WARNING: this chapter will contain adult content.
"Momo!"
Momo dived down toward Aang but he missed as Aang dived underneath the water and swam to a different location in the river.
"Oh Momo!" he said again, causing the lemur to fly after him only to miss again.
The next time though, Momo managed to land on Aang's head.
"Haha! You got me buddy!" Aang said proudly. Momo took off to land in Appa's saddle. Aang soon followed and after entering the saddle, he notice that the water clung to him thickly, as if it were more mud than water.
"Guys, I think there's something wrong with this water" he said as he waterbent the water off of himself.
"Yeah," Zuko said thoughtfully, "just look how dirty it is."
"It smells horrible" Toph said as she tried to cover up her nose after concentrating to take in the smell.
"I can tell through my waterbending" Katara said as she laid against Zuko's shoulder. "There's a lot of contaminants in it. Where is it coming from?"
"Well wherever it's from, we probably shouldn't be in it" Sokka said. "Yip-yip!" he told Appa. Sokka guided the bison to a defilade in the earth, where the squad covered up Appa to camouflage him.
"There" Aang said. "Now he looks like a tiny hill."
"With horns" Zuko added dryly.
"It'll be fine" Aang said. The squad began walking uphill to orient themselves to Sokka's maps.
"There," Sokka said, "that village is mostly likely Jang Hui."
"It's a fishing village" Zuko commented. "It provides a majority of fish for the Fire Nation." He went silent for a moment before speaking again. "Though it's no longer doing so."
"Why's that?" Katara asked.
"Hello there!" a cheery voice interrupted.
The squad look towards the voice's point of origin, to find an old man standing in a boat.
"Looking for a ride?" he asked with a smile. "I can take you to my village."
"We'd apricate that" Katara said, curious to see how severely affected this village was.
"Climb aboard then!" the old man said. "My name is Dock. Where are you five from?"
"We're from the colonies" Zuko lied as he and the others climbed aboard. "Just visiting the homeland."
"Ah colonials, never met anyone from the colonies before" Dock said as he rowed the boat towards the village.
"So Dock," Katara asked, "what is wrong with this river?"
"The army moved a long time ago with their big factory to make metal. Been gunking it up since. Now our village is struggling to survive" he said sadly.
"How can they do such a thing?" Katara asked.
"Because the Fire Lord doesn't care about the environment" Zuko said bitterly. Katara grasped his hand in an effort to comfort him.
"Well we are still standing" Dock said optimistically. "We manage just fine."
"Barely" Toph said as she held onto Aang's arm. He also sensed how badly the water was contaminated when he bent it.
Dock tied the boat to the dock, allowing the squad to disembark.
"Thanks for the ride" Aang said with a smile.
"No problem!" Dock said. "I'm happy to help you colonials anyway I can."
"Is it just me," Toph whispered as they walked away, "or does that guy seem a little… unhinged?"
"Yeah he seems to be a little too optimistic to live here" Sokka noted. "Just look at this place."
The squad looked around and takes in the poverty stricken village, where many its people look sick and underfed. It was a depressing thing to look at, especially the condition the children were in.
"We have to do something to help" Katara said. "We can't leave them like this."
"I agree" Zuko said. "This war has devasted my people for too long."
"We don't have the time" Sokka said firmly. "We can't help everyone we meet."
Katara looked at him in shock, followed closely by anger. "How can you say that?! These people are starving and sick, but you turn your back on them?! How the hell can you be so cold and heartless?"
"I am not turning my back on them" Sokka said defensively. "I'm just being realistic. We'll be doing more good for them when we take down the Fire Lord."
Without warning, Toph punches Sokka in the gut harshly.
"Hey numbnuts" she said sternly. "Maybe we should be quieter about taking down the Fire Lord" she finished in a whisper.
Sokka scowled at her while he caught his breath before directing his attention back toward Katara.
"Come on Katara, be reasonable. Our mission needs to come first. When that's done, we'll come back to this village and help, okay?"
"Assuming they're still here" Zuko said darkly. Sokka grimaced at that, knowing this village may have less time than they hoped.
Katara looked downcast as she knew what their priorities were, but it still pained her that they cannot help this village because their mission must come first.
"I guess you're right" she said sadly. Zuko took her hand and tried to comfort her.
"Let's just get what we need and go" Aang said, hoping they everyone can put this aside after they leave, even though he wanted to help this village and the environment too.
The squad walked into the market and found the food store. They rung the small bell to call for the salesperson to help them.
But no one from the squad expected to see Dock there.
"Hello there!" he said. "How can I help you?"
"You work here too Dock?" Sokka asked.
"Dock?" the old man said before cackling. "That's my brother's name. I'm Xu, the store owner."
The squad stare at the man in confusion.
"But you look exactly like him" Aang said. "You're even wearing the same clothes. Only your hat is different."
"Me and Dock sometimes wear the same clothes, a habit from when we were kids" Dock said with a smile.
"Okay" Aang said skeptically. Toph placed some coins on the counter.
"We need some food" she said. "What do you have?"
Xu pulled out a box full of fish and clams. "Tell you what, if you buy three fish, I'll throw in a clam for free."
Sokka looks down at the clams and pokes at it, only for it to ooze funky looking slim out of it. He grimaced at the sight. "We'll just take the fish" he said before paying Xu and taking the fish.
As the squad walked away, a child ran up to Katara.
"Can I have some food?" he pleaded.
Katara gave him a sad smile before keeling down and handing him a piece of jerky.
"I wish I can do more…" she said sadly. The child smiled a little before eating half of the jerky and running home.
Katara frowned in determination, planning a way to help this village, their mission be damned.
"Alright," Sokka said after they returned to their campsite, "our detour today has thrown our schedule off. We need to do some finagling to get back on schedule."
"Finagle away oh schedule master" Toph said as she tried to eat the fish, which proved more distasteful than it looked.
"We'll need to wake up an hour and a half earlier to make up for lost time" Sokka said as he looked over his schedule.
"An hour and a half?" Katara asked.
"It's either that, or we take our food and bathroom breaks at the same time" Sokka said.
Everyone else in the squad recoiled in disgust at the idea of eating something only to expel it.
"An hour and a half it is then" Zuko said, to which everyone reluctantly agreed.
"Alright," Sokka said as he put his schedule and other papers away, "we leave first thing in the morning."
