Gladiator

by Seyary-Minamoto

In a world where the Avatar wasn't found, the Fire Nation took over two nations and they strive to overcome the last one. Water Tribe warrior Sokka seeks to fight for his people's rights, but he's captured by his enemies. His life is no longer in his hands as he fights as a Gladiator, and his fate will eventually depend on the Fire Nation Princess, who needs him for her own ends...

79. Chapter 79: Pairs Tournament 8

"And how are you feeling today?" Mai asked, sitting on the bed next to the former gladiator.

Suki looked much better, physically: she still was rather wary of her surroundings, though, and there was a certain hint of sadness in her eyes that Mai feared might never fully disappear. The girl hadn't wanted to leave her room since being brought into it, and she had only left the bedroom to take a single bath, something she had agreed to rather reluctantly. She hadn't wanted the servants to assist her in it, but she couldn't quite do it by herself, so she had no choice but to accept their help. She wasn't comfortable amongst all these strangers, both the noble ones and the servants alike. And while she didn't think they wanted to hurt her, her body instinctively recoiled from any unwanted physical contact, which was pretty much any possible form of physical contact.

She couldn't quite trust these people, even though a part of her really wanted to. But how could she, when she knew nothing about them or what their intentions towards her might be?

"I'm better," she said, despite still feeling rather miserable. "But everything hurts still."

"It can't be helped. You were so battered and bruised it's a wonder you're still in one piece," said Mai, sighing. Suki looked up at her, warily.

"C-could you tell me… who you are?" she asked, taking Mai by surprise. "I just don't know anything about you people, and it's starting to worry me."

"Is that so?" Mai asked, with a weak smile. "Well, my name is Mai. The girl who brought you here was Ty Lee, and the man with her was Haru. And…"

"Why did they bring me here?" Suki asked, frowning. "And… why are you looking after me? Is someone paying you to do that?"

"Should someone be paying me for it?" Mai asked, intrigued. Suki froze before shaking her head.

"N-no, no, I just… I don't understand why you're doing it, is all," she said, shrugging. "I'm a total stranger to you, aren't I? So why show me all this kindness?"

"Well… helping random people isn't something I do on a regular basis, I'll admit," said Mai, shrugging. "But you're the most interesting thing to happen to me since Yuudai, so I guess that's partly why I'm doing this."

"Uh… Yuudai?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My son," Mai replied, with a small smile. "He's almost one year-old by now. Time has passed in a blur, really. It almost feels like he was born yesterday."

"Your son, huh…" said Suki, with an almost-heartfelt smile. "He must be cute."

"He is, though he's quite a messy child as well," said Mai, smiling a little. "I'm lucky Zuko is taking care of him while I'm up here with you."

"Oh…" said Suki, lowering her gaze. Zuko was his name, yes. That's what he had said when they met in the Arena, now she remembered it. But if he was taking care of the child, did it mean he was this woman's husband? Probably… the idea made Suki feel slightly uncomfortable. Why had he come see her so many times in all those fights if he had a family to take care of?

And if he was this girl's husband… then it probably meant he was the one who had wanted her to be saved. Ty Lee, the one who had bought her off Akira and Yong, had mentioned she had been asked to do this by someone. So, had it been it Zuko who had asked her to find Suki? Why, though?

"He actually wanted to come talk to you, but I decided to check on you first," Mai said. "You two seem to know each other, given how worried he is about your situation. How did you meet him?"

"W-well, we just ran into each other a couple of times, in the Arena…" Suki said, shrugging. "I literally bumped into him once, before one of my fights. Then he came to talk to me after the fight was over, and… that's it, I guess. I think he had been watching my fights for a while before, but we'd never talked until then."

"Huh…" said Mai, frowning. Zuko, frequenting gladiator fights? Something about that just didn't feel right. As much as Zuko had an aggressive side to his personality, and while Mai knew he had sponsored Sokka once before while Azula had been sick, Mai was under the impression he wouldn't be a fan of gladiator fights.

"I'm sure he was only betting or something, you don't have to worry about it," said Suki, making Mai raise an eyebrow.

"Why would I be worried?" she asked. "Well, then… should I send him upstairs? Do you feel like talking to him, or would you rather rest for a little while longer?"

"I… I think I'd like to talk with him, yes," said Suki, nodding. If anything, she wanted to thank him for sending someone to save her.

"Alright then," said Mai, standing up and leaving the room without another word.

Suki sat up on the bed, feeling somewhat nervous as she waited for the mysterious Zuko to appear before her again. Despite how uneasy she was about the rest of the people she had met lately, she felt somewhat comfortable with the idea of being around Zuko, even when he was almost as much of a stranger as the rest of them. But she had so many questions to ask him, so many things to say…

When he showed up at the room's threshold she couldn't help but stare at him eagerly, which seemed to surprise him. He looked just as nervous as she felt, biting his lower lip as he walked into the room, as if he were unsure if he was welcome here or not.

"Uh… s-sorry I didn't bring any food with me this time," he said, dropping his gaze.

"You think you need to feed me in order to talk with me?" Suki asked, smiling despite herself. When Zuko blushed she actually laughed softly. She didn't even remember the sound of her own laugh.

"I just thought… yeah, well… never mind," he said, sitting on the chair next to her bed, his cheeks still flushed. "How are you feeling? Mai told me you're doing better today… you still look pretty thin, but you do look better than yesterday anyways."

"Well, they did wash me, so I guess that was a good improvement on my appearance," said Suki, sighing. "And I've had three decent meals in the last twenty-four hours, which is quite the rarity… so I suppose I am better, yes. I just…"

"You're still hurt," he said, lowering his gaze. Suki shrugged.

"Well, it's hard to heal in a matter of a day," she said, smiling weakly. "But I was going to say I'm just really confused about a lot of things. The past months have been horrible, and the last few days have been a blur. And I'd just like a couple of answers… if that's possible."

"W-wha… of course," said Zuko, sitting up straight and looking at her with determination. "Mai hasn't answered your questions yet?"

"No, not really," said Suki, smiling weakly. "I suppose she's pretty busy, what with taking care of your son and having to help a slave she never even knew…"

"Uh… my son?" Zuko asked, surprised.

"W-well… yeah?" said Suki, blinking blankly. "I mean… Mai said that you were taking care of her son, right?"

"Well, that's her son alright," Zuko said, chuckling a little. "But he's not mine. Mai is an old friend, and I'm helping her take care of her son Yuudai lately. Her husband is called Ruon Jian, and he's the baby's father, not me."

"Oh… I see now," said Suki, smiling again. "Then it makes sense now that she wouldn't know you came to watch my fights. I was thinking you were sneaking around without your wife knowing…"

"No, none of that," said Zuko, shaking his head. "I'm not married, and I don't have children."

"One less mystery then, I guess," she said, lying back against the pillows.

"You mean, that out of everything you wanted to ask, this is what you wanted to ask the most?" Zuko asked, at which Suki blushed a little.

"Eh… not really, no," she said, smiling guiltily. "It's the first thing that came to mind, though. I'd very much like to know why I was saved from Shu Wo, to be honest. Did you send them to get me?"

"Me? No," said Zuko, shaking his head. "I had nothing to do with it… and I'm sorry to say I didn't. I went to the Arena one day to ask about your next fight, but the fellow at the counter, Shoji, told me you weren't in the ranking anymore. I asked him why, but he didn't know, and I didn't look into what had happened to you. I should have, though. Had I known what you were going through…"

"Well, don't beat yourself up for that," said Suki. "It wasn't your fault."

"But I could have helped you sooner," Zuko muttered, biting his lip. "If only I hadn't been… if I hadn't been wasting my time feeling sorry for myself, or picking fights with people I didn't need to pick fights with, then maybe I could have been figuring out what had happened to you…"

"Well, to be perfectly fair, we only met once," said Suki, smiling a little. "So you weren't obligated to help me in any way. You had nothing to do with what happened to me either, so don't feel so guilty about it. I'm out of there now, and that's what matters most."

"Yeah… I guess so," he said, sighing. "I'm still sorry, though."

"But if you had nothing to do with it …" said Suki, raising an eyebrow. "Then who did? If not you, who sent those two to save me?"

"Well, according to what I know… it was my sister who sent them to get you," said Zuko, frowning.

Suki raised an inquisitive eyebrow, her confusion only increasing at that.

"Your sister?" she repeated. "Why would your sister want to save me? Do I know her?"

"Uh… well, you fought her gladiator once," said Zuko, shrugging a little. "That's the only link I can think of between the two of you. I don't know how she found out about you, or why she sent Ty Lee to get you…"

"I fought her gladiator?" Suki said. "Which one was hers?"

"That big oaf, Sokka… the Blue Wolf," Zuko said, uttering the last three words with derision.

Suki frowned at that, even more confused. She hadn't thought about the Blue Wolf in quite a long time… let alone about his sponsor. And she seemed to recall his sponsor wasn't just any sponsor, but the first woman to ever sponsor a gladiator in the Superior League… and that woman was none other than Princess Azula.

Her eyes widened as she stared at Zuko in utter shock, as if she'd seen a ghost. Zuko jumped at the expression on her face, worried about what had caused her to look at him like this.

"What's wrong?" he asked, as she pointed a finger towards him.

