Yikes! I am so ashamed for how long this chapter took. Writers block, work, and more writers block… i wish i could say i'll do better but I don't want to give false hope…
Anyway…. Sorry for the wait everyone and thanks for reading! Also, just an early notice, but I'm going to switch up the order of the gangs journey through the Fire Nation so it might aggravate all of you die hard Avatar fans. I have an idea of how I want these next few chapters to go, and that involves moving the episode order around from the show. The plot will be the same for the most part. You'll understand what I mean soon in the future. You don't have to worry about it right now. For those who are curious though, the episode order in this work will go "The Painted Lady," "Sokka's Master," "The Avatar and the Fire Lord," "The Puppet Master," then "The Beach" and finally "The Runaway."
Chapter 49: Rotten Fruit
Third Person POV
The dimly lit room was silent besides the crackle of the flames that rose on both sides of the raised platform where the Fire Lord's throne was. A guard stood at the bottom of the steps on both sides in silent alert, their eyes scanning the room for any danger. A middle-aged man with graying black hair and a sharp goatee sat on the throne, his gold eyes showing a deep darkness of malice and hate. His fists clenched the edge of the arms of his chairs as his thoughts ran wild. The red fire rose and fell with his breathing, and the other servants in the room holding water and food made no move to upset him.
The messenger before him shook with fear as the Fire Lord stared at him with irritation and impatience. The messenger was a lean frail old man in a dark robe, and he stayed on his knees with his eyes downcast in both fear of angering the man before him and of being disrespectful.
"Speak, Commander Yung," Fire Lord Ozai ordered, his voice echoing around the room with both authority and sternness. "I have a meeting soon with a very important councilman, so say what you need to."
The man nodded. "Yes sir… I apologize for intruding on your time, but you ordered that any suspicious activity be reported to you right away. It's Princess Azula... You've had my men watch her these last few weeks. The other night one of my spies saw your daughter speak to a man with a metal boot and strange tattoos. After interrogating the man when he left the palace, we have learned that your daughter is attempting to send out an assassin to kill the waterbender Admiral Zhao told you of before his death."
The Fire Lord's ears perked up at this, and he leaned forward in his chair with sudden interest and irritation. "Really… My daughter is sending an assassin after the young waterbender my treacherous son is so fond of…" He sneered. "Even after I told her that I wanted that temptatious wretch alive!" Fire shot up towards the ceiling from his rage. He stood from his seat and stepped to the edge of the platform. "Keep your spies on my daughter for now. She clearly is not capable of being left to her own devices." He then asked, "Is the assassin you interrogated still here?"
Commander Yung nodded again. "Yes my lord. He is being detained by my men outside."
Ozai sneered. "Bring him in here at once."
His order caused the man to stand quickly, bow, and depart the room backwards. Once he was through the doors, the Fire Lord stepped back to his throne with a sudden fire building inside him. He'd heard about his son's feelings for the waterbender captured so long ago from the Southern Water Tribe. He knew of the affection that his son had for the girl, and he also knew that the girl was the reason his son turned on him. As much as he understood Azula's plan to kill the waterbender, he had other plans for punishing his son. He had given Zuko the chance to come home, and yet the banished prince had chosen to betray him and the throne for a poor Southern Water Tribe chief's daughter. Ozai knew the best way to get his son to come back to him was leverage, and that leverage would be the thing Zuko loved most.
The doors to the throne room opened once more, and the sound of metal clomping against the stone floor echoed around them. The Fire Lord remained in a perfect posture as he returned to his seat on the throne. He watched the tall brawny man with an eye tattoo and a metal boot step towards him, two armored men on both sides grasping his arms in case he tried anything. Fire Lord Ozai smirked at the plan running through his head.
"I have been informed that my daughter ordered for you to kill a waterbender known for a scar adorning her face." He kept a steady gaze on the man who had no respect to bow to him. He tried not to let it anger him. He needed this man to do his bidding. "I have a task for you that will make my daughter's forgotten. If you do this service for me then you will be handsomely rewarded. Fail however, and you will be punished."
The man did not speak, but his fists tightened as anger boiled inside him. He did not like to be ordered around, even if it was by the Fire Lord. He knew better than to argue though, especially when money was involved.
The Fire Lord could see he was on board, and he continued. "The waterbender you are meant to kill… Don't." He narrowed his eyes. "Instead, I want her brought to me. I don't care what method you go to in order to find and retrieve her. My son must be punished for his treachery, and I wish for that to be by my own hands. Of course, if my son intervenes do not kill him, but you may do what you must to get the girl away from him. I want to see what is so special about this Southern flower, and remind my son who is in charge of his destiny."
He grinned devilishly.
"Also, give my son a message for me... Tell him that if he wants to see her alive, he better come home with a well thought out apology for his treason."
The man nodded to let the Fire Lord know he would do his bidding. He ripped his arms from the two men restraining him, and turned leaving the throne room to begin his mission. Once he was gone, with the two men following to escort him out of the palace, the doors closed behind.
Ozai stared at the shut doors with resolve, speaking to himself with all the insanity he had. "No one turns against me without consequences, boy. You should've learned that three years ago when I banished you for your insolence and defiance. You're just as much a fool as your mother… She turned against me because of her affections toward someone else as well. She met her fate though, and so will you." He leaned back against the throne with a smirk. "I truly look forward to meeting the girl that holds your heart so, my son."
Crystal POV
"Eew!" I cringed at the polluted water that Appa was floating through. We'd landed in the river when the sun started to rise. Two days had passed since we'd taken off out of the cave after the dance party was stopped. Sokka was worried the Fire Nation would spot us the deeper we got into the territory of our enemy, so he found it best for us to stay low to the ground. "Why aren't we flying again? If we go high enough no one will see us. I feel like Appa's going to catch a disease from this awful liquid."
Aang, who seemed to have no problem floating in the water below, commented up to me, "It's not that bad. Just a little slimy."
I shook my head. "Aang… It's not even the correct color. Please get out."
Momo was chilling on Appa's tail watching Aang swim around, while Sokka used a makeshift fishing pole to try and catch us some lunch. Zuko looked around at the river in both disbelief and fury. "How can my father let our environment get like this? I know he has men stationed out in these parts. Someone had to have mentioned this river's condition by now!"
Toph scrunched her face up. "I don't know about you, but this place stinks. Unless that's just Sokka."
Sokka ignored her, stating, "I'm sure it's just the rivers lighting. Maybe it's supposed to be this dark in these parts of the Fire Nation. There could be a scientific reasoning behind it."
Aang suddenly ducked under and swam behind Appa's tail. "Momo!" He sunk again just as Momo went to look for him. He resurfaced back at the front of Appa. "Oh Momo!" He went under again, and this time he surfaced near Momo who chirped in excitement. "Ah! Ha ha, you found me, buddy."
"Aang! I'm serious! Get out of there before you turn a different color," I ordered.
Aang took my advice this time. Using waterbending, he managed to shoot himself up over Appa's saddle landing beside Katara. He was dripping gooey water from his clothes, and he smelled like one of the many cells I'd been thrown into during my time as a prisoner. "You know… I think you're right Crys. This river's polluted."
He suddenly bent the residual goop off of him, and we all gasped as it landed on each of us. He quickly shot air at us to help us dry off as well from the gross liquid.
Sokka pulled his fishing pole out of the water with a frown. " Well, that does explain why I can't catch a fish around here. Because normally my fishing skills are... off the hook! Get it? Like a fishing hook?
We all stared at him in disbelief, while Toph coughed out a laugh. "Too bad your skills aren't on the hook."
Katara, Zuko, and Aang laughed at the comment. I rolled my eyes, saying, "We should get back up in the air. This water isn't good for Appa to be in."
