For nearly ten minutes, everyone stared speechless at the remains, still smoking as they lay there in the hall. Katara looked as if she were about to be sick, and Aang and Sokka just stared dumbstruck. Suki clung to Sokka's hand a little tighter, and Toph said nothing, though she seemed to know what had happened. They all remained motionless, and it wasn't until Jin let out a moan that Zuko's attention was drawn back to her. "Jin!" he gasped and she slitted her eyes open a little.
"Katara, quick!" cried Aang, and Katara ran to her, a handful of water ready. Zuko locked eyes with Jin, and held her face up so she wouldn't see the wound as Katara uncovered it gently. There was caked blood surrounding the injured area, and there was still some new blood flowing out, though not as badly as it had been before. Zuko kept his eyes on Jin until Katara finished, and Jin closed her eyes in exhaustion.
That was when it all hit him. It was finally over. They were finally together, and now, with the exception of the Dai Li, there was no longer any threat left to tear them apart. At last, it was all over and things were peaceful now, peaceful enough for Jin's body to relax into a deep slumber.
"She's asleep..." Zuko muttered, then closed his eyes tight and kissed her forehead, a tear falling down his face. "...thank God..."
Katara, however, did not share the same joy... or at least her eyes didn't show it. "What is it?" asked Suki, noticing it.
"It didn't feel right..." said Katara, her tone hinting to confusion. "When I healed her... it didn't feel like I actually did."
"What are you talking about?" asked Sokka. "The wound's gone! What more could there be?"
"I was able to heal her physical being... but her mind has been thrown into so much turmoil and my healing abilities weren't enough for it... at least not with just plain water anyway." Zuko looked up at her in concern.
"What are you saying?" he asked.
"She's not fully healed," said Katara sadly. "Healing that wound won't be enough. Everything she's been through, the kidnap, all the awful things she must've seen in the prison, being sold to the brothel, getting stabbed and being that close to death, and through it all the pain of missing the one she loved... in her weakened condition it was enough to send her mind into chaos."
"What's going to happen to her?" asked Aang.
"I don't know... but I don't think she'll act like her old self at all until it's healed."
"Is there nothing you can do?" asked Zuko, his face very pale.
"I... I sensed the damage while I was healing her wound. It's too much for my abilities with plain water alone. If I had that special water from the North Pole, I may have more of a chance. But that got used on Azula and I haven't re-stocked since." She frowned and lowered her head. "I'm sorry." Zuko closed his eyes and sighed in a frustrated manner.
"That's a three day trip, flying," said Aang. "Will she hold out until then?"
"I have no doubt," said Katara. "But we'd have to take it easy, and there's no guarantee how she'll act when she wakes..."
"I'll take care of that," said Zuko. "Let's just get there as fast as we can."
"Then we'd better head out now," said Aang. Zuko began to stand, lifting Jin's light body into his arms, and then paused once he was standing.
"Wait! We can't leave now! What about the Dai Li?" he asked. "They're still on the loose, and with or without Mai they're still dangerous."
"Some of us will stay back then and deal with it," said Aang suddenly. "We need to get Jin the help as fast as possible, and there's really no need for all of us to go with you."
"Aang's right," said Katara. "And with the Earth King in power again, I'm sure it'll be taken care of quickly."
"If you think about it, we really don't need to leave that many behind," said Sokka. "I'm volunteering to stay," he added, raising his hand.
"So will I," said Suki, not to the surprise of anyone.
"I can stay back too," said Toph.
"That's three then," said Sokka. "Three should be enough." Zuko nodded and turned to Katara and Aang.
"We should go then," said Aang, but Zuko glanced down at the skeleton and frowned.
"There's one last thing to take care of first," he said softly.
----
The last of the dirt was packed down on the small grave and Zuko stared down at it for a moment silently, trying to think of what to say. Sokka, Suki, and Toph had already left to go alert the Earth King, and Katara and Aang respectfully left him alone, taking Jin with them and making up an excuse along the lines of getting Appa ready for the journey. It was just him and the remains of the girl he'd hurt more than anyone.
"I know I should be angry with you," he said softly. "I hated everything you did, I hate the fact that you tried to kill me, my friends, and my love. But..." He lowered his head, a cloud hanging over him. "I... I understand why you did it... I know what it's like to feel you have no one who loves you..." He sighed and shook his head. "That doesn't excuse what happened, but I will go back on what I said. I forgive you... for all of it. Holding a grudge is pointless now. I forgive you, and I pray someday you'll be able to forgive me... for all the pain I caused you." A film of tears covered over his eyes and he breathed deep. "This is not how I wanted it to end... Never. And the guilt I feel for what I did... I'll carry it forever and I need you to know that. I never once through any of this wanted you to die. I wanted your pain to end, that's all I ever wanted for you. Hopefully now... wherever you are, the pain is gone... and you're smiling again." He bowed respectfully and turned from her grave, walking away slowly.
