"No way," Sokka said quietly as I saw him turn to look at me in my peripherals, "he would have told us if he was the Avatar."
"Assuming he knew he was the Avatar, you mean. Though, based on his reaction, there is a fair chance your friend did indeed," the old man said as I clenched my teeth together. I felt Katara's eyes on me and slowly came up with an idea.
"I will neither confirm nor deny that," I said with a calm I didn't feel. The old Firebender just nodded.
"Ah," the old man said approvingly, "how unfortunate that I can not tell my nephew that the Avatar has certainly returned," his sharp golden eyes met mine as he picked up the dome to reveal a jar of leaves and four small cups. He took a handful of the leaves and put them into the kettle, setting it off to the side. After a few moments of silence, with the old man constantly tending to the pot, he poured the cups full. I could feel Katara and Sokka's eyes on me as I picked up the first cup and sniffed the hot drink, "calming jasmine tea, a personal favorite. Now, if you'll let an old man drink to hope. Hope for a new era he never thought he would see."
"You want peace!?" Sokka burst out, "but you're Fire Nation!"
"Yes… I am indeed a member of the Fire Nation royal family - just as you are the son of the chief of the Southern Water Tribe. The man who leads a pack of men who are a plague on the seas," Iroh said with hard eyes, "you know the stories of your people, Sokka Hakodason. The Southern Wolves have been raiding our coasts and those of the Earth Kingdom long before the war broke out. The only difference now is that they have allied themselves with the Earth Kingdom against my country in retaliation for Southern blood spilled."
"Good," Sokka spat, "your people killed my mother." I watched Iroh's eyes widen in horror for a split second as he locked eyes with Sokka. It wasn't long but it was there.
"Oh… Hakoda's vendetta is personal then," he said heavily, his hand coming up to his forehead.
"It's been personal for years," Katara hissed at the old man, I raised my eyebrow and turned to her. I reached up and squeezed her shoulder as I thought of what to say.
"Katara, he's being peaceful and had nothing to do with the Raiders. I'm sorry about your mom, I am. I know how it feels," I felt my voice crack as I thought of mom and Annabeth, "h-how it feels to lose someone you love, but now isn't the time to get angry at someone who had nothing to do with what happened." Katara looked at me with smoldering eyes but the tension in her face eased slightly as I pulled my hand from her shoulder. I picked up the cup and turned to face Iroh again, "if you can promise to get your nephew out of here without harming anyone in the village then I'll drink with you, if you can't get him under control I'll pirate your ship, freeze you in blocks of ice, leave your troops in a cell of ice, and leave you on an abandoned island in the middle of nowhere - do you understand?" I asked heatedly as he took a slow breath and nodded.
"My nephew may be misguided but he is not without honor. He will leave your village be - as long as he is calm, that is... I advise you to either stay with your tribe to defend it when he returns or run away as fast as you can to protect the women and children. He will hunt you to the ends of the Earth if he discovers your potential identity - your people will be safe. But spirits help you if he should fail…" Iroh said as he turned his head and stared toward the sun, "but now we set sail. You must allow yourselves to be seen as you leave or he will come back with vengeance."
"That's evil!" Katara shouted, slamming her hands down on the table and standing up. Her cup going untouched, "there are only women and children in that village and your nephew would kill them!? And you would let him!?"
"In his anger, perhaps… I am not my Nephew's keeper, and it would not be wise to even look like I am attempting to undermine his authority on his own ship. He is the Crown Prince, my Prince, and thus I obey," Iroh said seriously, getting a quiet growl from me. Sokka said nothing but got up too, his full cup sitting on the table as well.
"I think it's time for you to go," he said quietly as he and Katara turned to the village. I reached up to rub my forehead slowly.
"I'm sorry about them," I said, "they hate you because of what you represent. They hate that it looks like an elder won't control an unruly boy… You know how the tribes are?"
"Aye, the Tribe above all. Yet you do not share their views?"
"No," I said simply, "I hate the needless death that your Nation has unleashed and I'll kill your brother for it myself... But, I don't hate you for obeying your lord and his prince. I just pray that not too many will stand between him and I."
