Chap. 18

Jammin' in the Park

(Lyrics by Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, and U2, respectively)

Just one thing; the luiqin that's mentioned is the stringed instrument Iroh played for the screaming kid in 'Tales of Ba Sing Se.' It was the closest thing I could think of in terms of a guitar, so I figured I'd go with it.

Perhaps the plays are closer to reality then they know. Zuko thought, as the kiss deepened between the two of them. But before it could go any deeper, there was a loud cough from behind, loud enough to make both of them stop and turn around. What they saw was Iroh, standing there with his hands behind his back and a big smile on his face.

"So, are things better between you two now?" the old general asked dryly.

"Uncle, how long have you been there?" Zuko asked, as Jin began to blush behind him.

"Long enough, nephew." Iroh replied. "Come now, the Knights are taking us to another part of the city."

Both of them got up then, and began walking back along the path. But as Zuko passed his uncle, Iroh reached out and grabbed the boy by his shoulder. Pulling him close, Iroh whispered, "I heard your speech Zuko. I never thought I would hear those words from your mouth, and I am truly happy that I have. But you must remember them and live by them for this girl if you truly want to be happy with her."

"I will, Uncle." Zuko replied.

Iroh nodded and said, "For three years, I helped a boy on his search for the Avatar. Today, I saw that boy take another step towards being a man. I'm proud of you Zuko."

Zuko was quiet a moment, and then whispered, "Thank you Uncle." Iroh smiled back, and together, the two Firebenders walked down the path back to the others.

"Finally. Where were you guys?" Toph asked, as Jin came back down the path, followed by Zuko and Iroh.

"Just talking." Jin replied, hoping that the last of her blush had faded. But even if it hadn't, she didn't really care. There were a lot of feelings running through her at that moment; fear, happiness, wonder, curiosity, but above all else, the want and need to build with Zuko and see where things went. All of Jin's issues and problems with just seemed so small and inconsequential after hearing his words to her, and the story of Oscuirdad and Luz. Even there was a small part of her mind that was still nervous about all of it, Jin knew that she would work past it and not let it make her decisions for her.

With that thought firmly established in her mind, Jin asked, "So where are we going now?"

"Well, we have a few options, but I thought that the big thing for you guys would be the Empire State Building." Tierra answered, as Iroh and Zuko came back from the path.

"What's so important about that?" Aang asked.

"Well, there's a hell of a view from the top." The dog replied. "You can see the whole city from there."

"Oh, so it's the tallest in the city." Zuko said.

"It is. Unfortunately." Tierra replied. But before he could elaborate, Toph suddenly said,"Hey what's that noise?" Cocking her ears towards the sound, the young girl said, "It almost sounds like music, but it's so... strange."

"I can hear it too. If it is music, it's pretty weird." Katara answered, as the others cocked their ears to the sound. Indeed, the noise Katara and Toph were hearing was one filled with pounding drums, a strange, high, piercing sound, undercut by a low one, and what sounded like a man singing. But whatever it was, it sounded extremely distorted to the ears of the Avatar Gang. Plus, it was too far away for them to hear properly.

But to the ears of the Knights, it had a different effect. One by one, their faces lit up in happy grins as the strange music rang in their ears.

"They don't sound too far away, let's check it out." Aire suggested.

"Sounds great to me." Desierto replied. "I haven't heard any music like that in a long while."

"You actually listen to whatever that is?" Iroh asked in surprise.

"Oh yeah, it's quite popular here." Fuego answered. "But you can't hear it properly from this distance. Come on, let's show you."

"But…." Sokka began to protest. But before he or anyone else could get a word out, the Knights, eager to hear this strange music, began to walk towards the sounds, pushing a few people along as they walked. This of course forced everyone else to follow.

"Do you really think this could be any good?" Zuko asked aloud as they walked towards the sound.

"Well, it should be worth a look." Aang answered. "Besides, it's something new! That alone makes it worth looking at it."

"Besides, the Knights seem to like it." Jin suggested, as Aang moved off to join up with the others further up the road.

"The Knights also like cleaning themselves with their tongues, chewing on metal to keep their teeth sharp, and eating insects." Zuko replied.

Jin grimaced at that, but replied, "Well, I guess a few animal instincts had to come through in the transformation."

"Yeah, I guess… wait, what do you mean?" Zuko asked.

"Well, Luz told that the Knights are made up of magic, an animal body…"

"And a human soul." Zuko finished. "Oscuridad told me the same thing, as well as how he and Luz got together."

"What! She told me the same story." Jin said. The realization came into her eyes, and she said, "They planned the whole thing out didn't they?"

