Book 2, Earth
CHAPTER 2, SPRING EQUINOX, PART I
Chapter Summary: Sokka totally rips into Katara about her new romance. Meanwhile, Aang learns more about Zuko than he really wants to know.
Author's Notes: I have included information on sources of inspiration for this chapter, along with answers to those of you who were kind enough to review my last chapter at the bottom of this one. Thank you reviewers, you rock my world and make my day.
BIG NEWS: I found out that the folks at Nickelodeon revealed some exciting news about upcoming A: TLA episodes at the Comic Conference held in San Diego a few weeks ago in July. They introduced new characters and plot developments, and announced that they will begin airing new episodes this fall. On the one hand, I'm totally thrilled. On the other hand … YIKES! It changes EVERYTHING & I've had to do a bit of editing. I've summarized all this stuff at the end of this chapter following my replies to reviewers.
Standard Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Avatar: The Last Airbender! Though … sigh … Writing real episodes for the actual show would be a dream come true.
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Sokka and his friend Nilak kneel beside Aang's limp, supine body and gaze anxiously into the boy's pale, barely conscious face. A bright fire cheerfully blazes in the small, pottery fireplace and casts a warm glow upon the boys' faces, as their shadows softly flicker against the soft contoured walls of the circular tent.
The normally blunt, affable contours of Nilak's face look pinched with anxiety for Aang. But Sokka gruffly reassures his friend, "He'll be okay. He always gets like this after he has …" he briefly pauses to grope through his mind for a way to explain the terrifying fits that occur when Aang's emotions get out of control and his Avatar Spirit overtakes him, "one of his … um … special Avatar moments."
Finally, Aang's eyes flutter open, and he sucks down several gulps of water from the spout of the pouch that Nilak holds to his lips. When he sits up, Sokka hands the Avatar a bowl of fried rice with vegetable dumplings, along with a pair of chopsticks, and watches the boy avidly gobble it down.
After a few moments of silence, Sokka grunts with feigned nonchalance, "You okay, Aang?"
The younger boy glares at him with huge gray eyes shimmering with tears of misery, and snaps, "No, I'm NOT okay! How … could KATARA …" he abruptly pauses to snort and squeeze back the tears stinging against his eyelids, "… fall for … PRINCE SCARFACE!"
Sokka shrugs and replies, "I don't get it either, Aang." He winces, and adds, "I can't even imagine my sister with a firebender, let alone the heir to the Fire Lord's throne!"
Nilak bursts out optimistically, "Maybe Katara sees something in Zuko that we don't!" But he abruptly casts down his eyes as Sokka's and Aang's faces both pivot towards his and glare venomously.
Sokka breaks the awkward silence and tries to cheer up his friend by exclaiming, "Come on, Aang! It's no big deal. I mean, it's not like they're getting MARRIED!"
He then mischievously adds, "And, besides, you're supposed to be a humble monk!"
Aang blushes a little bit.
Then Nilak sniggers and declares with a ribald wink, "Is monasticism even an option for the LAST airbender? The world's short one element, Avatar! You'd better get BUSY!"
Sokka smothers his urge to laugh with Nilak but then he notices the younger boy's cheeks turning from pink to bright crimson, and suddenly feels protective.
"Come ON Nilak!" he gasps disapprovingly, "He's only 12 years old!"
Nilak responds, "Well, if the kid's old enough to kick Zuko's butt, then he's old enough to …"
But Sokka abruptly howls, "NILAK!" and cuts off the remainder of his friend's sentence.
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Katara wearily climbs into bed and reaches over towards the whale oil lantern on the adjacent table to turn off the flame. But her hand hesitates as she suddenly muses to herself, "I wonder if my hair has started growing back?"
She scowls impatiently and sharply scolds herself, "No way. It'll take months to look even halfway decent. Stop dwelling on your stupid hair and get a life!"
But the water girl soon finds herself standing hopefully before the small mirror in her nightgown and removing her hat. To her amazement, a profusion of thick, chin-length hair springs forth like a wild animal released from the confines of a too-small cage.
"But … but," Katara exclaims in astonishment, "This is not at ALL like my hair!"
Dense, silky and black as obsidian, a chaotic mane of loose curls fly outwards as though charged with static electricity. The girl shakes her head in disbelief, as her new ringlets flash like blue lightning as they catch the glow from her lantern.
"My gosh, I look like a total MESS!" she mutters furiously.
She attacks the unruly locks with a hairbrush and attempts to pull them back into a more presentable ponytail. But her strange new tresses refuse to obey.
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Then she hears the front flap of her tent rattling softly back and forth. Katara throws on her parka over her nightgown, steps into her fur-lined boots, snatches her hat, and walks out into the cold night air.
