Hardened Winds
Chapter X
Summary: Two years ago, Aang was betrayed by Katara, who fell for Zuko and ultimately led to the avatar's failure to defeat Ozai before summer's end. Hardened, the young airbender is now back with a full army and is on the verge of defeating the Fire Nation once in for all. Yet despite his belief of being in full control, nightmares of the past still haunt him. What will happen when Katara returns and a series of misunderstandings and more betrayals unveil? Will Aang be able to handle it all?
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Sokka had other things in his mind, she could tell.
Because when Gloria dutifully informed him that she had failed to sight the Fire Nation prince, he showed almost no disappointment. And she knew how hard it was for the second-in-command to control his emotions. They were in Sokka's bedroom, and the seventeen-year-old was now looking out the window, a faraway look on his face as a silence descended upon them. The waterbender, sitting on the boy's bed, distractedly caressed the soft fabric of the cover and waited for his reaction. At last, Sokka turned to her, an oddly serene expression on his face.
"I figured you probably couldn't find him on the first try," he said quietly.
"What are you saying?" Gloria feigned a resentful glare. "That I wasn't good enough for the job?"
The teenager pulled a grimace before chuckling.
"No, no," he reassured her, "it's just that… even for a harbor village, Kali is rather big, and who knows? Maybe Zuko isn't hiding there anyway."
"I could've sworn I saw firebenders yesterday, though. And I believe I even talked to one, although he was nice."
"You… talked to one?"
The woman seemed to have finally captured Sokka's attention, because this time he fully turned to her and raised an eyebrow.
"Well, maybe I'm wrong," Gloria amended, lying down on his bed as if it was her own, "but… he didn't look too comfortable when I started talking about Fire Nation soldiers in the village."
"Who wouldn't be?" the adolescent inquired mildly, and she shrugged.
"He was an old man," she continued, thoughtful, "a little on the heavier side, but sure nice and wise. He didn't say he was a firebender."
"What… you asked?" Sokka was presently goggling at her. The blond couldn't help but give him a smug smile.
"Yup. But he really looked at if he was lying. He didn't look like a firebender, though… not vicious or mean."
The second-in-command frowned at that, becoming quiet for several minutes. Many times, he nodded or shook his head to himself, and Gloria wondered with interest what complex musings were circling around the boy's mind. Although Sokka sure didn't look like it, he could go rather deep in thought… when he tried hard enough. After a while, he sighed, redirecting his attention to Gloria.
"That's it then?" he asked, and when she nodded, he continued: "I don't think we should give up on the prince. He's a rather important catch. Instead… I want you to try to find him again soon, but this time, get a few more people with you. People you can really trust, though," Sokka warned her. "Like…" he pondered for a moment, "why don't you bring Misaki? I bet he'll love to hunt him down."
The seventeen-year-old grinned, and the blond returned his smile. She had been thinking the exact same thing.
"You'll need to bring at least one more person, too," Sokka then said.
"Maya?" Gloria suggested, but the other had someone else in mind.
"Asuka," he told her. "You should probably get Asuka. Much that we both hate her ego, she does have the brains, and she probably can think like Zuko, too," Sokka smirked. "Try to get her into the team, okay?"
The waterbender sighed reluctantly before nodding again. The ninja-like woman was not her favorite person, and the boy apparently knew this, too, because he flashed her a grateful smile before dismissing her. As she stepped out of Sokka's room, Gloria decided she might as well try to recruit the volatile former pirate and the haughty woman now; after all, she did have time, and the sooner the better, right?
After a few flight of stairs and several turns, she reached the door of a small chamber on the fourth floor. People rarely used the room… except Misaki. The blond knew that he often came here to practice with his blades, and hadn't he tried to convince the avatar to just give him the chamber a while back? She had forgotten what the young monk had said concerning the matter, but for sure, Misaki did not get his training room for himself in the end.