Aang and Katara were waiting by Appa with Jin laying in the saddle, still asleep. "Ready?" Katara asked softly, and Zuko nodded.
"Yeah," he answered. "Let's go." They mounted the great bison and Aang quickly got him up in the air, and they were off. Zuko scooted over to Jin and pulled her into his arms, cradleing her closely as if he were afraid she'd disappear. Katara moved over to him slowly and looked at him curiously.
"So what did you say to her?" she asked.
"Who?" he asked, looking up from Jin.
"To Mai... you know..."
"Oh..." he answered, then sighed. "I forgave her. I forgave her for everything." Katara gave him a very surprised look.
"You did?!"
"I know. It sounds crazy. But... I had to."
"What makes you think you had to?" asked Aang, glancing back from the reigns. "I wouldn't."
"Because holding a grudge against someone who was hurting is hollow. Pointless. Especially when I was the cause of that pain." Katara frowned and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Zuko... it's not your fault," she said softly. "You made a mistake, but you were 14. Everyone does stupid things when they're 14."
"That doesn't change the fact that it happened," he said. "I'm not excusing what she did. I know what she did was wrong and there's no excuse for it... but I'm not angry with her... not so much as I am myself anyway." He glanced down at Jin's sleeping face and shook his head. "And Mai wasn't the only one made to suffer from my mistake." Katara looked him in the eye and squeezed his shoulder.
"Jin will be healed," she said softly. "And you will marry her just like you promised," she added without thinking.
"You're getting married?!" cried Aang, looking around wide-eyed. Katara turned red, forgetting it was supposed to have been a secret.
"Sorry!" she whispered to Zuko, but he shook his head.
"Don't be," he said and looked to Aang. "Yes, we're getting married. We've been engaged since we first left the Fire Nation. We were keeping it a secret before, but now I guess there's no need to."
"You know what this means?" gasped Katara suddenly. "You two can get married at the North Pole! It'll be so beautiful! Oh, it's too bad Sokka will have to miss this."
"He's with Suki right now. I'm sure that makes him happy," said Aang with a laugh. Whether or not it was the sound of Aang's laugh that did it, Jin began to stir and wake. She opened her eyes slowly, looking around sleepily, then simply stared at the clouds passing by, not sign of emotion on her face. If it weren't for her breathing and the full color in her face, she would have appeared to be dead.
"Jin?" asked Zuko softly. She didn't respond. Zuko glanced up at Katara who could only frown and shake her head. Zuko rested his head on top of Jin's and closed his eyes. "Hold on, Jin," he said softly. She made a soft moan as if somewhere in the depths of the torment she'd heard him, and he kissed her forehead gently, pulling her closer.
----
They made it to North Pole on the night of the second day, faster than originally planned. The closer they had come to the water tribe, the colder it grew, and the more Zuko began to with he'd brought some sort of coat. He made an extra effort to keep Jin warm, using some soft firebending to warm them. Katara already had her coat with her, and Aang didn't seem bothered by it. As they drew closer, memories began to arise in Zuko's mind.
"Hey..." he said softly to Katara. "Maybe this was a bad idea." She raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"Don't you remember what happened the last time the Fire Nation was here?"
"Yeah," said Aang. "But it's just you. That's not the same as the whole Fire Nation army."
"Yeah, but I'm the Firelord! Commander of the Fire Nation army," he pointed out. "Call me paranoid, but I doubt that's going to earn me a warm welcome."
"You're the Firelord who has fought to maintain peace and end the chaos the Fire Nation created for years," said Katara. "And since a group from a water tribe helped fight in the war the word will have spread here so they'll know you're on their side."
"Yeah, so there's nothing to worry about," said Aang. His eyes strayed down to Jin who had been staring blankly at the sky the entire time, and he frowned. "At least... not from them anyway." Zuko looked down at Jin, feeling her shivering and he held her closer, trying desperately to keep her warm.
The great wall was close, fully repaired and restored since the last time they'd seen it, and, seeing the familiar bison, the waterbenders inside opened the large gates to let them through. "Get ready to land you guys," said Aang as he began to lower Appa.
Zuko looked up to Katara with new concern. "Are you sure you can heal her?" he asked.
"I..." she stuttered. "I really... hope so," she answered, but her unsure tone scared him to the core.
----
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