Prince Zuko stands there gaping with astonishment. "I've never seen anyone's hair grow so fast," he comments.
Katara scowls with annoyance and jams her hat impatiently onto her head. Then she sharply replies, "It's NOT really my hair. I don't know WHERE it came from."
Zuko shoots her a puzzled glance, but the girl does not seem inclined to discuss the subject any further. He settles for taking her hand in his. They stroll towards the outer wall of the fortress and gaze towards the sea. The moon is almost full and looms overhead casting its silvery reflection upon the dark blue waters.
Katara looks at Zuko full-gaze into his blazing golden eyes with her soft blue ones, and whispers, "This probably isn't a good idea, you know … I mean, look at all the trouble we've caused."
"Very well, then. If that's what you really want …" murmurs Zuko. But his words trail off.
Suddenly, his eyes blaze like the smoldering embers of a campfire stirring in a gust of wind. He clutches the small of Katara's back with both hands, and pulls her against the length of his body. He continues gripping the girl's waist with one hand and raises the other one to tip her chin upwards towards his face.
I should turn away, the water girl thinks to herself as the fire prince places his lips upon hers.
But she can'tdo it. Her bones and muscles have gone all rubbery, and the blood in her veins surges slowly and voluptuously like shimmering, molten liquid.
Her body melts into his, and her arms encircle his waist.
Zuko's fingers softly graze along Katara's cheek, jaw line, earlobe, and the nape of her neck. Their kiss intensifies as his hand tightens around the back of her head and slides beneath her hat. He draws her closer, while twining his fingers in her luxuriant hair.
Then, he abruptly releases the girl. He smirks triumphantly and finishes his sentence:
"… but it obviously isn't."
Katara glares at Zuko to conceal her confusion. Then she struggles to feign a frosty tone of cool nonchalance, and replies, "Good night, Zuko!"
She catches the gleam in the fire prince's eyes, and immediately knows her artifice has failed. The water girl frowns as she whirls around and strides briskly back towards her tent.
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"Great, now she thinks I'm a total jerk," Zuko mutters angrily to himself, "I just didn't want …" An involuntary sigh of misery overtakes his words, as he regretfully watches the girl's slender, retreating form.
The fire prince returns to his tent, sits cross-legged on his rug, and leans over to light the three candles before him. He closes his eyes and attempts to calm himself by meditating. But the flames refuse to burn steadily and he sees them flare and sputter through the dark red curtain of his eyelids.
Zuko breathes deeply and tries to clear his mind by visualizing him self gently and rhythmically erasing a black slate covered with chalk marks. Then he grimaces with frustration as the newly cleared spaces fill with hazy images of … her.
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Meanwhile, Katara attempts to fall asleep but tosses and turns restlessly.
"Go to sleep," the girl scolds herself impatiently, "You have a long trip ahead of you and this is the last chance you'll have to rest in a nice, comfortable bed for a long time!"
Her irritation increases as she realizes that she cannot stop thinking about Prince Zuko.
"Nice going, Katara," she snarls in self-disgust, "Aang is the only one who can keep the Fire Lord from taking over the world, we've come all this way to help him, and now he probably HATES me. And Sokka will totally bite my head off tomorrow."
She shakes her head defiantly and declares, "But what business is it of theirs? It's my life! And they don't know him like I know him."
Then she pauses, and whispers, "But … I don't really know Zuko. It's all crazy and wrong, but I can't stay away from him."
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Zuko and Sokka bend over a map. Sokka's flashing blue eyes reflect the cool morning light. Zuko traces his finger from the North Pole towards the sea and then points to the mouth of a river in the northern part of the continent of the Earth Kingdom.
"We need to go this way. The Fire Nation has taken over many of the Earth Kingdom's ports but they have not penetrated very far inland."
Sokka coldly nods in agreement, but utters nothing in reply.
Iroh appears and presents Sokka with a sleek rectangular wooden box fastened with a silver clasp, and announces, "This is my extra Pai Gow set. I suspect that the four of you will be in need of diversion during the long journey ahead."
"You can say THAT again," The Southern Water Tribe boy declares emphatically.
Iroh chuckles and obliges him by repeating, "This is my extra Pai Gow set. I suspect that the four of you will be in need of diversion during the long journey ahead."
Sokka grins at the older man, bows his head, and replies, "Thank you, Iroh."
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Aang perches upon Appa's head to guide the giant flying bison. His face looks pale and his eyes are slightly swollen. Katara cringes as far back on Appa's saddle as she can, facing the other direction. Sokka and Nilak sit cross-legged in the middle and concentrate intently on their game of Pai Gow. The water girl fidgets nervously as she waits for the inevitable tongue-lashing from her brother.