Katara nodded. "Well seeing as Sokka isn't getting a catch, it looks like we'll need to go somewhere else to get food." As she spoke, Sokka put the pole down and picked up a long scroll he'd made a schedule on. He said he needed something to keep track of our journey, so he managed to slip into a shop on the outskirts of a town yesterday and steal a piece with some ink. As Sokka examined his schedule, Katara looked irritated. "Assuming that'll fit into Sokka's master schedule."
He looked over his notes intently, while we watched him in disbelief. "Hm...it's doable. But that means only two potty breaks today!"
Toph scowled. "That's not even healthy, Sokka!"
Zuko sighed. "I'm sure we're close to a town in these parts. There are small settlements scattered all along this river."
"Like that one?" Aang pointed past us towards something in the distance. We followed his gesture and found a wooden town built in the center of the river on a wooden platform raised from the water below. The water of the river seemed to just sit and make no movements, and I knew a lot of that had to do with all the gunk and pollution clogging up the outlets. "Hey, maybe we can get food there."
I grimaced. "Is their food like the river, because if so I'll give you all my portion."
"Anything is better than nothing at all though," Katara stated.
A few moments later we got Appa out of the river onto a grassy bank. There was some brush that we managed to guide him behind where he would hopefully stay hidden from passing eyes. Once Appa was concealed from view, we started to head back towards the river where we hoped to find a place to cross. As we headed down the bank, I looked at the water with horror seeing dead fish and metal materials at the shallow parts. Scanning the area past the town, I quickly realized what was the cause of such disgust.
A giant metal factory was situated on the edge of a giant cliff, and black smoke (from the coal and chemicals they burned within the steel walls most likely) soared up to the air. I could only imagine more chemicals from the factory were being thrown into the water below from the pipes that ran through the place.
"What do you think their making over there?"
Zuko answered my question. "Weapons… Most of the factories in these parts provide ship parts, and other tools for war."
Aang shook his head. "No wonder the world's so out of balance. It's become a waste bucket."
"With all of the new inventions and transportation coming out, I have a feeling it will only get worse in the future," Zuko commented.
Sokka tapped his chin. "You know… It would be nice if we didn't have to travel on foot or in the air all the time. Maybe one day I can help design a small carriage that travels super fast on land by heat power! We could call it 'Sokka's Land Roamer' and sell a ton!"
Katara laughed. "That's ridiculous, Sokka! You have a crazy imagination."
He pouted. "It's possible. The Fire Nation made a giant metal drill! If they can do that I can make a smaller thingy to get me from one place to the other."
Toph snapped, "The only place I want to get to is the town across the water, and I'm not swimming since I don't know how to."
My eyes scanned the bank, and I saw then a man standing by a boat that was tied to a wooden pier. "Maybe he can give us a ride across," I suggested.
Aang nodded with excitement, "Yeah! Let's ask!"
Eventually we approached the small dock where a very thin lanky man with a red hat and sleeveless open vest was preparing to set his boat out.
"Excuse me," Aang began. "But my friends and I were wondering if you could give us a ride?"
"Sure thing, youngin'! My name's Dock. Mind if I ask who you are?"
Katara quickly came up with a cover. "We're, um, from the Earth Kingdom colonies."
Dock eyed all of us for a moment with suspicion, but then shrugged and said, "Wow... colonials! Hop on! I'll give you a ride into town."
We decided to take his kind gesture, and each of us carefully stepped into the boat. Sokka and I helped Toph in, who I knew would hate not being able to see. As Dock began to steer us across the polluted river towards the town, my sister struck up conversation.
"Why do you guys live on the river?"
Dock answered with pride. "Because we're a fishing town. At least that's how it was before the factory moved in. Army makes their metal there. Moved in a few years ago and started gunking up our river. Now our little village is struggling to survive."
Zuko cringed. He'd put his hood up to conceal his identity in case anyone possibly recognized him. "That's terrible… Has the Fire Lord tried efforts to clean the place?"
Dock frowned and leaned forward. "Let me let you all in on a little secret since you six aren't from around here. This town was forgotten long ago by the Fire Lord and his men. If the army decides to, we'll be kicked out of these parts in the next few years. All some people know is this town…" He sighed, looking over at the place we were steadily approaching. "It would be tough for many of us to start over."
Eventually we arrived at the docks of the town and each of us managed to get out of the boat. As we started to walk through the small mildewed area, I held onto Toph's hand guiding her along the path that didn't knock her into the river. As I did so, she whined about being blind and useless.
Coughs, groans, and sneezes rang around us as we were surrounded by men, women, and children who looked deathly ill and impoverished. The place smelled like raw fish, and a bunch of other scents that made every one of us try not to breathe too much through our nose.
Katara hung her head as we continued to walk by a family with a pale crying baby in its mother's arms. "Look at this place. It's so sad. We have to do something to help."
Sokka shook his head sternly. "No, we can't waste our time here! We have a bigger mission that we need to stay focused on. These people are on their own!"
Katara stepped in front of all of us, stopping our steps abruptly. "These people are starving, but you turn your back on them?!" She pointed at Sokka's chest. "How can you be so cold and heartless?"
Sokka shoved her hand down. " I'm not turning my back, I'm just being realistic! We can't go around helping every rinky-dink town we wander into. We'll be helping them all by taking out the Fire Lord!"
Toph left my side and slapped her hand over Sokka's mouth. Sometimes her actions made me forget she was blind. "Hey, loudmouth! Maybe we should be a little quieter when we talk about taking out the Fire Lord," she hissed.
Sokka shoved her hand down, and then whispered, "Come on, Katara, be reasonable about this. You know our mission has to come first."
Zuko nodded. "Sokka's right… As much as I want to step in and help these people, the best thing to do is stop my father first. Once we do so and I take leadership, then I can stop the factory work and set efforts to clean this area as well as offer relief to the townspeople.
Katara frowned, and reluctantly muttered, "I guess so."
Stepping over to her, I placed a hand on her shoulder for comfort. "It's going to work out Katara… We'll help these people very soon."
Aang nodded, stating with dismay. "Let's just get what we need and go."
As the group started to walk off towards a small area of stalls, I felt a bony hand grab my wrist suddenly and jerk me back. Looking at the owner, I found an elderly man with chipped teeth and scabs on his bald head. He had been sitting nearby, but crawled over to us just as we were starting to walk.
"Suna!" He yanked me down so my face was close to his. "My daughter Suna! You've come back!"
I could see the man had lost all sense of reality, and whoever Suna was he believed I was her. I tried to pull again, but his grip tightened as tears fell down his sick ashen face.
"Just wait until your mother sees this! Oh Suna! My girl!"
"Sir…" I tried to bring him back. "I'm not Suna… You're making a mist-"
"Why did you leave us? Your mother held you for days! You shut your eyes… Your beautiful brown eyes… Oh, Suna. I knew you'd return!"
"Hey!" Sokka came in between us suddenly and managed to pry the man's hand from my wrist. "Back off!"
The man, who had been on his knees, dropped to his hands and sobbed. Another man, this one middle aged with a frail structure as well, rushed over to help the man. "Dad! What are you doing? Come back to bed." He looked up at my brother and I with apologetic eyes. "I'm sorry… He hasn't been right since my mom and my sister died ten years ago." He frowned when he looked at me. "She was your age when she passed… He's confused."
"Toza! It's Suna!" His father cried out in a manic state, while my brother wrapped a protective arm around me and pulled me away. The group had stopped when they realized I was no longer with them, and Zuko was being held back by Katara as he tried to rescue me.
"You okay?" Sokka grabbed my hand and inspected my red wrist from where the man grabbed me.
Pulling my hand away, I said softly, "That man is in so much pain… Maybe Katara's right… Maybe we should do something."
