CH 37 | Faultline
The quake began innocuously. As the earliest risers, Aang and Katara were no strangers to Sokka's groggy bewilderment or Toph's pre-sunrise sass. Zuko tended to wake whenever Katara began breakfast and watched from his log as though he were a suspicious gargoyle waiting for her to poison something.
The long-term campers were now closer to Spring, marked by warmer days and new growth all around their campsite. Unfortunately, it was also marked by exceptionally crisp, wet mornings and today was one of them. Katara shivered in her jacket and clucked her tongue impatiently over the fire that didn't seem to want to catch.
Knowing she could expect Zuko on watch behind her she called out, "this fire doesn't want to work with me today. Can you give it some juice?" before Zuko could assist, Aang was jogging into camp in his yoga shorts, seemingly unbothered by the frost. "I've got it!" he interjected before Zuko could so much as raise a hand.
The Avatar took a deep breath and provided the fire with an extra mouthful of heat. The campsite now basked in the reflection of blue flames. Katara noticed the air thicken as Aang and Zuko's eyes met, some unspoken irritation between them. "…thanks sweetie." The waterbender responded, deciding to reward him with a kiss on the cheek rather than address the tension.
"Do you guys constantly have to be locked at the lips? Seriously…" Sokka complained when the couple's affection came into his view the moment, he'd opened his tent.
"Sorry…" Aang apologized immediately with a soft blush. "Well good morning to you too, sunshine" Katara drawled sardonically. Plopping down next to Zuko, Sokka rubbed his face morosely. Sleep had eluded him completely, and now his eyes felt dry and sandy.
"It's going to be busy the next two days. Mostly, I need everyone's dirty clothes so I can get them cleaned and dried before we leave on Tuesday…" Katara began, addressing no one in particular, "—and after we rotate battery packs today, the others get packed back up in the duffle. Then someone needs to bathe Momo because he smells like rotten fruit." For the last missive, Katara delivered a pointed look at Zuko, who had the Lemur sleeping inside his shirt.
"I'll go wake Toph" Aang announced, gently squeezing his girlfriend's shoulder as he passed. "For spirits sake!" Sokka complained again. "Enough with the oogies! We get it! You're happy, you're in love, whatever! Do you have to rub it in everyone's face!?"
"What's your problem?!" Katara shot back at her brother. Aang stopped dead in his tracks, looking surprised.
"You're my problem. Both of you! You don't think about things—you just go on instinct. Have either of you even thought about what comes after this? Or is this some sorority trip to you?!"
"HEY. Do NOT yell at her." Aang interjected fiercely. Both he and Katara were standing now, and the waterbender's face and neck flushed quickly with her rising temper. Sokka closed the distance between he and Aang in just a handful of angry stomps.
"A couple months of banging my sister and suddenly you're her shield?" he roared.
Aang responded with uncharacteristic anger, shoving Sokka hard in the chest. "That's right" he shot back, "you're being a jerk. I don't know what wrong side of the bed you rolled out of, but you clearly hit your fucking head." Even Zuko jumped at Aang's slur.
"Oh, don't mind snoozles you guys" came Toph's dry voice as she emerged from her tent. "He's jealous because he can't wrap his brain around a single, monogamous committed relationship built on friendship and mutual trust."
"This is NOT the time, Toph!" Sokka exclaimed bitingly. His fists balled at his sides and his heart pounded with anger. He felt like the pillar holding up this group, and after months of added stress—leaving Yu Dao, babysitting a future Firelord,
Yue.
Suki.
…Toph.
She wasn't wrong…he didn't know what to do next, and the pillar was cracking.
"Whenever we fought when we were kids, my mom would force us to use "I" statements…" Zuko suggested. "Because your feelings are your own and not the other person's burden…or something" he finished lamely.
"For example: Aang, I feel irritated that you brought an anthurium with you and left it outside in the winter without bagging it. It probably wont bloom in summer, and it seems like a waste of such a beautiful specimen." Zuko offered, meaning to start a genuine dialogue. The response he ended up with were a chorus of facepalms and a shiny-eyed look of affection from the Avatar that made him uncomfortable.
"…that's where you share how you feel about my "I" statement and we find a compromise…"
Zuko explained, trying to avoid Aang's gleeful gaze.