"Y-you are… oh, for crying out loud, I should've known, you… you're Prince Zuko!"

"Oh… that," said Zuko, blinking a few times. "Uh… yeah. That's me."

"W-what the…? Why are you a…? How could you…? Huh?!" the girl mumbled, incapable of finishing a sentence. Never had she imagined she would cross paths with the Fire Lord's children, let alone that one of them would constantly show her kindness while the other one would save her life for no apparent reason. She couldn't make any sense out of these latest, shocking revelations. How was this happening…?

Despite himself, Zuko started chuckling at her string of unfinished questions. The dumbstruck look on her face was truly amusing.

"Why am I a Prince? I wish I knew," he said, shrugging. "I didn't ask to be born one, if that's what you're wondering."

"No, no, that's not it…" said Suki, shaking her head. "Why are you here if you're a Prince? W-why would you even…? Why did you go to all those gladiator fights? Why would that interest you and why…w-why would I interest you at all?"

"W-well…" said Zuko, blushing a little upon her last question. "I wasn't all that interested in gladiator fights, it's true. Ty Lee dragged me to watch your fight with Sokka, though, and… well, I was amazed by you. You were such a great warrior that you even made the whole thing look graceful. And you weren't graceful only in that fight against him, but in all your fights. So… yeah. Watching you fight was quite, uh… extraordinary. I was intrigued by your style, so I kept watching your fights because of that."

"So, you're saying it was just my fights you watched?" Suki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh… yeah," said Zuko, smiling a little and dropping his gaze.

"I see," she muttered, blushing a little despite herself. That was unexpected. She had seen him in plenty of her fights, but she had guessed he might be a frequent Arena visitor. She had no idea he only cared about her combats. "So… you kept hiding your features so people wouldn't know you were the Prince?"

"Yeah, well, I tried to hide them but according to some people I failed at it," said Zuko, smiling weakly. "But a lot of people would have thought the same thing you did if they knew it was me. Why would a Prince bother coming to gladiator fights? Yet nobody seems to be bugged over Azula being involved with the Gladiator Business, even more involved than I ever was…"

"Oh… well, you might be surprised," said Suki, biting her lip. Zuko frowned.

"Huh?"

"Well, it feels like a thousand years ago, really…" said Suki, sighing. "But I remember it was a bit of a scandal when she joined. Some sponsors were angry, thinking she was just joining to steal their money and glory for no reason… and they were sure that she would buy off the judges, so her gladiator wouldn't fail to win every fight, regardless if he deserved it or not. After a while, the talk about her died down… I suppose they either got used to it, or they discovered she was actually playing by the rules, so they had no right to complain."

"Really?" said Zuko, surprised. "They thought so lowly of her?"

"Most the ones who did were stuck-up noblemen," said Suki, sighing. "My old sponsor was friendly towards them for… well, for his own reasons. So, I heard a few conversations between sponsors that I didn't really care for."

"Well… in your defense, I do believe it was unfair that Sokka won when he fought against you," said Zuko, and Suki laughed.

"Not really. He cut my sword in half, that was a big deal. He wasn't the best fighter I've ever faced, but he did win that fight, no contest."

"Heh, well, you fought better than him anyways," Zuko said, proudly. "And he resorted to stupid things like asking you out to win, so…"

"Oh, right," said Suki, smiling a little. "I'd forgotten all about that."

"You forgot?" Zuko asked, surprised. "Do you mean… you didn't go out with him?"

"Just once," said Suki. "Right after the fight, because I did say I'd go out with him if he won. But he wasn't exactly fun to be with… the whole idea of a date was weird to begin with, and he was in a daze during most of it, so nothing came from it."

"Then… you weren't involved," Zuko said, trying not to show how pleased he was to hear these news.

"Not really," said Suki, shrugging. "I never even saw him again after that."

"Huh… then I guess I really don't get it," said Zuko, frowning. "For a moment I figured he might be the reason why Azula sent Ty Lee to get you, but if this is the case, then I guess it wasn't because of him."

"You think he would have asked her to do that?" Suki said, surprised. "And… that she would have listened to him if he had?"

"Heh, well, if you'd seen them interact you'd see things are pretty weird with them," said Zuko, scratching the back of his head. "It's almost as if she didn't think of him as a slave. And that's weird, considering it's my sister we're talking about. But according to Mai and Ty Lee, she's totally in love with him and I don't know what other nonsense…"

"Well… I don't know your sister, but that does sound a bit weird," said Suki, frowning. "Some sponsors did use their gladiators as… well, sex slaves, if they felt like it. I'd never heard of a sponsor falling in love with their gladiator, though. It'd be even weirder in this case, considering she's a Princess…"

"Yeah, I agree," said Zuko, nodding, but he noticed Suki's face had darkened upon that. He grimaced, looking at her in concern. He didn't know for certain what she had suffered through during the past months… but he had the suspicion she knew what she was talking about when she uttered the term 'sex slave'. The sole thought made him cringe and clench his fists, and he berated himself again and again for not having helped her sooner. He was the worst…

"Well, I suppose you could just ask your sister about it," Suki said, bringing Zuko's attention to her again. "She'll know why she sent Ty Lee to find me, if there was a reason for it at all."

"I would ask, sure, but she's not here right now. She's in some Pairs Tournament or something…" said Zuko, shrugging. But Suki's eyes lit again at those words.

"Oh… in the Green Gates, huh?" she said, smiling. "Who'd have thought I'd think of that place fondly nowadays…?"

"Huh," said Zuko, with a weak smile as well. It was heartbreaking to think that she would brighten up by remembering the days she'd fought as a gladiator.

"I fought in a few Pairs Tournaments myself," she said, smiling. "Me and my partner never won, though. And I joined some other events, yeah. There was this weird one, not even in an Arena, about climbing up a wall… I never even knew what the point of it was. They only held it once, because some earthbender just pulled down the wall and stood atop the spot where it had been before, saying he'd finished the job and that they ought to give him all the points."

With that, she started laughing. Zuko joined her, hardly realizing he was doing it. The sight of her smile was quite reassuring for him.

"Anyhow…" she said, looking at Zuko again. "What do you think your sister might want me for? Just so I'll be ready once she returns, because…"

"Hey… hey," he said, leaning forward. "Don't worry about that right now. I would tell you what she wants, or what I think she wants, but I'm not smart enough to figure her out. I don't think anyone is, really. So, stop worrying about her. All you have to do is relax and feel better. Don't get stressed about this. I'm sure Azula doesn't want to… well, I don't know what she wants or doesn't want, but I don't think more harm will come to you. In fact, none will. I won't let that happen."

"You won't let it happen?" Suki asked, smiling. "Well, I could use someone watching out for me right now. I've got no weapons and I can hardly move as I am, so thanks for that."

"W-well, yeah… no need to thank me," he said, with a shy smile. "It's, uh… the right thing to do. In any case, I don't think anyone wants to harm you anymore to begin with. The most that can happen to you in this house is that Yuudai sits atop you and drools all over your clothes…"

"Oh, well, that is fearsome…" she said, chuckling a little. "Well… it's good to know. I could use some peace and quiet for the time being."

"You'll have it," said Zuko, smiling. "We'll make sure of that."

Suki smiled back, feeling rather relieved after this conversation. Not all her questions had been answered, but it was a start. And it was quite a good start, regardless of how unexpected some of the revelations had been. She gulped again when she remembered she was in the presence of the Fire Nation's Prince, and as she thought about that, plenty of new questions arose in her mind.

"Something wrong?" Zuko asked, when he saw her swallowing hard.

"It's just… you're a Prince," she said, shaking her head in disbelief. "And now that I really think about it, I just… I guess I have way more questions to ask, but I figure I'll just be pestering you, so maybe not."

"Pestering me?" Zuko asked, smiling a little. "No, actually… not at all. I wouldn't mind answering your questions."

"You don't have questions to ask me instead?" Suki asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I guess I have a few more, but they can wait," said Zuko. "I figure you might not feel like answering them right now."

"And do you feel like answering the ones I have for you?" said Suki, surprised. "I mean, the things I've heard about Prince Zuko… it sounds like you've been through some awful experiences, haven't you?"

"Huh… yeah, I guess," he said, shrugging. "But I've had eleven years to cope with it all, so I think I'm ready to talk about it now. You're welcome to ask anything you want to know, really."

"Really?" she said, smiling a little "Well, then…"

Mai had come upstairs again, holding Yuudai tightly in her arms. She had come to make sure everything was going smoothly, just in case Suki might need some time alone again. But as she looked into the room she was surprised by how well the conversation between her and Zuko was going. She actually raised an eyebrow when she heard Zuko was chuckling, and she couldn't help but smile when she heard Suki talking so calmly and animatedly, even though there was still a certain hint of sadness in the girl's countenance. But, without a doubt, it was good progress. And that Zuko was laughing along with her, as she asked him something about peaches, made Mai smile as well.

"It seems they're getting along just fine, huh, Yuudai?" said Mai, smiling at her son, who smiled back and touched her face gently as she returned downstairs.

---

The medical check took longer than it usually did, because, while Toph was perfectly unscathed, some of Sokka's wounds had opened again after the fight. He was tended to quite gently by the healers, but even so, Toph had to help him walk, letting him support his weight on her shoulders as they headed to the vestibule.

