Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar or anything associated with it except my fanfiction
Before I start writing the next chapter.
I just did an outline of what I planned for this fanfiction, and I just wanted to let you all know that, assuming I devote one chapter to every episode arc left and one to both the finale and the epilogue, there will be only 8 more chapters. I know that means there's only about 35 total chapters to this fanfiction, but... the way I interpret things, is that in an optimistic storyline after Zuko meets Aang, it will take less time overall to defeat the Fire Nation. Optimistically it makes sense and logistically it means less for me to write... after all there is a sequel.
Darn. I meant this to be more Kataang and less winding backstory. But that'll be covered later.
Also for some last fun after I finish this TBPaTFA, I will post author's notes to the end. I removed a lot of them as they got used and/or discarded, but hopefully there are some gems in there for you guys to laugh at.
I guess this means there isn't really a Fire Book to this saga? Oh well. I'm not the most thought-out writer. And I'm also very uninspired.
Okay. That's all for now. Fingers crossed that I can focus enough to get it to you by tonight? If not, you guys will just have to wait until next week, I suppose.
Or next month. Hopefully before next year.
*weekend passes*
So anyways the tonight thing didn't work. Maybe this week like I previously said.
*fast forward to Sunday*
So I post this on Sunday. Sorry. Monday depending on time zone
Anyways, I hope everyone is well and that studying/exams/whatever else you do is doing fine, too. To whomever from the old crowd that is still following the story... I'm also surprised this came out so soon. Haha
Poor Appa.
There was only so much even the mighty sky bison could do against the slow, steady, unstoppable force of the metal machine that bore on them. It was unfortunate, really - the gargantuan tank (Sokka didn't know what else to call it) was too slow to actually catch up to them, but it was too fast for Appa, Sokka, and Momo to escape its sight - let alone leave it in the dust. Things got even more complicated once Appa started yawning.
Sokka barely even remembered what happened. It had all been a haze from the moment that Toph was captured, and once Aang had been given up to Azula of all people (no wonder Zuko was so testy when talking about her - Sokka could've easily mistaken her for an artistically painted machine. And a cruel one at that), Sokka forgot how to properly think. Thankfully, he had some sleep before the chase started - there was no knowing what would have happened if they were all captured.
That wasn't to say their predicament wasn't bad as it was. The most he could do by himself was act as envoy from the beleaguered Southern Water Tribe (as painful as it was to admit it, the nation was practically negligible in the world), which might attract a few sympathetic heads but definitely not attract the massive support needed to take down the Fire Nation. And then there was Zuko. What in the Four Nations was he going to tell the prince? That he let Aang be served to Ozai on a silver platter? Sokka's head hurt from thinking. The only bright side he could find was that at least Aang had a teacher in Toph. Hopefully they could resume their short-lived lessons somehow behind the bars they were likely kept in.
His train of thought broke when he realized the ground was enlarging at a terrifying pace. "APPAAAA!" His voice was only very slightly higher-pitched than he would have liked it. He frantically scrabbled around the saddle, fingers shakily closing once they felt the small rod that had saved them countless times in the past half-day alone. Whether it had seemed worth it at the time or not, the bison whistle was a real lifesaver. At least he had been cognitive enough to keep it on himself in Gao Ling.
He still couldn't hear the frequency the whistle played when he blasted into it, but it did what no amount of Momo's chittering and Sokka's squealing could accomplish: with a sudden bellow, Appa broke free from his destructive spiraling and ascended into the sky once more. But it was hard to not notice Appa's dark circles.
Sokka cursed. "By the great Yue. They've gained ground after that little kerfuffle." Appa lowed in apology. "Not your fault. You're doing great. Keep it up, buddy." Momo chittered in agreement, perching on Appa's head.
Easy for us to say, he thought wryly. We don't have to stay awake to stay alive.
Sokka had caught quick winks every so often - after the first doze, he noticed that he had slipped an alarming amount on Appa's saddle, to the point where half his body was dangling off Appa's body. Knowing fully well that Appa was in no condition to perform a saving maneuver, and that such an action would only close the distance between them and their attackers, Sokka went so far as to beg Momo to keep an eye out for him. Whatever it was in his fatigue that made him understandable to the lemur somehow worked, and Momo was a very consistent alarm whenever Sokka began nodding off. He would also take his turns watching over napping Momo, although the small creature never did seem to have any trouble staying in his perch, and it was only once that Sokka felt the need to call out to Momo, and that was when it turned out that Momo was awake already and only stretching his wins.
Empirically, there was an inverse relationship between size and sleep time during times of distress.
Poor Appa.
They did try to give him a nap once, but it didn't work out so well. It was good the flying bison had tough skin - Appa had clocked out before touching the ground, and the long, ominous scraping against the gravel made Sokka cringe. Thankfully, sliding down to check on Appa's condition yielded no unfortunate findings, so he climbed his way back on top of Appa's saddle and fell to sleep.
When he woke up, it was with Momo biting his arm. "Ow! You didn't need to bite me to wake me -" Sokka had stopped his tirade once he noticed the rocks in his mouth and also the fact that he was facedown on the ground. Spitting out the gravel, he said a begrudging "sorry" to the lemur, picked himself up, and froze when he heard the distinct rumbling that literally meant one thing, and one thing only.
"How are they here already?" Sokka hissed. Even as a heavy sleeper, he had a rough bearing of time, and knew even through his crankiness that they had barely rested whatsoever. He somberly roused Appa, who although displeased with the disruption of much-needed sleep, could not ignore the noisy approach of the tank.
Even with the forewarning, the tank burst into the clearing just as Appa's tail cleared the ground.
It had not been long since that event, and Appa was severely exhausted to the point where they made no ground whatsoever. The tank remained at the cusp of their vision, so Sokka assumed they had clear vision of the bison in the sky. He wondered what was the fuel supply of the tank and how large it had to have been to support such a behemoth.
Appa suddenly growled, and Momo chittered excitedly. Sokka turned just in time to see the tank rapidly retreating into the distance. Sokka breathed a sigh of relief, before realizing that it was all by Appa, who had strained for one last push to try and get them away from the tank. Sokka sighed loudly and patted Appa on the side, too scared to crawl his way up to Appa's back. "Good boy. Extra rations for you whenever we get it."
Appa hummed, then suddenly went silent. They were gently gliding downwards, just in time to meet a huge river.
Sokka yawned. "Good riddance. They can't possibly follow with that tank - or at least that'll buy us some time. I'll just..."
The last thing he remembered was planting his face into Appa's tail and sliding down as the ground approached fast.
It was a good nap they had. Sokka yawned and stretched his arms. He wasn't sure why, but as he looked around, he couldn't even see any signs of Fire Nation, or even hear the accursed machine. Sokka smiled and opened his mouth, then thought better and prepared for another flight. There was no way he would jinx things just when they were beginning to look hopeful.
"Appa!" Appa grumbled in response. "Yeah, we lost them hopefully, but we still have deadlines to meet! I'm sorry about Aang..." Appa lowed. "There was nothing I could do. It all happened too fast, and now we're here. But since we're here, we might as well try something. It's better than waiting around like sitting turtle-ducks." Appa licked Sokka, who was too focused on their plight to react. "We should get going as soon as possible. Did Momo feed you, at least?" Momo said yes, and Appa agreed. Sokka decided not to dwell on his newfoudn, frightening understanding of animals, climbed back on Appa's saddle, hesitated, then moved himself onto Appa's head, took the reins for once, yanked them down as hard as he could, and cried out, "Yip, yip!"
Appa took off when suddenly the noise of the tank grew into existence - except it was coming from the side.
Sokka about lost it. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THEY DIDN'T CATCH US ONLY BECAUSE THEY LOOPED ALL THE WAY AROUND A STUPID RIVER? WHAT IS HAPPENING? WHAT HAVE WE GOTTEN INTO? WHAT HAVE I EVER DONE TO DESERVE THIS?"
A lot.
"SHUT UP, ME! APPA, I'M SORRY, DOUBLE TIME!" Breathing heavily, Sokka could only watch as Appa's increased elevation granted them sight of the tank, indeed closing in from the side, smoke billowing from beneath the vehicle. "You ashmakers suck!" Sokka shouted, raising a fist into the air. Then Appa flapped his tail, and Sokka quickly returned his hand to grip onto Appa's neck. At least he knew he wouldn't choke the beast even with the constricting grip he placed on Appa's neck.
What a horrible position to be in. He thought that he could have confidence and try flying Appa from the front. Making a brief half-hearted attempt to try and crawl his way back to the saddle, Sokka squeaked in fear as Appa took a sudden dip to hug the trees of the forest they were passing over. Any notions to return to the safety of the saddle were gone. Now he was stuck in an uncomfortable position that he could not risk even slipping out of.
His teeth chattered as his thoughts made it past his mental restraint on his mouth.
"Getmeoutgetmeoutgetmeoutgetmeout-"
They had made it about one whole day more.
That was it.
Sokka was flat on his stomach, absentmindedly playing with Appa's fur. It was a miracle how long Appa's fur had become. He wondered if flying bison shed their fur like some of the other animals he had learned about outside of the poles. At least it didn't happen yet - their position would be a dead giveaway to even rogues and bounty hunters. He'd heard enough talk around the Earth Kingdom to know how bipolar the region could be, especially with the incursion of Fire Nation soldiers.