Later that night, after everyone was asleep, Katara got out of the sleeping bag she shared with Zuko. She hoped that she would not disturb him, but it was a false hope given how he was a light sleeper.
"Uh," he said as he came to, "where are you going Katara?"
"I uh have to use the bathroom" she lied. "Go back to sleep." She tried to move away from him as quick as she could, but she froze in place when he spoke.
"You're going to help the village."
Katara sighed at his statement. "Yeah. I can't leave it like this."
"I'll help" he said as he got up and approached Katara.
She turned towards him and looked him in the eye. "You will?"
"I can't turn my back on them now, can I?" he said with a smile.
Katara smiled back before embracing him. "Have I told you that I love you?" she said.
Zuko smiled while his chest warmed in a way he had not experienced in a long time.
"No" he said. "But you can say it more often if you'd like."
Katara laughed before pulling him towards the village to find a way to help them.
After donning disguises, Zuko led Katara towards the factory.
"The Fire Nation puts priority on making sure its factories operate at peak efficiency, including its workers" he briefed. "That's where we'll find their food supplies."
"Then let's break in there and get it" Katara said.
"Hold on, we have to be quiet about this" Zuko said as he searched the factory, then he spotted what he expected.
"There" he said, pointing at the docks. "That's where the army stores their excess supplies. It looks lightly guarded, so getting in shouldn't be an issue. Especially if we go in the back way."
"Right. Let's go" Katara said. The couple sneaked their way to the warehouse, where Katara used her waterbending to quietly cut a hole through the wall. Zuko scouted the warehouse, only to find two guards sleeping in an office. He grunted inwardly at their incompetence but was also relieved at it.
They soon left with several pounds of food and medical supplies and headed towards the village, leaving them in the center for the people to find the next day.
Before Katara went back to bed, she fed Appa several purple berries.
"What are you doing?" Zuko asked.
"Oh just feeding Appa a midnight snack" she said innocently. "He has the equivalent of nine stomachs."
Zuko raised his eyebrow, wondering if his girlfriend was up to something else.
The next morning, Aang took notice of Appa laying on his side and groaning in discomfort.
"What's wrong buddy?" Aang asked. "Not feeling to well?" Aang opened Appa's mouth and was shocked to see the bison's tongue a purple color. "His tongue is purple! That can't be good. Katara is there anything you can do for him?"
Katara placed her hands on Appa's belly. "It feels like he ate something that made him sick."
Sokka stood up in shock. "What?! Appa's sick?! Now that's throws my plans off course!"
He noticed that everyone was looking at him disproval that he placed his grand plan above one of their own.
Sokka quickly ran up to Appa and began rubbing his belly. "That and I'm deeply concerned for my big furry friend" he said in an attempt to rectify the situation.
Katara rolled her eyes. "We should go back to the village to get more food and some medicine for Appa."
Toph grimaced at that. "Ugh, not more of that nasty fish."
Aang smiled at her. "You can always go vegetarian."
"With all due respect Twinkle-toes, I'd rather not" she teased. Aang sighed in disappointment but knew better than to force anyone to follow his diet, especially Toph.
When the squad docked at the village again and began walking towards the market, they noticed that the melancholy attitude was absent from the village.
"Is it just me," Toph said as she took in the sounds around her, "or does this village seem… happier?"
"Yeah" Aang said in acknowledgement. He took notice of several children playing catch with a ball. "Everyone looks like they're in better spirits today."
"Much better" Sokka said. He notice Dock- or Xu- manning the same market stall as yesterday. Sokka walked over to the elderly man. "Hey Dock-"
"Dock?" the man said before laughing. "I'm Xu!"
"Right, Xu" Sokka said, more concerned with getting answers than dealing with this man's craziness. "What happened last night? Why is everyone happy?"
"Oh a most wonderful thing happened last night" Xu said. "The Painted Lady came last night and brought us food."
"The Painted who?" Katara asked. She shared a sideway glance with Zuko, who was just as confused as she was.
"The Painted Lady." Xu rotated a wooden doll with feminine features and decretive red paint on her face and arms, while she wore a wide brim hat. "She's our town's lore, a river spirit who watches over us and helps us in times of need. Some of the villagers saw her last night, along with a man. We don't know who he is, but a friend of the Painted Lady is a friend of ours!"
"Well looks like this village doesn't need our help" Sokka declared. "They have a spirit lady to help them. We need some medicine for our sick friend, Xu. What do you have?"
"Medicine?" Xu asked before shaking his head. "We don't have any. All the medicine goes to the factory. Sorry."
Sokka groaned in disappointment.
"Looks like we'll have to stay another night to let Appa rest" Katara declared.
Sokka sighed in more disappointment but accepted the situation. "What food do you have today Xu?"
Xu bent down to retrieve some fish. "Do you want the one headed fish or the two headed fish?"
Sokka rubbed his chin in contemplation. "Two headed!" he said before taking it from Xu. The rest of the squad recoiled in disgust. "Hey, we got more than our money's worth this way."
Later that night, when everyone was asleep, Katara and Zuko once again snuck away to help the village with their medicine problem. When she was donning her disguise, Katara painted her face and arms in a manner similar to the Painted Lady doll.
"What are you doing Katara?" Zuko asked as he readied himself.
"The Painted Lady gives hope to these people" Katara said as she placed the hat atop her head and hid her face behind a vile. "If there's something else we can give these people, it's strength to endure these hard times."
Zuko smiled gently at her. He reached into his pack and pulled out a blue mask, the same one he used when he rescued Aang from Zhao.
"I think it's time I use this for a greater cause" he said as he secured it to his head. Katara smiled back at him.
"Besides," he said, "we need to keep our identities secret."
Katara rolled her eyes at him but hugged him for his willingness to help those in need.
They were more daring on this raid, going into the factory itself to retrieve medicine from the infirmary. Again the security was laxed, as if the guards felt there was no one daring enough to breach a factory of the Fire Nation.
But they did not expect a rouge prince and his girlfriend to be the raiders.
Once they had the medicine, Katara and Zuko head down to the village and delivered it. Katara used her waterbending to heal some of the more serious ill and injured.
A boy, who slept next to his sick mother that Katara just healed, woke up and noticed her and the man standing next to her. Katara recognized him as the same boy who asked her for food the other day and quickly turned away to prevent reviling herself.