"Stop looking at me like that. Why is he looking at me like that?"
"Because we're friends now." Aang said affectionately.
"You had to mention Gladys didn't you? This is on you, Zuko." Toph laughed quietly.
"We're not friends." Zuko said with a pointed glare towards the Avatar.
"Yes we are." Aang stated simply, as though it weren't up for debate.
"No we're n—" "I'VE got an "I statement" Katara interrupted.
"Sokka, I FEEL IRRITATED that seem to think you're the only person in this group using your brain when you haven't been using your brain…"
"I SECOND THAT OPINION." Toph interjected, only to receive a sharp "SHUT UP, TOPH." From Katara, whose fists now mirrored her brother's, shaking with rage at her sides.
"I FEEL like you don't realize that you've barely lifted a finger around here while the rest of us sacrifice our sleep and comfort to make sure Aang—"
"—to make sure Aang what!? Stays relaxed every night?" Sokka interrupted acidly.
"Do NOT imply that's what Katara and I are!" Aang roared. "How could you even say that!? Is that the type of person you really think I am!?" he was legitimately hurt at Sokka's implication.
"I didn't use to, but maybe you don't realize where you're headed because—again—YOU TWO AREN'T THINKING. Where does this road lead Katara?!" Sokka threw his hands out from his sides, as though the conclusion were obvious. His sister bit back tears of rage and hurt.
"Best case scenario here, we get through this secession without dying, and you're still dating the Avatar—do you really think Aang is sticking around after this is all over? Were you planning on, what, just being a normal couple raising baby animals together, living that happily ever after?"
Aang's stomach panged like it'd dropped from a cliff as Sokka said his worst thoughts out loud.
"You'll never come first in his life, Katara and if either of you think otherwise, you're both as stupid as you look!"
"I think we should return to "I" statements…" Zuko tried to interject soothingly. The four ignored him.
"Yes, yes. Let's all take relationship advice from the man with a girlfriend and a fiancée because he's super great at thinking things through!" shouted the earthbender.
"Fiancee!?" Katara roared incredulously. "Oh yeah…you haven't told anyone how you sold yourself for spirit water." Toph tattled without remorse. Her chest still ached with hurt. He loved her—the feeling of it was obvious. But his heart also told her that he wasn't going to act on it, and it cut her deeper than any person ever had. "Valley of Lost Souls take you." Sokka growled at the earthbender.
"When did you get spirit water!?" she demanded of her brother.
"You know when, Katara! Don't play stupid!"
"YOU COULDN'T BOTHER TO TELL ME!? HEY KATARA, HOLD OFF I'M ON MY WAY TO SAVE MOM!"
"—BECAUSE IT DIDN'T MATTER! I DIDN'T MAKE IT THERE IN TIME!"
"YOU COULD HAVE! SHE COULD HAVE WAITED, SHE COULD HAVE—"
Katara was weeping with rage and sinking into a stance. Aang moved to intervene, standing between the siblings. The wind was picking up as the earliest pink glow of dawn cut into the sky. "This is not the time OR the place, guys! We should be focusing on how we're going to defeat Ozai, and how we're going to help Zuko be ready for his duties as Firelord.
Zuko's jaw dropped, and his tongue waggled in surprised terror. "My duties as what!?"
"Yeah, that's right." Sokka agreed sarcastically. "Stop everything you're doing right now so you can go to work for you boyfriend, Katara."
"SCREW YOU, Sokka!" Aang shouted. "—You have no idea what she's been through, what she sacrificed to help your mom die comfortably. YOU'RE the one with the messed-up priorities right now!"
Sokka stumbled back, a constellation of emotions burdening his face from shock to grief, to anger, to blind rage. "What did you do." He whispered, voice trembling.
"I did what I had to do. She was dying. She was in pain. YOU LIED TO ME and told me you went to the north for a trade treaty."
Sokka's eyes were dark, full of fury, and even hatred. Toph shook with violent hurt. Zuko flushed from the unprovoked responsibility. Aang swallowed hard, understanding, and empathizing from both perspectives.
"LOOK OUT!" Toph screamed as their camp blew apart in the literal sense. A quiet, non-descript helicopter approached, with what appeared to be half-a-dozen benders descending on wire.
They'd been found.