"My younger brother - in his youth - was a man of focus, commitment, and sheer will... he was a good man but he was also a powerful Firebender, one more powerful than any I had ever met - including myself. But he was ambitious, though I did not realize he aspired to the throne. Now he is a warmonger… a merchant of death. He thrives on the power he thinks his throne gives him without realizing that the throne is meaningless without the love of the people. Ozai has his intelligence, ambition, and will but he does not hold the hearts of his people. And yet, he is still my younger brother... I will neither aid you nor stand against you when you stand against him." Iroh said heavily, folding his hands over his belly. I raised my eyebrow slightly as I looked at the man.
"Younger brother? Is that some sort of Fire Nation thing I need to know about?"
"No. I was to be Fire Lord but my son…" he took a breath and clenched his fingers around his cup, "my son is now no longer with us. Ozai is now Fire Lord as it was my father's will to preserve the line, though for many years I have pondered over whether it was Father's will or Ozai's." The old man said, "though I am relieved to not sit on the Blazing Throne, he is not the Fire Lord the Fire Nation needs. He will unleash pain, famine, death, and more in order to win this war."
"But who is the Lord you think you need?" I asked with a scoff, "that hot-headed kid that wants my head on a platter just because of who I could possibly be?"
"Better he than his sister," the old man said with a scowl, loading the tray and rising to his feet, "she is her father reincarnated but with less restraint. She is the embodiment of focus and a juggernaut with her firebending. She would see this war through until the world was under the Fire Nation's banner. She is cunning, willful, ambitious, and a fathom more charming than her father. Zuko could hold the hearts of his men if he could just see this ridiculous war has gone much too far..." He took a deep breath before continuing, "we will meet again, Avatar. I wish you well."
"And I you, but how did you know I was the Avatar?" I asked quietly. The old man's eyes sparkled merrily as he stood up.
"I did not, your reaction all but confirmed it for me." I groaned and stood up. Iroh smiled gently and reached out his hand to shake and I did the same, but instead of shaking hands - like I was expecting - he grabbed my forearm and shook it. We locked eyes and I nodded to the old man. We let go of each other and turned to the ship and the village. I had a pair of siblings to catch up to, after all.
XXX
With Zuko…
An Hour Later…
"Uncle," I asked quietly as I stood at the Lady Ursa's prow, watching the ice crack as we sailed through it. It was slow going but steady.
"Yes, Prince Zuko?"
"Do you think we'll ever find him?" I felt my voice crack as I reached up to my ruined cheek and eye. I heard Uncle sigh quietly as he stood next to me.
"Tell me, Prince Zuko, what does your heart tell you?" I just shook my head and whirled around to the old man.
"I've been scouring the world for three years, Uncle! Years! That waterbender was right, the Avatar is dead and gone with the Airbenders. I thought I just needed a sign that he was alive." I said slowly as a shadow passed over us. I glanced up and felt my jaw drop as I watched what passed overhead: a flying bison.
"Bosun!" I roared, "bring me the spyglass! Captain, set a bearing behind that bison! Find out where it's going!" Immediately, the two men did as I commanded. I glanced over at Uncle who was staring at the sky with an expression of wonder.
"They were extinct… How in Agni's name…" I stopped paying attention to the batty old man as the Bosun ran up to me and pressed a cylinder of brass into my hand. I took it as fast as I could, pushing it out to its full length to get a better look at one of the infamous mounts of the Air Nomads. I almost couldn't believe my eyes as I made out the three figures on the back of the Bison.
"Uncle, why does the Waterbender have a Flying Bison?" I growled, following the path of the Waterbender and his two friends as they slipped into the clouds and out of sight. I turned to Uncle who was still watching the sky and clenched my fist.
"I'll ask you again: what does your heart tell you, Prince Zuko?" he asked in a quiet voice.
"No," I whispered as I pointed the spyglass out to sea and in their direction. "All this time we had been looking for an Airbender but he was dead! We were looking for an Airbender when we needed a waterbender!? The bastard didn't even have to lie to me! But how did the Southern Raiders miss him!?" I growled more to myself than to Uncle.
"I believe he was born to a Water Tribe raider and an Earth Kingdom mother, Prince Zuko. It's in his eyes. Surely you noticed they were green while his companions' were blue?"
I nodded as I remembered that little fact, "but why was he at the South Pole?"