"Who- who are you?" he asked the mysterious man.
Zuko deepened his voice slightly in an attempt to hid who he really was. "The Blue Spirit."
The boy was confused for a second but smiled regardless. "Well thank you Blue Spirit." He turned toward Katara, who was heading to the entrance. "And thank you Painted Lady." Katara smiled before taking off with Zuko.
As before, Katara fed Appa more purple berries to keep him ill.
"You know we're only giving these people short term solutions right?" Zuko asked.
"I know" Katara said. "It's that damn factory that's the cause for all of this."
Zuko took Katara into his arms. "I promise Katara, when this war is over, I'll see to it that factory and every other one is shut down. For good."
Katara hugged him back tightly. "I know. I know you'll change a lot of things when you're the Fire Lord."
Zuko gulped, never really putting any real thought about being the Fire Lord since he joined the squad.
And for whatever reason, it felt wrong if he became the next Fire Lord.
But he knew he was the best candidate to become the Fire Lord if peace and balance are to be restored to the world.
The next day, the squad repeated their return to the village to seek medicine for Appa. If the villagers were happy the pervious day, they were absolutely ecstatic today.
"Does this place seem more…" Aang said as he searched for the right word, "festive?"
"It does" Sokka said with a frown. He had a suspicion that someone was helping the village, rather than a spirit.
"Hey Dock, is Xu around?"
"Let me check" Dock said, as he ran around the stall's corner to change hats, much to Sokka's irritation.
"What's going on around here?" he asked.
"Oh the Painted Lady helped us once again by delivering medicine to us last night!" Xu said with excitement. "And she was assisted by the Blue Spirit, whoever that is. But more the merrier."
Both Sokka and Aang turned to look at Zuko, the latter with shock, the former with irritation. But Sokka then focused his attention to Katara. But her and Zuko wore innocent expressions but it did not fool Sokka. He grabbed both of them to a more private area while Aang followed with Toph's hand in his. She also did not too pleased by this either.
"I know you Zuko has pretended to the Blue Spirit!" Sokka said in an irritated whisper. "And you're pretending to be this Painted Lady!" he said to Katara.
"We have no idea what you're talking about Sokka" Zuko said with a frown. Katara also wore the same expression, never liking being accused by her brother.
"Bullshit" Sokka said. "I know you two were sneaking off each night. I was hoping you two were just sneaking off to do…" he paused before grimacing, not liking the idea of what they could have been doing.
"Sneaking off to do what Sokka?" Katara asked.
"You know what I mean!" Sokka said. "But instead you two were raiding that factory to help the village! Do you two have any idea how dangerous that is?"
"We didn't do anything like that" Katara lied.
"You're lying!" Sokka accused while pointing at her. "Aren't they Toph?"
"I can't really tell on this wood" she said. "But I'd say they are."
"So you can't prove we're lying" Zuko said.
"Aang," Sokka said, "would you notice any spiritual activity with your Avatar powers?"
"Possibly" Aang said thoughtfully. "If I focus I could sense something, but I didn't think of it till now. I can try but it may take longer than you'd like."
"Then back to camp so Toph can detect their lies, then when she does we are leaving" Sokka declared as he boarded the boat. Aang and Toph followed but Katara and Zuko stubbornly remained on the dock.
"Get in you two" Sokka said sternly. "Now."
Katara growled at him before getting into the boat, followed by Zuko who looked ready to murder someone.
When they got back to camp, Sokka repeated his interrogation, where Zuko and Katara knew that Toph would detect their lies.
"Fine, we're the spirits that's been helping this village" Katara admitted.
"I knew it!" Sokka said. "You delayed our mission all to give these people a short term solution."
"What do you mean?" Zuko asked with a mild growl.
"Once the village run of food and medicine, its going to go back to the way we found it" Sokka said to Katara's and Zuko's dismay. "Didn't you two think of that?"
"Well what do you expect us to do?" Katara asked.
"The only real way to help this village is to blow up that damn factory" Sokka said. When he notice his sister and her boyfriend go wide eyed and then put on determined faces, he realized his big mouth just made his life harder.
"Oh-no" he said. "Don't even think of doing that."
"Oh we're doing it" Katara said as she walked over to her pack to get her disguise out. Zuko also followed suit, knowing how determined she can get.
"Fucking fuck!" Sokka said. He turned toward Aang and Toph. "Aren't you two going to help?!"
"Hey you said it" Toph said. "Now those two are going to do it." She then smiled at the idea of joining them. "Besides, it would be fun to break something. Haven't done that in forever!"
Sokka's jaw dropped comically. He turned toward Aang. "C'mon man you can talk them out of this, right?" Sokka pleaded.
"Actually," Aang said thoughtfully, "that factory has done too much damage to this river. It has to go, and while I do not approve of initiating violence, it has to be done at times. And that time is now."
"I think I've been corrupting you a little too much" Toph teased.
"As long as I can influence you to be a more moral person" Aang said with a smile. Toph laughed at him while they walked to join Katara and Zuko, who were more than happy to have their help.
As they leave, Sokka remained frozen, shocked that his friends would do something so reckless.
Appa groaned next to him while Momo landed on Sokka's shoulder.
"This is not going to end well…" Sokka said in dismay.
The four benders rushed towards the factory, resolve filling their minds and hearts. Aang was the first to enter, using his airbending to harmlessly scare off the workers for their safety. Zuko focused on the guards, using his dao swords to disarm them and used his fist and feet to knock them away. When the guards realized they were no match for the man in the blue mask, they retreated quickly. Once the factory workers and guards were clear of the factory, the benders went to work to destroy everything inside, ensuring that it cannot be rebuilt in a timely manner.
"It's going to take years to repair this awful place" Aang said as they rushed out of the factory.
"Yeah it will" Toph said proudly. "My metalbending really did a pounding on it!"
"And I'm so proud of you" Aang said before giving her a quick kiss, to which she giggled.
When they returned to camp, Katara and Zuko watch over the factory as it fell apart, proud of their accomplishment.
"That's just the first of many" Zuko said with a frown.
"I know" Katara said. "But it's a start."
Sokka walked up to the four benders, having watch as they took the factory apart. He hoped they would only do some minor damage, but when the factory walls started to come down, he knew that factory was well and utterly destroyed.
"Do you four have any idea of what you did?" he accused.
