Chapter Twenty Six

Odd Reunion

Waves lapped at the hull of their battered little steamer. The sea had been calm, but even calm stretches on the open ocean were damaging to a vessel not designed for such voyages. It was only due to the skill and perseverance of the men who sailed it that the ship had made it at all. Zuko and Iroh had been at sea for over three weeks. The distance between the north pole and the isle of the Sun Warriors hadn't been that great, but combining that with the trip back to Earth Kingdom waters had taken its toll on the vessel.

Now the pair of them had arrived a few dozen miles south from the port that Zhao's fleet had set sail. Zuko and his uncle stood on the shore, and watched as their faithful little boat sank beneath the waves. Zuko eyed Uncle Iroh sideways, for the older man seemed a little upset over their decision to scuttle the steamer.

"Uncle? Are you okay?" Zuko asked, turning to face the older man. The first light of dawn broke over the horizon and fell upon the right side of his face. Iroh nodded and shouldered his pack.

"Yes, but these old bones of mine are not looking forward to the walking we have ahead of us. Or rather they are, but they're not happy about it."

A snort was his only reply, rolling his eyes at his uncle. Zuko wasn't entirely sure if it was a joke or a serious complaint, so he decided it was both.

"It won't be too far." Zuko said. He shouldered his own pack and walked into the woods. They were near a town that Zuko had passed through on his travels through the Earth Kingdom. It wasn't technically in Fire Nation territory, but it wasn't Earth Kingdom either. It was a sort of neutral ground. It had actually been near the town where he had been thrown from Sugar Foot, and that was the incident that caused him to meet Song.

The pair walked quietly though the morning light. Zuko enjoyed the sun at his face, the sea wind blowing at his back. They would go east for a bit, and then turn northwards. He thought they would arrive at their destination in a few hours, as it didn't take him long to get there the first time he had been near this point. That said, he didn't have a map of this area, so he wasn't entirely sure of their exact location.

"Prince Zuko," Iroh began, "Have you thought of what you would like to do in the future?"

"Honestly," Zuko replied, "My main goal is to not die or get caught by Azula."

"Aside from that, I mean." Iroh said.

"No."

Iroh sighed internally. How to broach the subject? He knew that his nephew wanted to join the Avatar, but there was something keeping him from it.

"Have you considered the Avatar's offer?" He asked, looking at Zuko.

"Yes." Was the younger man's reply.

"And?" Iroh prompted.

"I…" Zuko began, and then shook his head. "I cannot. How could I, a prince of the Fire Nation, work against my own people? Even though I know that they would need an advocate, I cannot turn against them."

"You would not be turning against them, you would be freeing them from oppression. The Fire Lords of the past century have all labored to keep our people downtrodden, my father and yours included. Should the Avatar overthrow Ozai, who should take his place? An outsider? Perhaps the Earth King would be given dominion over our lands? It would be fitting, I suppose, as our own rulers have been seeking to hold the Earth Kingdom for a century."

Zuko stopped walking, turning to face his uncle. "Wouldn't you take your rightful place on the throne? It should have gone to you after grandfather Azulon's passing. Maybe if it had, the war would be over already."

Iroh shook his head. "No, I will never sit atop the dragon throne. The other nations have suffered too much at my hand, and should I take the throne then we will not know true peace. Someone new must take the throne, someone with a pure heart, and unquestionable honor."

Zuko scoffed. "Well, who then? Master Piandao?"

Iroh chuckled. "No, but we can worry about that later."

The pair continued walking as the sun rose higher in the sky.

"The Avatar needs a firebending teacher." Zuko said.

"That he does." Iroh responded.

"I think it should be you, Uncle."

"No, Prince Zuko. It should be you. It is not my destiny."

Zuko nodded, in acknowledgement if not agreement. Taking the lead, he said, "We should be there in a few hours."

He thought to himself, and spoke quietly, as if he hadn't realized he was speaking aloud. "I wonder what my destiny is."


Katara passed the water back to Aang. He passed it back to her. Sokka stood on a stone in the middle of the river, and practiced his swordsmanship. He still refused to speak. Katara and Aang began to practice combat forms of waterbending, with Aang surrounding himself with water in the shape of an octopus, using the tentacles to catch the ice projectiles she threw at him.

She bowed to her student, and then turned to watch her brother practice his swordplay. Standing on one foot, Sokka swung his sword in crisp movements. Moonlight whistled through the air, and even though it was nearly mid morning, she saw faint traces of light left in its wake. Odd, she thought, hadn't it only done that at night?

"Sokka! Think fast!" Aang shouted as he bent a few icicles towards him. Sokka barely looked his way as he cut the projectiles from the air. He sliced them all in half save one, which he tossed back at Aang after changing its momentum with a quick circular motion. Aang wasn't able to block the icicle, but he was able to melt it into water before it smacked into his arrow. Katara laughed at the sight.