Sokka sighed. "No, Crys…" He grabbed my shoulders forcing me to look at him. "Just like I told Katara: there's nothing we can do even if we wanted to. These people need medicine and food, which are things we can't supply them with. You can help these people by ending the war and helping to shut down these factories. But the only way we can do that is by keeping our eye on the mission."
I hung my head in defeat, but didn't agree one bit.
We returned to the group then, everyone quickly asking if I was alright to which I gave a nod. As we continued toward the merchant stall that smelled odorous and gag worthy, I glanced back at the man who was being helped away by his son. They'd lost just as much as we had from the war, if not more. Even amongst the enemy, all I could see were people in desperate need of saving. We weren't just fighting for the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribe. We were fighting for the Fire Nation as well.
Approaching the merchant square at last, we were surprised to see the man who had helped us into town was also running the fish stall. He wore a tan colored hat now, but was indeed the same man.
Sokka stepped up to the countertop and placed his elbow against the wooden table near a mutated fish head. Every fish on the counter looked like a disease waiting to happen. "Hey, Dock," my brother stated. "You work here too?"
Dock shook his head. "I'm not Dock, I'm Xu. Dock's my brother."
My eyes widened, while my brother stepped back in surprise and the others fell silent in baffled amazement.
Aang pointed at him. "But we just saw you. You're even wearing the same clothes. The only difference is your hat."
Dock shook his head again. "Dock works on the docks, that's why they call him 'Dock', and I work in the shop, that's why they call me 'Xu'.
Aang looked back at Zuko, who shook his head in disbelief. "I don't get it."
Dock gave a snort. "Me neither." He pulled out a crate filled with rancid grey seafood and set it down on the stall. "What can I getcha? Hey, I'll give you a special deal. If you buy three fish, I'll throw in a clam for free." When he pulled the clam out of the crate, all of us but Toph gasped at the sight of the weird ooze coming out.
Sokka cringed. "We'll just take the fish..." He pulled out a coin. "Mind telling your brother we need a ride back to shore?"
Dock ducked beneath the counter suddenly and then reappeared wearing his original red headgear. Aang grabbed my arm shaking it as if I didn't see the insanity with my own eyes.
"Hey, colonials. My brother says you need a lift."
As Katara collected the food Xu had wrapped up for us before turning back into Dock, the rest of us followed the man with two names back to the pier we'd just arrived at. Walking through the town again, I realized only a moment after we made our way back that Katara wasn't with us. Turning to look for her, I saw her a good ten yards back looking down-heartened as she carried the fish with her.
Slowing my pace, I got in step with her and placed my hand on her shoulder.
"We can't leave these people like this…" She muttered. "So many are sick and dying."
As the others continued behind Dock, I asked, "What could we do for them though?"
Katara glanced over at the factory sitting up on the cliff in the distance. She stopped walking and I followed. "I'm sure there's food being stored in the factory for the workers there… Maybe we could sneak in and take some. Just the amount where they won't notice their food has gone missing. I'm sure there's enough in there to feed a whole island."
I looked at the giant factory with uncertainty. "That's a risky move… And you know the others won't like it. Not to mention, Sokka will protest and stop you."
She sighed heavily, and then her eyes narrowed. "No. I don't care." She looked over at me. "I'm not going to sit by while people need me. I already did when mom was killed and when you were captured a few months ago. I won't do it anymore. I'm helping these people." She looked me straight on. "Are you going to help me, or not?"
I was stunned, and at first I wasn't sure how to respond. Then I smiled weakly. "Alright sis…" I squeezed her shoulder. "I'm with you."
Eventually we returned to Appa and Momo, set up camp, and listened to Sokka whine about his schedule and how we needed to leave in the morning. As Sokka whined, we sat by the campfire eating the fish. I didn't eat the odd looking thing, not really wanting to contract a crazy disease. Aang and I had both agreed to find some fruit to eat for our meals.
"Hey Aang…" Zuko threw his stick in the fire after he finished his meal, and looked over at the young boy across from him. "Why haven't you asked me to teach you firebending yet? I thought you'd be jumping at the shot."
Aang cringed, looking at the fire before him anxiously. "I don't think I'm ready… Toph still is teaching me earthbending, and I still need to master water-"
"Aang. You know that's not why," Katara interrupted. "You should be honest."
Aang frowned, and then met Zuko's gaze. "Okay… Truth is… Last time I tried to firebend I hurt Katara… I don't want to hurt anyone again. I thought maybe we could just firebend after this war is over and stuff. Besides… With the eclipse I won't even need fire to take down your father."
Zuko shook his head. "You can't let one bad experience stop you," Zuko tried. "Besides, you said it yourself a while back… The main reason you wanted me in the group was to have a firebending teacher."
Aang turned defensive. "I- I was just trying to convince everyone to let you join. I didn't mean that was the on-"
I spoke up this time. "Aang… If you don't get over your fear now, then you're never going to learn." He looked at me with surprise. "It took me years to get over my fear of swimming. If I hadn't accepted Zuko's help in learning though, I would've probably drowned numerous times these last few weeks. All you can do is try. If it's too much for you, then we can stop and try again later."
The group was bewildered by my words. Toph pursed her lips. "Wow… Who knew princess was such a motivational speaker."
Aang smiled weakly though, saying, "Yeah… I guess you're right, Crys." He stood and stepped over to Zuko. Zuko stood as well. "Please teach me the art of firebending, Prince Zuko," Aang said as he bowed in respect.
Zuko smiled. "I'd be honored to, Avatar." He bowed as well.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Sokka jumped up. "That is not on the schedule!"
Zuko rolled his eyes. "You can work it in."
As Zuko started to explain to Aang the basics of firebending without actually firebending, Katara and I started to devise our plan as we walked off alone in the woods. Katara knew we wouldn't be able to help the people in one night, and so she tried to formulate an excuse to keep us there longer. Sokka's schedule was locked and sealed, but we knew he would have no choice if something unforeseen happened to change the schedule. When Katara told me her idea of giving Appa a ton of berries to cause his tummy to ache so we'd have to stay, I gave her a big flat out no. There was no way I was letting her hurt Appa in anyway. Images of the desert shot through me, and I refused to let her put Appa through any more pain.
Instead, I offered my services. Katara protested at first when she heard my suggestion, saying I was insane. But when I promised her I would be fine in the end she reluctantly yielded.
Later that night, once everyone was asleep, Katara and I shoved some grass underneath our sleeping bags and headed down the hill to the river's edge. We both bent some discolored icy platforms and guided ourselves across the polluted water. Once we arrived at the base of the cliff where the factory hovered above, we lifted ourselves up to the factory above with our bending and landed right at the edge of the industry.
Cautiously, we made our way around the perimeter of the factory scoping out the night watch to get an idea of the best way in. Pipes and metal structures went in all directions around us, and smoke hovered over the night air from the previously moving machines.
After dodging a few guards, we managed to get into the factory through a side entrance and make our way through the dark halls that were lit by small torches. As silently as we could, hiding behind a pipe or crate from a guard when we needed to, we finally arrived at the area of the factory where the aroma of fresh fish and smoked meat filled our senses. Stepping into the large kitchen, we found crates and barrels full of fresh fish, poultry, clean fruit, and fine vegetables. Katara and I both filled the bags we'd brought with us up to the brim with a mixture of everything. Once our bags weighed half as much as we did, we headed back the way we came to leave the place before we got detected.
By luck we arrived back to the edge of the cliff, and Katara helped us back down the same way we'd gotten up. Once we were at the base of the cliff again, Katara bent an icy bridge before us and the two of us headed straight for the village. The light of the moon lit our path as we ghosted around the town delivering food to every household we could find. There were a few moments we feared detection, but luckily those who may have caught us from their sleepy states seemed to think they were just dreaming.