Thinking about the avatar and what had happened about a week ago, Gloria felt a rush of embarrassment. When she looked back to what she had done, she knew that it had been an irrational act of hers. After all, she had just assumed that the avatar had been dejected, although in reality, he could have just been tired. Besides, even if she had been right… she shouldn't have hugged him. It hadn't been in her place. If someone could give the child comfort, it should be someone the avatar had known long enough to be completely comfortable with. And Gloria did not have the pleasure to be that someone.
Now that she thought about it… Who did qualify as a true friend of the avatar's? It was no question that Sokka was definitely close to the airbender, but imagining the gruff adolescent giving the younger boy a hug… she couldn't see him do it. But there definitely was someone else who the fourteen-year-old could rely on… right? He couldn't be that alone?
The waterbender shouldn't pry into the affairs of others, especially not the avatar. She sighed when she realized this but quickly shook the feeling off. There was the current mission at hand. And pushing all thoughts concerning the airbender to the furthest depths of her mind, she put her ear to the door to make sure someone was inside. When she heard movement and a few soft grunts, she knew that the chamber was occupied. She tried knocking the door, but when the sixteen-year-old refused to answer it, she scowled and wrenched the door open…
… Only to have a sharpened blade pointed at her nose a nanosecond later.
"I didn't know you were trying to murder me," Gloria snarled at the astonished boy in front of her, who quickly withdrew his weapon and muttered an apology.
Sweating profusely, Misaki had both his metal blades in his hands, his bangs covering half his face while he breathed heavily, obviously affected by his intense training. He was certainly dressed for it; his black sleeveless shirt was unbuttoned, revealing a bare, heaving chest, and he had his pirates' trousers on. Apparently, those pants had several secret compartments perfect for hiding secret arms and tricks, as Misaki had bragged to her long ago, and although they looked baggy, they would certainly not affect his fighting negatively.
Not that Gloria believed anything about the superiority of his almighty pants.
"What are you doing here?" the sixteen-year-old then questioned bluntly, and the older one raised an eyebrow.
"I see you've been practicing well," she commented smoothly, gazing at the hard earth walls of the room, which were currently rather scarred by Misaki's blades.
"An earthbender can fix them," Misaki retorted casually, throwing his blades aside and sitting down cross-legged. "So how can I be of service to you?"
"You find a new way to make me laugh," Gloria rolled her eyes, chuckling at his formality. "Anyway, Sokka wants me to organize his hunt party for a certain hotheaded prince. You want to join the party?"
"You're going to look for that firebender?" the boy inquired in a more serious tone, obviously astonished. "Does the avatar know of this?"
"Not that I know of. Sokka probably told him, though. You want to check?"
"No thanks. But why…" Misaki began, even a little hesitant, "why would Sokka want to capture the prince?"
"Who knows?" Gloria shrugged. "But it is the prince; if there's anyone who can stand in the way of the avatar, it's him. Anyway, what's your answer?"
The former pirate stared at her for a while.
"Sure… I guess," he finally accepted. "But when will we search for him?"
"Why not today? I was thinking of getting Asuka to join us, too, and then after we eat lunch, we'll head down to Kali."
"Not today," Misaki suddenly said. Surprised at his sharp tone, Gloria raised an eyebrow at him. "I mean… I'm busy," the sixteen-year-old continued more calmly, "maybe another time?"
"And how exactly are you busy today?" the blond asked him skeptically. "Is it your training? Because if it is, you can do that anytime, Misaki. It's serving the avatar that's important."
"I know," the boy sighed. "But… there's something… I have to deal with today." He then attempted a half-smile. "Tomorrow, though. Will that be okay?"
She crossed her arms and stared meaningfully at the adolescent, but in the end, she gave in reluctantly. As she was preparing to leave, Misaki called to her once again.
"I don't think…" he told her uncertainly, "I don't think Asuka can help you today, either."