And news of the Avatar tended to complicate things.
A lot.
Sokka blinked once to find himself leaning over Appa's right side. "Dang..." He was too tired to finish the swear, hugging Appa tightly. "Buddy..."
Appa had it so bad. He alternated between flying straight ahead and dipping straight down. Eventually Sokka ordered Appa to go as high up in the air as possible. As Sokka figured from climbing many ice mountains at the poles, it was harder to breath and harder to stay aloft, but it bought precious few minutes for Appa to perform napping maneuvers with minimal risk.
But the practice was not healthy. Sokka only prayed that there were no lasting effects from such torrid conditions.
Although to be fair, all of this was set in place long before we even existed.
Stupid Sozin.
Appa was slowing down. They barely kept pace with the tank, and the relentless machine was bearing on their moving location quickly thanks to Appa's short naps. Sokka was planning to accept the inevitable and order him to set down wherever there was a convenient location to stall for time, or - at least - put up one last stand. He berated himself for not trying to chase Aang, but he just simply couldn't think of a way to defeat a whole ship of soldiers and Azula by himself. He wasn't a bender after all - he may have had resourcefulness, but he would never possess any sort of power that would allow him to gain an edge over his opponents otherwise. Also, if there was one thing Sokka respected about Azula, it was that he knew as soon as he was made aware of her presence that her acumen was on par with his. And knowing militarized Fire Nation versus sustenance Water Tribe lifestyles, she was likely to have been more trained in such things as he was. Besides, he had little understanding in how to be the prey. All he knew was that his best move was to run away and hope for the best, and he had a sinking feeling that she knew that as well. Sure, he definitely should have tried, but there was no turning back now. Azula would have probably stopped him before he took two steps onto the ship. It was too risky to leave the last living Air Animals in the hands of the diabolical Fire Nation. And it was too hard to think.
He hoped Aang was alright.
He did not say a word, conserving the last of his energy for the final confrontation. He patted Appa on the back, and the miserable bison gratefully - if morosely, set a course for the ground.
"Not your fault," Sokka croaked. Appa was too tired to even grunt, but Sokka could tell that Appa was not assuaged by his words.
Did they have any choice? Not really. But at least there was a river ahead.
"Appa," Sokka said, pouring an iota of focus into his voice. "Just strain a bit more. If we reach that side -"
Appa bellowed loudly and pushed his legs back. With a gust of air pulling back Sokka's cheeks, Appa made the exact same river landing as the day before, dragging across the opposite shoreline before coming to a halt just shy of the grass. Sokka finally unclenched his sore, numb legs, and had the wind knocked out of him when he hit the ground flat on his back.
He thought he heard the rumbling stop for good, but chalked it to his desperate sleepy brain.
"Ugh. Of course they made it across the river."
"Yippee! A river to cross! I can't wait to see these dinosaur things -"
"Mongoose lizards. Mongoose lizards. Oh, for Sozin's Sake, get your animals right!"
"Sorry, sorry! You know I'm not really..."
"Yeah, you're more about fluffy furry cute things and hugs - don't you dare come close to me! We have a river in our faces right now! And the enemy right on the other side!"
Sokka shot up from the ground at the mention of the word enemy, yelled at the top of his lungs, and plowed straight into Appa's side. Spitting out pieces of fur (wait... was Appa shedding?), he did his best to ignore the laughter from the other side, and limped around trying to find his weapons. "Appa!" Appa did not move. "APPA!"
"Oh, is that what the big guy is called? What a perfect name! Appa, you're such a cutie! If we weren't enemies, I might actually try to hug you! You look so fuzzy! Like... like a cloud!" Sokka guessed that Appa really was asleep, since he didn't respond to the glowing praise whatsoever.
"Shut up. Clouds are made of water. You know that."
"I know! But clouds look fluffy... that's what I meant!"
"Oh, you're getting completely off topic, as usual." A pause. "We've been sitting aimlessly for Agni knows how long. I'm done with this useless errand Azula sent us on."
Another pause. "Um... I don't think Azula's errands are useless. After all, there's probably a reason she wants us to capture that blue boy and the big fluffy creature. And wasn't there a small one too?"
"Oh, just let's go already." Much to Sokka's horror, the girls - mounted on two scaley beasts with short, spindly arms, small narrow heads with yellow eyes and equally deceptive twigs of legs - rode their mounts into the river. Or rather, on it: the creatures' legs moved in a blur, too fast for Sokka's eye to catch and fast enough to apparently float on top of the water.
He was toast.
Sokka could tell from the voices that there were two girls. He fully appreciated the irony that for once he was wildly chased by girls, but for the wrong reasons. One was clearly a lot more upbeat than the other... bubbly? Was the word? While the other held a sense of apathy that Sokka found vaguely reminiscent.
Focus, idiot. Don't catch up to your train of thought.
Isn't that how I land in most of the trouble I've found?
WEAPONS
Sokka scrambled through his bags, finding his club and trusty boomerang. All the while, however, he was yawning at an alarming frequency - they must not have landed too long ago. Even Momo was laying prone on Appa's head. He was practically on his own.
But even as he readied his last stand, a flash of determination lit dimly in his mind. No matter what, the annoying critters were as good as family. And family was something no Water Tribe man would ever leave behind.
He tried to ululate a war cry, but when his mouth opened somehow it transitioned into a loud yawn. Trying his best to recover, he feebly chirped, "And what do you think you guys are doing -"
The next thing he knew, he was stuck to a tree, held by knives. He struggled in vain to try to pull out his arms or even cut his clothing with the knife to escape, but to his utter shock, his body refused to follow his demands. As he began to struggle more and more, he knew that it wasn't a side effect from sleep that his entire body lay unresponsive. Struggle turned into alarm as he realized that whatever happened to him, the girls had done something to him and he didn't know what it was.
"Don't be too worried, Cutie. I gotta admit, you're kinda cute! But I mean, this isn't permanent. We'll remove the knives once we've got you all nice and tied up, and I did a little something to you that - well - it's a bit uncomfortable - I mean you do look a bit uncomfortable - but it's temporary! It'll be gone in a jiffy and you can start struggling again! In vain of course, but you'll regain full use of your body soon!"
Took you long enough to get to the point, Sokka thought dryly. But it was kind of hard to remain annoyed at the girl. For some odd reason, she was smiling, and even more oddly, it looked like the smile was genuine. What was he looking at? Maybe all the Fire Nation people were insane. There was Zuko, then Azula, now this. What was next, a depressed pessimist?
In any case, the girl was, for lack of a better descriptor, a naive, bubbly child. She looked the part too - clad in frilly pink, with wide eyes and nose and an innocent smile, she looked more like she belonged in a field of snow instead of a river of capture. Although Sokka couldn't help thinking that she was very cute. She was certainly about his age - maybe a year younger, maybe a year older - but if it wasn't for Yue, he might have had ideas about the girl in his sights.
"Stop talking. No fraternizing with the enemy, you absolute annoying bundle of happy pink."
Sokka simply stopped caring by that point.
The second girl was the definition of dark. From the jet-black hair tied into two rolls, to the gloves she wore, to the crimson and maroon garb that cloaked most of her body on such a sunny day, and the three knives flashing in her right hand, she was the epitome of gloom and doom, and Sokka hoped his gulp of fear wasn't audible to his captors. She was also tall - taller than him for sure, and far taller than Pink Girl who was barely taller than Aang. Aang was short for the record. Not as short as Toph, but short.
"Right. So we have a little runaway here." Knife Girl gently placed a hand on Sokka's chest. A finger twitched, and a concealed knife spontaneously flipped directly onto Sokka's neck. Sokka flinched. "Alright. First question. Is this everyone accounted for?"
Sokka blinked, not understanding the question. "Okay, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way." Sokka's eyes widened as he felt the cold steel press on his throat, and knew this was too clear and vivid to not just a random nightmare he was dreaming on top of Appa. "Do you have anyone hidden?"
"Why not check the foliage?" Pink Girl nervously interjected. "I -"
"You can do it. I have projectile backup," Knife Girl said reassuredly. "By the way... you said you paralyzed him. He can't speak, can he." This was not so much a question as a declaration of sheer exasperation by Knife Girl as she remained perilously positioned against Sokka's vitals.
"M-maybe?" Pink Girl nervously smiled. Sokka decided the genuine smile fit her better. "Sorry! I'll do better next time!"
"There won't be a next time." Knife Girl hesitated as she saw Pink Girl's face droop. "Which is a good thing." After some hesitation, she added, "Thanks for setting up for my knives. You make a pretty good partner."
Pink Girl beamed. "Aw, that's very sweet!"
"Okay. But for now, he can't talk. That's perfectly fine. I can work at breaking him without any whining or screaming to annoy me." Knife Girl reached into the folds of her cloak, and Sokka winced, thinking it was another weapon to torment him with. What she pulled out was far worse. Drawing out a heavy pouch with a powerful, arousing scent, she dangled it precariously in front of Sokka, who couldn't help but follow the bag with his eyes. "This is food. Best cured meats of the Fire Nation. You do like food, don't you? All teenaged boys do. It's all the suitors at home care about, too." She said this with such a bored expression that Sokka wondered at how she found emotion or reason to live. Whatever kind of secluded sought-after life she had, Sokka had no intentions of knowing.