Music broke them from their practicing, well, Katara and Aang. Sokka remained on his rock. The other two travelers wandered towards the sound of the music, and were soon met by a quintet of wandering musicians.

"...don't fall in love with the traveling girl, for she'll leave you broken, broken hearted!" Sang the lead man, strumming on his lute. A heavy set fellow in a white kimono with pink trim slapped a drum, and a woman played a flute. The two remaining travelers danced around, waving their arms about their heads as if beset by invisible bee-wasps.

"Woah, river people. And a sword guy." Said the lead man, stopping his strumming and looking at the three younger travelers.

"We're not river people." Katara stated, watching the newcomers curiously. Aang sidled up next to her.

"What kind of people are you?" Said the lead man.

"We're just… people." Aang answered, looking around between his friends and the newcomers.

"Aren't we all, brother!' The man stated, and his portly companion flopped onto the grass.

"I'm Chong, and this is my wife, Lilly. We're nomads, happy to go wherever the wind takes us!" Said the man, Chong, and he gestured to the flute player, Lily.

"Really? That's great! I'm a nomad!" Aang said, elation filling his eyes. Chong smiled in surprise.

"No kidding? So are we!" Chong said.

"I know, you just said that." Aang raised an eyebrow at the luthier. Chong shrugged and smiled.

"Uh, anyway, I'm Aang. That's Katara, and he's Sokka." Aang jerked a thumb behind him towards the young warrior, who was still practicing on his rock.

"Cool. I'm Chong, and this is my wife, Lily." Chong said again, and Katara snickered.

The nomads seemed content to sit and relax by the water with them, so the two groups shared lunch together. Sokka leapt from his rock to the shore, and Chong seemed impressed by the action. He moved to speak with Sokka, but evidently changed his mind when he saw the emptiness behind Sokka's eyes. He sidled over to Aang, and said, "That guy's kinda creepy."

Katara huffed, and looked at her brother. Chong had a point, Sokka had become a little… unsettling. She didn't think he was using Koh's shadow, at least not always. Even when he wasn't, he remained in the void. And that state of emotionless clarity was unnerving, especially if you didn't know what he was really like. She wondered if she had better ask him to come out of it, and live like a normal person.

The nomads were braiding her hair with flowers, and doing the same for Appa. Sokka walked over towards them, and when he caught Katara's eye, he looked up towards the sun. She didn't bother following his gaze; she could guess his meaning. He thought it was time to go.

She stood, and stretched. She turned to the group at large. "I think we'd better get going. We've got to get to Omashu, and Sokka's getting impatient."

"It sounds like you've got a case of destination fever." Chong said in response.

"I wouldn't say that, we've just got a schedule to keep. We have to get to Omashu as soon as possible."

"You should focus less on the where, and more on the going!" Lily said, and the other nomads nodded in agreement.

"We've got to get to King Bumi so he can teach Aang Earthbending." Katara responded, and then she wondered why she was bothering to argue with them at all.

"It sounds like you're headed to Omashu!" Exclaimed Chong. Katara pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation.

"You know, there's a story of a secret pass to Omashu, which goes right through the mountains." Chong said, leaning forward where he sat.

"Really?" Aang asked curiously.

"Really. There is an old song about it too." Chong said, and then he stood and started to sing. The song told the story of two lovers, divided by war. They built a path through the mountain, and apparently Chong forgot part of the song, but the gist of it was that there was a secret tunnel.

"Thanks," Aang said, "But Appa hates going underground. We've got to do what makes Appa the most comfortable."

They bid their farewells, and were soon on their way to the mountain city. They

had not been flying long when their path was interrupted by an incredible bombardment of Fire Nation siege engines. They immediately turned around and returned to the nomads.

"Alright, let's check out that secret tunnel of yours."


They were sequestered in Mai's room. It was strange, thought Azula, that Mai would have a room here despite the fact she had never been to the city before. Thinking more of it, would it not be more odd if her parents hadn't selected a room for her?

On the subject of Mai, the girl had grown even more withdrawn than usual since their meeting with the Mad King. Azula suspected that it was directly a result of the revelation of the reason for Zuko's disastrous Agni Kai with the Fire Lord. Azula rather understood, she too was unsettled by the revelation. Disturbed, even. Zuko had not done anything particularly wrong, other than speaking out of turn, and it was for good reason no less. And he had been disfigured and banished for it. It wasn't the greatest of mysteries why he would turn against the Fire Lord.

She wondered why she still cared about him, he had never done the same. Even now, when he had turned against the Fire Nation, she still… Azula decided to stop thinking about it. If none of her family loved her, then that was what it was. No use dwelling on what she couldn't change. She didn't need them, she still had her father. At least, she hoped she did.