Gloria sighed but didn't say anything, merely nodding at him. However, when she glanced at the sixteen-year-old one last time before closing the door, she saw something new. There, near Misaki's shoulder, was something that looked like a burn. It covered a small area near the armhole of his shirt, and she had glimpsed at it for such a short second that it could have simply been her imaginations. But if the boy really did get burned… the injury was rather nasty. A cruel brown that made it evident that the skin had been sizzled –killed- in a very painful way. Yet how on earth… could Misaki have gone the wound? He couldn't have been preparing a fire, because it was still warm autumn outside. The only other reasonable explanation was…
But it couldn't be. Why would the boy look for a fight with the enemy when it didn't matter anymore?
He was right on one thing, however. Asuka candidly refused to accompany the waterbender to Kali today, and when Gloria asked her if she would at least join the hunt party, she implied that she had much better things to do that waste her time searching for a potentially dangerous prince. Of course, when she was done with Asuka, it was safe to say that the blond was not in her best moods. Both Misaki and Asuka had basically turned her down. Asuka, she could definitely understand… but Misaki? When had been the last time he refused anything for her? Sure, he would almost always deny her request at first, yet in the end, he always gave in, if not with much complaint. Gloria could swear that this was the first time he so quickly declined, even keeping his word this time…. and for what exactly?
In the end, the woman decided to seek Maya for company, and before the day was done, she had forgotten about the former pirate's strange behavior.
----- ----- -----
Tugging at his Earth Nation robe's sleeve in irritation, the wanted Fire Nation prince swiftly entered one of Kali's bars, the same one that Gloria and 'Hiro' had gone to just the other day. Immediately hating how dark the place was, he nevertheless gingerly made his way to the counter, where a dark-skinned man was working.
"Excuse me?" the eighteen-year-old tried to sound as courteous as possible. "Have you seen a man named Iroh lately?"
As soon as the words slipped out, Zuko knew he had made a mistake. The bartender frowned and peered at him suspiciously.
"You mean… retired general Iroh? The Dragon of the West? The brother of the fallen Fire Lord?"
Apparently, the man had done his homework. Zuko gritted his teeth but attempted to remain calm, looking at the bartender right in the eye.
"No, of course not him," he said in the most pleasant tone he could muster, "I mean… another man named Iroh."
"Ah," the other relaxed significantly. "I would hate to know that such a dangerous firebender sneaked right under my nose. But another man named Iroh? Nope, never seen him, never heard of him."
The banished one sighed and looked down. Where was his uncle? He had searched Kali for hours, yet he still hadn't found a trace of Uncle Iroh. He had even bumped into a few of his crew members earlier, but when he had asked them about the whereabouts of the retired general, none of them had had a clue. Where could his uncle be? If Zuko found out that Iroh had disappeared on him simply for the sake of shopping ("Nephew! I found this wonderful village with great bargains a few miles away and I just couldn't resist!"), he would certainly give the old man a lesson.
On the other hand, perhaps Uncle had come here but had simply not given his name to the bartender, which would have been a wise decision, Zuko suddenly realized. He turned to the tanned man and decided another approach.
"He's old," the adolescent began describing Iroh, "and he's short. Easy-going… does that ring a bell?"
"As a matter of fact," the bartender raised his hand to his chin, "it does. Just yesterday, and old man and a blond came to my bar, and the guy was old. And short. But if I remember correctly…. Wasn't his name Hiro?"
Hiro. Zuko couldn't help but smirk at that ridiculous name, right at the moment the door to the bar opened to reveal Uncle Iroh himself, smiling widely as he instantly turned to the bartender:
"Garu! I would very much like another helping of sushi for today please!"
Typical, the boy mused, looking at the older firebender in surprise and annoyance. He should have just expected his uncle to walk in when he least expected it. Garu (that was obviously the name of the man he had been talking to) grinned back at Iroh before promptly disappearing to the back of the bar to serve the retired general's orders. And it was only when his uncle took a seat did he discover that the prince had been in the restaurant all this time.
"Zuko! I didn't know you were here!" he exclaimed cheerfully, turning to his nephew.
"Obviously," the prince said flatly. "Uncle, where have you been?"
"Just around here, of course."
Of course, that wasn't true, as Zuko truly wanted to point out, yet he knew that it would be useless having an argument with the man over nothing. Instead, he sighed and decided to change the topic:
"Learned anything interesting?"
