the sharp metal edges as knives before snapping them open and using them in an offensive attack. Zuko tried channeling his inner Blue Spirit, but his chest was heaving from the effort and Suki didn't seem like she was tiring. With a lucky shot he managed to wrangle a fan out of her hand. It clinked to the sand, but Suki didn't seem to care. She lunged and grabbed Zuko by the wrist holding the sword. She forced his hand upward and spun. Zuko saw the kick coming. But if he was going to fall then so was she. He bent forward and grabbed her side just as she kicked his feet out from under him. The force knocked him down easily, but he pulled with all his strength, and gravity helped him pull Suki to the sand with him.
"Draw!" Sokka exclaimed. The others cheered. It had been quite the spectacle to watch.
"Suki on Sokka and Aang on Zuko?" Katara suggested. "And the winners of that face off?" Sokka and Aang just stared at Katara.
"You think I'm going to beat Suki?" Sokka asked, almost laughing.
"And I can face Zuko and his swords? Absolutely not" Aang exclaimed.
"Oh come on, we all want to see Sokka and Zuko fight it out" Toph said.
"We already watched that once at the Air temple" Katara said.
"But I'm better now!" Sokka insisted. Zuko just gave him a side glance. He turned to Suki and held out his hand. Yes, the fight had been a draw, but deep down they knew who won.
A fan had bested the two swords.
Suki reached out and gave Zuko a traditional Water Tribe handshake (which did not go unnoticed by Sokka who was beaming with pride). Zuko pulled her in close for a quick hug.
"All my respect for a honorable fight well won" he whispered into ear. "That last move was a cheap shot on my part." Suki pulled back and gave Zuko a grin.
"Yes, it was. But you are a remarkable swordsman. Sokka should be glad he can learn from you" she said. Zuko turned and shot Sokka a look.
"Ya hear that, buddy?"
"Yeah, yeah, I heard it. Don't rub it in" Sokka said with a toss of his hand. "Can we eat supper now?"
"Smells like something is already cooking" Toph said. The group looked her strangely. "I smell smoke" Toph clarified. The others looked around, not spotting a fire. Suddenly, Sokka took a sharp intake of breath. Zuko turned to him in a panic at the same time.
"Sokka...you cooked..." Zuko began.
"The stove...I left the stove on" Sokka squeaked.
"You WHAT?" Katara gasped "What were you doing in the kitchen?" The whole group paused to take in this information before turning and taring up the hill to the house. Sure enough, the kitchen was on fire. Katara bended water from the pump as Suki pumped for her furiously. Aang and Zuko started to bend the flames down and pull the embers out of the wood in the floor.
"Here it comes!" Katara shouted as she sent the flood of water into the kitchen. There was a sizzling sound as the fire was put out at once. Zuko and Aang were thoroughly soaked and the stove was quite a bit mangled. The floorboards were blackened but not burned through. Everything else was intact. It seemed that the stove had burned down for most of the afternoon and would have been fine if not for the open window that let the breeze in. The paper pattern for the fans that had been sitting by the stove seemed to be what caught on fire. For a minute, the only sound was the dripping of water as it drained through the floorboards.
"We bended" Aang finally said.
"Sokka lit the house on fire" Zuko said dryly, "That wasn't supposed to be part of the bet."
"There no way I'm losing to Sokka after he nearly burnt the house down" Toph declared. Suki smacked Sokka lightly upside the head.
"So, uh, I guess the bet is a draw too?" Sokka offered looking around sheepishly.
"Naw, I think we won" Toph insisted.
"Don't punish me because of my boyfriend" Suki protested
"Hey, honey, you're the one dating him. Acknowledge the liability." Toph shot back. Katara walked inside just as Sokka was backing out.
"It's ok" Katara told him, grabbing him before he could escape.
"Are you sure? Because I feel like I need to hide from Toph" Sokka said.
"No really, mistakes happen and no one was hurt." Katara insisted. "Today really made me appreciate my bending more, so thanks for that. But really," she gave his arm a bit of a squeeze "You don't work in the kitchen...ever. again."
Sokka nodded sheepishly. "Understood. I'm really sorry about the kitchen" he said softly. Toph walked forward and put a hand on Sokka's arm.
"It's fine, Snoozles" she said. Sokka breathed a sigh of relief as he looked around at his friends. He was very grateful that they were benders. Otherwise, the house would've been completely destroyed. If anything was going to grab attention, a house fire sure would. He needed to keep reminding himself that being a nonbender didn't mean he was useless or any less than the friends around him.
If anything it showed him that he needed more lessons with Suki. Because if a fan could beat a sword, then he didn't have a single excuse in the world.