Once our bags were emptied, we both breathed a sigh of relief. After crossing the river once again, we arrived back on the bank a few yards from the others.
"Thank you," Katara said as we looked out across the river towards the dark town in the center. "I couldn't have done that without you."
"It was a great idea," I reassured. "Those people need help. We can't just turn our back on them because Sokka is blinded by his own plans."
She nodded. Then she looked uncertain. "Are you sure about this? I want to heal the townspeople, but if it means putting you at risk then I'm not so sure this-"
"I've been burned, starved, tortured, and even almost drowned. A little food poisoning isn't going to be the end of the world."
Katara didn't seem convinced. "You don't mind the consequences though? Zuko and Sokka will be mad at us if they learn the truth."
I smiled weakly. "I may lose some trust points, but if it means doing something for these people then I'm all for it. Plus, Appa's been through enough. I don't want him dragged into any of this. And there's never been a known case of this plant killing anyone. It just screws you up for a little while."
"Wow…" Katara looked at me with bewilderment. "You're insanity is actually pretty brave."
I wasn't sure how to take her compliment. Brushing it aside, I looked down at the ground suddenly uncertain. "You really think you can handle healing the townspeople tomorrow night on your own? There's a lot."
She nodded. "I can handle it... You just worry about getting better. Once we heal the villagers, I'll try and heal you if your still affected by it and we can go."
I nodded. "Okay…" Then I held my hand out. "I'm ready. Give it here."
She touched the pouch tied to her side hesitantly. When she saw the confidence in my gaze though, she nodded, and then handed over the small red Du fruit hesitantly. "Are you sure the book said you won't die from this?" She asked with sudden worry. "You read it a while ago..."
Du's were small red fruit native to the Fire Nation. While the juice inside was safe to drink, the actual skin of the plant itself caused fever-like side effects. From books I'd read during my time on Zuko's ship, I knew the side effects would last less than 48 hours, and they would be brutal. The description listed effects such as intense nausea, hallucinations, rashes, and fevers. I was in for it, but I was willing to give Katara more time.
"It will be fine… The chef back on Zuko's ship told me what happened when he ate this plant. It's gonna suck, but I'll live. Just remember our cover story."
She hugged me suddenly, and I was surprised by her action. "I owe you for this, Crys. I won't let you down."
When she pulled away, I said softly, "I know you won't..." Looking down at the fruit then, I muttered, "Welp… Here goes nothing." Taking a bite of the fruit, the tangy taste was actually delicious for being such an inedible plant.
"How do you feel?" Katara appeared anxious immediately.
I sighed as I stared at the bitten into fruit. As long as I didn't consume the whole thing, the effects wouldn't be too unbearable. "I told you… It takes about an hour… Try to get some sleep… Don't worry about me."
A little over an hour later, as I lied on my sleeping bag dreading what was to come, I suddenly felt the worst twist in my gut. A gasp escaped me as I curled up from discomfort, and I shut my eyes as my body heat started to rise. I really hoped Katara and I were doing the right thing, because my part in saving this town was going to suck.
Third Person POV
Morning broke over the mountains shooting a golden light over the green river. Sokka walked around the campsite nudging everyone with his foot. "Wakey wakey! Rise and shine! Time to hit the river! Appa's all packed and ready!" Katara groaned when he nudged her in the side. Toph scowled and rolled back over. Aang whined and sat up in defeat. Zuko, who had already been awake and helping Sokka pack up, shook his head in disbelief.
Arriving to the last person of the group, Sokka grabbed a twig and poked his twin sister in the shoulder as she lay with her back to him. "Crys. Wake up time. Hurry before I get Zuko to help me toss you in the river."
She made no move, and he smirked. "Come on sis… Beauty-rest is over." He crouched beside her and grabbed her shoulder to shake her awake. However, he was stunned when his hand met boiling skin instead of the natural temperature his sister usually was.
"Crystal?" He shook her quickly, while the others got up from their mats. Katara noticed Sokka had turned worried, and she tried her best not feel awful about what she allowed her sister to do for her. "Hey! Crys!" He shook her again, and this time a groan sounded from her. Only the groan was weak and pained.
Worried, Sokka turned her over on her back and was horrified. Her neck was red from a rash and sweat fell from her forehead as she fought a fever. "Oh man! You've got to be kidding!"
"Sokka? What's wrong?" Aang walked over, and this his eyes widened when he saw Crystal. "Oh man! I knew that fish smelled funny yesterday!"
Toph, who could sense Crystal's heartbeat was irregular, stated, "She didn't eat the fish bimbo… She said she was going to find some fruit."
At this point Zuko understood what was going on, and he rushed over to Crystal as Sokka tried to shake her awake. Zuko shoved Sokka's hand off, and pressed his own to her forehead. "She's burning up! What did she eat last night?"
Katara quickly told them the tale her and Crystal fabricated last night. "Oh no… I… I thought that plant was safe. Crystal and I weren't sure, but I picked a fruit yesterday when we left you all at the fire and gave it to her. She ate it… I… I didn't know."
Zuko gasped. "What plant? Show me!"
Katara wasn't surprised by Zuko's order. She was surprised when he grabbed her shoulders and shook her. Katara quickly led Zuko and Aang through the woods to the area where Crystal had pointed out the Du bush to her. Crystal had been able to identify them right off, and from the books Zuko had read with her he was able to identify it as well.
"This is a Du bush! Why didn't you ask me before you let her eat it?!" He looked at Katara with horror. "Everyone in the Fire Nation is taught to avoid these."
Katara tried to pretend she didn't know the side effects. "Is it going to kill her?"
Zuko tried to calm, while Aang placed a comforting hand on Katara's arm. "No…" Zuko ran a hand through his hair. "She's just going to have a rough next two days. The fever and rash is only step one. She'll be hallucinating soon."
Aang was horrified. "Is there a cure?"
Zuko shook his head. "I don't know. I'm not familiar with medicine and stuff. All I know is she's going to get better, but only if we don't move her. She needs to let her body fight off the toxins."
They returned to the campsite then and weren't surprised to see Sokka still in a panic. Aang quickly told him and Toph what happened, and Sokka stated that they needed to go into town right away and see about medicine. Katara jumped at the idea, to which Toph noted the unusual calm coming from Katara as she silently observed from where she stood. She was surprised that even in the state Crystal was in, Katara seemed to be cool and collected physically.
"Okay… Zuko and Toph, stay with Crystal until we get back. The rest of us will go back into town." Sokka sighed heavily. "This is totally going to throw us off schedule!"
Zuko shook his head and snapped, "Is that really all your concerned about right now?"
Sokka scowled. "Of course not! I was just making a statement." Sokka then turned to Katara. "What were you two thinking, eating foreign plants like that? Are you crazy?"
Katara grimaced. "It looked edible."
"So did that cactus juice I drink in the desert, and I hallucinated for hours!"
Katara snapped, "That's different!"
"How so?!"
"Stop!" Aang stepped in between Sokka and Katara quickly. "This isn't helping anyone!" Katara and Sokka stepped back crossing their arms at one another. "Let's go to town," Aang suggested. "Zuko and Toph can stay back and look after Crys. If what Zuko says is true, this will pass."
Sokka sighed heavily. "Fine… Come on."
Crystal POV
My whole body burned and my insides felt like an endless prodding of pins and needles. I could hear everything happening, even as my brother tried to stir me awake earlier. My body refused to move though, because every movement only made the pain worse. The chef hadn't lied about the effects. They sucked.