"Yes," the other firebender told him solemnly. "I learned that there are some very bad people here who try to sell venomous snakes to innocent people."
Zuko glowered at the man.
"I mean… about the avatar!" he hissed.
"Ah, yes –the avatar," Uncle Iroh repeated, sighing. "And I did learn something about him and his forces." He turned to stare meaningfully at his nephew. "Prince Zuko, you are a wanted man."
"I've been expecting that," the eighteen-year-old said quietly. "But how do you know this?"
"I had a very pleasant lunch with one of the avatar's warriors yesterday. Her name is Gloria by the way, and she's a very good waterbender…" Yet when the retired general saw Zuko's scowl (the boy remembered exactly who the blond was), he hastily went on: "She's looking for you, Zuko. And although she stopped her search yesterday, it won't be for long. My guess is that she's going to get other people to join her in the hunt."
"She won't find me," the banished one retorted confidently. "No matter how many people she has."
"Don't underestimate your enemies," Uncle Iroh sighed, but he didn't continue further. Instead he asked: "What are you planning to do, nephew?"
"Simple, uncle. I'm going to rescue Katara. Then we'll be out of here and we can turn to more important things, such as restoring the Fire Nation. I'm probably going back to the castle tomorrow."
"Nothing has changed then?"
"Nothing."
Just then, Garu returned to the counter carrying a metal tray of fresh sushi, and Iroh thanked the bartender before enthusiastically beginning his lunch.
"You want some?" the older firebender gestured to the raw fish, and Zuko pulled a disgusted face before vigorously shaking his head.
There was silence for a long time as the uncle chewed contently on his lunch while the nephew was submerged in his thoughts. At last, though, when Iroh's platter was half-empty, he turned back to Zuko, suddenly rather somber.
"You know," he began, "I've been wondering. What exactly are you going to do once you're back home, Prince Zuko?"
"I'm going to help my people," the teenager answered automatically. "I'm going to help rebuild the cities the avatar destroyed, as well as fix any other damage that has been done to my nation."
"Very good," Iroh nodded with approval. "But when that's done… what are you going to do?"
Zuko looked at his uncle in confusion and the man continued:
"It's good that you're thinking about helping your people, but you're not seeing the whole picture. What are you going to do with the Fire Empire? Are you going to follow your father's footsteps… and try to conquer the avatar?"
"Can I do that?" the younger one looked at Iroh, bemused. "I thought… I wasn't welcome among my people. I was planning to be more subtle when I come back home."
"No, Prince Zuko," the retired general told him gravely. "You will see that your popularity has been restored the moment Ozai was captured. Your nation relies on you –the Fire Empire's sole heir- to make everything better. So you can definitely count on a warm welcome. But the question is… are you going to take your father's place as Fire Lord? Are you going to look… to challenge the avatar?"
Frowning, the banished one looked into the distance, and when he spoke up again, his tone was tranquil and thoughtful:
"Now that I have this new option, uncle, I think…. I believe I am going to follow in my father's footsteps. I won't be a fool like he was," he managed a half-smile and Uncle Iroh returned it, "but I'm eventually going to rule over my people like I was supposed to."
"Are you going to try to rule over the other nations? To challenge the avatar?"
"Yes. Yes, I will. And I won't underestimate my enemies like my father has done. I'm going to win."
Iroh gazed at him calmly, and Zuko returned his solemn stare. His decisions, his destiny… it had always been up to his people… and his family. The Fire Nation now expected him to rise up –to be their hero. And his family…. he remembered his grandfather, his father… they expected him to rule, to dominate the others… to finish what they had done. He could never turn his back to his country, and as he looked at his hand, at the veins carrying the blood that had flowed in the body of his dead ancestors, he was destined since birth to fulfill what his kin had started. Although he had been banished, stripped of his title, the prince was presently beginning to think that his exile hadn't been as horrid as he had thought. It was because of his banishment that he had learned so much, that he had been able to see his father's mistakes from outside the protected walls of his home… And he knew he wouldn't repeat them as he probably would have done if he had remained the naïve and faithful son of the Fire Lord.