Something also felt off about her... The food in his face made things difficult to reason out though.
Suddenly, he was smacked by the edge of the small parcel as Knife Girl tossed it far away from Sokka - way out of any possible reach. "Yep. That's all yours if you answer our questions willingly." She sighed, then drew an even more intimidating knife, the curled carvings of grotesque creatures on the handle and the longer, darker, sharper blade that gleamed wickedly in the sunlight drew blood from Sokka's face even before touching his skin. "Look at this. A double win. Or a double lose. Answer all the questions, and I'll kick -" Knife Girl nudged the parcel of food with the tip of her boot, as though nudging a particularly nasty amphibian in her way. "This your way. Maybe Ty Lee will even throw you a bone and let you move enough to get it. Don't answer the questions -" Knife Girl slowly edged towards Sokka, knife of death pointing menacingly, moving so the tip lay directly under the soft of Sokka's chin. Sokka gulped. He didn't know about the strange intentions of Pink Girl, but Knife Girl was all steel and business. His breath hitched as Pink Girl's words came true and he could feel movement in his limbs. Enough to squirm about helplessly; absolutely useless against the knives still pinning him to the tree. (Seriously? There was a tree that big at the edge of the forest? Sokka would never understand the logic of randomness) Sokka gulped as he realized that there was truly no escape from his place. He was stuck with a potential forecast of death or betrayal. Either could and would happen. He grit his teeth, now chattering loud enough to wake the dead, and he tried to put on his most determined face to resist whatever came next. "Well, well. What else to expect from a companion of the Avatar. Such stalwart, futile existence. But it's over. The Avatar is being returned to the Fire Nation as we speak, and with that the Hundred Years War will finally end." Sokka, however, did notice that she said this last part without particular enthusiasm. "While you - I suppose we could make you a servant. She seems to find you cute."
Something finally clicked for Sokka. He finally remembered, through his sleepy if terrified haze, the conversations had with Zuko about his past life in the Fire Nation as the prince. There was one name that would recur over and over again, without fail, in every single personal conversation Zuko had shared. Someone special to him, with a cynicism matched only by his own, someone he enjoyed for their no-nonsense, deadpan attitude and their unique, common personality.
"You're Mai, aren't you?" Sokka said boldly, a glimmer of hope in his heart.
It was dashed when his windpipe was crushed before he could explain where he got the name. "How... do... you... know... my... name?" Knife Girl was livid. Sokka forgot that it was generally not a good idea to make people angry, especially when they held weapons in their hands that they clearly knew how to use. At least she possessed the control to swap hands for her outburst.
"Wait. You know her name? Wow! That's pretty lucky. But can you guess mine?"
Sokka faltered, not remembering any mention by Zuko of anyone else in the Fire Nation. Deciding spontaneously that it might earn him some self-coolness points, and completely forgetting Angry Knife Girl at his throat, he decided to go with the absolutely random name of Ty Lee. What was the worst that could happen?
At any rate, Sokka made the groundbreaking discovery that breathing was impossible when someone holding another's throat was provoked enough.
"Easy, Mai! Don't kill him! It's not good to kill people!"
"But how does he know our names?" Angry Knife Girl was not going to outlast her nickname, not as long as Sokka stayed alive. The name fit her mood better, and gave Sokka some small relief from his sufferings. "This isn't right. How could this... person... come by our names? It's impossible to guess one name, let alone two. And how many Mai's do you know?"
"There're at least seven Ty's" Ty Lee replied dourly.
"How many ornamented with Lee? Let alone the fact that royal names are banned from the general population. I think we have an unaccounted variable on our hands," Sokka was seeing stars as he tried in vain to make a single sound and failed. "And unlike the math problems at school, I think we can solve this one fairly simply."
"Mai? Ty Lee? Sokka?"
Instantly, the pressure from Sokka's throat released, and he fell to the ground, took a shuddering breath of fresh clean air, and blacked out.
Zuko would have tried to catch Sokka when he faceplanted into the dirt. He really was, if he hadn't immediately been crushed by enthusiastic hugs.
"Zuko? What are you doing here? Last I heard you were still out at sea trying to find the Avatar!" Ty Lee squealed, burrowing her way into Zuko's chest. The familiar pink performed her customary constriction upon greeting Zuko, and for someone so small and supposedly so delicate, her embraces were surprisingly strong and encompassing. That, however was the least of his problems.
When he saw Mai - Mai in all her beauty, the shock highlighting the grace she held even with the juxtaposing sight of Sokka laying on the ground behind her as she rose to greet him, his heart leapt into his throat - not only at how long it had been since he had looked at her face, but also how long it had been since he was able to update Mai on his wellbeing... and current situation.
Stay calm. Don't think about it. Your friends are here. Zuko suddenly pushed away Ty Lee in alarm, and yelping in surprise, she flailed her arms briefly before dropping in the water, flapping frantically before finding her footing and managing to swim her way out. Zuko paid no attention. His Fire Nation friends were here, which usually only meant one thing. "Is Azula..."
Mai shook her head vehemently. "No. Thank Agni for that." Zuko shared the relief. His sister at the very least would not let him alone in peace with Mai or even Ty Lee, and that was at times of happiness and peace. She would decidedly - after their encounter in Gaipan forest - be inclined to do worse.
"By the way... it's been a while, Zuko." A tinge of surprise and the implications of something much less welcome permeated the air. Zuko awkwardly cleared his throat.
"Um... it's great to see you again..." he couldn't seem to find the proper balance for his legs. The sand shark incident and the desert hardship had disoriented him worse than he thought. It had nothing to do with Mai. Or meeting her out of the blue. Or meeting Ty Lee, too. It didn't matter, anyhow - he was shifting his weight on his legs left and right.
Mai fixed him with a stare that sliced its way into the depths of Zuko's soul. "Really? I didn't seem to get that impression from your letters. Or rather, your lack thereof. Father obviously bought up on finding me a suitor not long after you set off on your Avatar gallivanting, and your lack of communications cemented the notions that you were either dead, lost, or a traitor." Zuko did his best to not cringe at that last word. At least he was not in good enough condition for his facial expressions to respond to his thoughts. "I held them off, because, you know, they're all idiots who care about food and power. Anyways, you came at a perfect time. We just caught this watertribe person -"
"Sokka."
"Really? That's his name?" Ty Lee, having recovered from her dive, tried wringing the water from her clothes as best as possible, but found that the most she could do was shake some droplets off. "Mai, I appreciate the bath, but do you think you could try to, um, not push me as far next time? There aren't many good places to change or find new clothes. And it's spring but it's not Fire Nation heat!" Ty Lee zeroed in on Zuko and regained her train of thought. "So that's the cutie's name!" Zuko inwardly groaned. Ty Lee was such a flirt, and Zuko kept getting the feeling that Mai at times actually heavily detested when Ty Lee would so much as wink in his direction. And now she was shamelessly changing her sights to Sokka. Despite barely a year younger than him, Ty Lee was still a six-year-old at heart when it came to restraint. As opposed to Mai, who was now looking at him with much suspicion.
Of course, Ty Lee didn't notice a thing - or at least, pretended not to. "Yeah. We were going to question him about things like his personal life and whether he had any love interests - I'm kidding, Mai - but you know he was traveling with the Avatar so that makes him a prime target for the Fire Nation too. Also his skin is super dark so he's probably Water Tribe -"
"He's Sokka. He's from the Southern Water Tribe, if I remember correctly. Last I know he was a total goofball - always in the way - but loyal to his friends. It's odd, though. He should be with Aang."
"Aang." Zuko tried his best to ignore Mai's tone. He had done his best to word his answers neutrally, but something told him Mai had noticed something that did not pan out favorably for him. "Pray do continue. This seems to be highly interesting."
Zuko ignored the sweat on his palms. "And... that's about it, actually. Sokka isn't exactly the most sensible, but I'll be an lowly farm tenant if he wasn't bright. Thwarted so many plans over and over again. Aang not being with him..." Zuko paused. "What happened to him?"
"The Avatar? Azula's got him." Zuko's stomach dropped. Mai continued unfazed. "Him, and an earthbender that's probably a third of my height. They're on their way to the Fire Nation."
"You mean... Azula beat me to it?" Zuko was reeling as he spouted the lie, feeling as though he was back in the Swamp. This was the worst nightmare he'd ever dreamed. It had to be. There was no way their plans had been unraveled as effortlessly as that. How did Azula even catch up to them? It wasn't like Appa was slow. Were there detours? Doubtless. Aang was the Ty Lee of Avatars - he would always sidetrack to help others if it ever looked like there was a need for it. But regardless of what Aang had done to land himself in Azula's custody instead of Appa's saddle, the key to the overthrow of Ozai was now wrapped and being gifted to the tyrant himself. And with that, their ability to convince the Earth King to lend his strength to the cause had been diminished a hundredfold, if not more. The Avatar was too invaluable an asset. And he was lost.
