Sokka shook his head, hearing Aang and Toph talking over by the fire. He was going hunting and the sun had fallen over the horizon a while ago. Even Sokka could see the two twelve year olds liked each other. I remember when I gave him girl advice. The warrior thought, as if it was an amazing long-forgotten memory (in reality, it was about two months ago). With a knowing smile, the not-so-smart boy slipped into the woods.
Toph and the Avatar sat around the fire ring. Though the blind girl had fallen off of Appa and into the water over two hours ago, she still had a blanket draped around her shoulders. And the airbender (absentmindedly) still had his arm around her. After they'd rescued her, Toph was shivering like it was zero degrees out. Toph had thought it a friendly gesture, but the airbender meant it as a little more.
"I'm sorry, Toph." Aang said. It was the same sad voice she'd heard when he'd apologized back at her home. It sent tingles up her spine. His toned arms were warm and she loved the feel of his clothes- all cotton. She couldn't help but notice he smelled like pine and fresh air (A/N: God, I make him sound like an air freshener that you'd hang in your car. Oh! I got something! Avatar: The Last Air Freshener. MINE!Sorry. Back to the story). She loved that smell… Toph swallowed, reminding herself that her soon-to-be-pupil had a thing for the group's waterbender.
When Toph didn't respond, Aang spoke again. "I shouldn't have said that. You do everything just as well as everyone else. And no one will ever overthrow you in earthbending." The boy pulled Toph a little closer.
"It's okay. We were angry. You say things you don't mean when you're angry." Aang didn't know if it was his imagination or not, but Toph seemed to have lost the threatening edge in her voice. "And I'm sorry too. I guess you do it for them. You're family and friends from the air temple, I mean." Aang didn't reply. The pair just sat there, watching the dancing fire.
o0oOo0o
Zuko slipped off of the ostrich-horse, whispering softly. Katara groaned. She was exhausted from riding for so long and the short nap on the way wasn't doing much to help her. It was a few hours before sunrise. The firebender reached up, pulling the girl toward him. He carried her over to a patch of grass in at the edge of the clearing. Laying a blanket over the girl, he settled in next to her. Katara turned her head to look at him. "Do you think they'll find us?" She yawned and covered her mouth. Zuko was suddenly glad to have the shrouding darkness around; it hid his face. His expression would have given away his answer for sure. If that ship was his sister's, it wasn't a matter of 'if' but a matter of 'when'.
"I don't know." the firebender said softly. He wished he could just muster up the courage to tell her what he really thought. But he wasn't going to worry her if they could get away. Zuko planned to get a few hours of sleep and get up and moving by sunrise. Then they could ride until the end of the forest. Hopefully it would be dark when they arrived at that point so they could get across the stretch of plains after that. He didn't want to be out in the open crossing that.
"Do you think it was Azula?" Katara whispered. Zuko took in a sharp breath. His sister's name seemed like a curse. He swallowed.
"Probably." The exiled prince felt a stroke of guilt strike him when Katara edged closer. But the fact that one of them could take her bending away would be nerve-wracking. And Zuko froze. If that was the case, he needed to be prepared to fight all three of the girls and protect Katara. His copper eyes shut. He could barely put up a fight against Azula. But his mother's words echoed in his head. "Don't forget who you are."
Zuko's golden eyes snapped open just as the first orange glow of light was peeking in through the trees. He sat up and shook his companion awake. "Come on. We need to reach the plains by nightfall." The waterbender sat up, rubbing her eyes. They ate a piece of fruit and let their steed have its meal before setting off again.
Things were dreadfully boring riding all day. Occasionally, someone would make a stab at conversation, usually not making it past a single exchange. Scenery was always the same: green and leafy and woody (A/N: It's hilarious playing "I spy" in the woods. Everyone's like: I spy something…green and—Tree. Damn, how'd you know? Okay, I spy something—Tree. You did it again!) Katara held tight to the boy in front of her. She hated swaying so much. Shifting her position slightly, she swallowed. Her backside was getting sore. How had Zuko put up with this for so long? Suddenly, the boy spoke up.
"What's today?" he asked (A/N: I'm using our calendar. Sue me.) Katara took a moment to think.
"Sometime in June. It's past the third is all I know. I haven't been keeping track." the waterbender confessed. Zuko nodded. "Why?"
"I was just thinking of a date that was important is all."
"Why is it important?" Katara asked. The firebender was quiet for a moment.
"My birthday." he replied. The waterbender could have fallen of the horse. She smiled, asking when it was. "The fifth."
"Well happy birthday." The girl was silent. "As happy as it can be." Zuko smiled. "How old are you now?" Katara asked, not wanting the conversation to die.
"Seventeen." Again, the girl could have fallen off the ostrich-horse. "How old are you?" Zuko inquired, glancing over his shoulder. The waterbender felt herself blush.
"Fourteen." This time, it was the Fire Nation's ex-prince that nearly fell over.
"Well," Zuko said, smiling, "I always did like younger girls." (A/N: would someone just fall off the damn horse already!)
o0oOo0o
Sokka held tight to Appa's reins, scanning below for any sign of Katara. Toph and Aang sat on the saddle. Toph was teaching Aang earthbending with a small bag of dirt. It was the best they could do if they were traveling. The teacher had formed small rocks with the dirt and was instructing the Avatar how to push them away. "Once we land, we can try a much bigger one. But it's probably a good idea to start small." Toph pushed a rock the size of her fist so it stopped in front of her pupil.