The Avatar's head slowly nods forward as his gentle snoring breaks the unbearable silence.
And the dreaded moment finally arrives.
Sokka plops down next to his sister, and snaps, "You and PRINCE PSYCHO? What the heck is WRONG with you, Katara?"
The water girl shrugs her shoulders and averts her eyes from her brother's furious glare.
Nilak sits down next to Sokka and interjects, "Why don't you leave her alone? I mean, it's none of our business really."
Sokka glowers at Nilak and hisses, "It IS my business. Katara's my sister. I'm supposed to protect her. And her new BOYFRIEND happens to be the most terrifying person I've ever met in my life!"
Nilak shrugs and replies, "Maybe there's more to the guy … I mean, he IS on our side, not the Fire Lord's."
Sokka practically froths at the mouth as he springs to his feet and launches into an angry tirade:
"Prince Psycho will BE the freaking Fire Lord someday! Katara, Aang and I are darned lucky that he changed sides, because the way things were going, he probably would have killed us all by now! I saw Prince Psycho demolish almost an entire squadron of Fire Troops single-handedly without even bothering to use his firebending! And you were there when he destroyed Admiral Zhao – one of the most powerful people in the Fire Nation – as though he were nothing! Nilak, the guy is a killing machine!"
Then he reaches down to grab his sister by the shoulders. He vehemently shakes her and cries, "Zuko could CRUSH you, Katara! Have you noticed how he's BUILT?"
Katara gulps, "Um … yes," as a blush rises to her cheeks.
Sokka's face turns purple and his eyes bulge from their sockets. His voice cracks as he screeches, "Katara, that's DISGUSTING!"
The girl smirks maliciously and replies, "Well, you asked, Sokka."
Her brother glares and grimly comments, "Great, now you're even starting to smirk like him!"
Then Sokka's icy eyes melt into pools of blue, and he gruffly murmurs, "Katara, I'm just trying to look out for you and make sure he doesn't … um … dishonor you."
"Ha!" Katara laughs scornfully.
She affects a high-pitched, breathless little girl's voice and declares, "I'm so young and naïve and in need of your protection that I have absolutely no idea of what you mean."
Then her eyes narrow as a wicked grin curves across her lips. "Though, being 'dishonored' does sound kind of exciting," she taunts.
Sokka gasps with outrage, and then snaps, "That's not funny, Katara! I'm serious. It can't go anywhere. I mean … the future fire lord isn't going to marry a water peasant. I don't want you to get hurt."
Katara bridles with anger. Sparks fly from her cold blue eyes as she indignantly exclaims, "So now you want to marry me off? Fine, Oh Great, Wise and Wonderful Patriarch! If we get through all of this alive, then maybe I'll let you find a husband for me!"
Sokka sharply retorts, "You're totally sick, Katara!"
The girl smiles with sweet malevolence and murmurs, "Zuko said the same thing once. So now you boys have something in common."
Sokka rolls his eyes and snorts derisively, "Defeating the Fire Lord will be easy compared to finding a guy who would be willing to marry the likes of you!"
"Gee, thanks, brother. I love you too," Katara responds. Then, she softly adds, "I'm not a child any more, Sokka. I'll be okay."
He grimly replies, "First, Jet the Jerk, and now Prince Psycho … you really seem to have a thing for total homicidal maniacs, sis. Why can't you go for someone decent and halfway normal … like Nilak?"
Nilak's face flushes beet red.
"Don't even THINK about it," Sokka snarls, as he whips his head around and glowers at his friend.
A sly gleam enters the Southern Water Tribe boy's eyes, as he declares in a smoothly persuasive tone, "And … why not Aang? He's a nice guy, plus he's the Avatar. That's not so shabby."
Katara's eyes fill with tears and she sobs, "I feel horrible about hurting Aang. I do love him, but … it's more like the way I would have loved a younger brother. I don't know what to do."
Sokka heaves forth an exasperated sigh, looks his sister straight in the eyes, and inquires, "What do you see in Prince Psycho anyway?"
"I don't know exactly," Katara replies truthfully. "He … he's interesting … I guess it really started when I realized that he was the one who had made this hat for me."
Sokka laughs scornfully and scoffs, "Oh, so you've seen his sensitive side? Like when Prince Psycho's not running around annihilating entire regiments with his bare hands, he's making pretty hats?
"Excellent," he snorts contemptuously, "If Zuko doesn't get his throne back, the two of you can settle down, have a few kids, and start a trendy little hat shop. And if it doesn't turn a profit, what the hey? I'm sure you could both find plenty of work as hired assassins!"