"Yeah, we destroyed a factory" Toph said with a huge smile.
"And condemned the village to the same fate" Sokka said with a frown. He pointed down to the village. "Look" he simply said while pointing down to it.
Katara, Zuko and Aang looked down to the village and were shocked to see several powered jet skies gliding across the water toward the village.
Each of them were carrying angry looking firebenders.
"Oh no" Katara said in shock, realizing that she and the other went too far.
"They're going to blame the villagers and burn them all" Sokka said. "This is what can happen when you try to help people. I told you we were better off leaving."
Katara scowled deeply, enraged that her own brother would be so willing to turn his back on those in need.
"NO" she screamed. "I will never ever turn my back on people who need me!" She began walking down to the village, determined to protect them. "I'm going to protect those people Sokka and fuck you for not wanting to."
"Wait" Sokka said as she placed a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at him in rage.
"I know I was wrong to say all those things, and I deeply regret that" he said gently. "But I will never turn my back on you. I'll help you protect them."
Katara was still angry with him but nodded all the same.
"Let's go" she said, and Avatar Squad sprung into action.
A fierce looking man marched into the village, the occupants terrified at what happened and what would follow.
"Where are the benders who destroyed our factory?" the man said.
The villagers remained silent, not knowing who did it.
"It must have been the Painted Lady" Dock said. "She must've destroyed you factory."
"And she must've stolen our food and medicine" the man said pointing at the barrels of food. "There's no such things as spirts or any of that bullshit nonsense." He used his firebending to destroy one the barrels, terrifying the villagers. "This town is nothing but a bunch of thieves and liars! And its time we rid the world of this retched village" he finished with a growl.
When the man and his soldier got ready to burn the people and the village, a heavy fog suddenly appeared around them. The man looked around, wondering where it came from.
Soon, eerier sounds began filling the air, causing the soldiers to be on edge.
"What's going on?" one of the soldiers asked.
Little did they know, Toph was pounding the earth with a large boulder while Appa groaned to create an atmosphere of mystical fright, while Sokka used a wooded flute to add to the effect.
"What's that sound?" a female soldier asked.
The leader looked about, trying to figure out this trickery. He soon spotted two figures emerge from the fog, looking as menacing as possible.
"Take them out!" he ordered. The soldiers responded and sent several fire blast at them.
Aang, hiding below the docks, heard this and used his airbending to blow Katara and Zuko into the air as the fire blast approached them.
When the two landed, they flied towards the soldiers. Katara made several aggressive gestures towards them, working in sync with Aang to blow the soldiers back. Zuko used his hand to hand combat training to knock the soldiers down, overpowering them with ease.
Soon all the soldiers but the leader retreated in fear, believing that the Painting Lady and the Blue Spirit were in fact real.
The leader growled at their cowardice. "I'll take you two on myself!" he shouted at the spirits before launching several fire blasts at them.
But it was no use, as Zuko deflected the fire blasts. Katara made a strong and aggressive waterbending move to knock the man to the ground.
Aang then used his airbending to make Katara hover in the air to tower over the man, who looked at her in terror.
"Leave this village and never return" she warned. The man quickly obeyed and left in fear.
Katara was lowered to the ground and turned towards the villagers. They began cheering in relief and happiness that they were saved by these spirits. Aang, Sokka and Toph used their distraction to enter the village unnoticed but happy at their victory today.
"Thank you Painted Lady, Blue Spirt!" Dock shouted. His smile soon turned into a frown when he notice the makeup Katara wore was faded and smeared.
"Wait a minute," he said, "you're that colonial girl! And a waterbender!"
"Yeah, you were the one who gave me a fish and healed my mom!" the boy who Katara helped shouted.
"You've been tricking us! How dare you dress up as our Painted Lady!" Dock shouted before looking at Zuko. "And you must be one of the other colonial boys! A firebender!"
Zuko sighed in defeat and removed his mask, reviling himself as the traitor prince.
"Prince Zuko!" a villager shouted.
The crowd surged in anger, knowing the trouble that could come down on them now.
Sokka rushed forward to protect them. "Maybe she is a waterbender, and maybe he is the traitor prince. But they saved your village and the army is gone! You should be down on your knees thanking them!"
"Sokka," Katara said as she removed her hat, "it's okay." She turned to address the village. "I know I shouldn't have pretended to be someone you revered, but I only wanted to help you. It doesn't matter if the Painted Lady or the Blue Spirit are real or not, but your village is real, and this river is real. You can't rely entirely on someone or something to help you. You have to help yourselves."
"But you won't have to do it alone" Zuko said. "You have my word that when this war is over, I will do everything in my power to give you the resources to help yourselves."
The village looked downcast for a moment, realizing that Katara was completely right.
"You're right" Dock said. "But what can we do?"
"Maybe we can clean the river?" Toph said in a deep voice.
"Yeah!" Dock said with excitement. "We can clean the river!" The village cheers in agreement.
"Thank you for helping us" Dock said while everyone went to work. "You know for a waterbender and a traitor, you two aren't so bad" he said to Katara and Zuko.
"You wouldn't mind keeping that a secret do you?" Sokka asked.
"No problem!" Dock said. "Keeping secrets is a personal specialty. My brother Xu though, he's a blabber mouth."
Sokka raised an eyebrow in skepticism.
"So do you mind helping clean the river Dock?" Katara asked.
"No ma'am" Dock said. "I'll get my brother Bushi. He's great at cleaning rivers!" Dock then removes his hat and replaces it with one different from his or Xu's.
"Alright, I'm Bushi!" he said. "Let's get to river cleaning!"
"I knew it!" Aang said. "You are the same person! You were just pretending to be different people."
"Oh you're talking about my brother Dock" Bushi said. He looked around to make sure no one was listening before whispering, "He's crazy." He cackled at that before walking away, leaving an annoyed Aang and Sokka in his wake, while Katara and Zuko stared in confusion.
The squad spent the rest of the day helping the villagers clean the river. The benders were able to speed up the process to remove the muck more efficiently.
By the end of the day, the river was pristine, giving hope to the village that the fish will become healthier and give them an abundant amount of food.
Later that night, Katara and Zuko went to collect the clean water to cook with. When they were admiring the clean water, a fog suddenly appeared over the water. They looked up to see two mystical figures appear.
