They were all panting when they arrived at a small clearing and a small river. Shouto placed his hands on his knees, not having run that fast in a little while.

When he did recover, he stood back up, brushing some hair out of his eyes. Despite all his making-fun of Zuko's ponytail, he kinda wished he had something like that right about now.

Zuko and Iroh stood at the edge of the water looking impossibly solemn. Shouto didn't know whether to be amused or scared. Then, in the time Shouto had blinked, for some reason, Zuko cut of his ponytail and Iroh his bun-thing, though he didn't know why. He didn't ask.

But what he did really want to do was shave the rest of their hair off, because the imperfection of it all just bothered him. "What're you looking at." Zuko asked, glaring at him.

"Nothing." Maybe if he was careful enough he could burn the rest of the hair off, but something told him that probably wasn't a good idea.

So, he decided to try to just turn away and forget it.

Izuku awoke to the sound of everyone bustling around and cleaning up camp. Izuku yawned and stood up, glancing around for Katsuki, he saw him already waiting on Appa to take off.

Izuku wished he was surprised that Katsuki wasn't helping clean up camp but expecting Katsuki to help someone was like expecting a cat to greet you at the front door. It just didn't happen.

"Are we leaving?" Izuku asked.

"And here I was hoping you'd stay asleep until we left." Katsuki grumbled.

Izuku glared. "Where are we going?"

"To Omashu," Aang said, "There's someone there I want to teach me earthbending."

"Earthbending… sorry if this sounds stupid, but I thought you were an airbender."

"Oh, did I not tell you?"

Or maybe Izuku had just forgotten. "I'm the avatar."

If Aang was the avatar that meant this kid was the one Zuko was after, the one he wanted to capture. He was the one who was supposed to restore peace to the world.

It was sad, that these kids had to save the world because every other mature adult in the world couldn't. "Okay, let's go." Izuku said and stood.

"Great." Aang smiled.

Izuku climbed on top of Appa and was surprised to find several other people besides Katara, Sokka, and Katsuki. "Oh, right, and there are these guys, they're coming too!"

"Oh, okay." Izuku said.

Katsuki glared at the people joining them from across the saddle, obviously not liking them. Silence as they flew in the sky towards what Izuku assumed was Omashu.

"We won't be able to make it by sky. Too many Fire Nation. We'll have to go through The Cave of Two Lovers."

"Appa doesn't really like enclosed spaces though."

"The Cave of Two Lovers?" Izuku asked, frowning. "What is that?"

"Well, legend has it that a long time ago—"

"No one wants to hear their stupid sob story!" Katsuki growled. "Let me guess, Some outside force, probably their parents, prevented them from being together so they ran away into this cave thing but eventually, somehow, they died tragically and now it's cursed somehow."

The other man opened his mouth to protest and then nodded, "Actually, that's pretty accurate. They say, that if you don't believe in love you'll get lost in the tunnels forever."

"Well you won't be lost forever, because in a couple days you'll probably die."

"Die?" Izuku asked and then shuddered, "But that's just a story, right? That doesn't actually happen, does it?"

"Of course it's just a story, stupid Deku…"

Izuku started to respond when they all felt a jolt and were thrown to the side. Izuku barely saw a flaming arrow shoot passed his head.

"Fu-aah!" Katsuki started and then they were yanked to the other side.

They held on tight as they rocketed towards the ground when the barrage became too much. "The only way to escape is through the cave."

"But what about the legend?" Katara asked.

"Don't tell me even you believe it?" Katsuki wrinkled his nose. "I expected a nerd like Deku to, but the rest of you?"

"I don't believe it." Sokka said, "It's just some silly story.

"EXACTLY!"
"I don't know Kacchan…"

"I do, don't be such an idiot!"

"If you say so." They heard yells behind them, yells of what Izuku thought was Fire Nation soldiers.

"Well, it looks like we only have one choice." One of the odd men said. "We have to go through the cave."

"You've got to be kidding me!" Katsuki said.

"Unfortunately, they're right. We can't fly, we'll never make it to Omashu. The cave is the safest way to get there." Katara said.

Katsuki hated her logic, detested, despised it… because it made sense. The only problem was that if they went through the cave, Deku was going to be his stupid, annoying, bundle of nerves self.