"He said he knew how it was like to lose a mother, the other two were brother and sister who lost their mother to the Raiders, Prince Zuko. Surely you recognize the name of Sokka's father?" Ice ran through my veins at the mention of the Seabane but Uncle continued on. "Perhaps he lost his mother and he found his way here after he found his water bending? He is exceptionally strong after all." I only nodded as I started back toward the command tower. I opened the door and started up the stairs with Uncle close behind me.
"Captain Yuain! Have you set a course behind the bison!?" I asked the tall man pointedly as we entered the bridge.
"Yes, my prince," the captain said confidently as he stood over the map table, "we have determined three potential destinations the Sky Bison could be heading with its current bearing and speed, of which only one of which is feasible." He pointed to a spot on the map that sent a jolt through me.
"The Southern Air Temple? You're sure?" I asked irritably.
"Yes, my prince. As you are aware, the journey would take a matter of days if the wind is to our backs and if we run the engines constantly, but scaling the mountains without the aid of Sozin's comet could potentially take months if the conditions are bad." And didn't I know it? The last time I had visited the Southern Temple had nearly killed me, and that was only a few months ago. I was in no hurry to go back there. I clenched my jaw while staring at the map, it was a solid minute before I came to a decision.
"Send a hawk to every Fire Nation outpost within a thousand miles of Whale Tail depot. I want to be informed if they see so much as a cloud that looks like a Sky Bison. Set a course for Whale Tail, we're going to need more coal and rations to make a run for the North Pole." I said to the Captain. He nodded and bowed.
"Aye, my prince. It will be done. But may I ask, why are we setting a course for the North Pole?"
"The Savage will want reinforcements, where better to find them than among his countrymen?" The captain's eyes widened in realization as he nodded before turned on heel to go back to the helm, barking orders as he went. I sighed and massaged my forehead turning back to the door of the bridge. It was only a few minutes to walk back to the prow of the ship, Uncle Iroh at my side the entire time.
"Three years, Uncle… Three long years and the only thing standing between me and going home is a boy my age." My knuckles turned white as I gripped the freezing metal of the prow's rail.
"A boy your age who is also a gifted Waterbender already, Prince Zuko… He is perhaps even more dangerous than an Air Nomad would be, and will be much more of a challenge to bring back to Ozai alive."
"Fire is superior, Uncle," I said loftily, my nose in the air, "I'll bring him in." I turned on my heel, missing Uncle Iroh's quiet remark.
"I'm sure you will try, Prince Zuko, but the sea can wash away even the strongest blaze."
XXX
With Percy…
Five Days Later…
"So, we'll finally be at this Air Temple place soon, right?" Sokka asked as we sat on Appa's back. We were all slightly surprised that the ten-ton monster could actually get off the ground - much less that he flew all day without a problem - but we decided it would be the best way to get away from the South Pole. I was going to go alone, but Katara was insistent that if I was going she was going too as soon as I told her I was going to go to the Northern Water Tribe to see if I could recruit some help, and Sokka refused to let his little sister go off alone. That made sure our exit from the Southern Tribe was somewhat delayed as Sokka and I loaded as much dried fish as we were sure Appa could carry on his back and other necessities for travel so we could fly for at least a month and a half unimpeded.
"According to these maps, yes," I said as I placed Aang's compass next to the map showing what I understood to be Jet Streams, updrafts, and other things I wasn't quite sure about. I wasn't all that competent in the air, after all, son of Poseidon ring any bells? Zeus wanting to knock me out of the sky didn't help much either.
"Then we should be on the lookout," Katara said. She was pissed at me for most of the first day but after sleeping in a tent I pitched for her on a small, deserted island while I took the sleeping bags with Sokka, she came around to her normal self. I had found the tent on Appa's back with a thick, woolen blanket that I immediately knew would be too short for me but also thought would be perfect for the Waterbender.
"Good idea," I said back, scanning the mountain range. I stretched slightly, trying to work out a kink in my shoulders from a rock I slept on last night. What I wouldn't do to have the Argo II right about now instead of a sky bison and occasional ice barge so Appa could rest. That was the day before yesterday. Now, we're on Sky Bison back after sleeping in the mountain range we knew the Southern Air Temple is in.