Gritting my teeth, I tried to picture a tummy ache free Appa in my head to remind myself why I chose to be the reason for stalling our trip. Appa had been through enough. The last thing he needed was Katara shoving a ton of berries down his throat to make him sick.
After a moment, I managed to get slight control of my body back. Opening my eyes, I saw through a blurred haze Zuko was standing by a pot boiling some water. Toph sat beside me chewing on a piece of straw. When she sensed I was awake, she spoke so only I could hear.
"Alright Princess… I know you're smarter than this. What are you and Katara up to?"
I cringed as a spasm shot through my chest. "We had to…" I spoke in between breaths. "Sokka… His schedule… We needed more time."
Toph was surprised. "What? Time for what?"
"Katara… She wanted to help…" I grimaced from another spasm. "Appa… I had to…"
"You're not making a lick of sense…" Toph muttered. "But what I'm getting is that you eating that fruit was intentional."
I opened my eyes weakly, and looked at her through a blurry mess. "Don't tell… Please…"
Silence fell between us for a moment, and I shut my eyes in exhaustion as heat raced through me. She finally spoke though. "I won't… But don't pull a stupid stunt like this again. There are other ways to stall the group. Got it?"
I nodded as my body grew heavy again. "Yes…"
"I can't believe Katara even let you do this… Why were you the one who got the rough end of the deal?"
It took me a moment to get my thoughts straight. My words came out with much effort. "She's the better bender… She always has been…"
"Is she awake?" Zuko's voice sounded through my foggy brain.
Toph answered, "Yeah. Awake and sputtering nonsense." She added, "How long did you say these effects would last?"
"Another day give or take. The fever has reached its peak, so she's probably starting to hallucinate."
I grit my teeth as another sharp pain shot through my stomach. Then with a haggard breath I promised, "I'm perfectly sane…"
Toph scoffed. "That can be debated."
"Crys. What were you thinking eating that? You should've asked me first!" Zuko's concern made me fill with guilt.
"Sorry," I spoke softly. "I… I didn't…"
My voice faded as my mind became a blur. Then when my mind became a blur, I completely blacked out.
At some point I regained my consciousness, and started to get feeling back in my body. As if my body were moving on its own, I opened my eyes and found myself in a dark room with a dim light. Upon further inspection, I was horrified to find that I was in a cell that resembled the one back on Zuko's ship so long ago.
Sitting up from where I was lying on the cot, I moved my body off the floor and rushed up to the cell door. Grabbing at the bars, I tried to pull the metal from its lock but it was stuck tight. I attempted to cry out to my family or Zuko, confused to what was occurring, but for some reason my voice made no sound. A chill ran through me, and my heart raced in fear.
Just as I went to try the cell door again, the briggs only entrance opened and heavy boots entered the room I was in. My eyes shot to the entrance as I tried to see who was coming towards me. The dim light from one burning torch barely made the approaching form recognizable. However, I was terrified of the figure approaching knowing immediately it was not my family. What happened? Where was everyone? How long had I been unconscious?
"It's been too long," a cold voice hissed, and my eyes widened as I stood face to face with someone I thought I'd never see again.
Zhao stood before me, his malicious gold eyes burning into my own.
"Prince Zuko's prize…" He stepped up to the cell. "Soon to be the Fire Lord's new water nymph."
I gasped, finally finding my voice. "Zuko… No… I was just with him…"
Zhao smirked, his baboon face looking just the same as when I saw him dragged into the water so long ago. "Were you?" He stepped forward. "Because all I remember is finding you in the woods, all alone."
I shook my head, backing to the wall as far from him as I could. "No…" I shut my eyes. Grabbing my hair, I cried, "This can't be! Your dead! You were drowned!"
"Was I? Is my presence not proof enough." The sound of keys clinking against the metal made my heart speed up with horror. Opening my eyes, I watched as he unlocked the door and stepped inside. "You didn't really think you'd get away with everything you caused me to lose that day. You should've known I'd find you and reclaim my prize. The Fire Lord will be pleased when I bring you to him."
I shook my head, searching for an outlet. "This doesn't make sense. You shouldn't be here." I shut my eyes again. I tried to recall the events from before, and remembered the fruit Katara had handed me. A hallucination… This was a hallucination. That was one of the side effects of the…
What berry was it again? Was it a berry?
No!
I recalled the Du fruit I'd consumed. Looking up at Zhao, I snapped, "You're not real!"
He grinned. "Am I not?" He stepped forward and grabbed the collar of the brown shirt I wore.
Brown? No.. It had been red...
"If I'm not real, then this shouldn't hurt." His fist suddenly punched into my gut, and I gasped as I doubled over in blinding pain. Sweat immediately trickled down my forehead, and my breathing became labored. Zhao knelt beside me, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look up at him. "What do you say? Am I real now?"
I gasped in horror and shut my eyes.
No! No! Please spirits! No!
"No!" I tried to push him off by shoving at his chest, and he grabbed my arms restraining them. "No! Let go of me!" I tried to shake him off, feeling more tears run down my cheeks. "Zuko! Sokka!"
He laughed in my ear. "No one is coming for you!"
I shook my head. "Katara! Sokka!" I tried to fight him again, only to have Zhao shove me down and pin me to the floor. "No! Zuko!"
Third Person POV
The small boat pulled up to the river bank, and Sokka helped Katara off while Aang followed behind. As Dock waved and pushed himself off the bank back onto the river, the trio started to head back to camp.
"A Painted Lady, huh?" Sokka shook his head. "Just a load of superstitious nonsense." He crossed his arms. "She gets food, but what good is that when everyone is sick and dying."
Katara scowled. "At least this mysterious being is doing something. Unlike us who just keep going into town and buying their food."
Aang sighed. "I just wish there was something that could help Crystal. You'd think an antidote for the Du's effects would've been concocted by now."
At the thought of Crystal, Sokka pinched the bridge of his nose in disbelief. "I can't believe this happened. She's already been through enough. Now she has to deal with food poisoning."
Katara felt a wave of guilt, knowing it was all her doing. She rubbed her neck in shame, then realized what she was doing and dropped her hand before the others grew suspicious.
"Zuko said the effects will wear off by tomorrow though, so she'll be fine. You all got super sick too that time right after the storm, and you ended up okay." Aang smiled. "She just needs rest and some Momo snuggles."
A few moments later the group headed up the hill towards where they were camped behind some forestry. Not even making it halfway up the hill, they were stunned when they heard shouts.
"No!" A cry from Crystal rang in their ears, followed a moment later by Zuko shouting, "Stop! It's okay! It's not real!"
Sokka gasped and took off up the hill, followed only a moment later by the others. When they arrived at the campsite they found Momo sitting on Toph's shoulder with wide eyes, while Toph held a composure of great concern. Zuko knelt over Crystal from where she lay on her sleeping bag, pinning her shaking body down as she wildly shook her head. Everyone knew right away the hallucinations had begun.
"Katara! Can't you do something with that magical water of yours?" Sokka grabbed his youngest sister's shoulder desperately.
Katara shook her head, knowing even if that had been the plan she wouldn't be able to heal her. Crystal had to fight this one off herself. As Sokka stepped forward to aid Zuko, who received a hit in the face with Crystal's fighting spirit and thrashing hands, Katara hung back with disbelief. She had been thrilled that she could help the village another night, but she hated seeing the terrible effects of the Du plant her sister willingly consumed.
"Hang in there, Crys… It's almost over…"
Crystal POV
"LET GO!" I thrashed and kicked as Zhao pinned me to the ground. Shutting my eyes, I wanted more than anything for the nightmare to end. The weight above me was relentless. "Get off of me!"
His familiar laughter echoed through my ears. "You and Zuko were foolish to think I wouldn't come back. I know there's always been a part of you that feared I'd return."
