Azula realized she was the first to wake up after snapping her eyes open. She looked to her left then her right, and saw that Aang and Sokka stood unconscious on either side of her; fortunately, they didn't appear to be injured. whoever had attacked them, they could have finished them off then and there. The thought left a bitter taste in her mouth, and she resolved to never get caught off guard like that again.
What was worse was that they were in unfamiliar territory to boot.
The surface her back rested on was coarse but smooth; possibly wood. Glancing around, she saw that her hands-although she could feel it from the sensation in her wrists- were tied up by the arms. Their wrists were suspended above their shoulders and tied around the wooden surface, which to her looked like some sort of totem. The path ahead of them was nothing but a dirt road, and there was no greenery except for where dwellings stood.
It almost looked like a ghost town. The only factor out of place was that every door attached to these houses were closed shut.
Obviously, they were being watched. It was much too quiet and being tied up in a seemingly abandoned village didn't make sense any way you cut it.
Without wasting time she kicked at both Zuko and Aang, hitting the former a bit harder than necessary with the heel of her foot. Aang jumped, as much as he could under the circumstances, claiming in his mumbling that he was awake, and Zuko only grunted, more out of annoyance than actual pain.
"It seems we've been captured by this seemingly empty village," Azula sighed. She tested the tension of the rope binding her wrists. It was tied well, too, as they were wrapped far enough from her palms to keep her from being able to simply burn the rope apart without harming herself.
"What's with everyone we meet trying to beat us up?" Aang asked as he lazily examined the rope around his own wrists, and Azula frowned in mild disbelief. He actually sounded genuinely confused.
"You are the Avatar," she answered with a quirked brow, and said no more, as if that was all the explanation that was needed. While Aang seemed to be trying to wrap his head around being the Avatar and being disliked for it, Azula got to work.
With a deep breath, she tensed her abdominals and kicked upward with both legs, managing to shift her weight toward her feet which were now planted on the totem. Instead of being in a standing position, she was now facing downward as if she were climbing down the pole hands first.
"Wow," Aang commented, a bit taken aback by the display.
"Show off," Zuko mumbled. He definitely wouldn't admit to being envious of her athleticism.
With some effort, Azula managed to burn through her rope now that she had a better angle in which to see her hands. Bracing herself, she landed roughly on her hands before dismounting on her feet.
Zuko grunted, seemingly unimpressed, as the dirt crunched under Azula's booted feet.
"Great, now get us out of here so we can fly somewhere else." Azula was about to comply with a snappy response, but stopped short at what sounded like the sliding of metal. And it was uncomfortably close.
"Not another step," a feminine voice called out behind her. Something unmistakably metallic pressed against her back.
Azula sucked her teeth, raising her arms in surrender.
Zuko and Aang saw a woman step out from behind Azula. There were several others that also appeared as well, seeming to materialize out of previously thought to be empty alleys and treelines, and even some stepped out of a couple of the houses. They were all garbed in armored dresses colored in tones of the forest.
Even some people that might have been the villagers gathered around, albeit from a slightly farther distance. They all stood around in scattered crowds, warily observing them.
The armored women's faces almost caught Zuko off guard, mistaking face paint for fierce expressions. Red and black paint was imposed over white, making their eyes stand out more than what would be usual. The way their faces were painted gave the impression that the person was almost enraged.
"Who are you and what are you doing here?" An elderly man near Azula demanded, his voice projecting clearly. He appeared along with some of the other strangely dressed women. The man himself looked rather harmless in comparison, garbed in a simple blue tunic and pants. He had almost as much hair on the top of his head as he was tall. He was most likely the village's chief.
"Tell us what we want to know and we might now throw you to the Unagi," the woman that had been near Azula added.
"We're travelers on our way towards the East," Zuko spoke up impatiently. He was really getting tired of being tied to this wooden pole. "If you get your village's Guard Captain, we can explain ourselves. Zuko wasn't sure if this place had a formal military, but he was sure that they might have had guards stationed. Perhaps that was how they were ambushed?
The woman with the metal weapon, who stood near Azula, blinked.
"We are the guards," she retorted, and Zuko briefly wondered if he caught an offended tone in her voice.
"We were ambushed by villagers. Wonderful," Azula muttered under her breath.
"Azula!" Zuko whispered harshly, scolding her.
The woman had apparently heard Azula's comment. Some of the others did too, apparently, as they looked at her in disapproval.
"Looks like the Unagi will be eating well tonight," she said, a hidden challenge in her voice.
"Wait!" Zuko pleaded. The woman hovered her free hand over her waist in response.
A sword handle.
"My sister's just clueless sometimes."
His sister scoffed, but thankfully hadn't said anything else. "We're traveling the world with our Air Nomad friend to stop the Water Chief."
"Unlikely," Ths old man from earlier quickly contradicted as he stepped forward. "The Air Nomads have been gone for 100 years!" He waved a hand dismissively. Aang sighed softly at the reminder. Azula noticed the old man didn't address the comment about the Water Chief.
"This island has stayed away from conflict ever since it was created by Avatar Kyoshi...and by principle, the war too. We intend to keep it that way."
Aang perked up. "That's great! I know Avatar Kyoshi!"
Zuko and Azula looked at him, puzzled. Where was he going with this?
The Village Chief scoffed, insulted. "Avatar Kyoshi has been dead for nearly two hundred years. How can you possibly know her?"
Aang smiled mischievously. "I know her because I'm the Avatar."
The blank faces on their unintended audience would have been hilarious if not for their threat of being thrown to what Azula presumed was the sea serpent they'd seen earlier.