"See anything yet?" Sokka asked from his place on Appa's left.
"Nope," Katara said from her place on the right. I sat at Appa's head and was scanning the horizon when I felt Appa turn under me as he flew in a direction different than where I was steering him earlier. I raised my eyebrow slightly as Appa flew directly through a small cloud bank. We flew through the back and I felt my jaw drop at the massive structure built into the mountain itself. The rising towers and marble facades would have had Annabeth drooling… I felt myself stiffen slightly at the thought of her but I couldn't help my sigh of relief as we flew close enough to see the structures, while ravaged by time and had the occasional hole in the side, was mostly intact and definitely strong enough that it wouldn't fall in on us.
"Thank the gods," I said under my breath as Appa descended toward what I thought was a landing pad. His feet hit the ground with a solid thump. Almost before Appa could get settled on the ground, we were clamoring to get off his back and onto solid ground.
"Land! Sweet, solid land," Sokka moaned as he knelt down in the patches of snow, "Percy, where's the food?" he predictably asked and I just nodded toward the saddlebags.
"Where it always is, Sokka. This is the twelfth time we've had this discussion and the food hasn't magically shifted places."
"But the saddlebags are empty," he said nervously. I stared at him for a long moment before slowly saying:
"You ate three weeks of rations in six days!?" I was stunned... and pissed. Mostly pissed. That was our only food and he ate it all already.
"Uh, yes? I'm a nervous snacker okay!?" he said defensively, but I still wanted to strangle the Water Tribe boy And I almost did as I shoved him to the wall by the collar of his shirt. He squawked but was saved by Katara saying:
"Percy! It's okay, we'll find food here! Something has to grow up here," Katara said hopefully. I took a breath and nodded slowly, dropping Sokka before going back over to Appa to take a map and a small leatherbound journal, it was in Hakoda's things when Kanna gave me a small trunk to use for the few days I was at the tribe. It didn't take me long to find out the small book was a goldmine of information - but more importantly, was that I realized two things: I could read the strange characters and that this belonged to Sokka and Katara's dad. The characters were definitely Asian-esque but Hakoda was a genius sailor and skipper if this book was any indication. I had read through it at least twice already but it never hurt to check it again.
"Alright," I muttered as I flipped through the journal to logistical - resupply outposts. I looked at the map and pulled my finger down the list, "Gaipan? Too far… Omashu? No... Ba Sing Se? Negative… Kyoshi Island?" I looked at the map and frowned, it would take us another few days to reach the Island but there was nothing closer except if we could potentially find a small fishing village at one of the small islands to the south-east. The problem with that was, it would mean we would have to backtrack and go further out of the way, Kyoshi was a good ways out but it was the best chance we had. I sighed and rubbed my forehead. "Looks like we're going to be fishing for food and sleeping on islands again until we get to Kyoshi to properly stock up…"
"What was that?" Katara asked as she sat down beside me.
"We'll have to fish for food and restock at Kyoshi Island. How's our money looking?"
"Well, considering we haven't had anywhere to spend it, it's still as much as the tribe could spare."
"So, unless we find some other kinds of money here, eight coppers and a couple of silvers?" I said, feeling a headache coming on. "I could mine for raw materials in the ocean but I don't know any earth bending."
"But Earthbenders can't bend metal," Katara said as if it was obvious. I raised an eyebrow at her.
"Says who?"
XXX
Later…
"Turns out," Sokka said as he knelt down beside the campfire, "there's no food here. At all. Lots of skeletons though," He moaned and shivered slightly as he looked at the fire longingly.
"Shouldn't have eaten all our food then," I grunted. Katara nodded in agreement but didn't say anything. "Thankfully, we at least have a roof over our heads tonight… I'm going to get some air. You guys get some rest."
I didn't say anything else as I grabbed one of the torches the monks had hanging around and lit it in the fire. I stood up and turned down one of the passages that I hadn't been down yet. I didn't hear the footsteps behind me as I climbed the stairs higher and higher until I was at a gaping hole in the wall but it was a good vantage point. I sat down with a leg hanging over the tower wall and stared up at the full moon shining down on the ruins of what once must have been a thriving monastery. I put my chin in my hands and fiddled with my necklace idly, wondering what life would have been like if Gaia had just stayed asleep…
"Hey," I heard a voice say from the stairwell.