"And what if," his uncle spoke again, breaking Zuko's train of thoughts, "what if you fail? Not that I'm saying you will," he smiled meekly when the other gave him a death glare, "but if you fall like your father has done, what will happen to the Fire Nation? It will be as it is now, confused and in pieces… even worse, probably. Because it's a fact that the more times a nation loses, the worst its loss will be. Always."
"I won't lose," Zuko repeated, but his tone became unsure.
"Maybe you won't, but your successor perhaps will. Or else it will be his successor. And so on. Because the avatar," Iroh looked at him gravely, "can never be stifled out. Yes, the airbenders are almost all gone," he told him when he saw the eighteen-year-old open his mouth, "but the present avatar will be able to produce an airbender heir, I'm sure of it. If you manage to restore our country, one day the future avatar will do what has been done a few weeks ago and overthrow the Fire Nation once more. And I doubt our empire can take over the whole world now, when the avatar is alive and all-powerful."
The prince clenched his fist and looked at his uncle furiously, but the old man just coolly returned his gaze. He hated how right the older one's words seemed to be. But he would change all that; he was sure of it.
"It's going to be a cycle of futile attempts and total destruction," Iroh informed him. "At least if you are going to want to become Fire Lord. Who knows, though?" he shrugged. "Maybe you really will do something that'll change it all. But don't count on it."
"I don't want it to be a cycle," Zuko whispered, and he looked down, frowning. "I just want to do what my people want me to do. And they want… to be supreme."
"They want to be happy," his uncle corrected him quietly. "And it's your call how you're going to provide happiness to your nation."
The young firebender thought that the old man was just repeating what he had said, and recalling his uncle's sober words, the path that had been so straightforward to him before became twisted. How could serving his people suddenly become so hard? So confusing even that he had to question himself? Sighing, Zuko closed his eyes. For now, he wouldn't think too much into this, no matter how much knew he should. He would focus on rescuing Katara… because that –at least- was simple and easy.
----- ----- -----
It was so nice to be outside, to be free from her tiny cell for once.
Katara smiled to herself as she walked leisurely around the castle, enjoying the cool, fresh air and the warm sun shining from below. It was the second time she had been outside since she had been made prisoner here, and she was determined to make the most the most of this new, limited freedom. It had been difficult convincing Sokka to let her out, the girl mused, chuckling, but he had owed her, hadn't he? After all, he had almost broken a promise to her, and although her brother was trying to appear unfazed by what had happened, she knew that he had been affected. And it made her feel happy (perhaps even warm and loved) when she knew that he was trying to make sure it wouldn't happen again… even if they weren't exactly brother and sister anymore.
The ground was dry and even cracked slightly when she took a step, and it was sad to think that there was no foliage around. Sometimes the city of Omashu seemed arid and tasteless to her, making her wonder how its people could stand seeing the same, boring scenery everyday. The waterbender knew Aang would hate it after the first week… at least, he would have hated it before. Now, it didn't seem he cared much about these things at all, and after the encounter with him two days ago…
He's changed. So much.
It was an abrupt transformation from the scared twelve-year-old who had cried and pleaded to her when she had done the necessary, and her actions then… They were beginning to make her feel more horrible than before, transforming into this new sensation that resembled so much like a demonic snake slithering inside her, biting and hissing and determined to make as much damage as possible. But it had been what she had been supposed to do, was it not? And it couldn't have only been because of her… that the young monk had turned into a cool, indifferent teen, right?
Because then… then she would know that somewhere along the way, she had made a huge mistake. Somewhere along the way, she had so cruelly erased Aang's childish smile without knowing it… but that was the thing. She couldn't have done so without being aware of it, could she? No, it was impossible. She would have felt the change, and then… she would have tried to fix it.