"You haven't returned! You're dead! I just need to wake up! This isn't real!"
"You think so," Azula's voice suddenly hissed. "Because I'm very real."
Opening my eyes wide, I found I was no longer under the weight of Zhao. Instead, Azula pinned me down. What…?
"Where's Zuzu now? Huh?" She pulled herself off of me, and I tried to move away from her. However, my body was no longer my own. I couldn't move. She grinned and crouched down. "You didn't think we'd be apart long did you? There's no way I was letting Zuko's pet get away from me." She stood again and blue flames sparked from her fingertips. "I hope you don't mind, but I've missed your screams."
As her fire suddenly shot towards me, I screamed waiting for the burn. It never came though. A cool sensation hit my cheek instead, and I opened my eyes in surprise.
Inside the cell it appeared I was, but the monster before me had left. In her place was a woman I knew all too well. She had knelt beside me and pulled me into a seated position. Her soft dark brown hair fell to her chest, and she wore a blue dress with white snow-hare fur on the seams.
Her gentle hand cupped my scarred cheek as she held me up with her other arm. Her sky blue eyes were dim from the light, but just as I remembered.
"You're safe now…" she promised. "The danger has passed."
"M- mom…" My voice spoke soft as a multitude of emotions flowed through me..
She smiled, and a twinkle came in her eye. "Hello my gem…" The sound of her voice was sweet to the ear. Tears formed in my eyes. "You have become so beautiful… and your heart is still so pure. I am so proud of you… you and your brother and sister are so brave." She kissed me on the forehead, and continued. "I only wish I could've been there to see the brave warriors you've all become."
I stared at her in disbelief. Then I realized that as much as I wanted to wake up from whatever insanity I'd fallen into, I was glad that in my trapped state got to see my mom.
"Mom…" I wasn't sure how to feel. But then I realized I didn't care. "Mom!" I threw my arms around her, feeling the warmth of her body as if she were truly there. "Mommy… I'm so sorry… I…" sobs escaped and I pressed my face into her chest. "I couldn't save you."
Her hand pressed to the back of my head, and she hugged me close. "Crystal… sweetie... it was never your job to protect me… It was my own to protect you…" I shut my eyes clinging to my mom not wanting to let her go. "Knowing you are alive and well gives me peace. You have made me so proud. You have followed your heart… that's all I ever wanted for you…"
Her voice started to fade as darkness clouded my mind from exhaustion. "You will make a wonderful Fire Lady my daughter…"
Third person POV
Darkness had come again from the passing night. The glowing figure that knelt beside Crystal removed her illuminated hand from the young woman's forehead letting the bright blue healing light fade. Crystal, who had been fighting the demons within her poisoned mind, sighed as peace fell over her. The floating lady with red markings and white clothes that drifted around her, smiled gently down at the human before her.
"Thank you, child… Rest now..." The painted lady whispered as she shone bright under the light of the moon. Sokka, Toph, and Zuko slept nearby after hours of stressing over the restless afflicted waterbender, and they made no indication of hearing the echoed voice.
As the spirit stood from the girl who slept peacefully before her, she turned her gaze to the factory in the distance where she knew the Avatar and Katara were working there magic. It warmed the spirit to know that her people were being saved by the Avatar and his friends. While she had done her share of healing in the village, her connection with the spirit world and her healing powers were only strong on nights where the stars were properly aligned. Tonight was the one night she could make her rounds through the village to heal, but her job was already complete.
"Mom…" The soft whisper from the young waterbender nearby caused the spirit to turn her eyes back towards the one she had healed. "Sorry…" A tear fell from her shut eyes as she dreamed the dream that the spirit had given her.
The painted lady stared at the child's scars that decorated her skin, and she bowed her head in respect. As a spirit she knew of the trials and sacrifices the young woman had gone through.
The sound of an explosion echoed over the river, followed only a moment later by smoke soaring up to the sky. As the smoke covered the moon above, the spirit faded with relief. Her people were in good hands.
Once the spirit faded from view, the others stirred in the camp having heard the explosion. Toph's heightened hearing was the first to pick up on it. After the second explosion the others finally awoke. Sokka and Zuko sat up from where they were sleeping in shock, and then their eyes turned to the factory across the water which was glowing from the fire that raged inside.
"No…" Sokka turned pale. "Katara… You didn't."
Zuko jumped up and rushed over to the other two sleeping bags in the area. Yanking them up, they were all horrified to see hay was in the spot where Katara and Aang should've been sleeping. "They're both gone! What are they thinking? Now the factory is going to send soldiers to attack the village," Zuko exclaimed.
As the group panicked, Crystal slowly came conscious.
Crystal POV
My body felt weak and my eyes were heavy as I started to get my senses back. The poison in my bloodstream was no longer there, and I was surprised to find the affects hadn't lasted as long as I'd feared they would.
Finding my strength, i sat up slowly grimacing at the tenderness of my muscles from the mat I'd been on. I in no way was hungry, but was dying of thirst. Looking around, I found Sokka was pacing back and forth, while Toph kicked at a pile of hay in disbelief. Zuko was watching Sokka impatiently.
"I can't believe they did this! Out of the craziest things they've done, this is by far the worse," Sokka snapped.
"Well pacing about it isn't going to solve the problem," Zuko commented.
Managing to find my balance, I clumsily stood from the mat and made my way over to Appa who was watching the other three panic. Stepping over to him, I rummaged through one of the bags and found a half-filled canteen. Thirstily, I drink the water feeling with each sip my strength renew. That was the last time I'd ever use a poisonous plant to stall the group.
"Princess. Glad to see your back from the land of the dead. You had me close to binding your body to the ground."
Toph's statement caused me to look towards her with question. When I saw her, I tried to recall what happened to me before I ate the plant, and realized much of before and after was a blur.
"Crys! You're awake," Sokka exclaimed, rushing over and grabbing my shoulders with relief only a moment after Toph spoke. "Don't ever do that again! I can't believe you'd eat some random plant in the middle of the woods. I taught you better than this!"
Looking at his concerned expression, I immediately filled with guilt. As much as I had wanted to help Katara and the villagers, I felt awful for deceiving my brother.
"Sokka. I-"
"Hey! Sugerqueen and twinkletoes are coming back," Toph interrupted.
Sokka pulled from me and turned his attention toward the river. "Wait until I get my hands on those two!" He looked over at Zuko then. "Keep an eye on her. Toph and I will handle this."
Confused to what was going on, I looked over at Zuko who watched the two of them head out of camp and disappear over the hill towards the river.
"What's going on?" I watched them go too, and then realized when I did there was smoke in the sky. "What is-"
"Your sister and Aang," Zuko answered. He walked over to me as he did. "They just blew up the factory."
My eyes widened. What? Blew up the factory! That wasn't the plan!
The back of Zuko's hand went on my forehead as I was lost in my thoughts. "How are you feeling?"
I grimaced, wishing I hadn't worried Zuko so. If I had known Katara was going to anger the Fire Nation by destroying their factory I would've argued and never agreed to stall the group for such an act.
Feed the people, heal, and then leave… That had been the plan…
While I knew her heart was in the right place, she didn't think over the consequences.
"We… We have to warn the townspeople… They need to be ready if-"
"Hey…" Zuko grabbed my shoulder to bring me back. "We aren't doing anything. You're sitting this one out. You just woke up after a whole day of fighting off the Du's effects. I'm surprised you were able to stand so soon." He looked me over then. "Now that I think of it, you look pretty good. The toxin was supposed to keep you drained even after the worst of it is gone, but you look yourself..."
His statement surprised me, but I knew he was right. Even after Jiho, the ship cook back on Zuko's vessel, got over the Du's effects, he said he was completely weak and fatigued for a day or two. Other than feeling like I could drink another gallon of water, I felt fine.