One of the them was the Painted Lady, the other the Blue Spirit, proving they are in fact real.
"Thank you" the Painted Lady said in a beautiful voice. The Blue Spirit remined silent, instead bowing to them in respect and gratitude.
They soon disappeared into the mist, leaving Katara and Zuko smiling.
They took each other into their arms and shared a deep kiss, knowing that the two of them did something great.
She sat upon a dead volcano's ledge, enjoying the sunset for its natural beauty, and soaking up its rays. She relished the heat and power it provided for her. A firebender's strength deeply depends on the sun, and she used it to replenish her power in times of need.
Also she enjoyed the peace and quiet, allowing her to think clearly.
"Ah, Princess," Long Feng, a newly promoted advisor to the Fire Lord, announced, "I heard you have been spending time up here recently."
So much for peace and quiet, Azula thought to herself. She turned towards Long Feng, eyeing him with mistrust. She knew he was playing an angle to gain more power through favors to the Fire Lord, but she has not figured it out yet.
"Long Feng" she said politely. "Congratulations on your new position."
"Thank you Princess" he replied with a bow. "May I ask why you have been spending time up here alone?"
"It helps me think" she said.
"Think about what?"
"Oh you know, the meaning of life, what purpose we each have" she replied with a hint of sarcasm.
"I suppose you're still trying to come to an understanding about those subjects" he said.
"Yes you can say that."
"Especially since you're the Fire Lord's heir" he added. "You must be constantly thinking of ways to improve the Fire Nation, now and when you become the Fire Lord."
Azula nodded, knowing he guessed correctly. She has been thinking of ways of improving the Fire Nation, both the homeland and the colonies.
A lot of the ideas were ways to improve life and make up for all the harm her nation has caused. She could not get rid of the things she witnessed and experienced.
Especially that young boy.
"Well I look forward to the changes you will bring" Long Feng said. "Killing the Avatar was the first step on the road to those changes."
Azula stared out over the ocean, distrustful of Long Feng for killing the Avatar and giving her the credit.
"Unless of course," Long Feng continued, "the Avatar somehow survived."
Azula looked away, concealing her doubt that the Avatar was in fact dead. She knew him and his friends were at the North Pole and from what she read about that place, there was an ancient pond that apparently has mystical properties, such as being able to bring the near dead back to life.
It was safe to assume that the waterbending woman had a vile of it and used it to save the Avatar. It would be foolish not to believe that was a distinct possibility.
"No," she lied, "there is no way he survived." She stared at Long Feng definitely.
Long Feng stared back at her with a neutral expression.
"Very well then" he said before walking away.
Azula stared back over the ocean, knowing full well the consequences for what would happen if the Avatar survived.
And for some reason, she felt conflicted about hoping the Avatar was and was not alive.
Later that night, a hooded individual met the most dangerous bounty hunter and assassin in the Fire Nation, a combustion bender capable of creating massive explosions with his mind. He was also doubly dangerous being an expert firebender, on par with the most experience elite soldiers in the military.
"The Avatar is alive" the hooded individual said. "I want you to find him and his friends and kill them all."
The combustion bender nodded without a trace of remorse before taking off on his task, intending to show no mercy to the greatest enemies to the Fire Nation.
"Oh I can't wait to get there! We haven't been to Ember Island in years! It's going to be great to lay on the beach, doing nothing but soak in the sun!"
Mai rolled her eyes at Ty Lee's remark, not really caring for her cheerful attitude. But at the same time she was glad she can get out of the household her parents more or less confined her to complete her studies.
Azula on the other hand, felt it was a waste of time. Her father wanted her to take some time for herself.
"I can't believe Father didn't want me to attend his meetings."
"It's probably just boring stuff he needs to go over with his generals or something" Ty Lee said. She wanted her friends to have a wonderful time, but their attitudes gave her the ill feeling that it would not happen.
"Boring or not, I should be part of it. I'll have to be to become a good Fire Lord someday."
"Yeah but your dad is going to be Fire Lord for a long time, right?"
Azula furrowed her brow. A long time to cause more harm I'm sure she thought bitterly to herself. She admitted that her father has done a lot of good things for their nation, but it was at great expense of others around the world. She was always told their nation's war was their attempt to spread their greatness.
But she painfully learned that is not the case entirely.
"Whatever" she finally said. "Let's get this vacation over with."
Ty Lee sighed, hoping her friends' attitudes will change once they get to the island.
But it may take longer than she anticipated.
Azula's caretakers, Lo and Li, waited for them at the docks. No matter how many times the girls met them, they still could not tell which is which of these elderly twins.
"Welcome to Ember Island" they said in unison.
"Lo, Li," Azula said. "Always a pleasure to see you" she finished with mild sarcasm.
"We intend for you to have a wonderful time" Lo said.
"For you to recuperate after your long journey to the former Earth Kingdom" Li added.
The former title added to the Earth Kingdom did not sit well with Azula, for she believed it would never truly belong to the Fire Nation.
The elderly ladies led the group to their home, which was small house overlooking the sea.
Despite the view, it smelled like old lady to Azula. Oh how it was going to be a long weekend for her.
"Who are these beautiful ladies?" Ty Lee asked while admiring a painting of young twin ladies posing with their behinds touching.
"Can't you tell?" Lo and Li said before taking up the same pose. "It's us."
The three young ladies had different reactions to that, none of which showed admiration for Lo and Li.
All of the ladies, young and old, sat around a low table to have some tea.
"We know you were forced to come here…" Li said.
"But give this island and its beach a chance…" Li continued.
"And it will help you come to an understanding of yourselves" they finished together.
Azula rolled her eyes at that. "And how would it do that?"
"The beach has a magical ability to calm the mind, body and soul…" Lo began.
"To smooth even more ragged of edges" Li finished while rubbing a seashell that have been smoothed by the waters. Then both ladies stood up.
"Time to hit the beach!" they said before disrobing and revealing their elderly bodies in swimwear.
Azula, Mai and Ty Lee recoiled in disgust before heading to their room to change into their own swimwear.
Ty Lee gasped in delight, causing her naked breast to jiggle. "We might meet some hot guys down by the beach! Who knows what can happen!"
"Great" Mai said as she finished putting on her swimwear, a more conservative one compared to Ty Lee's. "Guys ogling over us for all the wrong reasons."
