Chapter 26: Disappearance

ZPOV

A nightmare woke me. I was a monkey, frozen in fear, watching as a dragon and an eel battled. From the view of a tree all I could do was sit by and watch as the two gigantic creatures danced with death.

I arose alone, sweat covering my body. A combination of my rather explicit dream and the heat that clogged the rooms on the boat. The pitter patter of rain was heard above and we were rocking back and forth pretty hard. I wasn't necessarily surprised that Katara was missing. She often went out during storms and moved with the rain. After ten minutes of being alone in bed, I began to be suspicious. When I sat up and lit the nearby light, the paper folded underneath my journal was prominent.

Zuko,

I'm sorry. I'll be back soon.

K

Frustrated, I ripped the paper. Again, she was going off, risking herself without letting me help. Without letting me by her side. I jumped up from bed, ran a hand through my hair and paced around the room. After going over everything, I realized she had only taken a few clothes in a small sack. Most likely saved most of the room for food. A knock made my hair stand on end. I rushed to the door and swung it open to see Aang. Somewhat of a relief to see him there, meaning that Katara didn't take her previous lover. Not to say having the avatar on her side wouldn't have been helpful, but a small part of my heart won't ever not be jealous of him.

"Toph is not in her room. Is Katara here?"

"No, she left."

"Of course she did. Did she say anything." I thought back to the letter. It was nothing for him to know.

"No, nothing."

Aang nodded, let out a frustrated sigh. "Why does she always do this?"

"It seems like the only thing she knows how to do."

"Well, what do you think we should do?"

I left the door open to let Aang step inside as I continued to pace once again. "Well, we don't know where they went, or why they left. We are planning to keep combing the coast and helping where we can. We have no idea where Azula is, and until we get some more information, we can't make any big moves. People are going to be disappointed that Katara isn't here anymore, but we can just say she's on a private mission or something. Uh…"

"Why does she always do this?!"

"Look, why she is the way she is isn't going to get us anywhere right now. Our jobs here are to keep up morale and do everything we can to make sure the Fire Nation doesn't completely seize the Earth Nation."

"You're right. I'll see you in the morning."

Aang began to exit but hovered at the door. "Thank you… this has been helpful."

"You're welcome, Avatar."

"Just call me Aang."

"I'll try."

The door shut and I was there to sit with my thoughts. Again, Katara has left me behind, and again I'm supposed to just make sure everything works out while she's gone.

I wasn't able to sleep for the rest of the night. Just kept constantly turning back and forth in the bed. I had Katara on my mind, and my beautiful children on my mind. I'm unsure of when Katara will return and I have no idea when I'd see my children next. Yet, I am to lead these people into a battle that seems impossible to win.

The sun rose to clear skies and we docked at a harbor.

I rose with Aang and Haru to the deck. It wasn't long for people to realize Katara was not going to rise to the deck, and whispers ghosted along each ship. I gathered everyone and stood below the sun. The rays of the sun's energy hit the back of my neck and relaxed my muscles.

"Katara will not be with us, she and Toph have left and will be back soon. For now, we keep moving forward and await their return."

Aan stepped forward. "Now we must stay strong. Even though Katara and Toph are not here, this is the moment where we show our strength. Our ability as a unit, as a family. We will show the world our ability and push the Fire Nation back!"

The power of the Avatar's voice was like no other. I had felt captivated. I'm sure we all did. Wind brushed my hair and I couldn't help but think that a little airbending played some part in it.

Earth Nation soldiers waited for us on the shore. Aang and I walked onto the dock and shook hands with the general in charge.

"Hello, my name is Mulan. It is an honor to be in the presence of the Avatar." The general and her second in command bowed to Aang. He waved them off.

"Please, there is no need for such formalities. This is Zuko." They both eyed my scar.

"It is great to know that there are others who are on the right side. Firebending can be beautiful when wielded in the right hands."

"I'm glad to hear you say that, General Mulan."

"I was informed Katara was supposed to be here as well."

I chimed in. "Katara had some other business to take care of, and will be joining us again later on."

Mulan curiously eyed me again before nodding. "Well, let's get your men acquainted with my troops and we can start our supper."

"Oh, thank goodness. We are starting to get sick of the fish." Mulan laughed at Aang's joke. I turned to Haru who was waiting farther back and nodded. He then turned back and waved to the many people waiting on the decks of our ships.

"By the way, some people were able to arrive a little bit earlier than you."

"Oh?" Aang inquired.