Then the Southern Water Tribe boy grudgingly adds, "Though I have to admit … the hat Zuko made for you is much better than that lame thing you threw together for Jet!"
Katara responds, "You're missing the point, Sokka! I felt hideous and ugly without my hair and couldn't even face anyone. Zuko was the only one who understood. He's been fighting with us for weeks now, and has tried to help Aang with his firebending. It's not fair for you to judge him."
Sokka looks his sister with skepticism, as she continues, "And … can you imagine having Fire Lord Ozai as your father? I don't know what exactly made Zuko decide to change sides. But, he did, and that must have taken a lot of guts."
The girl's voice fades as she softly declares more for her own benefit than her brother's, "Zuko is very … complicated, I think. It's like peeling away the layers of an onion only to find more layers underneath. Maybe that's what attracts me to him."
Sokka wistfully murmurs, "This is crazy. I wish we could talk to Father, or Gran-Gran … or …" a tear rolls down his cheek, "… our mother."
Katara leans towards Sokka and gives him a big hug. Nilak smiles and sighs with relief.
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Night falls, and the full moon rises like a giant, luminous, silver coin in the dark, frigid arctic sky. Katara, Sokka and Nilak hear the soft beating of wings and feel a chill pass over them, but they look upwards and see nothing.
Aang abruptly awakens, straightens his spine, and lifts his eyes to greet the form of Avatar Roku's dragon flying swiftly towards him. A tendril from the dragon's brow slithers forth, touches the boy's forehead, and draws him into another world. The avatar's soul steps out from his body and climbs on top of the dragon.
Aang's three companions shiver as they see the boy's form become stiff and lifeless.
Sokka declares, "I think we're on autopilot now … I'll take Appa down to the ship just to be safe.
He springs up, lands behind Aang and takes Appa's reins from the younger boy's frigid hands.
Katara's eyes light up and then fill with dread. She begins fidgeting nervously again.
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Aang finds himself alone in a meditation room dimly illuminated by the three candles on the floor before him. The flames burn clear and steadily at first, then begin to flicker and flare up. He focuses his attention on the candles and attempts to calm the sputtering flames. To his surprise, nothing happens.
"That's strange," the young avatar muses as a bewildered expression suffuses his boyish features, "I'm usually pretty good at this sort of thing."
Then, Aang's wide gray eyes flutter open with sudden comprehension. He exclaims, "I'm not the one controlling the candles!"
Hazy, sepia-toned scenes and images flicker before his eyes like memories. But they're someone else's memories.
A small boy and girl gaily chase each other across gently undulating hills as the tall grass ripples softly in the breeze. A tall, muscular man with handsome, leonine features, a clean-shaven face and a cascade of wild, tawny hair drawn back into a topknot walks behind the frolicking children.
A younger man, slightly shorter in stature but equally muscular, with wavy chestnut brown hair pulled back in a similar style and heavy sideburns follows with swift, competent strides and finally catches up with his friend.
The tall, golden man smiles down at his companion and declares, "It is good that our noble families shall finally be united. You shall marry my daughter when she comes of age. We can make the announcements tomorrow and hold the betrothal ceremony next week."
The other man's eyes glitter ambitiously as he smiles widely and declares, "This is a great honor for me and for my house."
They are agreeably interrupted as a beautiful woman in her 20's approaches with a brisk, graceful gait. She gaily trills, "Planning the future of our dynasty, I see!"
Tall and slender, she does not need to stand on tiptoe as she kisses her husband's glowing, suntanned cheek. Then, she turns towards the younger man as he bows, takes her hand, brushes it with his lips and murmurs, "My lady."
Despite the woman's long, wavy auburn hair and flawless alabaster skin, her sharp, chiseled features remind Aang of Prince Zuko. She nods towards both men and then calls out to the children, "It's time for lunch!"
The children rush towards the grownups, as the boy cries out in delight, "Mama! These are for you," and holds out a bunch of pretty, purple violets that have already begun to fade.
The woman gracefully bends over and stretches out her arms and affectionately waits for her son to rush into them. Despite his restless squirming, she manages to plant a kiss upon the boy's flushed, alabaster cheek. Meanwhile, the girl's eyes meet her father's as she grimaces and rolls her eyes.
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Aang finds himself in a chamber and sees the beautiful woman who had eagerly and affectionately embraced her son just what had seemed like a few moments ago. Her eyes are hollow and burn feverishly, and her skin looks pale and translucent.
Consumption, Aang thinks to himself sadly.
Then, he hears a small voice sobbing softly, and sees that the woman is not alone.
Her son – slightly older than before and bearing a more striking resemblance to his mother – cuddles up against her with his head on her breast. She feebly strokes the boy's light brown hair, which is loosely gathered into a topknot like his father's.