"Weird that your beloved didn't come to check on you right away, huh?" said Toph, smirking. Sokka huffed.

"She's got plenty of stuff to worry about at the moment, and I'll be fine," he said, trying not to make a big deal out of it despite having wished Azula would come see him after all.

"Yeah, well, you say that, but you look pretty damn s-…"

"Sokka!"

Despite how badly Sokka felt, his eyes lit up when he heard his sponsor's voice. He smiled at Azula, who was at the top of the stairs that led down to the vestibule, with Iroh next to her. Sokka waved at her with one hand, and he stopped using Toph as support once they reached their sponsors.

"Are you alright?" Azula asked, looking at him worriedly.

"Eh, apparently a few wounds opened again because some of my movements were way too forceful… but I'm fine, really," he said, smiling goofily.

"You fool… I thought we'd told you not to do anything risky," Azula said, frowning.

"Well, it's a bit hard not to when you have a freaky guy with hook-swords trying to tear you to shreds, you know?" said Sokka, pouting. "Here I was, expecting some nice, encouraging words but no, you just want to nag me…"

"If you didn't give me so many reasons to nag you, maybe I wouldn't be so eager to do it, mind you," Azula said, sighing but smiling. "Still, it's done. You can focus on healing from now on."

"It is done, huh?" Toph exclaimed, laughing happily as she punched Iroh's shoulder. The old man laughed at that, despite how much the blow hurt. "Damn… it almost felt like this Tournament would never end. Hardly feels like we've been in this city for only five days."

"Indeed," said Iroh, chuckling. "But it was the most exciting thing to happen to me in a long time. Perhaps it was even too much excitement for an old man like me, huh?"

"Well, you're free to return to the armchairs, the tea-brewing and the Pai Sho now, Uncle," Azula said, smiling at him. Iroh nodded promptly.

"Yes, yes, no doubt," he said. "I'll gladly leave the crazy things to the young ones like you three from now on."

"Toph! Oh, Toph, that was amazing!" sounded a female voice behind them, coming from the hallway that led to the stands.

Toph turned with a self-satisfied smirk when she heard her mother call for her. Poppy Beifong was approaching her daughter, and she leaned down to hug Toph tightly as soon as she reached her. Her husband was right behind her, and he patted Toph's shoulder kindly while the earthbender embraced her mother back.

"That was truly remarkable, Toph," Lao said, proudly. "You beat them without getting hurt at all!"

"See, I told you I was good, didn't I?" Toph snickered, smirking, as the group started to make its way down the stairs.

They were greeted by clapping and congratulations when they were halfway through the flight of steps that led to the vestibule. Several staff members approached them, with one fat nobleman behind them who was holding a large trophy in his hands.

"General Iroh, Princess Azula, I am Ying Man, the chairman of the Green Gates," the nobleman said, beaming at them. "And I'm here to award you both with the trophy for your triumph in the Pairs Tournament!"

Again, the people in the vestibule broke into applause, and the man beamed as he handed the trophy to Iroh... Only to find he couldn't take it, for his hands were on his crutches. He smiled apologetically at him and jerked his head towards Azula, and she sighed.

"Oh, well," she muttered, before taking the heavy trophy on her hands. "For once I do feel like taking some of the credit, I'll admit."

"Hehe, well, you do deserve it, so cut yourself some slack," said Toph, smirking.

"So do you, though. I guess we all do," Azula said, and Sokka smiled.

"Well, then, we all should accept the trophy together!" he exclaimed happily, putting a hand on the golden relic shaped as the Green Gates.

"Sounds good to me," said Toph, doing the same thing with a grin on her face.

"Oh, and, also..." said Ying Man, ushering two young men to approach the Tournament's winners. The men carried a large bag with them. "Your winnings."

Iroh's eyes widened as he looked at the bag with amazement. Azula and Sokka were also impressed by it, and even Toph, despite being unable to see the bag with her own two eyes, whistled in approval when she sensed how big it was.

"Seems like a lot of winnings, huh?' she said, smirking.

"I could buy a teashop with this!" Iroh exclaimed excitedly.

"Yes, you could, but you won't," Azula said, cuttingly. "That'd be one serious waste of money..."

"We ought to divide it between the four of us, then," Iroh suggested, smiling. "And I'll buy all the tea I want with my share!"

"Still a waste, but it's more reasonable if you do it with your part" Azula conceded, shrugging.

"What are you going to use it for?" asked Sokka, looking at her inquisitively.

"To make up for all the money I invested in this ridiculous journey, of course," Azula replied, simply, and Sokka smiled.

"W-well, that's good then," said Ying Man, though he seemed surprised still by Iroh's intentions to share the money with the gladiators. "They are your winnings, so you're free to use them as you wish, naturally. In any case, well done and congratulations for winning the Pairs Tournament!"

With that, the vestibule broke into another round of applause. Toph grinned proudly, her parents patting her shoulders as she enjoyed the triumph... But today it meant more than it ever had to Toph. Today she hadn't just won a fight: she had proven herself to her parents. And for the first time ever, she felt like they were truly a family.

But before they could continue discussing what they'd do with their respective shares of the money, some agitated voices drifted from the hallway that led to the waiting rooms. Sokka was the first to notice it, and he frowned before glancing over his shoulder.

"Leave us alone! Come on, Longshot! We have to get out of here!"

When the agitated voice reached Azula she handed the trophy to Toph, who didn't seem to mind holding it despite also being curious about what was happening above. Azula climbed the steps again, and Sokka followed her, despite the pangs of pain from his back, where he had sustained his worst injuries.

They recoiled when they discovered who was shouting. Azula struck a firebending stance, and Sokka instinctively reached for his sword when they saw the Savage Hook storming towards the stairs, with the Iron Rain behind him. He stopped when he saw his way was blocked, and he breathed heavily as he looked around himself nervously. He was gripping his archer friend by the wrist, and the glint of despair in their eyes betrayed they were both very confused for some reason.

Sokka lowered his hand when he met the Hook's gaze. They stared at each other for a moment, until the Hook swallowed hard and looked at them with determination.

"Let us pass," he grunted, and Azula was ready to give him one of her trademark responses when Sokka placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Wait," he said, and Azula frowned before looking at him with confusion.

"Wait for what?" she asked.

"His eyes," said Sokka, frowning. "They're… different from before."

The Hook stared at Sokka with something reminiscent to hope upon hearing Sokka say those words, albeit he was still confused.

"His pupils were all creepy and big before, Azula," Sokka explained. "But they're not anymore. There's something different about him now. And heck, he just talked to you, right?"

"Right," said Azula, frowning. She didn't recall having heard the Hook uttering a single rational sentence before. "But he's trying to escape…"

"Yeah, which really shouldn't be our problem, right?" said Sokka, shrugging.

Azula dropped her stance and stared at Sokka doubtfully. Healers and staff members reached the Savage Hook and the Iron Rain, who instinctively moved away from them.

"While you may be right about that, I doubt it's a good idea to let a guy like the Hook wander loose around Ba Sing Se," Azula said, sternly. "So yes, it is our problem. His sponsor is gone, so by logic we'll need to do something about…"

"We're in… Ba Sing Se?" the Hook said, frowning. "W-what is this place? What do you mean with that about a sponsor, and…?"

Azula turned towards the Hook, confused. But it seemed the more confused one was him. His friend was scowling at the healers that had approached them, and the Hook's grip on his wrist loosened as his eyes gained an inquisitive quality now.

"What's going on?" he said, staring at both Azula and Sokka.

"You're trying to say you don't know where you are, or what you were doing here?" Azula said, frowning. "When just a moment ago you were fighting wildly in the Arena…?"

"Fighting…? Is that why I'm wounded?" he asked. "Why the hell was I…?"

"He doesn't remember anything?" Toph asked, having only just climbed to the top of the stairs along with her parents and Iroh, and they were staring at the Hook and the Iron Rain with curiosity.

"Apparently not," said Sokka, gulping. "Which is pretty damn weird. Why would he forget…?"

"You said his pupils were dilated, didn't you, Sokka?" Azula asked.

"Yeah, I remember noticing that back in my first fight against him," Sokka said, nodding.

"And he doesn't remember anything," said Azula, frowning. "I think we've got a real mystery on our hands. By the sound of it, it'd seem this man and his friend were hypnotized… which wouldn't be all that surprising, considering they've been stuck with Long Feng and the Dai Li for who knows how long."

"Huh?" said Sokka, surprised. "Hypnotized? How?"

The Hook gritted his teeth as he lifted a hand to his head. Some memories returned after he heard what the girl with the hairpiece had just said, memories of dark tunnels, green crystals, and words about a lake…

"The Dai Li hypnotized people back in the day, when the Earth Kingdom was still standing," said Azula. "At least, I believe that's what the rumors said…"

"How could they hypnotize…?" Sokka asked, frowning. "That's plain weird. And why didn't you Fire Nation guys do anything about them if they were hypnotizing people?"

"I figured they were just rumors," Azula confessed. "And I suppose they were, because it was never confirmed that they had hypnotized anyone…"

"And dilated pupils are a sign of hypnotism?" Sokka asked, frowning.