His eyes. Gray and wintry. His tone. Controlled and poignant… even. Katara was so focused on what she had seen the other day that when she turned the corner, she almost didn't notice the sight in front of her. Almost. But when she did, she blinked in astonishment and couldn't help but smiling. It was Appa, and he was standing right besides the castle wall; she could tell that he was agitated because of his swishing tail and occasional irked grunt. What is he doing here? Yet the girl found out a second later when she saw a tall stool and two enormous buckets of water, as well as a set of different-sized brushes. The giant bison was waiting for someone to wash him, but whoever had that duty had obviously forgotten all about the cute, fluffy beast.
When Appa saw Katara, he let out a low sound (she could only guess that he was glad to see her), and she laughed as she made her way to him and patted his side.
"Aw, poor you," she whispered softly, smiling, "you were left all alone. Don't worry. I'll take care of you."
The flying bison nudged her affectionately with his head, and giggling, the sixteen-year-old took one of the bigger brushes, dipped it into the water, and began vigorously scrubbing Appa, chuckling when the animal shook his head or grunted in pleasure. She went through the thickest area of fur first, taking on the harder obstacles before lazily washing his feet and face. She used the stool and discovered that it was extremely hard reaching his back, yet she was determined to get the job done. Soon she got the hang of it, combing the fur while her thoughts eventually drifted elsewhere.
That day when she had seen Aang. She cringed when she thought about what she had said to try to make conversation, because she had only uttered the wrong things, hadn't she? She had tried to be polite but warm, but in the end, it probably looked to Aang as if she had been rude and obnoxious, talking to him as if nothing had happened. Katara sighed and buried her head in Appa's dry fur, pondering over the smart things she could have told the avatar. But there wasn't really much to say after what had happened, right? I should have just kept my mouth shut.
At that moment, she heard footsteps, and when she turned to look at the newcomer, she froze when she realized who it was. Appa, not sensing the tension, nodded his head and let out a soft sound of greeting. Katara, though, now realized that she shouldn't have been washing the flying bison. It hadn't been her job and… for the first time the terrible thought struck her… she was probably going to get in trouble for it. She swiftly jumped off the stool.
Meanwhile, Aang was looking at her rather strangely, and she couldn't name the emotion that dominated his visage (was it surprise? Annoyance? Even… anger?) before it was quickly wiped away to be replaced by his usual calm expression. Slowly, he made his way towards her, and when they were merely a foot or two apart, he tilted his head to the side and asked the expected question:
"What are you doing here?"
"Um…" Katara smiled meekly, "I was… washing Appa because… uh… nobody was here and I thought it would be a nice thing to do."
"How thoughtful," the avatar remarked quietly, rubbing his animal guardian's sides.
"Well, I'll be going now since you're here," the waterbender then said, nervous and eager to get away before she discovered how Aang felt about what she had done.
She straightened her back and began walking away from the avatar and his flying bison, but she only took a few steps before Aang called to her.
"Wait."
She stopped in her tracks, and after a moment of hesitation, she turned around. The fourteen-year-old stared at her, clearly bewildered for a second, before he frowned and shook his head. Though why should he be astonished by his own words, Katara wondered? Unless… it had just slipped from his mouth, that one syllable that he had not meant to say. She looked at him quizzically, and after a moment, he sighed.
"You can clean Appa if you want to," Aang told her quietly. Katara blinked at him, giving him a shy smile and slowly retracing her steps.
In a moment, she had a brush in her hands and had quickly climbed onto the stool, ready to finish her work on Appa's back. Aang had already taken a smaller brush and had begun combing Appa's side, and for a long while, they worked in silence. It required a lot of concentration for the waterbender to clean the flying bison's back, yet somehow, she always managed to glance at the young monk every now and then, only to see his tranquil gray eyes focused on Appa as he calmly brushed him. The animal guardian nudged the fourteen-year-old occasionally, perhaps even trying to produce a smile from the avatar, but it never worked; Aang merely stroked the animal's sides and murmured a few words before resuming his work.
Katara knew it was because of her that he wasn't smiling. She could see his shoulders were tense, and maybe he wished she would just go away. But then… why did he tell her to stay? Why did he call back to her… just then?
