Response to Reviews:
UGudBroXD: Oh yes, action starts this chapter! Thanks for the review!
phieillydinyia: I like to think Ty Lee is an airbender as well! She looks like Aang with hair lmao. Thanks for the review!
A/N: Action starts coming fast here. Some violence and good ol' Kataang. Loving all of your reviews, thank you!
Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender
Saturday had arrived and Aang was feeling confident about his surveillance mission. He woke up and mediated, feeling energized and light. After lunch, he drove to the Nauyak's home to go over the plan for Mission Zhao. Sokka led Aang to their basement, where Katara was sitting on the couch testing the devices Teo's dad had made. Aang shuddered at remembering his afternoon tea scheduled with Teo's Dad next week in exchange for the tech. After he took his seat next to Katara, Sokka sat down on the other side of Aang. The group listening as Sokka gave instructions. Sokka will drive the three of them a block away from Zhao's house and park. The twins would stay behind and be the getaway car. Sokka reminded them that once Aang finishes the task, he will use his glider to fly back to the car as they make their speedy exit.
Sokka, Katara, and Aang suited up in black clothing with black hats to remain hidden. They waited until the sun set for low visibility and to weaken Zhao's firebending power. As Sokka drove, Katara and Aang were seated close in the backseat, dripping with uncertainty. Aang was looking down at his hands and focusing on his breathing. Katara noticed the familiar nervousness in her boyfriend and reached out to squeeze his hand. He noticeably relaxed at this small action. She always knew how to steady him when he felt unstable. She was his constant.
Sokka parked the car and turned the headlights off. He placed an arm on the headrest and whipped his head around with a crooked smile, "Well, here we go. You ready, Aang?" The airbender nodded with a furrowed brow, trying to appear confident. He hoped he could trick himself into feeling confident as well. "Buddy, in all seriousness, you've got this. We'll keep an eye out in case things go bad, which they DEFINITELY won't," Sokka saved at the last second. Katara nodded in agreement with her brother's words, leaning over to kissing Aang gently on the lips. Aang broke away from the kiss and silently exited the car with determination on his face.
Aang opened his glider and jumped to begin his flight to Zhao's house. Aang recognized his home from the pictures given to him, a large red house that looked sleek and modern. Aang flew to his house as he removed a camera device from a compartment in his shirt. He lightly touched down on the roof near the entrance of the house. Working quickly while drying off sweat on his face with his arm, his other arm began to stick the camera into the ledge of the house. Teo's Dad made this device to acquire evidence of anyone coming and going from Zhao's house as well as to document times Zhao arrived and left. The next part would be more tricky. He glided softly around the house to the back. Landing without a sound, Aang was an inch from the ground on the back deck. Aang mustered a gust of wind to open the window as he climbed into the home. Aang didn't get a chance to begin placing the listening device as a very loud dog began barking.
Aang's heart sank into his stomach. "Shit, he didn't have a dog when we researched him this week." Whether Zhao getting a dog was coincidence or intentional, he was unsure and didn't have time to think about it. Before he could quickly place the device, Zhao appeared at the end of the hallway where Aang stood. Zhao threw a fireball at Aang, but being light as a feather, Aang turned his body to narrowly avoid the attack. "I need to get out of here," Aang thought. Amidst Zhao's multiple, sloppy fireballs, Aang was able to escape the way he came in. "He's got no control," he smiled as he thought to himself. Aang rounded the house quickly but was met with Zhao on the front lawn.
In the car, Katara and Sokka saw Aang and Zhao dueling it out in front of the house. "Oh, man, this is not good. We are screwed!", Sokka yelled with a frown and slumped shoulders. His sister was more angry and less dejected. "We have to save him, Sokka! It's our responsibility to protect him. Come on-" Katara was interrupted by Sokka grabbing her wrist. "Absolutely not, Katara! Zhao is a crazy firebender," he briefly looked down the road to see Aang blocking all of Zhao's attacks, "Look, it should be fine now. Aang is handling himself well. And while he's my best friend and I think of him like a brother, you're my sister and I'm not losing you." Katara was raging on the inside and while she wanted to disagree with her brother, she knew he was right. Aang was handling the fight well and she didn't want to distract him or get hurt. She sighed in resignation which prompted her twin to relax. Sokka's eyes were soft and met Katara's concerned face, "It'll be okay, Katara. He's got this."