"I don't know if they are," Toph said, walking towards them. "But something else probably is. Their heart rate, and their breathing… they're uneven now. They were perfectly even back when we were fighting, or at least, far too normal considering they were in the middle of a fight. Back then, their bodies almost felt as though they were fighting while being asleep or something. Now, though, they actually feel like normal people do when they're anxious."

"H-how…?" said the Hook, staring at Toph with utter confusion. "How does she know that?"

"She's a clever girl," Azula said, turning towards him again. "Very well, then, Hook… though I guess I shouldn't call you that. What was your real name again? I think Long Feng mentioned it, but…"

"I'm Jet…" he said, frowning. "And this is Longshot. And… you know Long Feng?"

"Not as well as you do, I suspect," Azula said. "Well, then, Jet. Would you mind coming with us? I believe you need some answers… and I also believe you might shed light on some subjects we have yet to understand."

Jet looked at Azula warily for a moment, but after weighing his options, he nodded at her. He didn't seem too eager to comply with Azula's request, and he kept glaring at the hairpiece on her head, but he ushered his friend Longshot to follow him as he stepped towards Sokka and Azula.

Jet and Longshot were quite surprised upon arriving in Ba Sing Se's Imperial Palace, but their amazement came with wariness as well. They glared at every Fire Nation soldier that crossed their path, and Jet even gritted his teeth whenever he sighted the Fire Nation emblem, but despite everyone feared they might turn violent, they never did.

They were led into a common room in the Palace, along with Azula, Iroh, Sokka and Toph: the Beifongs stayed with Governor Tiang, while he supervised the imprisonment of the Dai Li agents.

"Well, we'd be glad to explain everything you might need to know, Jet," Azula started, once they were all settled in the room: Jet and Longshot were sitting next to each other on a couch while Toph and Iroh took an armchair each. Sokka was on a wooden chair, while Azula was the only one standing. "But first of all, we need to know just what we have to explain in the first place. Your memories seem to be foggy, so tell us whatever you can remember about your circumstances and we'll try to fill in the blanks, if possible."

Jet sighed and dropped against the backrest of his seat. He looked at Azula with inquisitive eyes, as though he meant to ask her a question, but he decided to comply with her wishes regardless.

"As I already told you, my name's Jet. And he's Longshot," he said, jerking his head towards the young man sitting next to him. "We met a long time ago… his village was burned by the Fire Nation, and so was the town where I lived. I… I wanted to take revenge on the Fire Nation for the damage they'd done, even when I was only eight at the time, so I decided to fight back against the Fire Nation somehow. I started a gang called the Freedom Fighters, and Longshot was one of my first recruits. We became a big group eventually… we lived in some tree houses we had built in the forest near Gaipan Village. And we attacked whatever Fire Nation people we saw. It didn't matter who they were: soldiers, civilians, children, elders… we'd attack every single one of them just because they were Fire Nation. There was no worse crime for us than for someone to be Fire Nation."

Azula frowned at that, and Sokka looked at her warily. This guy sounded a lot like he had back in the day, and he was aware of how much it displeased Azula to find herself face-to-face with someone who hated the Fire Nation like this…

"We had plans to destroy the Fire Nation, but they were… they were the stupid plans of a stupid teenager," said Jet, shaking his head. "I wanted to destroy the nearby village, because I thought it'd be a great blow against the Fire Nation. The village had been colonized some years before we started living in the Forest, and I believed it was better off destroyed than in the hands of the Fire Nation. There was a reservoir in the valley, and by blowing up the dam we could flood the village… so we started putting our plans together, stole some blasting jelly from a group of soldiers who were stationed in our forest, and we waited until the reservoir was full. And after a few months, it was. By then, we did it."

Azula frowned and glared at Jet, a fist clenched. She recalled having heard of the flooding of Gaipan Village several years ago, and thanks to Shoji she had already known this man was responsible for it… but hearing him confess his crime now filled her with an anger she hadn't felt before, not even upon hearing about the flood the first time.

"We… we killed them all," Jet said, sighing deeply, as Sokka and Iroh stared at him in disbelief "Nobody in the village survived the flood. A-and I… I knew it had been wrong when I saw the dead bodies. We'd never murdered anyone before, and now we'd killed so many people… several of them were even Earth Kingdom people, and we'd killed them. All of them."

"Hell, that's…" Toph said, frowning.

"I know," Jet said. "I didn't know it back when I was planning it, but after it happened, I knew it was wrong. And yet I… I thought I couldn't back down, not after what I'd done. So, I told the Freedom Fighters we had to keep going. What we had done was a great victory against the Fire Nation, after all… but most of them knew it wasn't. Many of them turned their backs on me that day… others stayed, because they had nowhere else to go. Back then, I accused the deserters of being traitors… nowadays, I wish all of the Freedom Fighters had left me. T-that way…"

Jet leaned forward, his forearms supporting his weight on his knees as he gritted his teeth. His friend looked at him before sighing and taking over his story.

"We were captured for our crime of flooding the village," Longshot said, frowning. "But not by Fire Nation soldiers."

"The first to find us were Fire Nation soldiers, though. We stood strong against them, but then another group showed up… and they weren't Fire Nation. We thought the Dai Li had heard about us, and that they wanted us to join their ranks," Jet said, his hands balled into fists. "But that wasn't the case. I still don't know why the Dai Li joined forces with the Fire Nation to attack us… but when they did, I realized that the Fire Nation wasn't the one and only evil in the world."

"They captured most of us," Longshot said. "They killed others. We didn't know what happened to the rest of our friends… the only thing we knew was that the Freedom Fighters were over."

"The Dai Li surely helped seize you as a favor to the Fire Nation," Azula said, and everyone's attention turned towards her. "Long Feng changed sides several times through the war, trying to earn my father's favor in any way he could. I suspect the Dai Li's assistance to the Fire Nation battalion sent to subdue you was one of Long Feng's many deceitful attempts to join the winning side of the war."

"So… he betrayed the Earth Kingdom, huh? And so did the Dai Li? I'm not too surprised to hear that," said Jet, frowning. "Still, I don't know what happened exactly after they took us. They dragged us through some tunnels, I think, and then I met Long Feng in person. He was cold, and cruel, and he… I never knew what he did to me. But there were Dai Li agents restraining me as he spoke. And… ever since that happened, my memory has been a blur. I can recall a few things, but nothing is clear. I… I don't know how many years have passed, even. And… well, I just want some answers, if possible."

"Well, we'll try to help you with that," said Iroh, smiling.

"I believe the Dai Li must have caught you a few months before Sozin's Comet came again," Azula muttered. "So it's been around seven years, for starters."

"S-seven years…?" Jet said, his eyes wide. "W-well, do you know anything about my friends? Maybe the Dai Li have kept them around as well…"

"We don't really know, no," said Azula, frowning and shaking her head. Longshot sighed.

"It was unlikely anyways," the archer whispered.

"Maybe they do have them, though," said Jet, frowning. "In those tunnels they kept us in. You remember them too, don't you, Longshot?"

"Yes, but I doubt they kept us all together," said Longshot.

"Especially not when you guys were tough enough to be gladiators," Toph added, taking both the former Freedom Fighters by surprise. "It'd be pretty stupid of them to keep you all in the same place and risk having you rebel against them."

"Right…" Jet said, looking at her. "What's that about gladiators, again? I think I've been fighting with some people, and in fact, one of my clearest memories is having fought against you before."

With that, he looked at Sokka. Sokka gulped and nodded.

"And it sure wasn't a pretty fight," said Sokka. Azula looked at Jet with confusion.

"Why do you remember that, though?" she asked.

"I think I wasn't hypnotized right after that fight," said Jet. "I was kept chained to a stretcher while my body healed, I think… and at that point in time, I was somewhat aware of what was happening. But other than that, most of it is just a blur… what's this thing about gladiators?"

"The Gladiator Business is the only interesting branch of slavery the Fire Nation has come up with," Toph said, picking her toes. Azula cringed at the sight. "Slaves are forced to fight one another in a sand pit. In the Amateur League, the fights are to the death. In the Superior League they're not, but you can still die anyways."

"And you say that's interesting? That's madness!" Jet exclaimed, looking at the girl in utter disbelief.

"Madness? Depends on where you're standing," she said, smirking. "I haven't killed anyone, if that's what you're worried about. But it sure is fun to fight some seriously dangerous opponents. You weren't one, sadly, but…"

"Hey, hey," said Jet, looking at her with a crooked eyebrow. "I was hypnotized, remember? Maybe I'd give you a better fight right now."

Toph snickered at that, shaking her head before giving him a mischievous grin.

"Yeah, I doubt it. I'm the best earthbender in the world. You wouldn't stand a chance against me."

"Really now?" Jet asked, smiling a little. "So… you're Earth Kingdom, like us?"

"Yep. Born and raised," said Toph, nodding.

"But you are Water Tribe, aren't you?" Jet asked Sokka. "Your eyes are blue, so…"

"Got that right," Sokka said, nodding as well.

"And you…" Jet said, looking at Azula with a frown. "You're Fire Nation."

"Oh, indeed, I am," Azula said, looking at him defiantly. "And I'm the Princess of the Fire Nation, no less. So tread carefully, Jet. I'm not a merciful person, and it takes a lot of effort to get to my good side, especially when you've actively meant to harm my nation as you have."