And it was going to fray his nerves until he snapped and exploded Deku and made the ceiling of the cave implode.

Because 'die' was definitely on his to-do list today.

They all walked in the darkness for a while until they saw the light behind them completely disappear and there was a lot of crashing. Katsuki didn't even have to be a genius to know that the Fire Nation had blocked their exit and now the only way to get out was through the cave.

Izuku jumped and grabbed his arm tightly. Since when had Deku's grip gotten so crushing? Katsuki gritted his teeth and tried not to snap at him. He knew there was no reason to yell at Izuku for grabbing him, no real reason, no rational reason, anyway.

He bit his tongue and ignored the need to growl and cuss and yank his arm away. No, he didn't just ignore the feeling, he smashed it down into a little small box and stashed it away, deep down inside.

Katsuki therefore, ignored everything going on around him, to make sure the little buzz in his head quieted down. "Kacchan, look out!"

Katsuki felt himself shoved out of the way as a rock crashed down beside them and a mini avalanche rained down from the ceiling separating the group in two.

Even though he hadn't been paying attention, he discerned it was Appa's doing. "Stupid bison."

"He is NOT stupid." Izuku hissed. "He doesn't know any better, don't blame him."

"I'm not blaming him, I'm saying he's stupid and you said he doesn't know any better, which, guess what genius? That translates back to stupid!"

"Guys, stop arguing." Katara said. "Come on, we have to get going, Sokka and the others will be waiting on the other side for us."

"Whatever." Katsuki grumbled and didn't say anything as they both picked themselves off the ground and kept walking. Katsuki ground his teeth together. How could he be so stupid, so weak, as to need DEKU of all people to save him.

God he was so pathetic. He hadn't realized it for a long time, but… maybe the reason he was always so angry at Deku, was because he knew Deku was better than him, stronger than him. And so he felt like he had to tear him down, in order to be the very best.

And he hated to admit it, but even after ten years he still thought that way. Still thought that way even though that irrational anger and need to be the best was a dream of a stupid four-year-old.

Yet everyone else changed so much.

Even Deku had changed. So why was he the only one stuck in the past, why was he the only one who couldn't get the voices to stop, the whisper of never-ending failure. The crippling, crushing fear of losing, of failing, only nurtured by Deku who thought him so weak, so helpless.

And he knew the fear was irrational, knew that Deku was only trying to help. Knew that the nerd wasn't capable of scheming behind his back, thinking up ways to beat him, to be better than him.

He knew that he was the only one who did that.

He knew he was the crazy one, the despicable one, the irrational, the stupid one. Not Deku, it wasn't Deku, Deku wasn't the problem and he hated that more than he'd like to admit.

Because he didn't want to be the problem, didn't want to be the one who needed help. It was Deku, always supposed to be him, except it hadn't been him from the very beginning.

He didn't even remember why he'd started hating Deku, just that it hadn't stopped. This fear of not being the best shouldn't be so big, shouldn't control his every action, shouldn't cause fear and anger this out of control.

Sometimes it felt like he was trapped under water and only the screaming and yelling could drag him back to the surface. Sometimes he felt like he was in the passenger seat, letting the emotions drive him wherever they wanted.

And he knew that was wrong, knew that it shouldn't be like that, but he wasn't sure how to help it.

Not even sure if he could help it.

Not anymore, not after so long.

Katsuki glanced at Deku beside him. It was wrong, everything was wrong. It was all messed up, Katsuki knew it was, he knew he messed up, told himself one day he would make it up to him.

But from a young age he supposed he'd known there was no way to make it up. Not when he hadn't even stopped after so many years, not after he'd told Izuku to kill himself.

And not after Izuku had let him.

"Kacchan," Izuku whispered, "are you okay?"

"Yeah… I'm fine." Katsuki said.

Izuku's frown deepened, "Are you sick? I don't think you've ever answered me without any growls or cussing."

"I told you I'm fine, nerd!" he snarled and crossed his arms. "Shut up and keep walking."

Izuku glanced at Katsuki and then back down at his feet. "Hey um, do you know where Katara-san and Aang-san went?"

"Who knows where Hot-Headed Freak and Baldy went."

"Kacchan, do you know what this means?"

"What?"

"We're lost, lost!" He grabbed Katsuki's shoulders and shook him.