To top the whole nightmare off, Mai was not done. "By the way, I never saw you with your scar before. Half your face was wrapped by scarlet bandage..." She twirled about a throwing kunai, intent of target clear in her narrowed eyes. "You have been acting very strangely. Three years have passed, but something about you doesn't feel right. You don't act normally. You seem to be reacting appropriately to certain news, but your demeanor and hesitations give off the message that you aren't necessarily reacting... to the right reasons. And you know them a little too well, even for someone who is supposed to be absorbed in who they are. My question for you -" The kunai spun faster, threatening to leave her fingers and fly towards Zuko. "Are you the real Zuko? If so - prove it."
Zuko immediately launched into their past, babbling about all the times they had together, mentioning specific details only Mai, Zuko, Ty Lee, and Azula would remember. Such as the time Zuko had tackled Mai into the fountain.
It wasn't his fault, at least not directly. Azula, being the bored princess she was, forced Zuko into a game by playing nice girl with his mother, who bought into the act far too easily for Zuko to believe. Especially when his mother disliked Azula. But in the end, he was facing Mai and Ty Lee while Azula proclaimed they would be playing a game where one person had to knock the apple off the other's head. So Azula put an apple on Mai's head - and then promptly set it on fire.
What was Zuko supposed to do? Ty Lee make a feeble attempt to move towards Mai, but one glower from Azula and Ty Lee quailed. And Mai was frozen in place at the horror on her hair - neither she nor Ty Lee could bend. Zuko didn't understand why she didn't move. But he knew if he didn't do something, and quickly, something bad would happen.
So he charged. Tackled her. Both of them got soaked, but at least Mai was unscathed. Too bad Azula made fun of them instantly, taunting that they made such a cute couple. And Ty Lee, not comprehending Azula's connotation, enthusiastically agreed with the statement. And so he eventually ran back to his mother, ranting on Azula's cruelty. At least his mother believed him when he told her what happened.
Mai was not one to physically react. But the knife stopped twirling, crushed tightly in Mai's clenched hands. "So it is you. I don't know if that's worse." Zuko tried to remain impassive. "At first, I was a bit happy to see you - if not downright disappointed that you never responded to my letters -"
"Wait. You sent multiple? I only got the first one. Never any after that. I sent you a few, but you never responded."
"That doesn't matter. It explains a lot, but that has nothing to do with right now. Because now that I know that you're the real Zuko, after everything new I learned about you -" Mai scraped her eyes up and down Zuko's figure - more than likely a bit emaciated from the conditions he endured - and her face was almost set in a sneer. "You've changed. Your voice. Your appearance. Your personality. And how much you know about this... watertribe filth."
"Sokka," Ty Lee meekly corrected, cowed by Mai's shift in temper.
"And of the Avatar... more than someone who has a simple obsession with capturing such a person. Like it or not, Zuko, your very speech gives you away." Zuko did not want to bend against Mai. He really didn't. But the sudden unsheathing of three knives into each of her hands with the blink of an eye caused Zuko to take up a defensive firebending position - as defensive as the explosive element allowed, with sparks flying from the tips of his fingers. "And your reaction to my simple movement has condemned you. You know a sliver of me still cares for you - but you know how hard it is to harbor a traitor? I can't believe you, Zuko. So much against the Fire Nation and all that it holds that you are willing to retaliate against us - against me."
"Mai..." Zuko croaked. "I can explain."
"You probably could. But this is war. Explanations can wait till the afterlife - assuming I've calmed down enough to listen to you by then. Whether you like it or not, the Fire Nation has raised you, fostered you, nurtured you, strengthened you - and this is how you repay."
"Banished me and ostracized me, more like." Zuko fired back. The birds of the forest took rapid flight, away from the commotion below. "My left eye proves as much. And you know Azula. How she's been. And my own father. Ten times as worse. Even you - how much has the Fire Nation helped you? By giving you suitors? By ignoring you? By shutting down your feelings?"
"Guys-" Ty Lee was completely cast aside in the escalating tension.
"How about you shut it or I'll make sure the words stop coming from your mouth." Mai flipped a knife to the ready to reinforce her point. "You have absolutely no right to turn your back against us - especially when there is a war going on that endangers the welfare of our nation!"
"We attacked first," Zuko shouted.
"Guys, please!" Ty Lee cried desperately, trying to get the attention of the others. "Stop it!" They simply ignored her.
"So what? It's our nation! Do you have any regard for your own nation? Do you have any sense of pride? Wasn't that the entire point of retrieving the Avatar? To restore your own honor and bring prosperity to the Fire Nation? And look what you've done now! In direct cahoots with not only the Avatar, but all the nations conspiring to bring about the fall of the Fire Nation!"
"For the record, we are arguing this, safe and sound, in a nation other than our own. What does that say about the danger the Fire Nation faces?"
Zuko saw a flash of silver, and instinctively twisted leftwards, the knife whirling past his ear. "Don't you dare start on about -''"
This time, it was a flash of pink and a barrage of swift jabs that interrupted the fight. Zuko, midway through his maneuver, crashed painfully to the ground, while Mai herself crumpled in the act of charging at Zuko, her knives clattering loudly in the sudden silence.
"STOP IT!" Any sense of defiance Zuko felt immediately dwindled when he saw - for the first time in his life - Ty Lee, not only unsmiling, but with eyes smoldering with the intensity of glowing embers. Viciously stomping towards the two - now almost touching each other - she sharply grabbed them by their cloaks and hoisted them with uncharacteristic strength so that they were face level. "Listen. I don't know what exactly's happened or what Zuko has done, but we're supposed to be friends! Or at least, not squabbling the first thing we meet! It's pretty obvious Zuko's aura has changed since three years ago - but just because he's changed, doesn't mean we should outright reject him! That's what our nation did, regardless! Did you reject him when our nation rejected him, Mai?" Mai only glared but did not respond. Zuko then realized he was also unable to speak despite being able to breath. "That's what I thought. I don't know what's gotten into you two right now, but the sun's setting, we have another prisoner to take care - or person, same difference - can we at least just call a truce while we eat a meal together? Azula-free?" Ty Lee's voice had changed from that strange determination back to a more normal naive desperation, like a child in a last bid for a treat. "If not, that's fine. I just won't let you guys move until you change your mind. The pressure points I touched are permanent unless I revert them." Ty Lee's golden eyes gleamed with an alien expression. "So promise to behave. Or stay here. Your choice. And I am dead serious."
It took a while, but it was impossible to endure Ty Lee's intense scrutiny. Zuko eventually relented, with Mai capitulating not long after that. Ty Lee tapped Zuko so quickly that he could not decipher exactly where he had been hit, only that he was finally able to swing his limbs. He took a cautious glance at Ty Lee, who was staring him down. "Um... I'll check the sky bison saddle. Maybe Sokka left something for us."
Ty Lee nodded slowly.
"Just letting you know though, being the glutton he is, he's probably left nothing left."
A slight smile flitted through Ty Lee's lips before disappearing. "I bet. Mai brought a bag of food with her. He was almost like a puppy, the way he looked at it."
"Then there's probably nothing left."
"At least take a look. The less work we gotta do, the less grumpy. 'kay?"
Zuko took another good look at Ty Lee. Though it was clear that Ty Lee was not pleased with the way things had gone, she was visibly trembling as though terrified of what she was doing. Her fingers trailed hesitantly towards Mai's body, as though desperate to free her, even despite the look of distrust on Ty Lee's face. Zuko could see that even at her angriest, Ty Lee was still soft-hearted and clearly divided over the choices she had made.
Zuko sighed. "Thanks for the wakeup call, Ty Lee. Sometimes we all need those once in a while."
She beamed reluctantly. "You're welcome."
As expected, there was nothing. After Zuko returned, Ty Lee removed her chi block from Mai.
"Did you really have to do that?" Mai frowned.
Ty Lee crossed her arms. "Yes. I've never seen you act this way. Or be this angry. Why all at Zuko? In any case, we have no food. It's no wonder the boy looked at your food like that. Your knives are better for hunting. And the tank is too far away to reach and come back here without suspicion." Ty Lee stared absentmindedly at the still, crooked form of Sokka. "They led us on quite a chase... we barely have enough fuel for a return trip, and when we left the soldiers were actually figuring out how to cut down trees without burning the forests and trapping themselves, and without any tools for that kind of thing either. They're strong and nice and handsome, but there's not a single firebender amongst them. When Azula brought them along, she assumed she'd be enough. But now, well... who knows how far that ship's gone."
Zuko shrugged. "Appa's fast. The sky bison, I mean. I'm actually surprised you even caught up. How long have you been chasing?"
Ty Lee shrugged. "A few days?"
Zuko's jaw dropped. "A few days? How -"
"A lot of random maneuvers. Sudden dips. A few landings where I guess they tried to nap. They found good rivers to rest behind, and we would have to find a way across every time. Still, we almost got them a few times, literally escaping by the skin of their teeth. We were finally able to get some mongoose lizards only after a lot of hassle. ["I did the hassle part."] But anyways, there's the boy. And the sky bison and other little guy are a little ways off."
Zuko nodded, only now seeing the top of Appa's horns a fair ways off. "We didn't need the sky bison being able to immediately fend us off. So we moved Mr. Sleepy over there a bit. He didn't put up much of a resistance - raised up some sort of primitive club before dropping facefirst into the ground. His butt was in the air." Ty Lee giggled at that. Zuko failed to hide his own. "So we moved him. Tried interrogating him. He knew Mai's name and mine too - which now I know he got from you -"
"Hold it. He knew your name?"