Jet frowned at how viciously she spoke the words, but he sighed and shook his head.

"I won't attack your nation anymore," Jet said. "I used to think the only evil thing in the world was the Fire Nation, but I know now that I was wrong. If the Dai Li attacked us, and killed some of my friends while turning the rest of us into slaves, then I guess it's not just the Fire Nation that's evil."

"Some people would say flooding villages is also an act of evil…" Azula muttered, and Sokka gave her a meaningful stare, asking her not to press on with this.

"So, I take it the Fire Nation won the war?" Jet asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, once Sozin's Comet came again," Iroh said, nodding. "I'm Iroh, by the way. I'm Azula's uncle. Her gladiator is Sokka, and mine is Toph."

"Huh…" said Jet, looking at all of them in turn. "So you're saying you own these guys?"

"No, well…" said Iroh. "Azula does own Sokka, but Toph is my gladiator out of her free will."

"Really, now?" said Jet, frowning.

"Nowhere better than an Arena to prove I'm the best fighter in the world," Toph declared, smirking. Jet raised an eyebrow, but smiled at that.

"Well, you've got guts, no doubt," he said. "Still, what's the purpose of this Gladiator Business? And what's this about slavery, exactly…?"

"Whoever doesn't pledge their loyalty to the Fire Nation is turned into a slave nowadays," Iroh said, softly. "Not all slaves are treated badly, mind you, but it isn't an easy life…"

"No kidding," said Jet, frowning. "And I was Long Feng's gladiator, right?"

"And your friend there was another Dai Li's gladiator, too," Azula said, nodding. "I'd say chances are that whoever was captured from your old gang would have been either sold into a slave market or working as the Dai Li's own slaves, like you two were."

"If they were working as their slaves, though, where do you think they would have been kept?" Jet asked, frowning.

"I was hoping you'd be the one to tell us that," Azula replied. "Long Feng and his friends aren't bound to say a word unless they want to, and I fear they won't want to."

"But getting some information out of them shouldn't be that hard," said Sokka, looking up at Azula. "I mean, the soldiers captured lots of them. What are the chances that none of them will talk?"

"As a matter of fact, all chances are against us," Azula said, crossing her arms over her chest. "The Dai Li are elite earthbenders, Sokka. They've undergone rigorous training since joining the group, and they probably know how to hold their own during interrogations. As ever, the odds aren't in our favor."

"But you did say you had suspicions on where the Dai Li's lair might be," said Iroh, frowning. "Or was that a bluff?"

"I'm sorry to say it was," Azula said, sighing. "I told Long Feng that we had all the evidence we needed to prove they were working with the Rough Rhinos, but as a matter of fact, we have nothing other than theories. No doubt, it's a good theory and I am certain it's spot-on, but as we are, we can only charge them for the relentless pursuit they subjected us to. Unless a member of either the Rhinos or the Dai Li confess to having worked together, we've hit a dead end."

"Or unless we find that place Jet's talking about," Toph said, shrugging. "Those tunnels? I'm pretty sure I could find them if I tried…"

Azula frowned, tapping her arm with a finger as she considered Toph's idea. As they all fell silent, the Captain entered the room. Jet and Longshot scowled upon seeing another soldier.

"Princess, the Dai Li and their leader have been imprisoned, as commanded," he stated, bowing his head before her. "It would seem we have captured most of them, but several of them escaped regardless…"

"Well, that's a pity," Azula said. "Did you send more soldiers after the ones who got away?"

"Yes, Princess. Hopefully they'll return with the prisoners soon," said Rui Shi, nodding.

"Or perhaps they merely ought to follow the prisoners into their hideout…" Azula muttered, thoughtful. Rui Shi frowned.

"Hideout?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The Dai Li had some creepy hideout in some tunnels," Sokka said. "Or at least, that's what Jet remembers, apparently."

"But there are far too many tunnels in this city, so without another lead, it's as good as nothing," said Azula. "And we need something more, direly. The evidence for the Rough Rhinos and the Dai Li's partnership must be in their hideout."

Upon those words, Rui Shi frowned and placed a hand under his chin, deep in thought.

"Well… perhaps we have another lead, after all."

"We do? What do you mean, Captain?" Azula asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I wrote a message to you to tell you where the Rough Rhinos were headed to back when we first came to the city," said the Captain. "And I obtained this information by questioning a soldier while we were in the train station. I didn't mention this in the letter I sent you because it seemed useless information at the moment, for that wasn't where the Rhinos would be anymore, but…"

"Could you get to the point?" Toph asked, frowning.

"The point is that the soldier told me he had seen some men on ostrich horses leading the Rough Rhinos to Lake Laogai," said Rui Shi. "I didn't give it much thought before, but now…"

"Lake… Lake Laogai," Jet said, standing up. "That sounds familiar. It has to be it!"

"Well… I suppose that must be more evidence to support our theory," said Azula, but there was a grimace of unease on her face. Sokka stood up with some difficulty and looked at her worriedly.

"What's wrong?" he asked her, and she swallowed hard.

"Oh, nothing, only that my Barge is currently docked in that very lake, is all," she said. Sokka's jaw dropped.

"Uh-oh," said Toph, grimacing. "You don't think they might have attacked your boat, do you?"

"I don't know," said Azula, between gritted teeth. "And I'd love to find out, but… well, I might actually have a chance to do that soon, it seems."

"What do you mean, Princess?" said Rui Shi, as Azula moved towards the door. "Princess? Where are you going?"

Azula didn't reply, her attention focused on the thoughts that coursed through her mind. Thoughts that weren't her own, but that she was no stranger to, either. She smiled as she sensed how close her dragon was, and she encouraged him to speed his way towards the Palace.

Xin Long had flown quite far with the dolls on his back, but despite having helped keep some Dai Li agents off his rider's trail, not all of them had fallen for the ruse. The few that were in his pursuit soon stopped following him when they saw the clay dolls were crumbling, and they returned to the city to assist in the hunt for the actual Princess and her group. Xin Long hadn't noticed this at first, far too busy enjoying his flight and exploring his surroundings that it wasn't until the next day, when he saw his rider was in trouble again, to the point where she had been forced to fly without him, that he had turned back to Ba Sing Se, but he had been too far away to reach the city on time, no matter how fast he flew. Azula had managed to save herself without his help on this opportunity, but the dragon still had wanted to reunite with his rider.

Azula reached one of the many gardens of the Palace, and she stared at the skies eagerly as she waited for Xin Long to reach her. The rest of the group followed her outside after a while to find her scrutinizing the horizon.

"What's with her?" Jet asked, confused.

"You'll see soon enough," said Sokka, the only one who had a pretty good guess regarding what Azula was expecting.

"Huh?" said Jet, raising an eyebrow.

And when Jet saw what Azula was waiting for, his jaw dropped. The large black dragon landed rather harshly, almost crashing into his rider in the process. Once he had touched the ground he leapt happily around her before surrounding her with his long body, brushing his head against her armored chest. Azula laughed and slid her fingers through the creature's soft mane, pressing her forehead against his to let him know she was alright.

"Huh, I was wondering if the flying crocodile would ever come back," said Toph, smirking.

"T-that's a… dragon?" Jet said, astounded.

"Yep," said Sokka, smiling. "It's not every day that you get to see one of those, huh?"

"No, not really," said Jet, smiling a little. "You guys are really something, huh?"

Once they were finished greeting one another properly, Azula spoke through her mind to her dragon. Xin Long nodded gently once she told him what she wanted, and he released her body so she could climb onto his saddle.

"Very well, then," Azula said, turning towards the others. "We'll be off to Lake Laogai. Bandit, you probably don't want to come along on Xin Long, but we'll need you for this. If there are tunnels, as Jet says, they'll surely be underground. It'll be up to you to find them. So, if you'd be so kind as to go to the Lake…?"

"Gotcha," said Toph, stretching. "I'll just take a train to the east. It'll drop me by the Inner Wall, right?"

"Most likely," said Azula, before turning towards Jet and Longshot. "I'd say you two ought to come along as well, if you're up for it. You might find your friends in the Dai Li's hideout, or perhaps leads that could take you to them."

"Yeah, you're probably right about that," said Jet, nodding. "We'll do that."

"Uncle, you'll stay put," Azula said, and Iroh pouted before sighing in resignation.

"Fine, fine," he said. "I'm in no fit state to dig out hideouts anyways. I know I'm not as healthy or young as I once was."

"Don't look so upset, Iroh, I'll bring you a souvenir!" Toph told him, and the old man laughed.

"Sounds good to me," he said, beaming.

Sokka looked at Azula inquisitively before sighing in defeat as well. He and waved in her direction, and she raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What are you doing?" she asked him.

"J-just… saying goodbye? And good luck too, you'll probably need it while finding that creepy earthbenders lair…" said Sokka, shrugging.

"While I do appreciate your good wishes, you don't have to say goodbye unless you want to stay here," Azula said, with a small smile. "I was certain you wanted to see this mess to the end…"

Sokka's eyes lit up at that, and he smiled before making his way towards the dragon. Upon Azula's command, Xin Long lowered his body as much as he could to allow Sokka to climb onto his secondary seat with more ease, seeing how he was still healing from his injuries.