And then, she stops and her eyes close because she can no longer offer any comfort.
The boy's chin quivers as he bursts into hiccupping, disconsolate sobs. Then, he impatiently wipes away his tears and clenches his jaw with determination as he attempts to master his turbulent emotions. He gently closes his mother's eyes, and softly places the required coins upon her eyelids.
Then, he descends towards his father's chambers to make the long-awaited announcement.
Aang gasps in shock at how drastically the man's appearance has changed. His features have hardened into a coarse and brutal caricature of their former handsomeness. His skin stretches across his face like parchment and his eyes glow dark, blazing red like those of a demon.
"He doesn't even look human," he whispers as a shiver of terror courses down his spine.
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The boy and girl are now about Aang's age, but still recognizable. The girl is almost a head taller than her brother and has bewitching, flashing, almond-shaped dark eyes, long brunette hair tied back and crowned with a Fire Nation insignia like her brother's, a cat-like face with a pert little nose, and a pointed chin.
"She would be beautiful if she didn't look so horribly cruel," Aang thinks to him self.
A diminutive, young servant girl cowers in the corner of the room, her stunned eyes and mouth wide open with fear. Her trembling hands clutch a tray as a puddle of tea gathers around her feet and flows around the shattered fragments of a once-lovely and valuable porcelain tea set. Blood runs down the servant girl's face from the four, viciously slanting gouges in her cheek.
The older girl's eyes narrow towards the servant girl's face triumphantly as the corner of her mouth tugs upwards into a leering smirk. Then she delicately sucks the blood and skin from beneath her sharp fingernails, spits towards the ground, and snaps, "Next time you won't be so clumsy!"
The boy whirls around upon his sister, grasps her by the shoulders, and shouts into her face, "How could you DO that, Zula? You make me SICK!"
Zula meets her brother's eyes with cool, calculated defiance, as she declares contemptuously, "Unhand me, you pathetic, soft-hearted Mama's boy. How I choose to discipline my servants is no business of YOURS."
He snarls at Zula, "This one's my business because you forced me to witness your disgusting savagery. When I take the throne, you won't get away with this."
The corner of Zula's lovely, cupid's bow mouth curves upwards with derision, as she purrs, "Not to worry, Zuko. You won't be taking the throne."
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The events that soon follow flash before Aang's eyes in rapid sequence:
Young Zuko in the War Room protesting the decision to sacrifice an entire division of new recruits to divert attention from a planned attack. The senior general challenging the boy to an Agni Kai. Tears rolling from the fire prince's wide, amber eyes as he kneels before his father in the arena and refuses to fight him.
Fire Lord Ozai intoning, "You will learn respect. And suffering will be your teacher," and viciously blasting the fatal flame towards his son's pale, miserable face.
The young fire prince howling as though his still-beating heart is being savagely torn from his body.
Aang shudders in horror as his icy hatred towards Zuko melts away.
His eyes scan the grim, unsympathetic faces in the audience, and abruptly focus on the only familiar people in the crowd.
Iroh stands between Zhao – now identifiable as the young man from the grassy fields – and Zula, winces, and averts his eyes from the horrific spectacle. The happy, soon-to-be wedded couple share a triumphant glance over the retired general's bowed head.
The Fire Lord straddles over the huddled form of his recalcitrant son, and proclaims, "The Fire Prince is henceforth banished until he captures the avatar and brings him back to me."
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Astonished whispers ripple through the audience. Aang cries out, "But I was still stuck in the iceberg! Everyone thought I was …"
He stops in mid-sentence, as a thought stirs in the back of his mind, surfaces towards his eyes, and then pries them wide open.
Aang whispers, "Now I get it … The Fire Lord thought I was dead … he didn't want Zuko to return. No wonder he wanted to capture me so badly."
He glares towards Ozai, who of course cannot see him. The boy's gray eyes narrow as he hisses angrily through his clenched teeth, "Well, Fire Lord, your son shall indeed bring you the Avatar … but not the way YOU had in mind!"
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The flames of the candles in the meditation room blaze and shoot towards the ceiling. Aang feels his body being flung helplessly forward like a rag doll caught up in a hurricane.
He lands violently upon burning sands of a scorching, barren desert. He slowly and painfully arises, brushes off the thick, clinging layer of dust, and takes in his surroundings.
A hot, relentless sun sets the sky aflame in blazing gold and red. Tall, bone-colored cliffs and rock formations hover threateningly overhead. Sharp, heavy boulders slant precipitously from them, as though the slightest breeze could topple them down in an crashing avalanche. Fortunately, not the slightest hint of a breeze exists in this terrifying, apocalyptic world.