"Yep! Said it right after Mai's."
"Really? Because I never mentioned it to him."
"What? So you're saying he never actually knew it?"
"Yeah. He had to have guessed it."
Ty Lee pouted. "Was the name really that commonplace that anyone can guess it?"
"No." Zuko stood up to light a fire. The stars were showing, and the crickets chirped in the night "Like I mentioned, Sokka is a very intuitive person. I wouldn't say so much that he took a guess of high probability as that he could tell how unique you are a person and gave you a name that fit that."
Ty Lee was puzzled. "I- I'm not sure what you mean."
Zuko sighed. "He chose your name because it fit you perfectly as a unique individual. Not because everyone has that name. You're the one and only Ty Lee. Got it?" Ty Lee nodded unconvincingly, and Zuko offered more reassurance. "Okay. Look. You might be one of seven identical triplets with the same first character of name, but in reality - you decided to do your own thing. Ty Lee is my friend. Not Ty Woo or any of the other sisters. No other Ty is close to the royal family. No Ty is as uplifting as you are. Trust me, you're unique, in your own way. And you should be proud of it."
Ty Lee sighed. "I suppose. Thank you." She opened an eye to stare at Zuko. "And how do you know I have six siblings? I usually keep that a secret."
Zuko shrugged. "There's Mai. And Azula obviously. Also helps that you're part of a royal family and have detailed documents on your family."
"Makes sense."
Mai must have snuck away from the conversation, because just as Zuko got the fire going after his winded conversation with Ty Lee, Mai burst into the clearing holding two skewered animals. Mai held them both out at distance, clearly revolted by the kills. "Okay. I did my part. I'm not touching these things without a stick in between me and them. Can anyone here cook?"
"This is delicious!" cried Ty Lee as she slurped down Zuko's stew. "Where did you learn to cook?"
The fire, at least, was crackling cheerfully. For once things weren't getting in the way of a nice time together. No Azula, no nearby enemies, no hitches, nothing.
Although maybe the snoring in the background was cumbersome.
Mai rolled her eyes at the sound. "It's so annoying. And distracting. And also a great way to attract creatures to our location. I don't know how you'd put up with that."
Zuko furrowed his brow. "I don't. He never has snored as long as I camped with him and the Avatar. Let me check on him." Zuko stood up, leaving his stew unattended. He did his best to ignore Mai's scowl as he walked over to check on Sokka.
He had, at least, been moved to a more comfortable position. He was now lying flat on the ground next to Appa, facing the night sky, drool almost dribbling from his mouth.
This was the source of the loudest snores. It was hard to be mistaken otherwise - the boarish sounds matched the movement of Sokka's chest. Zuko, as a test, nudged Sokka's head. After a particularly loud snore was abruptly disrupted, the river was quiet for a few breaths before Sokka got started again.
Zuko rummaged around for a headrest on Appa's saddle, found a sleeping bag, rolled it up, and brought it to where Sokka was. He tried to lift Sokka's head, but found it much harder than moving Sokka's head side to side. So he nudged Sokka to the right so that his head lolled to the side (Zuko tried to ignore the saliva that spilled on the ground - gross), positioned the makeshift pillow just to the left of Sokka's head, and nudged Sokka back so that his head rolled onto the pillow. Instantly, the noises stopped.
Zuko returned to sit by the campfire. "Much better!" Ty Lee praised, sitting back with one leg crossed over the other.
"At least we can finish our meals in silence," droned Zuko. Mai said nothing.
Zuko shrugged and returned to wolfing down his portion. He had ate the most of the three, although they all certainly had their fair share of the pot.
For the most part, dinner had been silent. Mai refused to look at Zuko, and Ty Lee cautiously alternated between watching Zuko and watching Mai, for fear that a fight would somehow break out again. But Zuko found himself tired from the earlier tension - too tired to start another aimless squabble. Mai must have thought the same thing - although she was clearly still upset, she at least did not hold her utensils like her actual knives.
After Zuko had finished a satisfying meal, Ty Lee sat back up, leaned over the fire, and propped her head on her hands. "So. I don't think you've covered your journey after leaving the Fire Nation, have you? Knowing where you've been, you've probably seen more than your fair share of things that are worth a retelling at a nice campfire."
Zuko had a feeling that no matter what happened, he would be forced to retell his adventures revolving around the Avatar for the rest of his life. He was already sick of hearing himself explain the exact same details in the exact same way, from Sokka's infatuation with Yue ("Aw, darn! He's still cute, though! We can be really good friends still, right?"), to Uncle Iroh's broken teapot ("Oh no! But it seems rather vague... are you sure they didn't just survive and escape?" "Oh good riddance. Sounds like they were traitors to the Fire Nation too." "Mai!" "Sorry. Please continue. This is soooo interesting." "Where's the enthusiasm?" "Gone with the wind. Stripped from the words. Go figure."), all the way to Zuko's encounters in the desert.
Mai finally spoke to Zuko after he finished his tale right up to when they met each other. "That actually... seems terrifying."
Zuko nodded so hard he gave himself whiplash. "Yeah," he winced, rubbing his neck. "The swamp hallucinations..." He neglected telling them exactly what - or rather, who - he had seen.
"That too. All of it actually, I suppose. But the desert. It sounds like... like..."
"Death and hardship. It really is. But the people there..." Zuko thought about Reti the storyteller. How the stories of the past would be relived in the campfires to come. "It's their life. And they embrace it."
"Even so, that was really brave what you did. I couldn't imagine facing such a beast!" Ty Lee said dreamily.
"Flying, too." Mai said. "Zuko... I know you've likely improved a lot in three years, but... did what happen at the North Pole really help you that much?"
Zuko immediately summoned flame to his hands and feet, leapt in the direction of water to put distance between his flames and the trees, and propelled himself up above the trees, holding on for a brief moment of time before extinguishing his flames and falling onto the ground. Zuko shrugged in front of his incredulous friends. "I don't know. But it certainly showed in my encounter with Azula. And also in the desert. I can do things I only dreamed about before. Maybe I'm finally able to play catch-up to the rest of my family. It will certainly help for..." he didn't finish the sentence. He didn't need to. They all knew what he was referring to.
"So," Mai said, her tone taking on an edge of hardness. "What were your plans going to be? Overthrow the Firelord? Even with those powers, you still have the rest of the nation to get through."
"Yes," Zuko blurted before Mai went past her second question. Mai's deadpan patronization sent Zuko fumbling for an elaboration. "Well... it was.. before the Avatar was captured."
"For the record, it was all Azula. We were just watching it unfurl before our eyes."
Ty Lee squirmed. "I... I think I may have chi blocked the girl when she set foot outside."
Zuko shrugged. "So it goes. Azula's Azula. Enemies are enemies. I still don't know why you're accommodating me..."
"Oh, quit it. Like it or not, we're still friends. That still holds something for us, even if... you're a..." traitor. This, too, went unspoken. "Also, it's good to sit down for once and not hear annoying military people complain about military things. I just... do my thing."
"Um."
"By the way, I still don't understand the rationale behind this decision of yours. You're going against everything you've been taught -"
Zuko laughed bitterly. "You really don't know? They told everyone that I was taken out of school to better learn the intricacies of royalty. In reality, Ozai simply wanted to suppress my learning since I showed that I struggled with it and revealing it to the public - even if they are made exclusively of the social elite - is a complete disgrace. So essentially, past ten years old, I never even received any proper education on our nation."
Ty Lee covered her hands. "You what - "
Zuko shrugged. "There's more, but I'll spare you the details. My point is that I've been deprived of many privileges because I wasn't naturally gifted like Azula was, and I would always try to make excuses for my father and the country. The truth is, I still love the Fire Nation. I think it's the greatest nation in the world. But a nation is separate from the individuals that make it up. And one individual in particular is reneging on everything the Fire Nation stands for."
"You'd better be talking about yourself..."
"I'm talking about Ozai."
"Okay, you're saying that the person in charge of everything the Fire Nation stands for is not respecting those values?"
"Yes."
Ty Lee whistled. "That's a huge stretch, you know. One that's really hard to believe."
"What do you think of his daughter? Who's supposedly an extension of him?" The silence provided all the answer Zuko needed. "Even after everything I'd been through, I denied it, too. Tried to defend him as best as I could. But the truth is, when I found the Avatar and put him on my ship, it kind of changed perspectives a little bit. Seeing him and how effortlessly happy he was even after learning his people were gone - how come I lost that? How come I didn't have it? I might not have been as crazy or rowdy as he was, but I could still be happy, right? Everyone deserves to be happy, even if they show it in different ways. And after my mother left... that feeling accompanied her. And I had nothing but Azula."
"You had us," Ty Lee argued.
"With Azula acting as constant intermediary, no?" For that, there was no response. "And contemplating everything, it made me start to doubt things. All the things they indoctrinated into us from an early age... were really put into perspective. And some of the facts they taught are downright wrong. Like the airbenders. They're actually peaceful."
"The death counts would say otherwise, though."