"If nothing goes wrong, we'll meet up safely at the Lake," Azula told the others, as Xin Long stood up and got ready to take off. "If something does go wrong, Xin Long and I will try to roast whatever stands in our way before you three reach us. In any case, be as quick as you can about this. There's no time to waste."

"I heard you the first time, Jewel," Toph said, nodding before gesturing at Jet and Longshot. "C'mon, let's get going."

Sokka settled on his seat, making sure he was in a comfortable position. Azula turned her head around to look at him.

"Let me know if you need Xin Long to slow down or ease his flight at some point," she told him, and Sokka smiled. "You are still badly injured, and maybe taking you along isn't that great an idea after all…"

"Don't worry about it," said Sokka, smiling. "I don't want to miss out on finding this hideout. And I'm pretty sure Xin Long's smooth flight won't be as crazy as ours was yesterday, right?"

"Let's hope," said Azula, smiling weakly and turning around. After caressing Xin Long's horn, the dragon trotted forward before jumping into the sky, darting upwards elegantly and dazzling everyone who had watched him take off.

"It's not every day that you see a creature like that," Iroh said, smiling before turning to Toph. "Good luck, Toph! Try not to break anyone's bones!"

"Can't promise that I won't if I run into more Dai Li!" Toph called back, for she was already walking towards the Palace's entrance, with Jet and Longshot behind her. She lifted a hand as a goodbye towards her sponsor, and Iroh smiled at the sight before entering the Palace's building again, with Rui Shi assisting him.

Jet and Longshot walked behind Toph as she led the way towards the nearest train station. Jet stared at his surroundings with awe and apprehension at the same time.

"It's the first time I've been in Ba Sing… well, that I've been in Ba Sing Se consciously, at least," he said. "I'd always thought this city was where everything great about the Earth Kingdom was held. But it's… it's not really what I expected."

"Well, lots of things aren't what we expect, Tree-house boy," Toph said, smirking. "I'm not a big fan of this city either, I'll say. But at least I got to beat people up in the Arena, and that sort of makes up for it."

"You're quite a feisty one, aren't you?" said Jet, smiling. "You would've been a nice addition to the Freedom Fighters, back in the day…"

"Heh? Maybe," said Toph, shrugging. "But what would you have needed an earthbender for?"

"Well, to be honest, it probably would have ended up being the other way around," said Jet, chuckling. "What could the rest of us possibly do for the best earthbender in the world?"

"Hehe, so I would've become your leader? Sounds cool," Toph replied, smirking. "I could've bossed you around all day long, then!"

"Probably," Jet admitted. "But one of our old friends would've probably fought back if you'd tried to force her to do anything she didn't want to…"

Longshot lowered his head at that and sped up his pace. Jet sighed, and Toph frowned.

"What's the matter with the quiet one?" she asked Jet.

"Well, she was his best friend, is all," said Jet. "Her name was Smellerbee. She was one of my fiercest supporters. We don't know what happened to her, nor to Sneers, or the Duke… but I suppose it's better that we don't know."

"Why?" Toph asked, confused.

"Another one of my friends, Pipsqueak…" Jet said, biting his lip. "He sacrificed himself to give the Duke a chance to escape the attack by the Fire Nation soldiers and the Dai Li. I hope the Duke escaped thanks to him, but I don't know if he managed…"

"That's awful," said Toph, swallowing hard. "You guys had it pretty rough, huh?"

"I guess so," said Jet, sighing with defeat. "But it's already been seven years, apparently. The only thing we can do is hope everyone else is okay. With any luck, the Duke will still be somewhere in the forest, proving he's not someone to mess with."

"Yeah, maybe…" said Toph, before frowning. "He had one weird name, though. The Duke? What's with that?"

"Oh, well, it's…" said Jet, smiling and scratching the back of his head. Toph smirked as she figured out the reasoning behind his sudden bashfulness.

"Well, well, seems like someone has a knack for nicknames," she said, amused. "Longshot sounded like a pretty weird name. Smellerbee, Pipsqueak… who would name their kids like that?"

"No one would," said Jet, chuckling. "Yeah, you caught me. I gave everyone fake names."

"So, I take it Jet's not your real name either, or is it?" Toph asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Maybe it is, maybe it's not," Jet said, enigmatically. "We'll never know, will we?"

"Oh, maybe we will," Toph said, smirking. "I'm pretty good at figuring out when someone's lying or telling the truth, you know?"

"Sounds like I ought to be careful around you, then," said Jet, smirking as well as they arrived into the train station.

After giving Jet the money to buy the tickets for them, Toph led the two men to the platform, where they soon boarded a train. All three of them sat on the same bench, Longshot remaining silent while Jet came up with a new topic of conversation.

"So…" he said, crossing his arms. "The Princess has a dragon, huh?"

"Yeah. I don't know how she got it, or where she found it, so if you want one for yourself I'm sorry to say I can't help you," Toph said, and Jet smiled.

"I didn't want one for myself," he said. "I just thought it was a bit weird that the Fire Nation Princess would let her slave ride her dragon…"

"Oh, well, that's just…" said Toph, but she froze mid-sentence. She had only just met Jet, and she had no idea what he might do if she randomly disclosed what she knew about Sokka and Azula's relationship. She wanted to believe he was good-hearted, but she wasn't about to trust him thoughtlessly with information about her two new friends. "They're something else, those two. He's her slave alright, but they act like friends instead. It's nice, but weird."

"It is weird. I'd never expect a Princess, let alone a Fire Nation one, to treat someone inferior to her as a friend," said Jet, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I don't really know why she does that with him," Toph lied, shrugging. "But I suppose she's realized it's more fun to have friends than to treat everyone like garbage, huh? Still, I don't know anything for certain. The three of us haven't always been in good terms. We only started getting along during this trip, and only after some bad rows, too."

"Really?" Jet asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yep. After I beat Sokka up the first time I fought him, the two of them seemed to hate me," said Toph, smiling innocently. "Can't really blame them for that, I went a bit overboard on him. I let you and Longshot get off easy."

"Huh, so we should have broken bones instead of bruises?" Jet asked, smiling.

"You would if I had gone all out on you," Toph replied, proudly.

"You're really a handful, aren't you?" Jet asked, looking at her with interest.

"Oh, I'd say I'm more than just a handful," Toph declared, smirking. "You just don't know me well enough yet."

"And will I get to know you all that well, then?" Jet asked, raising an eyebrow. Longshot huffed with exasperation next to him, but Jet didn't seem to care.

"Huh?" said Toph, blushing a little. This conversation had taken a turn she hadn't quite foreseen, and for once in her life she actually found herself at a loss for words.

Jet chuckled and shook his head as Toph's blush intensified. Was he making fun of her? What the hell did he mean by that just now?

"Never mind," he said, smirking a little. Upon looking at Longshot he found his friend was glaring at him judgmentally, and Jet gave him an apologetic smile. "What?"

Longshot rolled his eyes and shook his head before slumping on his seat. The train continued to speed its way through Ba Sing Se, stopping whenever it reached a station. Each stop hindered their progress, and by the time they were reaching the border of the Inner Wall, Xin Long was already descending on the Royal Barge which, to Azula's relief, seemed to be in perfect state.

"It seems they didn't attack it," she muttered.

"It's pretty weird that they didn't, though," Sokka muttered, frowning as Xin Long landed gently on the ship's deck. "They could have delivered plenty of damage by striking down your ship…"

"Hopefully it's because they were too busy chasing after us and Xin Long to attack my Barge… hopefully," Azula said, climbing off the saddle as some guards came rushing towards her.

"Princess!" one of them exclaimed, smiling under his mask. "What might you be doing here? Is the Tournament over yet?"

"Are we going home now?" another asked.

"Not quite," said Azula frowning and looking at them sternly. "For how long has the Barge been stationed in the Lake by now?"

"Well, three days, give or take, I think," said the first guard. "Why?"

"Have you seen any suspicious activity around here? Perhaps some men clad in green, lurking around the Lake?" Azula asked.

"N-no, not really," said the guard, looking at his companion with confusion.

"Nothing has happened in the Lake ever since we got here, Princess," the second guard said.

"Well, nothing you've noticed, at least…" said Azula, as Sokka approached. "If they had a chance to destroy all the evidence before we could get here, this will be no use."

"Maybe they haven't destroyed anything yet," said Sokka. "Or they have some other entrance to their secret hideout that isn't close to this Lake?"

"I'm actually worried about being in the wrong place," said Azula, sighing. "I know the evidence points in this direction, but…"

"What exactly are you talking about, Princess…?" said the second guard, confused.

Azula turned towards them again to explain the situation to them, and the two guards were aghast to hear about everything their Princess had endured during the past few days. While Azula busied herself with that, Sokka wandered the deck of the ship, studying the Lake intently for any evidence that the Dai Li might have left behind.

It took almost an hour for Toph, Jet and Longshot to show up. When they did, Azula and Sokka climbed off the deck to meet them on firm ground.

"My men haven't seen the Dai Li around here, but they're willing to drain this lake if it's what it takes to find their lair," Azula told Toph. "Still… I'm hoping that won't be necessary"

"No worries, Jewel, it won't be," Toph said, stretching systematically as she got ready to bend.

"Good to know," Jet said. "Draining a lake would've taken ages."

"Is that so? And here I thought it'd taken you just a few explosions…" Azula said, turning to look at him with merciless eyes.