"Yes, I'm sure you will recognize them when we arrive." I couldn't help stiffen. There were times when Fire Nation soldiers infiltrated troops as allies, only to wait for the leaders to arrive to take action. Aang and I made meaningful eye contact and I made a mental note to let the others know to keep alert.

The walk was long. It took about 4 hours to march into the forest to where the others were camped out. Mulan and a few of her soldiers were riding eel hounds with supplies attached to their harnesses. Aang rode behind Mulan and I was behind the second in command, Yuki. Yuki had not said much during the introductions. I was used to being shunned, and it seemed as though she might have a specific disliking towards me. However, due to the nature of what we were doing, keeping her mouth shut was safer and wiser.

"Do you have any children, Mulan?"

Her eyes widened at my question. Our hounds were walking right next to each other so it was easy to discuss. "Uh, yes I do. I have a daughter. She is about ten years old now."

"Wow, that must be wonderful. What does your husband do?"

"He works for the royal guard of the emperor."

"I see. Did you meet during duty?"

"Yes. During the first war."

"My two are going to be one soon."

"Oh. I didn't realize Katara had any children."

"Twins. Ursa and Ki. She knew she was pregnant when she faked her death at the Northern Water Nation. Katara can be… quite a handful at best."

Mulan chuckled. "Yes. I have met Katara only once, and I can tell you that she is a force to be reckoned with."

"Oh? You know, I haven't met many who talk about Katara when she was young. I sometimes I feel like I don't know much at all. How did you meet?"

Mulan looked at me with question. She wasn't sure why I was asking these questions, maybe to get more intel? Was I really who I said I was? Aang and I did not ever talk much during the journey, except when needed. I hadn't had any small talk with anyone but Toph and Haru and a few of the others that were on the ship. I genuinely just wanted to interact with someone. Since Yuki didn't seem like she wanted to get to know me at all, Mulan was my best choice. She seemed strong, but very outgoing in her attitude.

"Well, when I first enlisted, I had pretended to be a man. Things just weren't the same back then, you know?" I nodded. "Katara saw right through it. She was acting as the Painted Lady. Every meeting we had with people important she would have all of her makeup on. It was her battle armor in a way. I found it silly, cause paint doesn't protect you, you know?

Well she was camping out with us, kind of a tag along. She wasn't considered a soldier, but her abilities and reputation kept her in the good graces of a lot of common soldiers. She was fighting systemic issues with the Nation, and even though she was supposed to be Wanted, many were willing to keep her hidden. She was extremely favored by my husband. He wasn't my husband yet though. I was his second in command at the time. She pulled me aside and asked me who I was and why I was disguising myself as a man. I told her about my situation and she never spoke of it to anyone.

I told her what I thought about her makeup. I hadn't seen such a lighthearted soul switch to anger so quickly. She told me that her garb and her marks were representing a wonderful giving goddess. She said she wore those paints every single time she represented the Painted Lady because it represented the blood that has been shed and the tears that were cried by the people hurt in this land. If she was going to respect the goddess she was representing, she needed to do everything with one hundred percent belief in the protection of the heart and soul of the people she was protecting."

Mulan laughed to herself. "She looked like a little angry cat. She was so skinny and short. I'm not that tall but I had built myself to be more manly. I had never interacted with someone so… spiritual before. 'What a crazy girl,' I thought."

I smiled as the nostalgia that wafted over her. "I'm glad you told me. She doesn't like to talk about it much."

"I have never met her." Yuki proclaimed suddenly. "But, I had heard of her when I was younger. She was a legend turned reality. A small lake village had a story of a painted lady who cleaned and protected their lake. When a real painted lady started showing up, everyone freaked out about it. Like the God's finally sent someone to protect the people. But, I heard she was ruthless. Diabolical even when it came to her enemies. The God granted her gifts with the price of losing her humanity, and working in the ruthless ways of unapologetic Gods. I'm sure there were parts of her life that she may not be incredibly proud of."

I was surprised to hear anything from Yuki, but was glad she finally spoke. Even if it was to tell me my wife probably murdered people. But, war is war.

"I see. Its insane to think that she is literally a legend in certain parts of the world. I have one heck of a wife."

"Well she has one heck of a husband." Yuki mumbled.

"Yes, she sure has interesting taste to say the least." Mulan giggled.

After breaking the ice, it was easier to chat. Especially for how long the walk was, it was nice that the entire ride didn't have to be in silence.

We arrived at the camp. "Where's Katara?" I looked down to see Sokka. "Hello? Fire guy, where the fuck is my little sister?"

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