"I've been to those temples. They're deadly to reach. Most of the deaths were likely from falls. And not to mention - the only firebender bodies from the battles against Air Nomads were documented on airbending terrain. How come they were never buried? If it was because of the times, then explain why we don't have anything commemorating the dead from airbender battles outside of the air temples. Also explain why the genocide of the Air Nomads started the Hundred Years' War, instead of occurring in the middle of it. It's hard to avoid the conclusion that not only was fighting exclusively in Air Nomad homes, but also that our nation tried covering this up and propagandizing against the Air Nomads for a hundred years."
This was hard to counterract with any known example. Especially since Zuko was the only one of all of them to visit airbending temples.
"And above it all, it's hard to ignore what's on my face."
Mai stared at it for a few seconds, then looked away.
Ty Lee touched it, and Zuko let her after briefly shying away. "Does it hurt?" Ty Lee said. Zuko shook his head. "I don't see anything bad. If anything, it's a cool battle wound. Without... considering... context..." She looked horrified by what she had insinuated.
Zuko shook his head, saying, "It's okay. I know what you were trying to say. But this burn did teach a lesson after all. It taught me about how messed up my father and the nation is, and my goal is to try and end this madness for good. Listen. We've been locked in turmoil for a hundred years. I think it's way past time for us to stop. We need to restore balance to the world somehow."
"How, though?" Mai asked pointedly. "The Avatar's captured. Not to mention, we're not really on your side." Zuko's face fell. He forgot about it. "It's not like one of us won't eventually cave in and blab to Azula." Mai cast a sideways glance towards Ty Lee. Zuko did the same.
"Hey! Don't look at me! I'm not that kind of person!"
"Not intentionally," Mai said, but not unkindly. "You're a strong and capable person, but... Azula is a monster. There's no predicting what happens with her."
Silence.
Zuko broke a few branches and set them gingerly on the dwindling fire. "I'll still go to the Earth Kingdom with Sokka. I think, as banished prince, I stand a chance at convincing the Earth King. Extra people to back me up would also help." He stared pointedly at Mai and Ty Lee.
"No."
"Why not? You also won't be able to blab to Azula or anyone else about this -"
"And what will happen if we don't turn back? My parents, regardless of their attitudes towards me, will literally hunt me down, if not because they found out I betrayed the Fire Nation, then because they're concerned about me and my potentially ruining the family image. It's a surefire way to have the Fire Nation after us. I'm no prince, but I'm still fairly important. Also, what if you fail? You know, you and Sokka have nothing to lose. But if we're with you, our families could get into deep, deep trouble with the Fire Nation... my father even managed to land a lucrative job as a governor of a city. Despite how distasteful I find things, it would be horrible to betray my family like that. We just can't afford to do that. Also, what's to say we're not recognized and don't gain an audience with the king? In your case, less is more. The less people you have to account for, the more secure you can be about making moves into Ba Sing Se. We've been taught many tales about the walls of Ba Sing Se. They were barely broken by your Uncle -"
"And they turned back when news of Lu Ten reached them," Zuko recited. "I - I supposed that's true." Although he hated to admit it, the idea of his friends accompanying him was becoming less and less possible by the minute. He was devastated. It would have been nice having more than someone younger than him to provide company and camaraderie. Especially Mai, even if she was slightly cold towards him.
"But we also learned about the society. It's... It's..." Ty Lee actually looked uncomfortable on the topic of the Earth Kingdom Capital. "There are stories in the textbook that..."
"She had to sleep in my bed while I took the floor for an entire fortnight," drawled Mai. "But seriously. Be careful there. All it takes is one small thing to be true about the place..."
Zuko groaned. "But we have no choice. We need the force of the earth behind us when we take down the Fire Nation. There's so many people in the Earth Kingdom - so many resources! It would be such a huge boon and probably will tip the scales in our favor -"
"Your. Favor. Don't forget that."
"Sorry. But -" Zuko frowned as something suddenly clicked. "Hey. You're not arguing with me anymore."
Mai shrugged.
"In any don't want to have to stay with Sokka for the rest of my journey," Zuko huffed petulantly.
Ty Lee said supportively, "You never know. It is the Avatar we're talking about. Maybe he'll pull a miracle for you."
"I doubt it. You know Azula."
"Right. And she has a huge ego. Aang could hypothetically do something about that," Mai said.
Zuko shrugged.
Suddenly, Ty Lee yawned. "Gee, I'm sleepy! I think I need to find a place to nap..." Rubbing her eyes, she wandered over to a mongoose lizard (both of which were loyally sitting at the ready next to the girls) to unstrap a pack of what Zuko could only assume was sleeping gear of sorts.
Zuko stood up and extinguished the last of the fire. He held his hand out to Mai, which she accepted after a brief moment of hesitation. Even with this simple gesture and her coldness towards him, the warm touch sent shivers through Zuko.
He let the girls set up their camp while he prepared both Sokka's and his own. He was tired.
It was still dark when he woke up. Too dark.
But couldn't sleep. Something was preventing him from doing so.
Peering out the tent flap to see if there were any suspicious movements, he quietly picked his way to the shoreline, sitting down to watch the river tranquilly float past. He didn't understand what made some rivers meander and others rage, but that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy a peaceful scene.
He wondered at the natural beauty of the Earth Kingdom. The Fire Nation certainly never taught him about this. It was only the desert and the wealth of the nation as well as the many people (deemed inferior to Fire Nation blood but higher than Water Tribe nationality due to their paler skin) who populated the nation. There was nothing about rivers, or forests, or the relatively tame animals that lived there.
He wondered how much had changed in the Fire Nation. How Ozai was venting his cruelty now. Without any of his family members to torment, who would he target? His most favorite commanders? His most competent soldiers? Zuko knew the Yu Yan archers would have a good chewing out, and that Commander Zhao would likely execute himself if the Firelord himself did not after the war had concluded.
He wondered about Aang. Was he alright? Was he treated humanely in the ship? At the very least, was there food and drink? What of the other girl captured. He had heard unfortunate things from Ty Lee and Mai about the two - he could only hope for the best and that some miracle happened before an invasion occurred. There was no chance word of their liberation would arrive in time to convince the Earth King.
Speaking of which. How to convince the Earth King? Simple pleading and verbal evidence was likely not enough, especially from teenagers. There were likely too many other things happening domestically (at least, Zuko hoped that was the term) that would occupy the King's attention, and who was to say the king wouldn't brush off the informal request as some far-fetched prank?
"You seem lost in thought."
Zuko leapt up, flames blazing in his fists, ready to confront his attacker, when the lighting finally displayed the intruder in focus.
The fists stopped, tip threatening to lick the sleeves of her robes.
"Gonna have to have Ty Lee chi-block you again?" Mai snarked, eyes twinkling in the firelight.
"I didn't know it was you."
"Sure. I could've sworn otherwise."
"It's late at night."
"The moon's still well above the trees. I can see that very well."
"So what are you doing out here?"
Mai shrugged. "I was sleeping very lightly. There was too much to think about. And then I heard your footsteps. Thought I'd try following you."
Zuko grunted. "I have a lot on my mind too." He took a deep breath. "Why were you so angry at me? I mean, I've seen you mad, but... usually, you're a lot less expressive. And then you changed over so quickly. What happened?"
The river flowed past them. Mai had taken out a knife, and Zuko had the vague notion that she was planning to use it on him. But all she did was take a speck of weed that managed to thrive on the unforgiving shore, and slice it cleanly in half. Satisfied with the condition of her knife, she returned it back to one of the twenty-eight places she hid the weapons on her body.
"Did you use that on Sokka?"
"I was scared, Zuko. Genuinely worried." The sudden breach of guard caught Zuko by surprise. Unperturbed, Mai continued with her explanation. "It had been so long. Now that I know you at least tried to write to me - it's... it's not so bad. But you have to understand. I was so worried about you. You're quite literally my best friend, besides Ty Lee. Azula did not care whatsoever about you. She even gloated when you were burned, laughing at how weak were supposedly were. I just went to my room and didn't move. My parents then brought in the first suitor." She sighed, and Zuko could tell, even in the darkness, that her fingers were tensed up, ready to call up a weapon at a blink's notice. "I tried fending them off. They weren't what I wanted. Fortunately, most of them were around our age. I just gave them food to go away. They always lost interest once they saw what kind of person my parents raised me to be."
"Honestly, it sucks. I was raised with high expectations, but meant to be a sort of figure for the family. I had to look good and behave well. If I didn't act up, I was rewarded. If I did, I was ignored. It just... made me numb to everything. Sometimes, it's so hard to feel, but even so... it hurts when other people don't like you for who you are, and you're too afraid to let your guard down with them."
"With you, though. And maybe Ty Lee and Azula, but not to the same extent. I was always able to be myself - or as close to it as I could get. You always accepted me for who I am, and you're the only person who really understands me and tries to help me. Ty Lee does it, but only when things are really serious. Like earlier. It's just perpetual with you, and I really appreciated it. Then you left, for Agni-knows-where, and I was alone, with Ty Lee to pester me, and of course Azula." This she all said in a whisper. "Even when she's gone... I'm still afraid to voice my displeasure with her. She's not good. She literally uses us as tools and does nothing but abuse what little kindness I have. It's worse with Ty Lee. She still has the maturity of a young child. Azula doesn't care. She just uses us, and she has the privileges to be able to do that. All these little things of stress."