"Oh come on Mai," Ty Lee said, "I know you can use the distraction. It might even feel good" she said with sultry.
"I am not sleeping with a guy" Mai said with a scowl.
"Then sleep with a girl" Ty Lee said with more sultry as she finished putting on her bra. "It can be just as fun."
"How would you know about that?" Azula asked.
"Oh the real fun in the circus is behind the scenes" Ty Lee answered before giggling.
Azula and Mai stared at Ty Lee, but they were not surprised about Ty Lee's admission. She was always more of a free spirit than them.
The squad were using a quarry to hid and rest for the night. Since it was a beautiful day, Aang took advantage to swim in the warm water.
"Aang," Toph said at the edge of the quarry's water, "you should really cover yourself up!"
"What?" Aang said with Momo on his chest. "I'm wearing trunks. Unless you want me to take them off…"
"Very funny" Toph said. "I was talking about your tattoos."
"We're at the bottom of a quarry Toph" Katara said as she relaxed against Zuko. "No one is going to see us."
As Aang floated atop the water, he heard a rushing of water. He turned to look at it and saw that it was the top of a waterfall. He waterbent to it and he and Momo rode the current through the tunnel, landing in a lake below the quarry.
"Haha!" he said in glee. "Let's go again Momo!" The lemur chittered in protest but rode on Aang's shoulder and he airbent his way back up to the quarry.
Little did he knew that a patrol of six Fire Nation soldiers witnessed him using airbending and managed to catch a glimpse of his tattoos.
"The Avatar is alive!" one of the soldiers said.
"I'm going to send a message to the Fire Lord" the patrol leader said. "Looks like the Princess didn't kill the Avatar."
The patrol leader quickly wrote down a message stating the time and location of the sighting. He quickly had each soldier in his squad sign the report before sending it away on a messenger hawk.
"Oh man," one of the soldiers said, "we're going to get an easy assignment after this."
Not long after the messenger hawk left, a large vulture swoop down and killed the hawk. When it crashed into the ground, it took the message out of the tube and flew back towards its master.
The assassin hired to kill the Avatar and his friends read the message with scrutiny before burning it, not wanting others to reach his prey.
He set off to the quarry with a mind full of murderous thoughts and a heart devoid of mercy.
When the young ladies reached the beach and set up their spot to sunbath, it was Ty Lee that quickly got the attention of several guys.
And each one of them were eager to get into her panties.
"Oh guys," Ty Lee said with a bright smile, "you all are so kind."
Mai constantly rolled her eyes at that, knowing that those guys were not genuinely interested. They reminded her of the Fire Nation soldiers in Omashu. Yet she felt a ping of jealousy at the attention her friend was receiving.
Azula was watching a volleyball game, and feeling competitive, she wanted to join in and feel the rush of rapid movement and victory.
"Hey beach bum," she said to Mai, "we're in for the next game." Azula turned towards Ty Lee, where she was being covered by a large palm tree branch as a means for shade. "Ty Lee! Come over here now!" Azula shouted. Ty Lee quickly got up and hand walked over to her friends.
"See that girl with the silly pigtails?" Azula said. "She hesitates before striking the ball with her left leg. I suspect an injury makes her protective of her ankle. Keep serving the ball towards her and we will win easily. And since there's only three of us against six of them, they'll be overconfident and make mistakes." Mai and Ty Lee smiled slightly, knowing to trust in Azula's brilliance for strategy.
Being the challengers, Azula's team was first to serve the ball. As planned, Azula directed the ball towards the pigtailed girl, who hesitated before striking the ball, causing it to fall short of the net. The opposing team struggled to get it over the net, but Ty Lee was quick to send it back before balancing on top of the net.
"Hey!" one boy shouted. "You're on our side of the court!"
"Actually cutie," Ty Lee said before backflipping back to her side, "I was on neither side of the court." The boy growled at her taunting, which would cause him to make mistakes out of anger.
Sure enough, the rest of the boy's team kept making mistake after mistake out of frustration that a team of three were dominating the game.
It ended when Azula flew high into the air and kicked the ball toward the opposing team, causing an explosion of sand. She smiled brightly at her team's victory.
"You played a good game but now you must carry the shame of defeat" she taunted. She looked towards Mai and Ty Lee, who were also pleased with their easy victory. "Well that was fun" Azula said.
"Hey ladies" a young man said to get their attention. The ladies turned to see two handsome men smiling at them. "I'm having a party at my place. We're hoping you'd like to come."
"Sure!" Ty Lee said with glee. "I love parties."
"We'd be honored" Azula said. A thought came to mind. "Do you know who we are by the way?"
"Do you know who we are?" the man said arrogantly. "I'm Chan, and this is my best friend Ruon-Jian" he finished with a cool smile.
"Yeah," Ruon-Jian said, "we're the most popular boys on the island."
"Really?" Azula said. An idea formed in her mind, one of curiosity. "I'm sure after spending time with you, we'll be the most popular girls on this island."
"You bet" Chan said. "The party starts at dusk and will last till dawn. Looking forward to seeing you gals there." He and Ruon Jian smiled one last time before walking away, inviting more people to their party.
"Why didn't you tell them who you are Azula?" Ty Lee asked as they walked back to the Lo's and Li's beach house. "They would have begged you to come!"
"I want to see how I can act in an environment where no one is fawning over me because I'm the Fire Princess" Azula answered.
"Why would you do that?" Mai asked. "I thought you loved being a Princess."
"I do," Azula said with a smile. "But I want to see how it's like not being the Princess."
Mai smiled at her friend's reasoning, believing it was going to be far more interesting than she imagined.
The squad slept peacefully at the bottom of the quarry. Toph erected earth tents for her and Aang to enjoy something pleasurable. It was both their first time, so it was rather awkward for them but also fun at the same time. They both enjoyed their time and collapsed into each other's arms.
In the middle of the night, Aang felt the need to answer nature's call. He carefully moved out of Toph's arms, not wanting to disturb her, and made his way outside. As he made his way to the squad's designated bathroom, he spotted a glint at the top of the quarry's edge. Aang looked more closely and saw it was a rather large man there, staring down at him.
A rather deathly stare, Aang thought to himself.
Then the man inhaled sharply. Aang's eyes widen, knowing it was a type of bending attack.
But he only felt a sudden and small rush of air heading towards him, and it did not feel like an airbending move.