Sokka shook his head when Toph kept telling Aang how to perform the move. He couldn't get it after at least ten tries. The water tribe warrior went through the food sack, munching on an apple. Momo was curled up on his head, sleeping. Sokka leaned back and closed his eyes, blocking out the yelling going on behind him. They definitely liked each other. He could tell.
o0oOo0o
Zuko and Katara stopped at the edge of the forest, just as the sun was setting. Yawning, Katara climbed off, falling in the grass. She stared up at the stars while Zuko set to feeding Chi (as Katara had taken to calling the ostrich-horse). She closed her eyes, breathing deeply. She drifted off to sleep.
But her little doze was short lived. She was jerked awakened by a hard kick to her side, causing her to roll over in the grass. She groaned. Katara rolled into a crouching position, trying to ignore the pain in her ribs. No! She yelled in her head. In front of her stood the girl named Mai, hate in her thin eyes. Zuko whipped around when he heard the grunt. His eyes widened when he saw the girl from his past standing over the waterbender. Without a second thought, he fired a blast of searing flames.
His attack didn't hit its mark. Someone stepped in front of the fire and deflected it. When the smoke cleared, he saw it was Azula. "Hello again, Zuzu." The princess's voice was like poisoned honey. She advanced, sending a blue streak of flame toward her brother. He flew backward.
Katara leapt up to avoid a dart. She uncorked her water pouch, flinging out a water whip. Azula turned with a wicked grin. She sent another streak of flames out, colliding with the waterbender's whip. The water sizzled and steam rose in the air. Through the steam flew a blur of pink and it was headed straight for Katara. The waterbender ducked at the last minute. She heard a light-footed landing behind her and stood, gathering the water vapor in the air for another whip.
Zuko charged his sister, sending her flying into Mai. They fell in a heap on the ground. He turned to see his companion fighting off Ty Lee. The Fire Nation girl dodged the waterbender's attack with gymnastics, braided hair whipping. Katara sent ice disks her way. Once again, the water was evaporated with a flame. Zuko turned to see their other two opponents standing. Mai was ready to throw an array of darts and Azula was sporting flaming fists.
"No one knocks me down." Azula said menacingly. She took a step forward. Zuko smirked.
"It's a part of fighting. Learn to cope with it." He shot a fireball her way, followed by a leaping kick. The younger sibling dissolved the fire, but got sent flying backward by the flame-edged kick. The exiled prince returned his attention to Katara. She was evading both girls' attacks, fighting blow for blow. He stepped in. He sweep kicked Mai and Ty Lee fell over her comrade. The acrobat flipped back up in a heartbeat.
Katara and Zuko stood back to back, ready to fight. Mai stood across from the firebender while Ty Lee was across from the waterbender. The ninja threw a sharp star. Both benders ducked so that the projectile was headed for Ty Lee. Zuko blasted his opponent back with a burst of flame. Katara evaded the acrobat, stepping to the side, allowing Zuko to blast her backward as well. Zuko was suddenly thrown off his feet by a punch. Azula stood in front of Katara with flames licking her arms.
"So this is the girl my brother falls for." she said, sauntering forward. Katara backed away but never let her defensive stance falter. "A low-life waterbending peasant that was traveling with the Avatar." The princess stopped, eyes narrowing. The waterbender saw the other girls holding off Zuko. "Did they abandon you, peasant?" It was Katara's turn for her eyes to narrow. She summoned as much water from the earth as she could (which was a lot, by the way) and sent a humongous wave crashing down on her opponent. With a cry, Azula was washed backward. Katara stood triumphantly with her hands on her hips. She smirked.
"That's master waterbending peasant to you, Azula." Katara scoffed. Zuko couldn't help but smile. He evaded more of Mai's weapons. The princess stood, fuming. She sent a searing ball of fire toward the waterbender. The waterbender stepped to the side, lashing out with a whip. When Azula tried to move, she realized her feet were stuck to the ground. She fell back, trying desperately to escape her holds. Mai rolled on the ground from yet another one of Zuko's fire strikes.
"I never thought that little peasant could be such a problem, bender or not." Mai commented to Azula as she stood. The princess stopped fumbling with the ice on her feet. She smiled a wicked grin.
"Ty Lee!" she yelled. Ty Lee leapt from a tree behind the unsuspecting waterbender. Neither Zuko nor Katara had noticed her disappearance. Zuko's eyes widened and he was kicked by Mai. Ty Lee landed her first target. Katara stumbled backward. Ty Lee landed her second target. Mai kicked the banished prince again so that he landed face down in the grass. He heard Katara cry out and a thump. Zuko turned to see Katara on the ground, propped up on her elbows with wide eyes.
Azula was freed, standing beside her two friends. Ty Lee had a hand on her hip and Mai held a ninja star in her hand. Mai's words brought back a startling sense of de ja vu for Katara.
"How are you gonna fight without your bending?"
o0oOo0o
A/N: AAAHHHH! How was it? I really hope you did 'cause I haven't got that many reviews on one of my stories lately so I hope I'm not losing my mojo. Sorry to sound depressed, but I love reviews and they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside (especially the long ones)! Okay, gushy moment over. XP
PLEASE review!