The silence dragged on for another two seconds and Azula mildly suggested he might want to demonstrate his claim.
"Oh! Right!" Aang said, mentally smacking his forehead. With a flourish of his hands, he somehow slipped through the rope binding his arms and leapt tens of feet into the air, the rope now trailing uselessly on his wrists. As he slowly descended back to the surface, he was met with amazed cries and muttered whisperings.
"You really are the Avatar," the old man breathed, sufficently convinced. With that declaration, the woman with the sword neared Zuko and cut his restraints, freeing him.
"You could have done that the whole time?" Azula whispered to Aang, annoyed. Aang shrugged, a goofy smile on his face.
"Slipped my mind."
As air-headed as he was, Azula thought, pun intended, he might have really forgotten. She shook her head.
"Thank you for hearing us out," Zuko said to the old man and the woman, apparently the leader of the warrior women.
"My name is Suki, and these are the Kyoshi Warriors."
"That's amazing! Avatar Kyoshi has a whole Island of warriors!" Aang's excitement was infectious and Zuko couldn't help cracking a smile at his happy-go-lucky demeanor.
"I'd be happy to give the Avatar and his friends a tour of the Island.
Azula seemed to scowl at the praise of the island, sucking her teeth. "They aren't that impressive," she mumbled under her breath before speaking again at a more normal volume. "They only defeated us because they caught us off guard." Aang scratched his head, not sure how to respond. Azula said all of this right in earshot of Suki, who only reacted with a furrowed brow.
"I mean, it's not really a big deal, right?" Aang offered diplomatically.
"Yeah, it isn't," Zuko agreed gruffly, looking pointedly at Azula. Sure, Zuko thought, nobody liked metaphorically caught with their pants down, but Azula was really taking it too far. Besides, no one cared about fighting fair in real combat.
"Whatever," Azula said, looking away imperiously, as she finally seemed to realize that Suki and even her own brother were glaring at her.
"Since you're such a master combatant, why don't you come by our dojo when you get the chance?" the Kyoshi Warrior suggested. It sounded like an innocent enough question, but there was a challenge behind her eyes that Azula caught easily enough.
"Fine," she answered, eyes narrowed. If looks could harm, both Azula and Suki would be covered in bruises.
As if a switch was flipped, Suki was all smiles when she addressed Zuko. "You're welcome to drop by as well of you're interested?"
Zuko stifled a laugh. "I wouldn't miss a chance to see Azula humbled for the world." His sister curled her lip at his flippant remark.
"Whose side are you even on?"
"Why does there have to be sides?"
"Fine! We'll see who has the last laugh after we duel!" Azula declared, pointing at Suki's chest.
Aang and Zuko were walking through the market area after Suki gave them a tour of the island. Azula had refused to tag along, claiming that she was going to run through some forms before "Making the Kyoshi Warrior suffer the ultimate shame and humiliation."
"Is your sister always that...intense?" Aang queried as they stopped by a fruit stand.
Zuko picked up a mango, turning it over in his hands. "Yeah," Zuko bluntly replied. "Sometimes, she just takes things too seriously."
"But it's just a sparring match," Aang said, lazily leaning on his staff as if it were some sort of cane. Villagers shuffled around them, some of them occassionally greeting him in varying levels of excitement.
"Ever heard of an Agni Kai?" Zuko said as an answer.
Aang thought about it. He remembered his old friend Kuzon used to tell him about them all the time. A wistful smile appeared on his face. "Fire Duels, right?" He looked to Zuko for his response, and was met with an approving nod.
"She sees pretty much everything as some sort of test or challenge. Thanks to our dad..." he seemed to mumble the last part and Aang wondered if he was supposed to have heard that. But Zuko shook his head as if clearing a memory. "So Suki challenging her to a spar is no different than an Agni Kai to her."
Aang hummed to himself. Maybe Aang was just the person to show her how much fun could be had around the world!
"You guys don't seem like you get out much, no offense."
Zuko looked at him blankly before shrugging. "Well, you're not wrong," he answered slowly. Zuko could tell Aang was worried about Azula and waved away his worry. "She's just not used to people who can match her snark. She'll be fine."
While Zuko and Aang gave Azula space to sulk or train, or whatever she was doing, they were unaware of Aang's presence being compromised. Villagers weren't as secretive when it came to rumors and news, so it was unsurprising that tradesmen and fishermen get to talking. It's unknown who said it first, but the rumor mill eventually got to Sokka's personal ship, which had been docked about a quarter of a day's travel from where Team Avatar was stationed. An attendant set his food down in front of him.
"The merchants say that the Avatar was seen on Kyoshi Island."
Sokka nearly spat out his drink. "He's on Kyoshi Island?"
"Gramps! Our trail hasn't gone cold after all!"
Pakku sat across from him at the modest table. It was a room set aside for eating and as a break room for the crew. The older Waterben, any enthusiasm he had about eating his food utterly ruined by the detestable nickname his grandson was keen on constantly using. He placed the chopsticks back into the bowl, pinching his nose.
"And here I thought I'd be able to just enjoy my dinner without having to set sail so soon." And it was a Shame, really. It had been a while since they docked at another port since getting the vessel repaired, and fish was in short supply, with so much of it going towards the war effort. So, he was understandably a bit grumpy that he couldn't eat his dish in peace.
"We can just eat while we head there," Sokka said dismissively, grabbing his dish. He began to step out, but turned on his heel, pointing at Pakku's still steaming bowl of food. "You gonna eat that?"
With a carefully blank expression, Pakku pushed his bowl toward Sokka.