"Let go, Deku!"

Izuku released him and bit his nails, glancing nervously around. "Look, we'll find them." Katsuki said, "And get your hands out of your mouth, you've been crawling around in the dirt." He added, smacking Deku's hands away, crossing his arms glaring.

"Sorry." Izuku brought his hands down and started playing with his fingers. Those were some annoying habits he had. "So, how are we going to get out of here?"

"I don't know."

"Maybe your explosions can light our way."

"Too risky, they're loud, they could attract something or even cause the ceiling to cave in."

"Would that be so bad. If you blew a hole through the ceiling we could crawl out."

"There might be Fire Nation soldiers out there."

"Are you scared they'll win?"

"Nah, I could beat them any time. You're the one who should be worried."

Izuku crossed his arms, smirking, though Katsuki couldn't see it in the darkness, he heard it in his voice. "Then if we run into Fire Nation soldiers we could see who beats the most."

"I'm not gonna do that—"

"Why, because you're scared you'll lose."

"Let me finish, damn nerd! I'm not gonna do that without wagering something. We gotta have stakes after all."

Izuku's eyes narrowed into slits, rare mischief shining in them. Katsuki sure did bring out the best and the worst in him.

"Fine, loser has to catcall the next person we see after fighting."

"That's it? Lame, what about they also have to go and flirt."

"Fine, have it your way, but know you're only making it harder on yourself."

"Yeah, yeah, just don't cry when you lose."

"I won't lose."

"We'll see, you seem to be forgetting who you're dealing with, nerd. I'm me, and I always win."

"We'll see…"

"UGH, you two are impossible!" Zuko shouted, looking like he was about to strangle someone.

"Do you have my fish yet?" Shouto asked. Zuko flushed with embarrassment and coughed.

"I um… got this." He said holding up a sorry excuse for a fish.

Shouto raised an eyebrow, "Is that really a fish?"

"Yes! Shut up!"

"Sorry, I mistook it for a tadpole."

Zuko sighed and threw the fish back in the river, not even finding it in himself to care whether it was dead or alive in there and stomped off to find some other food source.

"Hm… this looks like one of those rare tea leaves." Iroh murmured behind him.

"Really?" Shouto asked, crawling up next to him.

"Either that, or it is a poisonous flower."

"How do we tell?"

"I guess we eat it."

Shouto thought that sounded reasonable so they each grabbed a flower. "I thought these were supposed to go in water. Isn't that what makes them tea leaves?"

"Tea leaves come in many different forms and can be consumed in different forms as well, just as people can sometimes too."

"… So I'm supposed to eat people?" Now Shouto was just confused.

"No, no, I meant by stress or anger, sadness. People can be consumed by those things, though I suppose it is possible that… actually never mind. Let's just eat it, child."

Zuko brushed aside leaves and nearly tripped over some sticks, but he was in a little better mood after catching a more decent-sized fish. "Hey, so I… what are you two doing"

"I guess it was the poisonous one." Iroh groaned.

Their skin was already breaking out with irritation and swelling. "Two minutes, I was gone for two minutes! It's like I'm watching two infants incapable of thinking logically for two seconds!"

"I'm logical." Shouto defended himself, frowning.

"I can't even believe the two of you… ugh, what is wrong with you." He paused and then shouted, "I'm going to kill you!"

"Just make it quick."

Zuko didn't know what to say to that so he just stood there, seething. "Look, you know what, whatever, it's fine." Zuko took a deep breath and let it out, trying to let go of his anger. "You'll be fine eventually. Let this be a lesson to you. Don't eat unknown substances!"

"Okay." Shouto said.

"But it could've been a lot worse." Iroh defended them.

"The two of you are impossible, I don't even know how you can live with yourselves."

Shouto frowned and furrowed his eyebrows "But I live alone."

"Not literally, idiot." Zuko groaned, "I'm going to sleep."

"But it's the middle of the day."

"Don't care, I need a nap."

A/N I'm so sorry that this is so late, and I'm also sorry that there's not much Zuko and Todoroki in this chapter. There will be more in the next one, I promise. I've just been swamped lately you guys, and I feel like I'm trying to do everything at once. I'll have more time to write on Winter Break, so there's that. Again, so sorry for the late update. Reviews are love!