Come What May
By Gigawolf1
Chapter 5: Revelation
Mere days after Aang and his friends had 'convinced' Azula to join them rather than attempt to cook them, they were on their way to Ba Sing Se. Aang's Earthbending was getting better after a (literally) rocky start. However, Aang was not the only one with something important on their mind.
Sokka made his way beside Azula, slightly blushing. The Fire Nation Princess sat at the rear of the saddle, and ignored Sokka, still looking forward. Her thoughts were broken, and though her instincts told her to recoil, she forced herself to pretend to be interested.
Her thoughts were broken once again by Appa's sudden descent. "What's going on? Why are we landing?"
Aang looked back at her. "Appa's really tired from all the flying, and there's a small camp over there. Besides, you can start to teach me Firebending!"
Reluctantly, Azula accepted this answer. Momo flew ahead to see what nation the village was. Meanwhile, Katara and Toph spoke to one another about the ever-important parts of life. "Aang's really getting good at Earthbending, Katara. Earth can beat Water any day, so it's important he learn it well." Though Toph was blind, Katara was the one oblivious to her surroundings as a figure leapt from branch to branch in the nearby trees. Appa landed quickly, throwing Toph out of the saddle. The vibrations would have helped her, but she did not land on her feet, unable to know her position mid-air.
The group entered the village, each with something different on his or her mind. Toph's sore back, Katara's confusion, Azula's pride, Sokka's frustration, and Aang's mixed feelings about Firebending. None really noticed as three old people emerged from the huts. A voice instead told them of the elders.
"Ah, the Avatar is here at last! Welcome to our small camp! I am the leader, and I am the son of the legendary Malu. But I ramble! Please, eat our food and ruin our buildings!"
He said this all too fast for Aang to hear it all, but he hobbled away. Crouched over, the man had white hair in a very thin layer, and an odd cane. Another old man, though younger, stood beside him. Beside them stood an old woman, who was obviously the youngest, still having dark hair.
Aang and his friends looked at each other before following him inside. Azula, however, stood outdoors, rage filling her. What was he doing here?
"We are Nomads, and travelling ones at that. We wander the world, searching for a peaceful place to eat, sleep, and die. Of course, we prefer the first two but, no one can live forever. From the Avatar to his friends and family, we all die. The Avatar always returns, even if those around him," he said, glancing at Katara and Toph, "Do not."
"Aang, do you want to learn Firebending or not?" shouted Azula. Rushing out, Aang found Azula standing before him. As Toph went outside, she 'saw' several familiar shapes. Two ran swiftly towards the village, while the other two seemed to be in the building she just left. She turned and entered again, unnoticed by all.
Azula gave an evil grin when Aang emerged. "Let me show you a very special technique. Only the Fire Nation Royal Family can learn it. My great-aunts taught it to me. It's Firebending using Lightning. It can be very deadly if it hits your… HEART!" Azula released a powerful burst of lightning right at Aang. Unable to dodge, Aang could do nothing as the blast approached him and…
From nowhere, water rose from a nearby pail. Leaves rose, blocking Aang, while the water doused them. Azula's lightning struck one wet leaf, and started to jump between them. The old man emerged, a mad expression filling his face which, Katara just noticed, had none of the marks of old age.
"Azula, Fire Nation Princess, spoiled little brat, liar extraordinaire, and misandrist to the extreme. Lightning, of all things? Seriously kid, get a brain. Fire is bold, passionate, unpredictable. You are none of these things. An all-out offensive is never the answer when fighting an Airbender. You'd think that at least one Firebender would figure it out after all the times they've tried to catch the same kid."
Azula began to speak, but the man interrupted her again. "Don't talk! Weren't you ever taught to respect your elders? Maybe by the only man you've ever loved, but Zhao is dead by now. He was in his forties before you were born. Those other girls with you don't like you that way, either, you know. I bet they've always noticed you were a bit odd, whether it be the insanity or the whole 'most men are stupid and not worth my time' thing."
Rage flew from Azula, along with burning embarrassment. "I'll destroy your village if you don't leave me alone!", to which the man responded, "Go ahead. We're Nomads. In fact, if you remember, I asked you to. You listened to my advice about capturing the Avatar, since you joined his group and faked attraction to Bill Nye over there. Tell me, did you get to the whole 'I'll take you right to the Fire Lord' part?"
Azula knew her choices were limited, and so chose to escape. From the corner of her eye, she noted that Sokka was emotionally crushed, and so shot lightning at him to distract everyone enough for her escape. This was again blocked, and the old man's motions moved the water quickly. A few drops spilt out of his control, and Sokka was barely saved. The leaves themselves, however, landed on him. A sudden motion later, and a girl in pink was lying barely conscious. Ty Lee could move fast, but Azula was faster still.
Only the man had enough time to see two more appearing on the rooftops. One was the Blue Spirit, while the other was the White Spirit. They glared at Azula intent on blocking any escape. Katara looked at the scene with a blank stare, not comprehending any of it. However, she looked down to find drops of water on the ground. Remembering the man's motions, she found it resembled Waterbending motions, but Waterbenders didn't fling water around in such a way that leaves small drops on the ground, instead moving all the water as one. So, she asked herself, what was he?
AN: Those who know who Malu was, you know exactly what's going on. Those of you who don't, don't. Either way, Azula is leaving the group soon, in the upcoming Conclusion to Come What May. Afterwards, I hope to write a sequel very soon. For now, however, Come What May will be the first of my chaptered stories to reach a conclusion!