"Katara… She must've healed me," I suggested.
Zuko seemed to not doubt it. "Why don't you wash up… I think there's still some clean water from last night in the pot. Your sister helped us with that in between blowing up things I guess."
Deciding not to argue, I found a rag and used the little amount of clean water in the pot to scrub the sweat and grime off of my skin. While I did so, the others arrived back with Sokka looking in a panic.
"Zuko! You didn't tell us your people had speedy-boats!"
Zuko, who had been preparing his things for battle in case the Fire Nation soldiers came our way, looked at my brother with question. "Speedy-boats?"
"They're headed towards the village," Sokka said with horror. "Three soldiers! I think they're going to attack the villagers."
"We did what needed to be done," Katara defended. "Now that the factory is destroyed the water will become clean and fish will return!"
Toph shook her head. "But now the villagers will be punished."
Katara shook her head, and then snapped, "We're team Avatar for goodness sake! Instead of freaking out, let's go help the villagers!"
Sokka threw his hands up in the air. "EXACTLY! Team Avatar. The very group whose Avatar is supposed to be dead, and whose team are enemies to the Fire Nation. Your plan is awful!"
Aang held up a finger as a thought hit him. "Hey! What if Katara disguises herself as The Painted Lady like she did last night! Then we can help the village, and maybe even give the soldiers a good scare."
Zuko seemed to be for the idea. "You know… That's a pretty good plan, Aang. If someone these people respect saves them then it may be the hope they need to start again."
As the group planned their rescue quickly, I finished getting myself together and joined in. Katara and Aang were both astonished and relieved I was feeling better. When I saw Katara's surprised expression, I looked at her with confusion. "Didn't you heal me?"
She shook her head. "No… I've been out all night. I never got the chance to try."
The group stopped getting ready for our rescue when they heard this. Toph smirked. "Ooh… Maybe the spirit lady visited you in your sleep, Princess."
Sokka scoffed. "I doubt that. If she didn't take the time to heal her own village, why would the Painted Lady heal my sister. I told you all, the Painted Lady doesn't exist." He suddenly handed a hat with fishnet over to Katara. "At least the spirit one doesn't. Come on Katara. Paint Lady up. Who knows what those soldiers are doing at the moment."
As Katara threw red berry paint on her face, and then wore the hat to complete her disguise, we all followed Sokka down the river bank. Appa came as well, because his growls would be the element we needed to scare the soldiers. Katara went ahead of us once we reached the closest embankment to the village, and she used an icy platform to make her way across the water. Aang followed her to help her with the plan at hand, telling us to start the noise in ten minutes.
Feeling pretty useless as I watched Aang and Katara walk across the water, I was suddenly face to face with a small wooden stick. "Here," Sokka said. "Aang's flute should get the creepy effect out. You know how to play it better than me. I heard you learned back on Zuko's ship."
I took the flute, kind of glad I was given a job doing something.
I was feeling very well for recovering from food poisoning, and I knew my recovery was definitely not normal. My mind raced around with thoughts of question and different scenarios. As I did so, I recalled the touch of my mother's hand during one of my hallucinations. I remembered the feeling of the touch was off even in my dream state. There was something about the temperature and texture of the hand that had been almost inhuman.
Shivers went down my spine, and I shook off my thoughts quickly. I was probably just paranoid.
"Crys… Are you sure your feeling alright?" Zuko shook my arm suddenly.
Meeting his gaze, I answered, "Sorry. I think I still may be a little out of it." Sokka went to reach forward towards my forehead, but I blocked him. "I'm fine you two. I promise."
"Hey," Sokka said with a shrug. "You can't blame us for worrying after all the screaming and crying you did the night before."
I dropped my gaze down to the gross polluted water so I wouldn't reveal to them the guilt I felt by making them so anxious. I hated lying to my brother and Zuko, but I knew if I told them the true reason why I ate the fruit they would be furious and disappointed in me. This was something I needed to keep from them, and I hoped they would never find the truth.
"Sorry," I did say. At least I could apologize in some way, even if it wasn't to reveal my deception towards them.
Zuko squeezed my hand for comfort. "I'm just glad your okay… Who were you hallucinating about though… You seemed to be in great distress."
I grimaced, and stared at his hand. "Zhao…"
Toph asked quickly, "The one Sokka told me looked like a Baboon?"
I nodded, then remembered she couldn't see it and answered with a soft yes.
Zuko sighed. "I didn't know you were still so anxious about him." His hand tightened around my own. "He can't hurt you anymore… He's dead."
I nodded, knowing Zuko was right. There was no way he survived being pulled into the water with Aang. It still filled me with terror at the thought of him though. He had tried to kill my people so long ago, and he hurt me in the cell when I was his prisoner. Even though he was dead, he still haunted my dreams.
Only a minute or two passed by the time we saw the fog that Katara and Aang were creating start to cover over the river. Once the fog hit us, we knew that was the signal. Sokka gestured to Appa to start growling, and Appa did just that. As he growled, Toph lifted a giant boulder and started pounding it on the dirt. The sound sent vibrations around us and echoed through the fog like loud footsteps.
"Crys. You're on!"
Taking in a deep breath, I lifted the wooden flute and blew into the hole steadily creating an ominous sound across the water. We kept up our sounds for a few minutes, not sure when to stop. We got our answer though, because suddenly the soldiers zoomed out of the fog on their speedy-boats swiftly not looking back. Cheers rang from the village, and we stopped with our sound effects.
"Come on," Sokka said. "There's a boat back down by the dock we can take." Sokka rowed us towards the village as the people applaud Katara for her services. We arrived just in time to see the fog had settled, and the villagers were surrounding my sister with delight. As we clambered up on the docks of the fisher village, a young boy stepped forward to speak to my sister who was still in disguise.
"I knew you'd come!"
Dock chimed in. "Thank you!"
Toza, the middle-aged man from the other day who had pulled his father off of me shouted, "Painted Lady, you're the best!"
Dock stepped close to her then. "Me and my brothers really owe you a lot." He looked dead at my sister's face, and then his eyes widened with recognition. He pointed at her face snapping, "Hey, wait a minute! I know you! You're not the Painted Lady, you're that colonial girl!"
At this, the young boy was upset too. "Yeah, you're the lady that gave me a fish!
Dock scowled. "You've been tricking us. You're a waterbender!"
A random female villager snapped, "She's a waterbender! How dare you act like our Painted Lady?"
Mutters shout through the crowd as disappointment sounded from everyone. Sokka and I stepped forward to intervene. I stepped up to my sister, while Sokka snapped, "Maybe she is a waterbender, but she was just trying to help you. Because of her, that factory won't be polluting your river, and the army is gone. You should be down on your knees thanking her!"
Katara took her hat off, and shook her head. " Sokka, it's okay." She looked at the people around her with confidence. "I shouldn't have acted like someone I wasn't, and I shouldn't have tricked you. But I felt like I had to do something. It doesn't matter if the Painted Lady is real or not. Because your problems are real, and this river is real. You can't wait around for someone to help you. You have to help yourself."
"Help our self? How do we do that?"Another man from the crowd suddenly spoke up. "The Fire Lord doesn't even care about us, so why should we care. He'll just send someone to repair the factory and start again."
Zuko stepped forward then. He wore his cloak to disguise himself in case someone recognized him. "So long as you have that attitude he will." I watched with bewilderment as he took center stage. "The Fire Lord feeds off your weakness. It's up to you all to prove your strength. Even though you may not think so, your voices do matter to the rest of the Fire Nation. If the factory is repaired, protest and don't give in. I know soldiers can be intimidating, but they are men and women just like you. They can be persuaded." He smiled. "But I have a strong feeling this factory will remain abandoned after the fright these soldiers just had."