"And then seeing you today was such a huge relief. I finally saw you again! But it wasn't as nice as it should have been. You didn't look right. It has nothing to do with your scar, which I honestly couldn't care less about. Your entire demeanor just screamed a different tune than I was used to. Even Ty Lee mentioned your aura change. You were - are - completely different - so I didn't know what to make of you. I didn't know if I should be happy."
"When you made those slipups - everything about what you became became painfully clear. Your ideals have changed, and I was afraid that you changed. Completely. I wasn't sure if there was even a small part of you that still remembered the old days. I wasn't even sure if I could trust that it was the real you we were looking at, and not some actor or impersonator. You really seemed that altered."
"So I got angry at that. But... I guess your story really helped me out. Even if your ideals have changed, you're still kind. You still are yourself, even if you don't believe the Fire Nation is perfect. Deep down, we all know it isn't, but I wasn't expecting you to be so... passionate and upfront about it. But at least, I could see you were still you, the Zuko I know, and I think that, to me, was the most important thing. Because I just want to let you know... you're important to me."
Zuko was stunned. Mai had never spoken so much - let alone talked about herself. He wasn't sure how to react to such a confession, and his expression must have shown so, because Mai immediately sagged and drew away from him. "I'm sorry. I spoke too much - I didn't -"
Zuko's hands shot out and took hers. "N-no. No. I just... I wasn't expecting you to be like this. But... you were always important to me, too. And I had time to think about it on my journey too, over the years - as I met all sorts of people and, I will not lie, attractive people as well -" Mai dug her nails into Zuko's hands, although clearly in jest as the pressure was not painful. "- I was really able to think about my life, and the people in it. And you're the most important person to me, after my mother. Because when everything seemed lost, you were there, whenever you could escape Azula, and even the times you couldn't."
"You were one of the better people to hang around," Mai deadpanned. "Not that you're good. But definitely preferable to the other losers I had to deal with after you were gone."
Zuko snorted. "Ha. But you're just as important to me. I don't really have a long speech to say."
"That's good. I don't want to sit through one."
"I just wanted to let you know... you matter to me."
"I don't hate you, too."
They watched the stars, the water fading in the background, appreciating the silence of the night and the euphony of nature in its delicate, tranquil moments. A quiet, intimate time, a last one to relax with each other.
"So, about that... why not just come with me so we don't have to be bored by other people again?"
"I thought we established that it would be an impossibility."
"But... wouldn't it be fun? You would have someone else to hang out with you besides Ty Lee. We could sightsee the Earth Kingdom while -"
"Pretty sure you'd be traveling too fast to enjoy such a thing," Mai said dryly.
"You'd actually be surprised. Everything moves slower than they actually are. You can actually enjoy the views while Appa goes at top speed."
"Interesting," Mai said. Zuko could tell she hadn't really been listening to his argument. "You know... the scar kind of looks good on you."
Zuko was confused. "You... are you..."
"It makes you look... strong. Somehow. Brave. You're good-looking, before and after this. But I'm just saying... I like the look." Mai cupped Zuko's left cheek gently.
"Is this you trying to lower my guard down for revenge?"
Mai shrugged. "Does it bother you?"
Zuko thought about it for a hard while. "At first... it did. But now... it's not really so bad. You know, at the North Pole, there was some Spirit Water. I probably could have tried to see if I could get rid of my scar. There are very talented healers there. But... I just thought it made up too much of who I am now. It's defined a good portion of my life, and changed me for the better."
"According to you."
"Just shut up." Zuko could tell, even in the darkness, that Mai was genuinely smiling. "Stop that."
"Stop what?" Mai said innocently.
"I can hear it in your voice."
"Hear what?" Mai deadpanned. "You think I reveal things in my voice. Well there is nothing to see."
"What do you mean? I'm not your parents."
"I can see that." Mai sighed. "You know, it's kind of romantic, actually. You know... two people, sitting side by side, next to a river, with the moon casting a soft light on the water..."
Zuko suddenly noticed how close they were. If it were any brighter, Mai could see how cherry red Zuko's face had become. "Since when did you become a sappy poet?"
"I have no clue what you're talking about."
"I could say the same thing. What are you -"
She kissed him.
It wasn't anything like they said in the stories. No sparkles. No magic. No special stirring, no instinctual knowing that this was the moment of perfection. Nothing. And yet, as Zuko felt her breathing against his lips, he knew it was right, and a wave of emotions rolled over him, as merciless as the waves crashing on an ocean shore. He felt disconnected, yet also entwined, at the same time. He could hear the rushing of the water through the river, and the roaring of his own blood in his ears. But most of all, he felt Mai - on his lips, around his neck, and most importantly, in his heart.
It was a very long moment of silence when they finally broke apart. Nothing had changed. Not the path of the river, not the inconstant moon, not even the silence of the forest. But something felt different. Something good. Something permanent. Something Zuko could enjoy and cherish.
"I'm still mad at you." Mai said, back to her stoic self. Although Zuko did notice that she was leaning towards him, face almost touching his.
"You don't act like it," Zuko teased gently.
Mai spent precious moments playfully glaring at Zuko, so he could lose himself in her eyes, before she sat up and got on her feet. "Go get some sleep. This never happened."
"Yes, my lady."
Zuko swore that Mai smirked at his address to her before she made her way back to her tent.
Feeling much lighter, Zuko practically skipped to his own tent, although he did nearly trip over when he saw Ty Lee sleeping on Appa's head, arms hugging the bison. Zuko took a moment to survey the odd sight - a girl sleeping on Appa's head, disregarding her tent for his fluffiness - and half-smiling to himself, slid into his tent and lay in his sleeping bag.
It was not long until sleep overtook him.
They did not talk much in the morning. Perhaps the surreal atmosphere of the night had cloaked the reality of their situation, or the harshness of the morning reminded them of their situation. Or maybe it was all just a dream. But in any case, communication was curt and cold.
Sokka was still knocked out, as was Appa, but at least Momo was able to accompany Zuko to pay farewells to the girls.
Once they were settled in their mounts, Zuko rushed up to them with one final question at the tip of his mind. "Ty Lee. Mai. Thank you -"
"Probably would've been harder to bring you two into custody, anyways. Especially with that huge behemoth," Mai said, showing no sign of recollection of the previous night. For all he knew, it was all just a dream.
Zuko backpedaled into the nonchalant indifference of dinner. "Are you sure..."
Mai did not address his question. Neither did Ty Lee. "This is where we say goodbye, banished prince," Mai said, without any of the emotion she had revealed the night before. "Until we meet again - preferably in more favorable accomodation."
Shouting a command to her mongoose lizard, she took off, crossing the river and disappearing between the trees. Ty Lee did the same.
Zuko was left with nothing besides three snoring animals and the rush of the river.
At any other point in time, he would have sank to the ground, utterly defeated, even if he would have inevitably gotten back up again. However, now, he simply sighed, thanked the spirits and his uncle for not making him a prisoner of the Fire Nation, then went to set things up and prepare for a long flight.
Suddenly, something caught his eye. It was the tree that had held Sokka when he was captured by Mai and Ty Lee.
Zuko frowned. Mai was very particular about retrieving her prized knives after fulfilling her objectives, no matter how distasteful and trying it was to do so. Approaching the tree, he saw that in fact, a knife had been lodged in the tree, with a piece of paper pinned behind it.
Hands trembling, he pulled the knife from the tree, carefully pulled out the paper, and saw that there was writing on it.
Dearest Zuko,
I apologize for the manner in which I may have treated you, although I still am a bit hurt that I never received your letters. That, however, is likely outside both of our control, as I have reason to suspect that Azula - or some other suspicious figure - may have intercepted any messages we attempted to send each other.
You have no idea how badly I want to accompany you. The situation in the Fire Nation is... dire. Many people are angry. Disillusioned. It doesn't help that little seems to be done in the world by the Fire Nation, and the sound defeat at the North Pole has done much to demoralize the people. Also, I'm bored. An adventure with you would at least be a break from the mundane life of a lady. Even if it meant that Ty Lee had to tag along.
I wish I could do more to help you. But it's far too difficult to try to masquerade as a traitor, and too many Fire Nation members traveling together would gather too much suspicion. Especially when we are still considered high ranking members and not banished as of yet (You never know. Azula can be quite the character). Also, it's a bit difficult personally to bring shame onto my family - especially in such a risky endeavor. Ty Lee and I have decided to simply try to forget our meeting together. It is for the best. In the meantime, I wish you a safe journey and for a happy reunion someday.
By the Light of Agni,
Mai
P.S. I would like you to know that, since Azula has custody of the Avatar, we need not fear any interference in communications. I will be sending a messenger hawk - discreetly - to you. I do believe that, with correct timings and placings, that we may be able to set up a sort of correspondence. So this time you have absolutely no excuse to not answer me. In any case, if you ever need to ask for anything, as long as it is in my power to do, I hope you know that I would brave any blaze for you. Even as someone without the gift of Agni. Why? I hope you do not ask this question. At least, not yet. I am afraid to confess it, even to myself.
Sokka's head hurt.