Aang bent a shield of air in front of himself, where an explosion collided with it, sending Aang backwards.
The rest of the squad woke up quickly and ran towards Aang.
"Stay back!" he shouted. "He somehow creates explosions!"
"How?!" Sokka said as he prepared his weapons.
"I'm not sure!" Aang shouted back as he bent earth to shield the squad. Toph quickly came to his aid, despite being undress from the waist up.
"We have to get out of here!" Zuko shouted. "He's more dangerous than you realize!" An explosion resounded throughout the quarry.
"What do you mean?!" Katara asked. Another explosion hit the earth shield, causing it to break. Aang and Top were quick to mend it. Katara used the quarry water to attack the man, but it was knocked back by another explosion.
"What the hell do we do?!" Sokka shouted right before another explosion. It began to remind of the Siege of the North, the constant bombardment of the Fire Navy then. "How do we beat a guy who can blow shit up with his mind?!"
"We can't" Aang said. "You guys get on Appa and go. I'll distract him."
"We'll distract him" Toph corrected, implying her and him. Aang shook his head.
"I'm not risking any of you because of me" Aang said as he bent the earth to maintain the shield. "As soon as I'm clear, bring Appa down and get me." He smiled and patted Toph reassuringly. "It'll be okay."
Toph nodded and gave him a quick kiss. She then broke off with the others while Aang airbent his way out of the quarry. As expected, the man followed and attacked with regard to the terrain.
"Whoever this guy is," Aang panted, "he's persistent." He managed to finally break visually contact and Aang earthbent his way into a rock formation and calmed down, finding his center, and waited for the man to find him.
The man, who wore metal prosthetics for one arm and one leg, walked past where Aang was hiding. He stopped after noticing an abnormality in the rocks and thoroughly inspected it. When he noticed the Avatar's eyes, he breathed in deeply, only for an earth punch to strike him under the chin, causing the explosion to occur in the sky. Aang earthbent the man with every ounce of energy he had and took off running.
When the man finally regained his senses, he saw the Avatar's bison fly high into the sky, a sign that his prey managed to escape.
Aang breathed deeply in Appa's saddle, being hugged tightly by Toph as Zuko and Katara breath out in relief. Sokka was holding onto Appa's reins, directing the bison to fly as high as possible as Momo chittered in confusion by the rushed event.
"I'm okay" Aang said as he hugged Toph back.
"Who was that guy?" Katara asked.
"The most dangerous assassin in the Fire Nation" Zuko said.
"How was he creating those explosions?" Sokka asked from Appa's head.
"I don't know much about it, but it's called combustion bending" Zuko answered.
"Combustion bending?" Katara asked.
"He can create explosions with his mind. It's rarely could you find firebenders who can do that" Zuko said.
"Ah great" Sokka groaned. "He can firebend too."
"On par with some special forces units I hear" Zuko said. "Wouldn't surprise me if he was part of that."
Toph turned to where she heard Zuko speak. "Who do you think sent him? How does he know we're still in this war?"
"Who else do you think it is?" Zuko asked, knowing that everyone knew the answer.
The young ladies arrived precisely at dusk, just as Chan instructed. Azula knocked hard on the door and the young man answered it.
"Uhh…" he said with confusion, "the party hasn't started yet."
"You said we would be partying from dusk till dawn" Azula said. "It's dusk right now" she finished while pointing towards the setting sun.
"But…that's just an expression" Chan said.
"We are the perfect party guest" Azula said proudly. "We arrive on time as we're very punctual" she finished while one hand formed a straight edge and then impacted her other hand for emphasis.
Chan shrugged and allowed the young women to enter. Ty Lee immediately went to grab drinks for herself, Azula and Mai. The latter sat down on a bench while Azula stood nearby with her arms crossed, suddenly wondering if being punctual was not always the best. She and Mai accepted their drinks from Ty Lee.
"Maybe we should've waited for a time before showing up" Azula admitted before taking a sip of her drink. She recoiled slightly at the bitter cinnamon taste to it. "What is this Ty Lee?"
"Dragon Fire Whiskey!" Ty Lee exclaimed before sipping her drink. "One of my favs!"
Mai took a sip of hers as well. She tolerated the taste but showed disproval. "I rather have some red wine."
Azula sipped hers again and grimaced. "How can you drink this stuff and enjoy it?"
"You get use to it" Ty Lee assured. "I can mix your next one with Rum Lota. Gives it a much smoother taste!"
"And a stronger one as well" Mai pointed out before looking at Azula. "I wouldn't drink that" Mai warned.
Azula looked away and saw Chan getting more bottles of alcohol ready. He and Ruon-Jian smiled in excitement, sure of themselves that they would become the best party host on the island.
"I don't know" Azula said before downing the rest of her drink. "It might loosen me up."
"Yay!" Ty Lee said before taking Azula's glass and went to mix the whiskey and rum for the both of them. Mai only rolled her eyes in disapproval.
But an hour later, Azula stood alone by a pillar, trying to enjoy her drink. But as she watched Ty Lee garner the attention of several boys at once, it gnawed at Azula that she could not get any attention without her princess title. Even Mai was receiving attention from Ruon-Jian.
Ty Lee managed to break away from the group of guys for a moment and approached Azula.
"Wow!" Ty Lee said. "I knew guys always find me attractive, but it's hard to keep up with them all at once."
"Speak for yourself" Azula said bitterly.
Ty Lee took notice of her friend's low mood. "What's wrong Azula?"
Azula sighed in frustration and disappointment. "I just… don't understand why no guys here have approached me."
Ty Lee scrutinized Azula closely. "It's because you're bothered by something serious. As dense as guys can be, they can still pick up on it."
Azula rolled her eyes. "I'm sure they can" she sarcastically replied. She thought to herself for a moment.
"Well if the guys won't approach me," she said with a smirk, "I'll just approach them."
Ty Lee smiled in delight. "That's the Azula I know! Just remember to laugh and smile at everything they say, even if it's stupid."
"That sounds really dumb and shallow" Azula replied. "But I'll try that."
With that in mind, Azula walked over to Chan. "Hey Chan, do you mind if we talked outside?" Chan smiled at Azula and walked out with her, leaving the girl Chan was previously talking to fuming.
Azula and Chan walked out onto the patio and rested against the handrail.