"Why are the two of you being so depressing?" Ty Lee asked, breaking the silence that had filled the room. Mai shrugged, and Azula rolled her eyes. Ty Lee crossed her arms and glared at them, a most unusual expression from the girl.

Mai sighed. "I was thinking about Zuko."

"I'm shocked." Azula deadpanned. Mai rolled her eyes.

"I've been thinking about him too," Ty Lee said, but added quickly, "Not like that, though. Just about why he was banished."

Azula nodded. "There's nothing we can do about it. What's done is done, and he's made his choices since then."

"Yeah, I know, but…"

"But what?" Azula snapped. "Shall we go to the Fire Lord and demand he change the past? Or perhaps ask him to pardon my brother and uncle, I'm sure that will go well. No, we have our mission, and we must follow through, or there will be consequences for all of us. We know what happens to those who displease him."

Mai and Ty Lee shared a look, but it went unnoticed by Azula. She stood up from the chair she was sitting in and stalked towards the door. Her friends followed her, unnerved by her sudden reversion to her past demeanor. She hadn't been that sharp with them for a few months, and it wasn't an attitude they were excited to see again.

Azula walked out of the governor's mansion, which had previously been the palace of the Mad King. She stood at the top of the stairs in the late morning sun, watching the mountains north of the city. She had positioned sentries on various mountain tops to alert them of the Avatar's approach, and it seemed that her efforts had paid off. Smoke was drifting from the top of one of the mountains.

Azula ordered for their mounts to be readied and the three of them were on their way to face the Avatar. The mountain that sighted the bison was several miles away, but that was not her destination. Several units of the Fire Nation army were stationed around the landscape, and they had orders to send a messenger hawk to her should the Avatar be encountered.

Before long, one such message arrived. Azula and her friends arrived at the sight of the battle, if it could be called as much. The commanding officer told them of the encounter, which had consisted of the Avatar flying towards them and almost immediately turning around again.

"We believe that their most likely path is through a tunnel that goes underneath the mountains." The captain said, pointing to a spot on the map not far from where they were presently.

"What tunnel is that?" Ty Lee asked.

"The, uh," The Captain flushed, "Cave of Two Lovers."

"Wait, like from the song?" Ty Lee asked for clarification, and the captain nodded. Ty Lee smiled and looked at Azula mischievously.

"What are you up to?" Azula asked, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Well I am not up to anything." Ty Lee said as they walked back to their mounts.

"The Captain then? If he's betrayed us-" Azula began, but was interrupted by Mai's snicker. Azula glared at her now. She was missing something, evidently, but she wasn't sure what it was.

"So… are you excited to see Sokka again?" Ty Lee asked in a tone that was clearly an attempt to sound casual and disinterested.

"Why would I be?" Azula asked.

"Oh, no reason." Ty Lee said. "But if it were me, I'd be pretty happy to follow my boyfriend into a secret love cave."

Azula whipped her head around. So that was what they were snickering about. "He is not my boyfriend!'


"Hey, I just remembered the rest of that song!" Chong said. He jumped ahead of the group and struck a chord. "And die!"

"Okay." Said Aang, glancing at his friends. Sokka remained as stoic as ever, while Katara merely raised an eyebrow. So it was a cursed hole in the side of the mountain then. Fantastic. So their options were to try and fly through the Fire Nation forces, or go through a tunnel that Chong claimed was cursed, and that the only way through was to trust in love.

"Hey! A big campfire!" Said Moku, the portly fellow wearing a kimono. Everyone turned their attention to the smoke the man was pointing at, and Katara corrected him.

"That's no campfire, Moku. The Fire Nation is tracking us."

"Chong," Aang said, "All we have to do is trust in love?"

"That's correct, Master Arrow-head." Chong answered. Aang let his eyes fall onto Katara, who was still focused on the smoke. "We can make it."

The group headed into the cave. Before long, they came to a place where the tunnel split into three forks, and Chong chose to light one of his torches, and he handed one to Katara to carry. Had they waited longer, or perhaps taken the first turn, then they wouldn't have been seen. They would have gotten through the tunnel un-hindered, but as it was, the light of Chong's torch gave their presence away.

An all too familiar crackle filled the air. By the time Aang and Katara noticed it, Sokka was already in motion. He drew Moonlight from his hip and intercepted the bolt, though it wasn't aimed at anyone. The lightning stuck to the sword and he was able to plunge it into the ground, dispelling the electricity.

Aang was surprised that the nomads didn't scream, instead they began to play action music, as if they weren't in any danger themselves. The same couldn't be said for Appa, unfortunately. The bison's eyes swiveled madly as fear took him, and he began to charge around, colliding with the walls.