It felt like he had been hit with a tree log twenty times. He was also thirsty. And wanted meat.
He slowly opened his eyes and froze. He was on Appa's saddle. With Momo watching over him.
Everything came back to him. The chase, the naps, the adrenaline coursing through his veins, the final landing, the fight, and the miserable interrogation. They'd knocked him out to the point where he was seeing stars, then he thought he'd heard Zuko's voice and then remembered nothing past that besides hitting the ground. Experimentally, he wiggled his wrists, and was surprised to find that he was able to move them. Curious, he opened his eyes to find himself on Appa's saddle, the edges further away from him than freedom was in his dream.
That's what it had to be. A dream. It was the only option that made logical sense, especially when he heard Zuko's voice. Why would he be here, of all places, so far south when he could have taken an entirely different route directly east to Ba Sing Se? However, it also did mean that having already been caught was a dream, which would not be so bad if it didn't mean that the chase was still on.
Belatedly, he realized that it was a good idea to check on Appa's condition. Hopefully they would be able to outrun the machine this time. He pushed his chest off the ground to begin the treacherous crawl, then yelped as the bag directly next to him fell with a metallic clatter.
He froze. Metallic clatter? His weapons were packed too securely to make such sounds - thanks to prior needs for silent espionage. But hearing a sound he shouldn't meant only one thing.
He wasn't alone.
So it wasn't a dream? But then... why do I feel the air rushing past me? On Appa's back?
"'Sup. Put my pack right next to you since I knew you would be doing that whenever you woke up."
That voice... Sokka immediately leapt to his feet, throwing caution to the wind. That was definitely not a female voice, and one far too familiar to deny.
Sitting on Appa's head, reins in his hands, back facing Sokka, was Zuko.
"ZUKO?" Sokka was absolutely elated, if not puzzled, to see the prince once again. Then reality crashed on him. "So..."
"You don't need to say anything." Zuko's voice was not unkind, if not entirely warm and welcoming. "You found an earthbender but got caught."
"Yes! Her name was Toph, super short, Aang's age, and she was insane! She literally smashed her competition in the Earth Rumble - the tournament to determine the best earthbenders in the nation!"
Zuko did not turn. "That's... impressive. I suppose."
"Oh, and she's blind and from rich controlling parents."
Zuko turned. Sokka, although expecting some sort of change after Zuko's solo trek, was shocked to see that contrary to the intent of the journey, his face was worn, haggard, and thinner than before. "Woah... what happened to you?"
"A lot. But if you don't mind, I kinda want to know a little more about how we lost the Avatar. I'll tell you everything afterwards." He paused, and rolled his eyes to the distance. "But... you said she was blind?"
Sokka nodded. "Yeah. A-and she had pretty bad parents. They're super rich - the richest in the city and I think half the Earth Kingdom if I remember right - I probably don't - but the main point was that they put her on a figurative leash and didn't let her leave the house."
Zuko whistled. "Sounds pretty bad."
"It's gotta be, if you're saying that."
"Exactly."
Zuko patted Appa on the head and went over to sit in Appa's saddle. "I've been like that for hours. We left the morning after you got caught. You were out cold. Mai and Ty Lee literally left us behind - you're lucky I came along."
"I bet," Sokka scoffed. "Right after they caught Aang and Toph - that's the earthbender," he added for Zuko's sake. "They sent a crazy huge machine after us - it was bigger than Appa! - and basically we tried outrunning it. But... um... we were kinda running on bad sleep before that, and didn't expect Fire Nation to be so far into Earth Kingdom territory. That, and also we couldn't stop to take naps. So we were too tired to outrun the tank, and Appa needed to go down eventually. And then... well, yeah."
"And what happened at the place?"
Sokka hesitated. "Well... we were staying there. Toph and Aang started lessons. Then I guess someone gave us out or something, because the next thing we knew we were greeted with spears to our faces and Toph was captured. And then, uh, they bartered Toph for Aang, and her parents - the Beifongs - sold us out."
Zuko held up a hand. "Hold up. The Beifongs? The Beifongs held you? And they have a daughter?"
Sokka blinked. "You know of them?"
"A mention or two in the Fire Nation. Maybe something or other on my trek. Yeah, they're pretty rich and important... Gao Ling was actually a marked target for its prosperity - after the capital is taken down. It's not as important as Omashu or Ba Sing Se, exactly, but... it's pretty important."
Sokka's face twisted into a grimace. Zuko narrowed his eyes. "You're kidding, right? There'd better be a Ba Sing Se to go to still, or we've come all this way for nothing."
"N-no! Ba Sing Se is all right! Nothing wrong with it! But..."
"Omashu's down? You're kidding." Sokka smelled smoke in the air.
"I-I'm serious! But... I don't know. The loon running the place is one of Aang's super-duper old friends. Even before the Hundred Years' War. He was super crazy - no surprise there - but Aang said he was a veritable genius. I don't know if I trust that take, but... Aang and the king there got into a discussion about Omashu, and the king pretty much said he was surrendering as a strategic maneuver." Zuko scratched his head, eye ticcing. "Yeah, that's what I thought. But Omashu is now Fire Nation. Which is pretty bad."
"Yeah, almost as bad as trading the avatar for a Beifong kid."
"I mean, we would have probably done it regardless out of kindness and awkwardness, but... well. Goes to show just how scummy the family is." Sokka paused. "It's really unfortunate. The city's very far from any fighting whatsoever. It's like..."
Zuko shook his head. "I was thinking the same thing. I had a run-in with Azula far up north. In Gaipan Forest. I burned the place down, and its inhabitants were already a bit displeased with Fire Nation people. I did save them, though, so they let me recover and gave me a few things before starting a countdown to chase after me."
It was now Sokka's turn to blink. "Wha-"
"Yeah. I was thinking the same thing. She must have been tipped off by my presence or something. She can do that, you -"
"I saw her when she captured Aang. She is actually intelligent. Like, terrifyingly so. Come to think of it, I'm not sure why I escaped. Maybe she wanted me to?"
Zuko shrugged. "That might be a possibility? But more likely since she already has the Avatar there's nothing for you to do. No offense, Sokka, but in fights versus benders you don't really count as much other than liability."
"Say, I wonder," he said sarcastically. Then he frowned. "Wait. Then what about Mai? And Ty Lee? The things they were able to do..."
Zuko stopped to think for a moment. "Mmm... you really think you're capable of doing that?" Sokka shoved Zuko towards the edge of the saddle. "I mean, seriously. Think about yourself. Would you really be able to do it?"
Sokka did not smile at what was clearly Zuko's attempt to lighten up the moment. "It's war, Zuko." The smirk on Zuko's face faded. "If I have to, I will."
"I mean... how would you even be able to learn?"
Sokka shrugged. "Maybe in Ba Sing Se I can figure something out. And how about what's happened with you?"
"So it was you in the Swamp!"
Zuko blinked. "What?"
"That weird forest place. Me and Aang went through there - I don't remember why. Was it Fire Nation chasing us? Oh wait, no. Aang wanted to go there because he thought he heard something calling to him."
Zuko snorted. "If he wasn't the Avatar and could hear the Spirit World, I would have said that hearing something calling to you is a great start to a horror story. At least it explains the crazy things in there."
"Makes sense. Did you see Mai?"
"Did you see Yue?"
"Figures."
Zuko frowned as he processed this new information. "So... when I heard you guys..."
"We heard you too."
Zuko cursed. "We were so close to each other! Maybe if we ran through different plants we would have actually bumped into each other instead of random plants!"
Sokka squinted. "Hmm. Maybe not. Because Aang did say something about the forest being able to connect to the past, present, and future. So maybe what happened was that the forest made us able to hear each other from who-knows-how-far apart, and then trick us at the last possible moment."
Zuko sighed. "That may be. But at least I know things weren't as creepy as I made them out to be at first. At least I know I'm still somewhat sane."
"Are you, though?" Zuko punched him in the arm. Sokka winced and reflexively rubbed his arm. "Way to pull a Toph! At least you don't hit as hard."
"Want me to?"
"Calm down, jeez! That was revenge for your jab at me earlier! But yeah. Going into the desert and saved by a tribe that changes their mind about selling you..."
Zuko shrugged. "Guess I'm getting lucky for once."
"Lucky? I don't know about that. Maybe you're still short selling yourself. This isn't just a one-time thing, Zuko. It's happened even when you're with us. I honestly think that wherever you go, you're able to change people's thoughts on who you are. I think you're able to make people actually able to understand you, and maybe, just maybe for once. I don't know. I think you're showing that you can help make the world a more peaceable place. A better place for us all."
Zuko had this to think about for the rest of their flight that day.
Meh. Not the most thought-out. But at least it moves the fifth-rate plot along.
Revision is SOOO good. I actually added a lot on my read-through of this. Not enough to make it good, but enough to make it a bit less sloppy.
Next chapter - Kuzon. Someday...
I would like an honest evaluation of my actual writing skills. Not story-related or anything. Just how the writing feels, if it's choppy or immature or anything of that sort. For the record, everything past chapter 18 (which was written two years ago if I remember correctly) of this story I have read through, and just mechanics-wise I have difficulty finding things I would change. If someone could give me tips to improve, I would really appreciate it.