Dock nodded. "These kids are right. It's up to us to better our own selves." He tapped his chin. "But what should we do?"
Toph shouted from the distance while disguising her voice to a deeper tone, " Maybe we can clean the river."
Aang, who had joined the rest of us up on the docks, coughed to hide his laugh at Toph's voice.
Dock didn't seem to notice. "Yeah, we can clean the river!" The villagers cheered at the thought. As they cheered, Dock bowed to Katara with respect. "Thank you miss." He then smiled at her. "You know, you're not so bad for a waterbender."
Sokka grimaced. "You wouldn't mind keeping that a secret, by the way, would you?"
Dock held a thumbs up at us. "No problem. Keeping my mouth shut is a personal specialty. My brother Xu, on the other hand, hoo! He's a blabbermouth."
Zuko groaned and shook his head in disbelief. I sighed, hoping with clean water this man would get his sanity back.
The next few hours were spent cleaning the river using whatever we could find. Appa was a huge help as we were able to load slimy weeds and factory parts on his saddle. Katara and I used our waterbending to push the polluted water towards the villagers who were helping us clean. By mid afternoon, after taking a lunch break in between, we had the river flowing once more with clean water.
Zuko was thrilled to have been able to assist the villagers, and he had even taken off his cloak in the process realizing none of them would recognize him. We all had the assumption that none of the villagers had ventured past the forest around them, so we were positive they didn't know what the Fire Prince looked like. Without fear of discovery, Zuko and Toph helped carry the polluted weeds to the piles we were stacking up away from the river bank.
As we cleaned, Katara even spoke to me when we stood on a boat alone using our bending to push the polluted water aside. "Thank you, Cyrstal," Katara spoke, knowing no one else would hear. "I owe you one."
I shook my head. "I was just doing my part of the plan. We never would've been able to save this village in one day. Sokka will have to get over it. I just have a feeling they're going to monitor my eating habits from now on."
Katara nodded. "I'm just glad you got better so fast. You were so restless and scared from those hallucinations."
I smiled weakly. "My last one wasn't so bad though."
She stopped bending and looked at me with question. "Why's that?"
I met her gaze. "I know it wasn't real, but I saw mom again. She embraced me and told me she was proud of us all." My eyes burned as I remembered the feeling of her embrace. It had felt so warm even though it didn't happen. "It was good to see her. She looked happy."
Katara squeezed my shoulder. "Why wouldn't she be happy… After everything you've been through, you're still alive." She looked over at Zuko who was carrying another load of weeds down the riverbank. "And you've followed your heart. That's all she ever wanted for any of us."
Nodding, I said softly, "You made a beautiful Painted Lady. I know mom's just as proud as I am."
She looked down embarrassed by my praise. "Thanks, Crys."
A few hours later, after the villagers gave us food and praise for our help in saving their village, we returned to our campsite for the last night we would be there. With the clean water of the river I was able to wash my clothes and feel fresh and new. The others washed up too from their long day of cleaning out the stream. Once we were all relaxed, we sat down around our fire in relief. Momo slept on Zuko's lap, while Sokka reconstructed his schedule. Aang laid back staring up at the stars.
Toph, who sat across the fire from me, suddenly said, "So… What did we learn from this trip everyone?"
Confusion fell over all of us. Then Aang held up his hand while saying, "That only we can protect nature and keep our world clean!"
Toph shook her head. "Wrong."
Zuko added, "That it's important to help those in need even if we feel it's not our duty to do so."
Sokka spoke up as well. "And that leaving the campsite at night is a big no-no!"
She sighed, "Not even close." She then pointed towards me. "We've learned that this one right here has learned absolutely nothing from the education Zuko gave her on the ship, and that from now on she will be learning her book knowledge from me."
The group was stunned. Katara asked, "Book knowledge?"
Toph smirked. "Yep. I may look tough and scary, but this brain knows more than you all give me credit for." She pointed at me again. "Quick! When was the first leader of Omashu appointed to the throne and who was he?"
I let my jaw drop. "What? Toph! I only read-"
"No excuses! This is to train you to be the Fire Lady! On what date was General Janju killed in the battle of Boulder Rock?"
I stared at her blankly. Aang and Sokka snickered, while Zuko shook his head in disbelief. None of them knew the answer either I was certain. I looked over to Zuko for help, but he just shrugged. "Don't look at me. I only know Fire Nation history."
Toph cracked her knuckles. "Don't worry Princess. I'll make a scholar out of you in no time. Not only will you learn what is defined as an edible plant, but you'll be reciting every Washi Tu poem I know."
I felt afraid. "Uh… I think I'll pass."
She shook her head shutting her eyes. "Nope. No passing for this one. It's time for you to be Toph taught."
Sokka smirked. "Taught what? How to belch a song?"
"No," Toph began. She slammed her hand down on the earth and a stone jutted up from the ground shooting between Sokka's hands and piercing through the thick paper he held. A hole was left in the object that once revealed Sokka's revised schedule. "How to use wit for your own advantage."
Sokka scowled, while Zuko laughed at the ruined schedule Sokka had spent the last hour writing. Aang quickly tried to help Sokka put the schedule back together, but I could tell their attempt was futile.
"I'm going to get more water," Katara commented. I nodded and stood to follow. As we left the campfire and headed down to the river, Katara nudged me with her elbow as she carried the bucket. "I don't think you should let Toph be your teacher. That kid needs her own tutor."
I shook my head. "She's messing with me. She knows I ate the Du intentionally, so she's just getting me back for it."
"She knows?"
I shrugged. "It's hard to keep secrets from Toph. She won't tell though. I'll let her have her fun for now."
A sigh escaped my sister. "Well… I guess the plan worked, huh."
I smiled. "Yeah." We stopped at the water and stared out across the moonlit area at the village beyond. "Now they can heal themselves… You gave them the hope they need."
She shook her head. "No… We did. I couldn't have done it all without your help."
"My help?" I waved her off. "I just laid on the ground most of the time and tried to break my boyfriend's nose."
Katara giggled. "Yeah. You got him good."
Katara bent down to get the water then, but something caught the both of our eyes. A glowing woman hovered above the rivers water, her body transparent as the moon radiated behind her. I stepped back in shock, while Katara stood staring at the spirit in amazement. The woman had white fabric floating all around her, and red markings on her face. The Painted Lady was before us in her spiritual essence.
"Thank you," she spoke, her voice echoing around us. She bowed in respect, and then faded away leaving nothing but the moon in our sight.
Silence fell between us as we stared at the place where the painted lady had once been. Katara turned to me with a smile, while I stared at her with disbelief. She saw my shock, and then realization hit her. "Oh… You've never seen a spirit before have you?"
I shook my head.
She stepped over to me with the bucket of water. "Hmm… Well I guess there's a few things you get used to when your friends with the Avatar. I'm sure this won't be your last encounter with a spirit." She walked past me up the hill. As she went, I looked back at the spot the floating spirit had been and recalled the sound of her voice. Her 'thank you' was familiar.
It hit me then as Katara left me at the riverbank. The Painted Lady must've been the one to heal me. She helped me because I had done my part to save her people. Then I realized at that moment, the Painted Lady's healing touch had been the reason I dreamed about my mother. After the terrifying nightmare I'd become trapped inside, the spirit had freed me and given me the one thing I longed for. A chance to tell my mom how sorry I was for not saving her…
"I am so proud of you..."
My mother's words in my dream lingered. I shut my eyes as I listened to the lapping water on the river bank. Peace filled inside me and my heart warmed at the thought of my mother being proud. Even if it was only a dream, I accepted it as true.
Thanks for reading! I hope the next update isn't delayed like this one was!