Aang tried to calm his animal companion, but had to jump aside when a volley of knives sailed through the air and nearly cut his ear. He unleashed a gust of wind at Mai, but she dodged it, and then Aang had to distance himself from Ty Lee.

He took a quick look around the scene, and saw that Mai had turned her attention to Sokka. Sokke blocked each of her knives, the dim light having no effect on him. Katara was locked in combat with Azula, and Aang blasted airbending towards the Fire Nation Princess. Azula dodged, launching herself into the air and coming to land beside Mai, who was still combating Sokka.

A stream of water wrapped itself around Mai's waste, and she was sent flying towards Aang. An action that took him by surprise, for he had no idea that Katara had thrown her to intercept Ty Lee. Ty Lee and Mai collided in the air, and fell to the ground just as the cave began to rumble. The commotion of the fight, combined with Appa crashing into things, had disrupted the stability of the tunnel. Rocks began to fall, and Aang had to move fast. He sent a current of wind that pushed Mai, Ty Lee, and the Nomads into the center tunnel. With another blast of airbending, he sent Sokka and Azula into the left branch of the cave, and he tackled Katra and used his feet to kick out a final effort of bending as they rushed into the branch that Appa had run into. A heartbeat later the tunnel they had been in before collapsed, and they were all plunged into darkness.


Iroh stoked his now ragged beard. He used to keep it trim and short, but now that they were fugitives, he had no choice but to let it go. He and Zuko had been traveling for most of the day, and the morning had changed to mid afternoon, and his nephew had answered few questions about their destination. Iroh was begging to think that perhaps this 'friend' waiting for him in the east was a young lady.

"So, Prince Zuko," Iroh began trying to get information out of his nephew. "This friend of yours, is she nice?"

Zuko nodded, and Iroh grinned, but then Zuko stiffened and turned to him. "Uncle, I think we should use cover names. I went as Lee before, and I will do so again."

Iroh waved a hand vaguely. "Just call me Uncle, I'm sure that no one will be that curious. And what by chance is the name of this friend of yours?"

"S-" Zuko began, but he stopped himself. "Never mind what her name is!"

Iroh shrugged and acquiesced, grinning broadly the moment Zuko turned away. So, this girl they were seeing had made enough of an impression on his nephew that he was embarrassed to speak of her. Interesting.

The Uncle and Nephew continued walking until the road became a quaint country lane, and not far from them stood a house with a horribly maintained wooden fence. Iroh grimaced at the fence, and then he saw a pretty young woman unsaddling an ostrich-horse. Was this the girl?

"There she is," Zuko said quietly, and then flushed slightly as he realized he had spoken.

Iroh tried to conceal his grin. "You go on ahead, I'll catch up. I need to, uh, stretch."

Zuko looked at him for a moment. Iroh coughed and jerked his head towards the girl. Zuko began walking and the girl noticed them for the first time.

"Lee!" She cried out, and ran towards Zuko. He smiled and waved at her awkwardly, and could barely keep his balance when she leapt on him and wrapped her arms around his neck. He had to grab hold of her and spin slightly, as to avoid falling down. When Song kissed him on the cheek, he did lose his balance and fall to the ground. He looked up in time to see his Uncle punch the air in celebration, a move that confused him greatly.

"You came back!" Song said, smiling as she stood. She helped Zuko get to his feet. "I missed you, Lee, or should I say Prince Zuko."

Zuko flushed, and sputtered a denial, his voice rising slightly. "No, I'm Lee, and that's my Uncle… uh, Mushi."

Iroh stared at Zuko, affronted. "There's no use in hiding it, Prince Zuko. She already knows who you are. I, however, do not know this fine young lady's name. Would you be so kind as to introduce me?"

Song didn't let Zuko respond. "I'm Song. Lee and I met a few months ago, while he was on his way to find you. He stayed with us a few days, and mended our fence."

"Ah, I see. My nephew may not show it, but he missed you as well I believe. We made our way here to meet up with his friend waiting for him, who I believe to be you."

"Really?" Song asked, looking at Zuko hopefully. "You came back just to see me?"

Zuko blinked, but nodded his head. In truth, he had only come here to get Sugar Foot. Seeing Song again was just an added bonus. Why his uncle thought that it would be Song was a mystery, but it would be really awkward for him to deny it now.

"Well, isn't that the sweetest thing?" A new voice interrupted them.


Author's Note:

I hope you have enjoyed this chapter, and I hope that you like what I have in store for you. I am excited to torment Mai as she has to put up with the near magical bond that Ty Lee has with Chong and his nomads.

I know this one was kind of short, but now that we've gotten into Part Two a little bit, the chapters should be longer and contain more,

11/28/22