"How long does it usually take to clean Appa?" the girl then asked, adopting a light, nonchalant tone.
"A few hours," Aang replied.
"Do you do this by yourself?"
"Yes."
"Doesn't it… get lonely?" Katara tentatively questioned, and she suddenly felt sad; was the airbender often alone like this? Was this why… he was so distant?
"I have Appa," Aang said, closing his eyes. "I think that's enough."
That was when the girl also remembered the other pet Aang used to have. Glimpsing uncertainly at him, she paused for a moment before inquiring:
"What about Momo? What happened… to him?"
At that, the avatar finally sighed and looked at her, and whether she was imagining it or not, Katara thought she saw a trace of sorrow in his eyes.
"He's gone," Aang informed her, his voice almost a whisper. "After… what happened… he didn't stay with me for long. He went to Sokka after a while, but then it seemed he couldn't stand your brother either… so about a year ago, he just escaped the castle. I haven't seen him since."
"That's sad," Katara said softly. "I wonder why he did that."
"Oh, it's no question why," the other replied, slight bitterness in his tone now. "I… stopped playing with him when Sokka and I began forming the Resistance, and I guess… I'm not so much myself anymore… and Momo apparently didn't like that. He liked someone else," he sighed, "and when that someone disappeared, there was no reason for him to stay, was there?"
The sixteen-year-old heard Aang drop his brush, and when she looked at him, he had his head buried in Appa's fur, his eyes glazed, evidently reminiscing about what had happened. So he had noticed his transformation, Katara pondered, although she doubted that he fully knew how much he had changed. Everyone had realized what had come over him, even Momo, and thinking about the winged lemur, she felt a surge of anger overcome her. He had simply left the avatar when he had learned that the monk had stopped being the former child he had learned to love… not even bothering to look back or try to comfort him. She wasn't much better, though. That was why the least she could do was try to cheer Aang up.
"I'm sure he's still around," she then said, smiling at him. "All you have to do is lighten up –just a bit- and he'll probably return. I mean… deep down, you're still the same, right?"
The young airbender's head abruptly shot up. He looked at her with the same odd expression as before, and Katara immediately realized that –once again- she had said the wrong thing. She had no right telling the airbender what to do, especially after what she had done to him… It was most likely because of her that he was melancholy almost all the time now. She turned her head away from him.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, scrubbing Appa's back as vigorously as she could.
A long silence followed, and she was afraid she had truly angered Aang with what she had said before. It didn't look as if he would ever answer, and soon, she just gave up on the possibility and returned her full attention on cleaning Appa, at least until the avatar spoke up again:
"It's okay," he told her quietly.
Surprised, Katara turned to stare at him. Their eyes locked for a second before the boy turned away. Blinking in surprise, a smile gradually appeared on the girl's face, although she didn't know why she was happy, all of a sudden…
"Lightening up… I guess it's harder than it sounds, isn't it?" she then mused out loud. Aang said nothing, yet she knew that he was listening attentively. "Especially… if something really bad happened to you." Now, she could feel guilt writhing inside her, as well as the heavy feeling of sorrow she had so far managed to stifle. However, she persisted to continue: "Sometimes you need a lot of time alone to heal… and sometimes… it's better if you have people to be with you, people whom you can trust to make you feel better. You don't… have to be alone all the time."
It could have been the wind, but as it reached Katara's ears, she knew it was probably his sigh. A few minutes later, she was completely done scrubbing Appa's back, and she jumped off the stool, expecting to see him besides her. To her astonishment, however, Aang had been on the other side, and she felt as awkward as ever as she went to him while he was inspecting his animal guardian.
"I think we're done," the avatar said after a while, his voice telling her that he was a little bemused. "I thought it would take much longer."
"Well, we did work together, didn't we?" the waterbender pointed out, grinning slightly.
"Just one more touch," he then told her. "Step back."