"Hey, now," said Jet, raising his hands defensively. "I know what I did was wrong, and I'm not about to blow up Lake Laogai anyways. Especially not when there's a chance my friends are somewhere around here."

"I suppose I'll hold you to your word, then," Azula said, as Jet chuckled.

"You're seriously a cold one, aren't you? Who'd have thought, seeing how you're supposed to be a firebender and all…?"

"Well, she's one very special firebender," said Sokka, interrupting the conversation. "And I wouldn't taunt her if I were you."

"Taunt her? Who said I was taunting her?" Jet asked, smirking. "I'm merely remarking she's not at all what I expected from a Fire Nation Princess… for better or for worse. No need to get so touchy, I'm not even talking to you."

"I'm… I'm not touchy," Sokka grunted, glaring at Jet. "Why would I be touchy?"

"Beats me," said Jet, shrugging. "I suppose you're afraid she might want to replace you with me if she realizes I'm more interesting than you."

"What? Why would you be more interesting than me?!" Sokka squeaked, his voice cracking. "As if! She wouldn't swap me for the likes of you!"

"And why not? I'm better looking than you, to begin with…"

"Like hell you are!"

Longshot sighed again and shook his head, and Sokka scowled at Jet. What exactly was this guy up to…?

But to everyone's surprise, Azula's reaction was merely to laugh at their argument. Jet raised an eyebrow and Sokka looked at her worriedly, wondering just what the source of her amusement was, exactly.

"So, you want me to exchange you for Sokka, Jet?" she asked, with a malicious smirk. "I assure you you'd regret wishing for it as soon as it was done…"

Jet gulped at the look on her face and smiled, uncomfortable.

"M-maybe I'm regretting it already," he said, and Azula laughed again.

"Good to know," she said, before turning towards Toph. "Do ignore those idiots and look for that hideout, will you?"

"Already on it, Jewel" Toph said, her toes digging into the earth underneath her.

"Really, though, you're both foolish and you have ridiculously high opinions of yourselves…" Azula said, looking at Jet and Sokka, who glared at each other from the corner of their eyes. "Are you sure you're not related to him or something, Sokka? I seem to remember you remarked on my 'ice-cold heart' once too, didn't you?"

"Eh… yeah," said Sokka, smiling a little as Jet raised an eyebrow. "And you told me mine would be burning coal, huh?"

With that, Sokka's unease seemed was somewhat appeased. Naturally, Azula wouldn't replace him with this guy, of all people. He had flooded a Fire Nation colony, for starters, and their first impression of him had been that he was a total madman. So there was no way Azula would like him better than Sokka, right?

"Okay, I've got something," Toph said, and everyone's attention turned towards her. "And it's one heck of a something… and it's right there."

And with that, she pointed at the Barge. Azula frowned and stepped forward, looking at the hull of her ship with confusion.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Bandit?"

"I'm saying there's some big-ass tunnel there and your pretty ship was docked right on top of it."

Azula froze at that and looked at Toph, surprised. Sokka stepped forward as well, with a frown on his face.

"S-so you're saying… that the entrance to their hideout is under the ship," Sokka said, his eyes wide before he placed a hand on one of Azula's shoulders. "This is why your guards didn't see anything suspicious just now, because that entrance was covered by the ship and the Dai Li didn't dare do anything fishy while your Barge was in the way!"

"Hopefully," said Azula, frowning. "But what if they had other ways to get inside their hideout…?"

"Well, we won't know if they did unless we get in there," said Toph, shrugging. "But I do know that I need your pretty boat out of the way if we're going to do this."

It took some time to move the Barge away from the tunnel, but once the way was clear, Toph maneuvered with her earthbending and brought forth a long earthen platform. She walked through it and removed swiftly a rock at the end of the platform, opening the way into the tunnels within the Lake.

"Well, you guys coming or what?" Toph asked the others, and they followed her into the tunnel that led deep under the lake.

The tunnel was long and dark, and it was furnished with a single ladder, which ended at the top of a staircase. Toph was the first to climb down, and Azula followed her. Longshot climbed down after Azula, followed by Jet, and lastly came Sokka. Toph could see her surroundings far better than the rest of them in the dark, so she led the way until they reached the foot of the stairs.

"There's something green there," Sokka said, as they stopped before entering a corridor.

Azula was the one who peeked around the corner, finding that the glow's source were green crystals. She raised an eyebrow and gazed about herself to find there was nobody in the corridor.

"Do you feel anyone's presence, Bandit?" she asked Toph.

"Nope," said Toph. "I think there's no one else other than us around here."

"Good, then," said Azula, stepping into the corridor freely now. The others followed her, but some of them did it quite unenthusiastically.

"Nobody's here, you said?" Jet repeated. "So my friends aren't here…?"

"I guess not," said Toph, shrugging. "Sorry about that, Jet."

Azula looked around, finding archways that led into other rooms, some of them lit by crystals, others completely dark. Longshot stepped ahead, frowning heavily.

"This is where we were," he said, with certainty. "This is where they brought us, Jet. I remember these lights."

"Y-yeah," said Jet, frowning as well. "The green fire… there was green fire, and I think it was because of the crystals."

"Green fire?" Azula said, surprised. "Huh. Well, I suppose mine couldn't be the only unusual one… in any case, Bandit, we're not here just to look around. We need to find the evidence that links the Dai Li and the Rhinos. Can you sense what's in those rooms?"

"Yeah," said Toph, nodding and closing her eyes. "What do you want me to find?"

"I'm not completely sure… but I think you should look for objects that don't belong here," Azula said. "If this is where the Rhinos brought what they pillaged, what they robbed must be in here somewhere."

"Well… I can't feel anything like that in these rooms," said Toph, shaking her head. Azula gritted her teeth.

"No? Then where the hell did they…?"

"I said not in these rooms," Toph repeated, smirking before stretching her hands forward swiftly.

Her movement opened a passageway on the floor. The tiles moved away as she bent them, revealing another staircase that led even deeper underground.

"Heck, is there no end to this hideout?" Sokka asked, grimacing as they started down this new flight of stairs. "I'm starting to feel lightheaded with all this stale air…"

"Sensitive much?" Toph teased him, and Sokka snarled at her. "C'mon, Dog. Cheer up. I think we've hit a gold mine…"

Azula frowned when she said that. The stairs weren't illuminated, so it wasn't until she reached the bottom of them that she realized they were at a dead end.

"Gold mine, Dirt Worm? Seriously?" she asked, and Toph snickered.

"A little trust wouldn't hurt, Jewel…" she said, sarcastically, before bending down the wall to their left.

Green light shone over them again, its source the room Toph had just revealed… and Azula's eyes widened when she saw what this room concealed.

"It's here," she said, staring at the mounds of stolen objects. "This has to be… it has to be what the Rhinos stole!"

"Really?" Sokka asked, dashing past Longshot and Jet to glance into the room as well.

His eyes opened wide as well when he caught sight of everything inside. Vases, scrolls, cookware, cutlery and several bags of money filled the room in the most disorderly manner. Most the objects weren't especially valuable, but they would have been important possessions for the humble people the Rough Rhinos used to steal from.

"You were right," Sokka said, smiling at the Princess. "Azula, you figured it all out! It's done!"

It wasn't until Sokka said those words that Azula realized the importance of their discovery. No longer would they need to worry about the Rough Rhinos' mysterious benefactors, or about the people they had stolen these goods from, for they would be restored to them right away. The Dai Li wouldn't be able to start any more trouble either, for their leader, and most their members, had been locked away. As Sokka had just said, this twisted matter was finally over.

Hours later, all of them were outside by the lake's edge again while soldiers and guards carried the stolen goods out of the Dai Li's hideout. Sokka was happy to breathe fresh air again once they were outside, and he was currently watching as the soldiers came and went, with the rediscovered loot. They had decided to have them move everything manually instead of resorting to bending, for moving the earth around Lake Laogai might destabilize the hideout's structure, causing the Lake to flood it. So, while it was a long, slow process, at least it was a safe one.

Azula was talking to the city's governor, who had come out to Lake Laogai after Azula flew back to the Palace on Xin Long's back. Upon hearing the news of their discovery, Tiang had brought his soldiers to the Lake right away, and he was currently assuring Azula that everything they had found would be returned to their rightful owners. Azula had been pleased by his promise, and she had walked towards where Sokka was, near the edge of the Lake. Toph was sitting on a rock, picking her toes again, while Jet and Longshot stood apart from them, talking to one another.

"Tiang will send word to my father to tell him about everything we've discovered," Azula said, smiling at Sokka once she reached him. "Which I sure hope will please him. I could use getting back to his good side after I ruined his plans for me…"

"Heh," said Sokka, smiling. "He should be glad you ruined them. If he had forced you to marry some asshole, we probably wouldn't have joined this Tournament and you would have never discovered the truth about the Dai Li and the Rhinos. So hopefully he'll cut you some slack."

"Hopefully," said Azula, nodding. "Though you ought to give yourself some credit, Sokka. If you hadn't pointed me in the right direction, I would've never realized there was a link between the Rhinos and the Dai Li."

"Oh, well," said Sokka, looking at her with a smirk. "I guess I did help a bit, but you're the one who figured it all out! So most of the credit ought to stick with you anyways."