A range of jagged mountains towers over the horizon. The glassy, obsidian peaks glisten cruelly as they pierce the inflamed wounds of the sky. Black smoke rises from a few craters that ooze molten, flame-colored lava.
Aang wipes the sweat from his brow and scans the wretched landscape for some form – any form – of relief. But he finds nothing. Not even a single cactus or buzzard circling overhead.
A deafening subterranean rumble fills the air. The sand beneath the avatar's feet begins to shake viciously like a spooked pack animal that is suddenly determined to throw off its rider and flee. An immense, dark silhouette with massive shoulders, a broad chest, and enormous muscular arms rises from the sands of the desert.
The demon's glowing red eyes swivel back and forth as though hunting for something. Failing to see its quarry, its nostrils flare as it thoughtfully sniffs the dry, hot air.
"Fire Lord Ozai!" Aang screams inwardly, as he ducks behind a convenient boulder.
Technically, he doesn't exist in this world, and hence his powers probably won't work here. Yet, he knows instinctively that somehow, this … this thing has sensed his presence, even though it cannot see him. The boy trembles behind the boulder as the thing narrows its blazing eyes and stares in his direction.
Then, a voice rings out defiantly and echoes against the forbidding mountains and rock formations, "I am not yours to command, Father!"
The demon kneels down to meet his son's eyes, holds out its arms as if to embrace him.
His rumbling voice becomes gravelly and seductive, as he entreats with a hint of tenderness, "You are my son. The Fire Nation can still be yours. The world can be yours. You make life so hard for yourself, Zuko. It doesn't need to be."
Zuko's eyes meet his father's and blaze with a combination of ambitious acquisitiveness and utter torment.
The Fire Lord continues in a purring, persuasive voice that sounds like a plump, silken-furred cat stretching its indolent body against luxuriously soft velvet sofa. "Come back to me, Prince Zuko, and I will restore you to your rightful place on the throne."
The fire prince's eyes widen and lock into his father's as though he has been hypnotized, as Ozai softly murmurs, "All you need to do is give up these strange ideas of yours and surrender to reality. The Fire Nation is destined to rule, my son. And you're destined to rule the Fire Nation."
Zuko violently shakes his head like a boy who has been slumbering and awakens to discover himself covered with clinging, silken spider webs.
His eyes fill with tears and he raggedly cries out, "Father, what has happened to you? You weren't always like this!"
"You can be like me," rumbles Ozai.
Zuko barely seems equipped to withstand the pressure, as he hysterically screams, "No, I WON'T!"
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Aang cannot contain himself any longer, and springs forth from behind the boulder.
"Leave him alone," he shouts, as he swings his staff towards the fire lord. It swishes through the Fire Lord's body invisibly and the boy curses with frustration.
Suddenly, Iroh appears. Aang glances towards him with relief. Then, he remembers that in this world, Iroh cannot see him. But Iroh does see him.
The old man look towards him, meets his eyes, and declares, "Help Zuko fight. He needs all his friends."
Iroh and Aang leap forth to stand beside Zuko The Fire Lord's hulking, shadowy form diminishes slightly. Then, Tupilek, Nilak and Sokka appear and Ozai sinks further into the ground.
Finally, Katara steps forth through the void. Green plants sprout from her footprints, as she walks towards the sinking form of the Fire Lord. The plants shoot forth in a profusion of leaves, flowers and vines, which radiate outwards to create an oasis. An apple tree grows from the spot from whence Ozai had arisen, and provides cool shade.
The girl looks towards Zuko, and says, "Remember to water it."
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AUTHOR'S END NOTES Sources and Ideas for This ChapterI stole Aang's derogatory reference to "Prince Scarface" from Red Hawk K'sani's Z+K fan fic, Floating Away in which Katara calls Zuko that during an argument. It totally amused me.
And I totally ripped off the part with evil Zula scratching the servant girl's face and voluptuously spitting out the blood and flesh from Caesar's Women, which is part of a totally vivid, well-researched, dramatic, and amazing series by Colleen McCollough – who wrote a gripping series about the emergence of Rome as an empire, but who is best known for writing The Thorn Birds, which was considered to be a racy novel back in its day, and is still rather racy even today.
The Katara thing at the end was inspired by the forest spirits that dwell in Miyazaki's films – especially Princess Mononoke.
I'm sure that many of you have noticed that this chapter was majorly inspired by the Teen Titans episode #6, Nevermore, which in turn is influenced by Edgar Allen Poe's eerie poem, The Raven. In this episode, Beast Boy and Cyborg look into Raven's meditation mirror and are transported to the dark regions of her mind and discover that the evil Trigon is Raven's father who has created her to serve as his portal when he takes over the world.