"Hey, Katara. Why are you up here?"
"You're up here," she said as if that explained everything. I saw her sit down on the other side of the windowsill from the corner of my eye. "What's on your mind?" I didn't say anything, just staring out over the moon bathed mountains. "It's beautiful up here," she carried on. "The moon, the full moon, in particular, reminds me of my mother. How she would say that the moon looked down on me while the strength of the sea flowed through Sokka… I can barely remember her, Percy. I can barely remember how she looked laughing or how the look on her face when Sokka did something stupid… I can hear her voice saying, 'I love you.' But recently," I thought I heard her voice quiver and I turned to look at her. Tears were running down her face as she looked up at the moon, "recently I can't hear her voice… I think I can hear her in my dreams every now and then but her face is getting hazier… I can barely remember the way her hand felt against my face…" she said quietly. I took a breath and nodded slowly.
"I lost my girlfriend, my mother, my father, and my best friends all in three days," I muttered. I looked down at the stonework below me but I could hear the quiet swish as her hair cut through the air from her snapping her head around. I could just imagine her eyes were wide, but I couldn't look at her to say this. "My girlfriend, Annabeth, I loved her… I did. We weren't together long, just a few months before I was… Well, I fell into a coma and she couldn't see me because my aunt was… taking care of me," I spat thinking of Hera. "I was gone for six months with none of my memories except one - her face and name. I was practically thrust into a different world until I could get back to my old life. But Annabeth, my Wise Girl, managed to find me anyway. It wasn't long after that I lost her…" I said quietly, thinking about how much of my life changed in what was all of three months to me.
"We were forced into going on a quest and we ended up in a pretty bad place… I lost her to a pack of monsters," I said, glancing up to see Katara's horror-struck expression, "they tore her apart and there was nothing I could do except avenge her. I've always been strong with water but I didn't have any with me to help her. I had a sword and shield and still killed every single monster that dared hurt my Wise Girl. There was an army of them, tens of thousands of monsters and I killed them all. The woman they were controlled by was my great-grandmother on dad's side. Dad was killed while fighting his… Cousins, I think?" I said tapping my chin thoughtfully but I completely missed Katara's stunned expression. "His grandmother had a lot of kids. They would be dad's uncles actually… Well, either way, we had to fight them. Yeah, saying my family's complicated would be the understatement of the century. Dad's uncles and grandmother were kind of like the Fire Nation, bent on world domination - blah, blah, blah," Katara's eyes lit up with understanding, "but much - much - worse."
"What could be worse than the Fire Nation?"
"Armageddon," I said darkly. Katara looked at me strangely but I went on, "the end of the world, life as we knew it… The last battle for humanity. I had to help stop it," I felt my throat tighten but I knew I had to go one. "My family, well… they control domains - things like the skies and seas themselves, while others have authority over concepts: things like smithing, homes, marriage, hunting, so on and so forth. But if you think I'm strong with water? Well, you should have seen how strong dad was," I said tightly, "he could control the seas by himself - the king of water - and he was absolutely nothing compared to his grandmother with Earth…"
"Don't lie to me, Percy." She said angrily, glaring at me. I locked eyes with her, something in my eyes must have told her I was completely serious because she hesitated.
"I haven't lied yet," I said intensely, her eyes widened as she realized I wasn't kidding. I willed the Trident into my hands and laid it across my lap, tines away from her. "This is one of the last things I have from home and it was dad's before it was mine," I said as I looked at the shining silver tines before righting it and slamming it down into the stonework, watching it as it vibrated slightly but still stuck tines up. "I was part of a team of seven people who were chosen due to a prophecy," I spat before going on, "to help stave off the end of the world. We succeeded but lost so many in the process, including dad... I walked into the mother of all thunderstorms and I ended up in this place called the spirit sea, that's where I - due to rather unique circumstances - was asked to help save this world."
"Who asked you to help?" Katara asked suspiciously.
"The spirit of the Avatar," I said simply, not giving any more information away than necessary.
"So you did know?" She asked accusingly, pointing her finger at my chest.
"I did." I stood there like a statue as her eyes blazed.
"Why did you say you only had your suspicions then?"