"So," Chan began, "how do you like the island?"
"Oh it great" Azula said. It was partially a lie because of experiences in the past, but so far this trip was better than previous ones.
"Yeah, it's a great place to be if you like sand" Chan joked. Azula laughed as genuinely as she could but did not find it all that funny. "Yeah, like," Chan continued, "welcome to Sandy Land." Azula laughed more sincerely this time, finding that last part to be funny.
The two of them stared at each other for a moment, taking in each other's beauty and handsomeness.
"You're really pretty you know" Chan said.
"Oh I know," Azula said, "and you're pretty handsome yourself."
"Thanks" Chan said before he leaned forward to kiss Azula. She basked in the kiss for a moment, fully enjoying it.
But as Chan began exploring her body rather aggressively, she started to feel uncomfortable by his exploration.
"Chan…" she whispered as he was kissing her neck and caressing her flanks. He hummed in response.
"I-I don't think I'm ready for this…" Azula shily said.
Chan pulled back a bit and looked at her. "Are you a virgin?"
Azula bit her lower lip. "Yeah, I am" she said embarrassed.
Chan smiled with a hint a wickedness. "I've always wanted to take a girl's virginity" he said before leaning back in to continue.
But Azula scowled at his attitude. She realized that she asked Chan outside was because she wanted to feel special to him, not become a trophy to him.
"Stop" she firmly said.
"You don't want me to stop" he said arrogantly.
"I said STOP" Azula yelled before pushing him away.
"Oh c'mon!" he whined as he got up. "Every girl I've been with wasn't like this."
Azula glared at Chan, who recoiled slightly at her deathly glare. "Well," Azula said before extending her index and middle finger in front of her and bending her signature blue flames, "I'm not like most girls you meet." She sent a small plum of fire towards Chan's bare feet, causing him to jump back in fear.
Azula marched her way back inside, where Ty Lee was busy with kissing a guy she just met. Azula was appalled at her friend's carefree attitude.
"Ty Lee!" Azula shouted, startling everyone at the party. "We're leaving. Now."
Ty Lee sensed that something must have really set Azula off if she was acting this way. Even Mai, who was deep in conversation with Ruon-Jian was taken a bit back by Azula's attitude.
Ruon-Jian sighed in frustration and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Not again Chan…"
"What?" Mai said with narrow eyes.
"Chan believes he can have any girl he wants, and he can be quite persuasive" Ruon-Jian explained. "And I guess your friend is the exception."
"Yeah," Mai said flatly but full of pride for Azula for rejecting the first boy that was interested in her, ever for the wrong reasons. "She is really exceptional." She got up from her seat and followed her friends.
"Wait!" Ruon-Jian said. "Will I see you again?"
Mai turned and looked at him. "As long as you're friends with the likes of Chan, not a chance." She marched out of the party, leaving a fuming Ruon-Jian angry at his friend for being so immature.
Still angry, Azula walked over to her family's old summer home, where they have not been to in years after her mother disappeared.
As she explored the house, faded memories came back to her. The kitchen reminded her of the basic but decent meals Ursa cooked for the family, where Ozai dotted on Azula and was far kinder to Zuko. The living room was were Azula's parents recounted stories of myth and legend to their child, some of which Azula remembered fondly, while others she did not particularly care about.
But her anger was replaced with an unbearable sense of loneliness, as her father was more interested in ruling the Fire Nation, her mother was gone and Zuko was an enemy of the state.
And even though Azula had Mai and Ty Lee by her side, it was not quite the same to her.
When Azula reached her room, she found an oval clay disk with a tiny handprint in the middle.
She recalled that Ursa formed a clay disk and had Zuko imprint his hand on it before it dried. Azula later asked her father to do the same for her, but he said no, saying it was childish and unimportant.
So instead, Ursa made another and had Azula imprint her hand on it.
Tears began to form at the corners of Azula's eyes as she realized something she never would feel…
She misses what her family used to be, including her mother.
"Where are you mom?" she croaked. "I can really use your help…"
"Wow" a deadpan voice said. "Never thought you'd say that."
Azula turned around as saw Mai and Ty Lee standing at the doorway, the latter looking like she was about to cry, the former looking rather out of character with an empathic look.
"Are you okay Azula?" Ty Lee asked.
More tears formed in Azula's eyes as she shook her head. She placed the clay disk down and walked over to her friends, shocking them both when she initiated a group hug. Ty Lee immediately returned the hug while Mai patted Azula on the back.
"Wow," Mai said, "something must be really bothering you if you're hugging us first."
Azula pulled away and nodded.
"Yeah, I-I miss my family" she said. "We were so much happier back then but now…"
"Now you feel alone" Mai said.
"But you're not alone Azula" Ty Lee said supportively. "We are your best friends."
"And I haven't been the greatest at that" Azula replied. "I've hurt you, placed you in danger and never considered what you two want or need." She paused for a moment before adding, "But that changes tonight."
"What you're going to become all lovey dovey on us?" Mai teased.
"Of course not" Azula said proudly. "I just won't be as mean."
"Good, because that would scare me more" Mai said.
"But I wouldn't mind if you became all lovey dovey with me!" Ty Lee said with excitement.
"Silence Ty Lee" Azula commanded with a smile. Ty Lee laughed, no longer fearful of Azula's threat, sensing that it was a false one.
Azula left the room with her friends, but as they exit the house, Azula looked in the direction of Chan's house.
"I think I found a way to make this night very rememberable for us" she said with malice.
"What's that?" Ty Lee asked.
She had her answer in a short amount of time, as the three young women indulged in violence as they tore up and burned down Chan's house, leaving him a crying mess.
A/N: Very sorry for the late update. Since this whole COVID thing started, I've been working overtime to earn extra money because my employer was giving double time for working more than 40 hours in a week; on average I was working 50 something hours each week. But with the extra money I was finally able to get my own apartment! I'm still in the process of buying things I need and organizing it, but hopefully switching back to working only 40 hours will allow me to focus on myself and my hobbies. In fact I'm going to make a goal to write 10 minutes a day at a minimum; if I'm on a roll I'll write more, but if not at least I did some writing.
I'll be focusing on my other story Fleeing Ozai too, my plan to bounce back and forth between the two after I write and publish a chapter for each story. Hope all of you are staying safe and sane in these crazy times! And thank you for your time to read my work!