Of course, Trigon isn't the most original character to stride across our cultural landscape.
Trigon bears a striking resemblance to the Balrog whom Gandalf defeats in The Lord of the Rings trilogy – both the books and the movie – as well as the demon shown in the Night on Bald Mountain sequence of Disney's 1960 version of Fantasia, set to music by the composer, Mussogorsky. The demon of Bald Mountain, in turn, was modeled after Bela Lugosi from the original black and white Count Dracula movies, which are based on Bram Stoker's novel, Count Dracula, whose character is based on legends about Vlad the Impaler, a brutal ruler of medieval Romania and the age-old concept of vampires.
And, as many of you have probably observed, Fire Lord Ozai looks an awful lot like all of the above with his horns and immense, muscular, chest-and-arm-heavy dark silhouette starkly outlined against a blazing background of fire, etc.
Teen Titans doesn't totally rock my world like Avatar: The Last Airbender (which I am utterly obsessed with, as I keep cranking out fake episodes while fearing that I will soon hear the inevitable knock on my door and find police officers with handcuffs flanked by battalions of lawyers in suits from Nickelodeon prepared to escort me to the Federal Penitentiary), but I still absolutely adore Robin, Raven, Star, Beast Boy & Cyborg! I have the same haircut as Raven, though my hair is dark brown, not purple & I got my hair cut this way long before the first episode of Teen Titans. Sure, I bet EVERYONE with an angular bob says that!
Notes to Those Who Reviewed My Last Chapter:
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your reviews make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. And I find your comments – both positive and negative – to be immensely helpful. Having some of my stories listed on the ZukoXKatara C2 also totally made my day. Thanks again.
Crzysheelf: Yikes! You're right … There's a winter and summer solstice, and a spring and autumn equinox! I corrected the reference to the "spring solstice" in my last chapter, and changed the title for the current and following chapter (which I still need to finish writing). Thank you SO much! As you can tell from this chapter's title, you've saved me from looking like a TOTAL idiot! And I'm glad you liked the chapter anyway.
Taybay500: Yes, I agree with you: Aang is normally sweet and light-hearted and definitely not the jealous type. In fact, he hero-worshipped Jet so much he didn't even seem to notice Katara's little crush (though I did notice that Jet never received the hat Katara made for him, because Aang appropriated it … and maybe he still has it). But I took some liberties because we all know the Avatar has a crush on Katara, and as we've seen in the "real" episodes, the rare times that he gets ticked off are real doozies. Also, Aang's bound to hit puberty one of these days and start going off-kilter. Thank you for reading my stories.
DudettRin101: Glad you enjoyed the last chapter … sorry it's taken so danged long to update. The Avatar news recently presented at the San Diego Comic Conference (which I have summarized in a section below) has totally wrecked my stories and I've had to do a hecka lot of editing!Booter-Freak: I have now introduced Zula, and had to rewrite a lot of this danged chapter and the next one thanks to the evil bi-otch. I love your little bit about the hat! Ha ha! Sorry again about Admiral Zhao, but I promise to introduce a new, powerful and way sexy antagonist soon. And yes, I'm a big Bumi fan.
Monito: See? I told you Katara's hair would grow back, though it's growing back differently than expected. You'll see why in my next chapter.
XseabiscuitX: Thanks for the German phrase – maybe you can start doing multilingual reviews! BTW, I finally watched Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke. Don't ask why it took me so long, since I'm a Miyazaki freak & have seen all his other stuff. But you should check it out if you haven't already. It's stunningly beautiful and there's a cool male character who rides an elk kind of like Kai. I'm sorry you didn't like Hawaii much.
Red Hawk K'sani: Thanks for the compliments. Booter-Freak's one of my fave raves too, and I'll definitely check out PallaPlease's stories. Though I don't really put in much effort … I have the misfortune of being a very lazy person with an extremely busy life. I just read a LOT and the Internet makes it so easy to look up things I've forgotten. I daydream so much that I have to do a brain-dump on my computer every night so the stories in my head don't keep me awake. Later, I change or delete all the stupid/irrelevant stuff, and … voila! A story! And thanks for deciding that Zhao's colorblind! ;)
Boylessgirl52941: Yes, yes, I'm trying to crank out the updates, but the comic-con threw me off! Thank you for your patience.
Fatcat11388, 1kenshinlover, and Harpygirl91: Oooh, your praise fans my literary flames. Thank you!