"Didn't want Captain Hothead on us if I had confirmed it to Iroh, he seems like the kind of guy who wouldn't want to mislead his nephew. If I had even insinuated that I was the Avatar, he would have told Zuko who I was. By just giving him suspicions, he wouldn't give me away."
"And how were you sure?" Her anger evaporated like mist.
"Call it a gut feeling," I said with a shrug of my shoulders, "not like they could have held me at sea anyway."
"Even if they couldn't have held you, do you have any idea of what the Fire Nation's done!?" she burst out.
"No," her eyes widened at the simple, quiet admission. "I only have the smallest picture of what they've done so far. But I didn't want to piss off Iroh, that man's stronger than he makes himself out to be…" I trailed off as I looked back over the landscape.
"The old man?" she asked incredulously, hands on her hips. "What makes you think he's so strong?"
"He was a general," and for the untold number of the night, the waterbender's eyes widened but I explained a little more. "You can tell by how he talked. He's used to being obeyed. He's also a prince of the Fire Nation, probably used to be the Crown Prince at one point."
"Crown Prince?"
"First in line to the Crown, or Crown Prince. Iroh was the oldest son of the last Fire Lord, his little brother probably manipulated events to make sure he would become Fire Lord instead of Iroh - but I of course have nothing to prove that assumption. That means that the teenage hothead was the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation, a boy who was used to being waited on hand and foot until he wasn't anymore. For some reason, he's been exiled and he's on a mission that he'll see through unless it kills him first."
"And that's to capture you?"
"I may let him, it's a sure-fire way to get to the Fire Lord." I said with a small smirk at her horrified expression, "but that won't work for multiple reasons. First of all, I should probably learn the other elements before I can even think of facing King Firecracker. If he's Fire Lord he's going to be monstrously powerful."
"You have to beat him, Percy," Katara said quietly.
"I know, he's hurt too many people to walk free. Iroh and Zuko won't do anything against Ozai. Hades, Zuko's trying to win daddy's approval even now! It's the only reason he's after me," I growled but Katara's reaction was slightly off.
"He's going to come for us, isn't he?" Katara asked worriedly.
"Yes, but remember he only can travel by boat and that makes him much slower than Appa can fly."
"You think," she snapped back, "he could be going faster since he got out of the ice fields."
"True," I said pensively. "On the other hand, we still gained at least two hundred miles on them on our first day alone."
"But how many miles have they made up since then?" she asked worriedly, blue eyes narrowed in concern.
"You worry too much," I said with a lopsided grin, standing up but secretly wondering the same thing. She stood too, hesitated, and stepped up beside me - wrapping her arms around my waist. I felt my eyes widen momentarily but wrapped an arm around her shoulders all the same.
"Maybe I do, but I can't help but want to keep you and Sokka safe," she said quietly, "even if you're much better at waterbending than I am."
"Hey," I said down at her with a grin, "I've been teaching you what I can."
"And I've gotten better by leaps and bounds since we started," she said with a small smile of her own. She hesitated as our eyes met, our faces inches apart. "Thank you," she whispered.
"For what?" I asked quietly, I could feel her breath on my chin as our noses almost were touching.
"For everything. Protecting the village, helping Sokka, bringing the Avatar back, talking with me tonight…"
"It was nothing," I said with a small grin, "you and Sokka are probably my best friends - Hades, you're my only friends - at this point and I take care of my friends." We stood there for a few more moments before I felt her tighten her arms around my waist before she let go.
"C'mon, let's get to bed. We have a long day of flying tomorrow."
"Sailing, actually," I said with a small grimace, "can't risk the Fire Nation seeing us in the Air so we'll have to take the sea. They knew we would be coming here but we can't risk them figuring out where we're going and Appa's pretty obvious." We started down the stairs and she nodded slowly.
"I actually prefer sailing, but I wish we had a bigger boat with actual beds sometimes," Katara said wistfully - and I completely agreed.
"Yeah, the ice boat just doesn't work as well, does it?" she shook her head as we made it to the bottom of the stairs.
"No, it really doesn't. Good night Percy," she said as she laid down on one of the bedrolls, pulling the thick blanket over her.
"Night, Katara," I said back. Slipping into my sleeping bag and wondering about what I was going to do with these new feelings.