On the lawn, Aang was feeling confident enough to take some jabs at Zhao. Aang yelled while evading Zhao's attacks, "For some reason, I thought you'd be better than Zuko!" He laughed while jumping and flipping with ease. Zhao scowled while shooting fireballs from his fast fists in a defensive stance, "Fight back you coward! Too weak to fight back. Oh, I guess it really does run in the family." This statement triggered a level of anger that was only present in Aang once before. He would usually feel sad or anxious about a comment like this, but not now, not by the person who killed his parents. He felt himself leave his body, almost like he wasn't in complete control. Zhao's scowl fell into a scared expression, eyes wide in fear.
Aang's eyes glowed a bright white as his voice sounded like hundreds of voices at once, "Zhao, you are guilty of killing my parents. You will pay for your crimes." Zhao tried to run away but was shackled to the ground in earth bended by Aang. Aang walked over to Zhao with furrowed brows. Zhao whimpered, "Please, please, it wasn't my idea. It was all Ozai's fault! He's the one you want! I-" Aang, in a loud, booming voice cut him off, "ENOUGH! Justice demands retribution." Before Zhao could register what was happening, he felt his body being thrown up hundreds of feet in the sky by a huge gust of wind.
The twins in the car yelped at seeing Aang take his stance and airbend Zhao high in the sky and farther than their eyes could see. They saw their friend, glowing, surrounded by speedy winds, rocks, fire, and water. The circle of the elements was growing bigger by the second. Sokka smiled, "Yeah, Aang! I'm glad we're safe in here." He turned to his sister, who looked like she was about to cry. "No, this isn't good, he could hurt himself or more people. Sokka, we need to help him!" Sokka groaned, "Katara, no! He's the Avatar, he's got this. Let's just put on a podcast and wait for this to all blow over." Katara remembered Aang not being able to access the Avatar State on his own, and seemed regretful and ashamed about what did happen when he had entered that state before. She became determined, "No, Aang needs us and you can't stop me!" Katara got out of the car quickly and started running down the street. Sokka scrunched his face as he turned the car off and left the car, "Ugh, Katara, come back! He could be dangerous!"
When Katara met Aang, his circle of elements was five times the size of him. Katara pressed on against the force of all of the elements. Her legs felt heavy and hard to move, but she needed to reach Aang. Car alarms were blaring and trees were becoming uprooted and falling at the force of the wind coming from Aang. She slowly made it to Aang, ignoring the rock, fire, water, and air whipping close to her body. She yelled, "Aang! It's over, Zhao is gone! You can stop!" Aang's face continued to glow as he frowned, not looking at Katara, "He killed my family and joked about it. He deserves to be punished." She didn't flinch at the sound of layered voices coming from her boyfriend's mouth. Everything made sense to Katara in that moment. "I'm sorry you had to hear Zhao say that, Aang. I would be upset, too. But he's gone and you're safe now. I know what it's like to lose family. But you still have a family. Sokka and I, we're your family now. Please, Aang, this isn't you," she sobbed.
The cry of Katara reached Aang like nothing else could. The glow from his eyes dimmed as the circle of elements stopped and fell. Katara ran to Aang's side as he looked like he was going to faint. In Katara's arms, he cried. "I'm sorry, Katara." He held his face against her shoulder, tears making her shirt wet. She wrapped her arms around his back, embracing him fully. He felt the shame of what he did. He caused destruction and made Katara scared. The image of Katara crying out of fear made him feel sick. He cried harder into her shoulder. Sokka walked over to the two of them on the lawn, a look of urgency and sorrow in his eyes, "Hey, we should go before people start asking questions." Katara nodded, unwrapping her arms as she interlaced her fingers with Aang's. They followed Sokka back to the car as quickly as they could.