ZukosGirl: Yeah, I didn't want them to kiss too soon
Spleef: I sure do appreciate your kind words! While writing this chapter, I knew you'd like it best because we finally see some K&Z action … although it falls way short of what I've seen on your deviant art pages ;) Man, you need to run – don't walk – over to your nearest counter-culture book/magazine store, pick up a copy of Susie Bright's 'zine, On Our Backs, and start sending her copies of your artwork. I don't know if she makes enough money to pay artists and writers for their contributions, but I definitely think she would publish your stuff. You're talented, and the photo of you made up kind of like a cross between Prince Zuko, the cover illustration from the book Memoirs of a Geisha, and the bath house demon from Miyazaki's "Spirited Away" totally kills me. You totally have a flair for life.
MorningStarMaster: I'm glad you enjoyed the Iroh-Tupilek pairing. I totally adore Iroh and feel he deserves some love in his advanced years!
BIG HUGE NEWS ABOUT AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER !
Yippeee! I've searched the Web and have found some major A:TLA news for you guys! Also, these developments have delayed and subsequently influenced the direction of this chapter and future chapters.
I got it from the message boards at the AvatarFans Web site at www . avatarfans . net and an article on the AsmZine Web site. For the article AND pictures of the new characters and scenes, visit www . asmzine .com / features / conventions / sdcc05 / If you copy and paste the URLs into your browser's Location window and remove the spaces, the links should work (Alas, does not support links so I couldn't type the urls properly).
NEW EPISODES COMING SOON! Each Book (Water, Earth, and Fire) will have 20 Chapters. The rest of the "Book of Water" will start this FALL! YAY! I'm not sure if there will be a "Book of Air" since Aang already knows airbending...
The evil fire nation chick is, indeed, Zula, Zuko's sister. Also, the presenters at the conference hinted that Zuko is not totally evil, but that Zula definitely IS totally evil.
Katara develops a special new power.
Aang & the Gang
visit the Northern Air Temple on the way to the
Northern
Water Temple. Although there don't seem to be any airbenders
left
except for Aang, there may be air nomads who still live
there.
There is an epic battle scene, but I forget
whether it's at the
Northern Air Temple or the North Pole. The
Fire Nation has Air Ships
that look kind of like hot air
balloons and that's how they flew up to the Southern Air Temple
shown in episode 3. The Air Nomads have these awesome
airplane/glider things.
New characters are
introduced, including Zula, an eccentric inventor;
an adorable
young girl named Meng who may have a crush on
Aang; some other girl who may be a potential romance for Sokka;
a hot babe bounty hunter who looks like a dominatrix and rides
blind mole/anteater creature who may wind up seducing Prince Zuko
(Ooops, I mean the bounty hunter will seduce Zuko, not the blind
mole/anteater thing!); and (drum roll please...) we finally meet
Katara and Sokka's father!
The North Pole is gorgeous with castles and canals. Apparently they've been able to hold their own against the Fire Nation, unlike their fellow Water Tribe on the South Pole. That makes sense since(according to that map) the South Pole is closer to the Fire Nation.
A sneak-peak scene was shown for "Chapter 14: The Fortune Teller" (yes, a REAL new episode, not one of my fake ones) where Aang makes a necklace for Katara to replace the one from her mother that Zuko still presumably has. I never saw Aang & Katara getting together because Aang looked so much like a little kid. But in the new episode, Aang looks taller and a bit more mature and hence more plausible as a love interest for Katara.
WAAAAAAAH!
Some of these developments break my heart since, as you know, I'm a Zutara shipper and also because I'm assuming (perhaps incorrectly) that Zuko hires the hot-babe-bounty-hunter-dominatrix chick to find Aang (though he seems to have no trouble finding Aang on his own) and hence will not be changing sides or falling for Katara any time soon. Dang! I would LOVE to see the sparks fly between Zuko and Katara!
But Zuko not changing sides and becoming friends with Aang bums me out even more than the lack of Zutara. Since I'm drawn to Zuko and also just love Iroh, I really dislike their fighting on the wrong side – especially since they don't seem to support the war and the Fire Lord doesn't seem to want Zuko to return. I also feel that changing sides would be a smart move on Zuko's part because Aang and the gang could restore him to his throne.
On the other hand, a LOT can happen over the course of the show, and I refuse to TOTALLY give up on my Zutara-ish hopes!
All this news forced me to
rewrite this gosh-danged fake new episode/fan fic that
I was about
to post a week ago. I had created a new character named Leiko
(Japanese for "Arrogant") who was supposed to be the Fire
Nation Chick based on my erroneous theory that she was Zhao's
daughter, was betrothed to Zuko who broke off the engagement
and
earned her undying hatred. Oh well, I'll just make it so she's
betrothed to Admiral Zhao and wants the throne and THAT's why she
hates her brother ... Sigh.
Anyways, I hope this clears things up for everyone!
-- justanotheravatarfan