"Well, if you refuse to acknowledge your own accomplishments, it's your problem," said Azula, shrugging but smiling at him anyways.

Jet and Longshot were standing not too far from them, discussing something in a low voice. It was mostly Jet who spoke, while Longshot nodded in agreement to what his leader was saying.

"What are you two mumbling over there?" Toph asked Jet and Longshot, pushing herself off the rock. She already knew what they spoke of, having perceived the vibrations of their every word, but she had wanted Azula and Sokka to find out what these two were up to.

Jet turned towards them and breathed deeply, his hands on his hips. Longshot stood behind him, his arms crossed.

"We were just trying to figure out what we'd do next," he said. "We've lost about seven years of our lives after all, and we hoped to find our friends somehow…"

"Well, there's gotta be a place for you two to start looking for them," said Toph, shrugging. "Some of your friends might have gotten away after all. I suppose you should just go back to where you were captured and try to find leads that will take you to them."

"It'd be good to do that, but…" said Jet, frowning and looking at Azula. "Would we be hunted down by the Fire Nation if we simply left right now? I mean… we're supposed to be slaves, aren't we?"

Azula looked at him sternly, studying him carefully. Jet swallowed hard but met her unblinking gaze with his own.

"You were, but your masters can't watch over you two anymore, can they?" said Azula, shrugging. "And while I probably should drag you back to the city and drop you in a slave market, I don't feel like doing that. You're bound to fight back fiercely, because you'd rather die than be someone's slave… and I don't have the time or the patience to deal with rebellious morons right now. Therefore… I suppose you can just go find your friends, if they're actually out there somewhere."

"Huh?" said Sokka, pleasantly surprised. "Just like that?"

"Well, what do you want me to do with them?" Azula asked Sokka, raising an eyebrow. "I already have enough trying to look after you, imagine if I decided to take these two as well. It'd be madness."

"I'm not complaining, it's just unusual for you to let them off the hook so easily, all things considered…" said Sokka, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, it's not going to be easy," Azula said, turning towards Jet again. "Because if I hear so much as a rumor that says you two or your group of friends are causing trouble in the colonies, I'll have no problem flying all the way here to kill you both in the most gruesome manner I can think of. Understood?"

Longshot gulped at that and looked at his leader with worried eyes. Jet seemed surprised by her sudden threat, but he smirked and shrugged, as though Azula's words hardly affected him at all.

"Hell, what did you think we'd do?" he said. "Longshot and I aren't up to anything bad, I promise we'll just find our friends."

"You'd better," said Azula, frowning. "Will you two be able to survive on your own, then?"

"We did a long time ago," Longshot said. "Surely we can do it again."

"Try not to steal to survive, though," said Toph, chuckling. "Maybe get a real job or something of the sort."

"It's a possibility," said Jet, smiling. "But for now, we're off to find our friends. Once we figure out what happened to everyone we'll settle down someplace, probably. We're not going to attack Fire Nation people anymore… though that doesn't mean I'm happy about what the Fire Nation has been doing during the past few years. But I'll have to figure out a way to fight against it without you finding out, huh, Princess?"

"Oh, well, if you're already confessing you'll use your freedom to fight against the Fire Nation, then I suppose I should just lock you up and spare my nation the trouble…" Azula said, shrugging, and Jet grimaced.

"N-no, no, I was just… it was only a joke," he said, and Azula gave him her most unpleasant smile.

"It better be," she said. "Well, then, I suppose you two will be taking your leave now?"

"It'd be for the best," said Longshot, nodding.

"Then farewell, and I hope not to hear from either of you ever again," Azula said, smiling with malice. Jet scratched his head at that.

"Such a nice girl, huh?" he said, smiling uncomfortably.

"Hell, she's already being nicer than usual by letting you leave like this," Sokka said, standing up. "Anyways, goodbye, Jet. I can't say I'm going to miss you."

"Heh, well, I sure hope to cross paths with you another day, Sokka," said Jet, smirking. "I think I owe you a couple of wounds, if my memory doesn't fail me…"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's failing you," said Sokka, an eyebrow twitching.

"Well, I guess I do owe some of them to you," said Jet, turning towards Toph, who smirked on her rock.

"You won't have luck with that any time soon, Tree-house boy," she said. "As I told you, I'm the best earthbender in the world."

"And like I said, we could use someone like you," Jet said, smirking. "What do you say?"

Toph raised her eyebrows before chuckling and shaking her head.

"Nah. I've got Iroh, and I love beating people up in the ring. So I appreciate the offer, but I'd rather not."

"Well, that's too bad," said Jet, smiling. "But if you ever change your mind, I suppose you'll figure out where to find us, somehow. I don't know how you do it, but you have some weird skill…"

"Yeah, it's called earthbending," said Toph, snickering as he raised an eyebrow. "I may be blind, but with my bending I can see things you'll never even…"

"You… what?" said Jet, frowning. "What do you mean, you're blind?"

Toph frowned and lifted her head towards him, a confused frown on her face. She brushed her bangs out of the way, allowing Jet to see her sightless eyes. His eyes widened.

"You're… you're blind. You're blind!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, what of it? I can still see way better than you half the time," said Toph, dropping her hair again and scowling at Jet.

"I-it's just…" said Jet, still looking at her in disbelief.

"I suppose you're embarrassed that a blind girl beat you to a pulp, then?" Toph asked, smirking now.

"It's not that," said Jet, frowning. "I'm just thinking… that if you're blind then you've got no idea just how pretty you are, right?"

Everyone reacted differently upon those words. Longshot struck his forehead with the palm of his hand, completely embarrassed by what Jet had just said. Sokka stared at Jet in utter confusion, wondering why he had felt the urge to say something like that, while Azula raised her eyebrows and looked at Toph with amusement. And, naturally, Toph was blushing wildly.

"W-what the… what the fuck is wrong with you?!" she asked, jumping off her rock and bending the dirt under Jet's feet to push him away from her. Jet chuckled.

"Nothing's wrong with me! I'm just speaking my mind!" he said, but Toph continued to push him away.

"Well, maybe you should shut up about what you think once in a while!" she shouted, growing even more flustered. "Now get out of here if you know what's good for you, dammit!"

Jet laughed at that and waved at them one last time as he started his way down the edge of the Lake. Longshot nodded curtly in their direction before following his friend, and soon the pair of them were gone from sight as they made their way to the walls of Ba Sing Se.

Azula placed a hand on Toph's shoulder, noticing the girl still was blushing, although she didn't seem too irritated anymore. Sokka glanced at her as well, an eyebrow raised.

"You alright there?" he asked, and the girl sighed.

"I'm fine, I'm fine, it's just… well, he's a crazy one, is all," she muttered, her blush intensifying.

"Who'd think you'd get so embarrassed," said Sokka, chuckling and earning himself a stomp on his foot. "Ow! You crazy…! Ow!"

"You asked for it!" Toph retorted, a punch lifted in Sokka's direction.

"Well, you needn't worry about Jet anymore," Azula said, patting Toph's shoulder. "He's gone now."

"Yeah, well, he is…" said Toph, biting her lip. "And now that he is, I guess I can ask you, Jewel… does he look half as good as he sounds?"

Sokka's jaw dropped while Azula raised her eyebrows with amusement. She glanced at Sokka to find he seemed to be completely clueless as to what sounded so good about Jet, and with a smirk she replied to Toph's question.

"Well, he seems like a bit of a womanizer to me," Azula confessed. "But truth be told, if I weren't a Princess, you might have some competition over him…"

"What the…?! WHAT?!" Sokka squealed, now even more indignant as Toph laughed.

"Ahahaha! I knew he had to be good!" she exclaimed, beaming.

"What the hell?! There's nothing worth competing over!" Sokka exclaimed, looking at Azula with utter disbelief, a tic on his left eye. Azula merely smiled at him, beyond amused by his reaction. "He's an idiot! Didn't you hear the things he said?!"

"Well, I'm sorry but she was only asking what he looked like…" Azula said, shrugging "It's not my fault that he's handsome…"

"Handsome…?! You think he's handsome?!" Sokka squeaked, his voice cracking again. The sound caused Azula to start laughing as she started on her way back to the soldiers that were almost finished with their task. "He's not handsome, he's… common! Lame-looking, even! What's so handsome about him, huh, huh?!"

"Well, I don't know but it doesn't feel like the Jewel's lying, so he must be handsome indeed…" said Toph, beaming.

"Like hell he is! He's plain and shameless and he nearly killed me once!"

"Curiously, the same could be said about you," Azula said, smiling widely. "You're plain too, and beyond shameless, really, and you also were close to killing him, so…"

"I-it's not the same thing! For crying out loud, Azula!" he exclaimed, blushing as he tried to figure out what was it exactly about Jet that he just couldn't stand…

Azula smirked, pleased by his reaction. She couldn't deny a certain part of her was quite relieved to find he could be irrationally jealous, all the same as she had been recently. But that single thought reminded her of what had spurred her jealousy several weeks ago, and it made her think of what awaited her now that the Tournament was over.

Granted Sokka would have to stay in Ba Sing Se to heal properly for some time, but they would have to return to the Fire Nation eventually. And while that thought would have pleased Azula to no end under different circumstances, for once she actually didn't feel like coming home…