After entering the car, Aang finally opened his eyes and broke the silence first. "I'm sorry if I scared you. Thanks for saving me, Katara," he paused before continuing, "Do you think Zhao is dead?" Katara held Aang's hand as she looked at Sokka in the driver's seat. The twins shared an uncomfortable glance. "You know, it was really unclear. We couldn't see too much from out here." Aang nodded and closed his eyes for the rest of the car ride. Sokka and Katara were quiet until they dropped Aang off at home. Aang left the car in the silence, only mumbling, "thanks" as he closed his door. Sokka began to drive them home and asked, "Do you think Zhao's dead?" Katara continued to stare out of the window somberly, "Maybe, but I don't want to think about that right now. I have a feeling things are going to get worse before they get better."
Aang felt the weight of the embarrassment from the night on his shoulders as he opened his front door. He saw Gyatso sitting on the couch in the living room, like he was waiting to scold him. Aang rolled his eyes and sighed, "If this is because it's after 11pm, can we talk about it tomorrow? I had a rough night." Gyatso smirked, "That's a mild way of putting it! Your rampage is all over the news. Zhao is reported missing. What happened?" Aang gasped and felt a pang in his stomach. "That was on the news? How?" Gyatso responded with a slight chuckle, "Smartphones. One of Zhao's neighbors recorded it all. You're very lucky that the video looks like you had to defend yourself." Aang hung his head, "I'm sorry Gyatso, you probably want an explanation." Gyatso finally smiled his normal smile, "Ah, actually, I think it is I who owes you an explanation."
Aang sat down next to Gyatso on the couch. He felt his breath quicken as his heart beat fast against his chest. He couldn't take much more surprises. Gyatso noticed the anxiety building and placed a soft hand on Aang's shoulder, "This isn't bad news, I promise." After relaxing, Aang nodded for Gyatso to continue. "Before your parents died, I knew that you were the Avatar since you were 7. I was tasked to help you find balance and answer questions about being the Avatar while growing your spiritual knowledge. After your parents died, I reached out to the White Lotus as you would need more guidance and help. They told me what I suspected, that your parent's death was not an accident. We agreed to move you here so you could be close to them after completing Avatar training and have an added level of safety. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you sooner, but when Iroh told me you had found out about the plot to kill you and your parents, I felt like it was time."
Aang's eyes were blank and his body was tired. He was hoping for the day when he would stop getting secret information revealed to him. He finally looked at Gyatso in the eyes, "I understand. So, about tonight...I went into the Avatar State. It wasn't by choice. Zhao made a mean joke about my parents and I just lost it. I don't know how to control it. Now, he and maybe others are hurt or dead." His head fell in his hands as tears began to flow. Gyatso wrapped his arm around Aang's shoulders, gently squeezing. "Aang, yes, you weren't in control, but there is nothing we can do about it now. We must focus on the present. I will give you the number of my oldest friend, Guru Pathik. He will help you control the Avatar State." Aang's crying stopped and his breathing finally slowed. He hugged Gyatso, "I will do that. I'm going to go to bed, but thanks for everything."
The next few days went by surprisingly smoothly for Aang. He hung out with Katara on sunday. He was happy that she didn't hate him or was afraid of him. They had spent the day laying in the park, waterbending and looking at clouds. The ending to the night was sensual and intimate. Aang felt closer to Katara than ever before. He knew that he wanted to have sex, but was happy to wait until Katara was ready.
By monday, the feelings of shame and guilt were still there, but he was able to swat them away. Everyone in the gang was excited to hear that Ozai had taken an "impromptu vacation" for the rest of the week. The Vice Principal, Joo Dee, who was much gentler than Ozai, took his place for that week. Aang had survived the meeting with Teo's Dad. To Aang's surprise, Teo's Dad was not super creepy, just a huge nerd. Thursday afterschool, Aang headed to his reiki session with Guru Pathik. Aang's knowledge of reiki was limited, as his studies at the Temple focused on meditation and spirituality.
Aang parked outside of Guru Pathik's home, which was small and quaint. It looked like a hobbit home and Aang had to duck to enter the cottage. Aang's attention turned to a whiteboard in the living room with a quote written on it.