Startled, Katara complied. Aang closed his eyes and frowned for a moment, his hands now clasped together, before he abruptly flung his arms to the side. A second later, a gush of wind encircled Appa, and when it dissipated, the girl saw that the flying bison was presently totally dry.
"Nice trick," she noted, and the airbender nodded distractedly; she could see that he was already beginning to lead Appa away from her.
Apparently, he still did not want to be in her company for long; the thought made her sigh. She was disappointed despite herself, even though he had bothered to at least listen to her, and as she headed back to the castle, she wondered whether she would see the avatar again. Next time, I'll be better. Because somehow, it was important for her to make him listen to her. To make him look at her. Although that was next to impossible.
She soon saw the small castle door from which she had come from, and she had just quickened her steps when all of a sudden, a hard hand clamped over her mouth.
She couldn't move anymore.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
A/N: Surprise! I'm not dead. (waves happily) I am so sorry that I didn't post a chapter last week, but these days, I was so busy, and if I just posted a chapter without revising it… I doubt it would be any good at all. So thank-you to all the readers who have been patiently waiting (or not) for this chapter, and I hope this part wasn't too bad, although I did edit it a little too fast. What can I say? Do you want an okay chapter this week or a superb chapter perhaps never? I know the beginning was a little boring, but there was a cliffhanger at the end at least, right? Although the last time I checked, people didn't like cliffhangers too much. Ahahahaha… (slinks away)
Oh, yeah. A few people deleted this story from their favorites after the last chapter got posted, and that made me sad, although I have a good idea why. I bet those people were strict Zutara shippers, and they couldn't stand the slight, slight AK fluff in the last chapter. And all I can say to that is: My God, are you guys close-minded and dense. I didn't make the two do anything extreme like kiss, and you already abandon my story. Very high tolerance there, hm?
Anyway, the new season of ATLA has at last began. Most of you already watched the new episode, I suppose. What did you think of Episode 14? Personally, I think it concentrated a little too much on love (yes, I'm a love cynic here), and although it's cute how Aang has a crush on Katara, I really don't think ATLA should focus on love. After all, there is the main picture out there, with the avatar destined to defeat Lord Ozai and all…. Just my opinion. And I can just imagine the reactions of the Zutara shippers (laughs). Don't worry; the 'powerful bender' can still be Zuko, although Aang does deserve a chance, doesn't he? He just isn't the little, immature twelve-year-old that most Zutara people think he is. Go Aang!
I got so many reviews for the last chapter. I am so thankful that I have eighty reviews now.
MysticWaterBender3: Yeah, I guess I did make Sokka a little too soft when he allowed Katara to go outside, but as you said, the story needs to move on! Thanks for your loyal reviews!
TempestJLU: Thank-you for loving my story and here is the long awaited update!
Aang's biggest fan: Thank-you for reviewing two times (I'm happy I made a good summary for this fanfiction; the previous one was starting to get to me), and you like my descriptions? Gracias!
Aangsair: How do I do it, you ask? I'm glad you know that updating in autumn (when school just starts) is no little feat. Let's just say… I have the will and inspiration? And don't worry; I'm sure you'll become inspired to continue Love Lasts soon, too. Sorry, I didn't read Chapter 7 for your fanfiction yet, but I'll still try. And thank-you for your fantastic review!
SapphireStars: Yup. Iroh isn't too imaginative, is he?
tigerchic121: Thank-you!
Aangsgal: Nope, not even near to the end. And I'm so ecstatic that you consider this humble fanfiction the best story you ever read. Although I doubt it will remain for long with all the better stories out there…
Spleef: Thank-you! And poor Aang….
AirGirl13: Haha. Violent Aang. That would have been funny if he attacked Katara, but that would be a little OOC. Thanks for reading my fanfiction!
Ryuusui: You're so awesome. Without you, I wouldn't have eighty reviews now, so thank-you so much! Thanks also for your great compliments!
Next chapter… will probably not be posted next week. Sorry, but I may not have access to a computer then. I'll try to post Chapter 11 in two weeks, though, okay? Hang on there!
Review if you're nice.