"October is about trees revealing colors they've hidden all year. People have an October as well."-Jm Storm
Aang wrinkled his nose with a light chuckle after reading it, thinking that this guy and his therapist would get along. After a few minutes of standing awkwardly in the living room, a tall, older man with a white beard and brown skin greeted Aang. "Ah, I've been waiting for you. Come follow me." Aang ducked while he walked into another room that smelled earthy, had lots of pillows and blankets, and a wooden table in the middle of the room. "So, what do you know about reiki?" Aang shrugged and replied, "Something about qi. You work with the qi, or energy, and then..um..something happens?" Guru Pathik smiled, "Good try, but no. Thousands of years ago, before humans bended the elements, they bended the energy within themselves. Chakras are pools of energy that flow in front and in back of your body. Sometimes these chakras become blocked because of life. Trauma, sadness, fighting, grief, these all take energy. This can change and muddy your own energy. Sometimes we need to clear this energy out from it being dirtied over time. So that's what we'll be doing today. Hop up on the table and we'll get started." Aang felt calm and laid down on the table.
Guru Pathik instructed Aang to take three deep breaths. As he was breathing, he felt Guru Pathik walk down to his legs and hover his hands above. Aang felt a surge of warmth and electricity flow through his legs and feet. Aang's eyes closed and he fell into a state of wakeful sleep. Flashes of Ozai laughing at him appeared in his mind. He felt afraid as his breathing picked up. After a few minutes of Ozai in his mind, it dissipated and he saw a flash of himself in Katara's arms. He felt relaxed and Guru Pathik moved his hands to hover over his stomach. Aang's calmness was ruined by images of himself in the Avatar State. He saw himself bending air and sending his classmates flying to the ground. He remembered this happening when Gyatso told him his parents had died. He was hurt and angry, and wanted others to feel what he felt. He saw Gyatso and his classmates trying to comfort him, but he didn't want to hear it. His mind flashed to Katara hugging him and telling him he was a good person. Aang exhaled as Guru Pathik moved his hands to hover over his ribs.
Aang felt more qi flowing throughout his entire body. He felt electric. His mind showed him images of feeling insecure about himself with Katara. He saw himself crying and telling himself no one could love him because he was weak. After what felt like an eternity, the image was replaced by Katara's beautiful face lighting up at telling him she wanted to be his girlfriend. He saw images of how he made Katara feel happy. He relaxed and then Guru Pathik moved his hands to hover over his heart. Tears were leaving Aang's eyes as his mind showed his parents in their caskets at their funeral. He felt this tremendous loss and didn't know how he could continue living. He saw an image of Katara smiling at him. It made him feel alive. It made him feel loved. Aang stopped crying and exhaled.
Guru Pathik moved his hands to hover over Aang's throat. Aang's breath was deep and slow. He saw himself lying to Katara about being the Avatar and hiding his anxiety from her. Iroh came into his mind, telling him he is the Avatar and he will be great when he accepts his fate. As Aang relaxed and felt his limbs loosen up, Guru Pathik moved his hands to hover over his forehead. Aang saw everyone telling him he needed to kill Ozai. This scene was surrounded by a wall. He envisioned himself knocking down the wall and seeing something he has never seen before. He saw someone he didn't recognize placing their hands on a person's forehead and heart at the same time. Aang saw this person, who had a black mist surrounding them, morph into a white mist after being touched. He wondered what it meant before lightly sleeping. Guru Pathik's hands shifted to the crown of his head. Feeling not quite awake, Aang saw all of the pain he felt when his parents died and when he felt insecure about Katara. He saw himself crying and causing hurt, pain, and destruction. Then, he felt himself floating away from his body.
He looked around and noticed he was out on the universe. He felt larger than life and looked down to see a road made out of stars. He followed his instincts to travel down the road until he reached a white door. Upon opening the door, he looked to his right and saw a row of all of the previous Avatars. All of his past lives with glowing eyes. Aang came back to his body on earth. He felt in control and moved his body to sit up on the table. The energy in his body was powerful and flowing as quickly as it only does when he enters the Avatar State. "Wait, what's going on?", he asked himself. He turned to look at Guru Pathik's mirror on the wall. The reflection of his glowing eyes stared back at him.