"I'd say so." Zuko replied, shaking his head. "But we can't blame them I guess."

"No, I don't think we can." Jin answered back, as she slid her hand into Zuko's. The former prince smiled, and returned her grasp, as they finished walking up to where the others were standing.

"Why'd we stop?" Zuko asked.

"We're here." Oscuridad replied, as he moved over a little to let Zuko and Jin see what was going on. The two of them moved up to see a group of four men standing on the grass, and playing strange instruments for the enjoyment of a crowd. Around them were wires and strange black boxes, which the music seemed to be coming from. As everyone watched, one of the men, who was playing a stringed, liuqin-like instrument, walked up to a pole that held a strange metal stick at the top, and began to sing, his voice echoing through the boxes along with the second 'liuqin player' who had a similar stand;

If your thing is gone and you wanna ride on

Cocaine

Don't forget this fact, you can't get it back

Cocaine

She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie;

Cocaine

She don't lie, she don't lie, she don't lie;

Cocaine

"What on earth is he talking about?" Sokka asked, as the man suddenly pulled back and his counterpart, playing the same instrument, began to launch into a solo.

"Drugs. Now quiet, this song is a classic." Desierto said, as he listened.

"Why? I don't even know this song." Sokka said.

"Neither do I, but now that I can actually hear it, I kinda like it." Toph said, as she began to move her head to the rhythm. Aang, Katara, and Iroh also began to move, although Zuko merely watched with a contended smile.

Finally, the solo ended and with a flourish, the band finished the song, to the applause of the crowd. The group applauded as well, though Sokka muttered, "I still want to know what it is."

"It's called the blues, Sokka." Fuego replied. "It's a form of music that deals with heartbreak and pain, and that was a song by one of its great players, Eric Clapton."

"Lemme guess, it's called Cocaine?" Sokka asked back.

"Exactly. And these guys did a pretty good version of it."

"Indeed." Iroh added. "It reminded me of Music Night on the ship. If only I could've kept the Soungi horn. But it got tossed overboard before the North Pole siege."

"Yes what a pity." Zuko mumbled to himself, as he looked at the ground.

"I didn't think you were a musician, Uncle Iroh." Katara said.

"I wear many hats, my dear." The general replied.

"Actually, so do we.' Fuego said suddenly. "Why don't we show you?" Before anyone could say anything, Fuego motioned for Hierro, Tierra, and Desierto to follow him and the foursome headed over to where the musicians were standing.

"What are they doing?" Aang asked in confusion.

"I think they're about to put on a show." Luz said with a smile, as they began to speak with the musicians. Sure enough, a moment later, the band handed over their instruments to the four Knights, with Tierra moving to the drums, Fuego and Desierto holding two of the stringed 'liuqin' instruments, and Hierro taking a longer, four stringed one. The Knights checked the intruments for a moment, taping and strumming as needed. Then Fuego stepped up to the stand, and began to strum a simple melody, one that everyone on this world instantly knew, and that the crowd reacted to quite well. Then, he began to sing, in a surprisingly appropriate rough voice, while the other Knghts added rythym and support;

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no
When I'm drivin' in my car
And that man comes on the radio
And he's tellin' me more and more
About some useless information
Supposed to fire my imagination
I can't get no, oh no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say
I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction
'Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no
When I'm watchin' my TV
And that man comes on to tell me
How white my shirts can be
But he can't be a man 'cause he doesn't smoke
The same cigarettes as me
I can't get no, oh no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say

The Knights continued to play, looking as though they were pouring their hearts and souls into their instruments, while they pounded out the old, but still effective song. Tierra played his drums with all the strength and tact of a seasoned pro, while Hierro kept the rhythm and melody focused, which was not easy as Fuego and Desierto were reveling in the sloppiness of the tune. But the effect was immediate. The crowd, which had been enjoying the show before, actually began to dance around. The gang watched the revelry for a minute, and then Aang smiled, took Katara's hand, and dragged her out into the crowd, where the two of them began to dance themselves. Jin did the same for Zuko, and within minutes every one was dancing, as Fuego continued to sing;

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no girl reaction
Cause I try and I try and I try and I try
I can't get no, I can't get no
When I'm ridin' round the world
And I'm doin' this and I'm signing that
And I'm tryin' to make some girl
Who tells me baby better come back later next week
Cause you see I'm on losing streak
I can't get no, oh no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say
I can't get no, I can't get no
I can't get no satisfaction
No satisfaction, no satisfaction, no satisfaction

Finally, the red man whirled around, and slammed the last chord home on his instrument, to the ecstatic approval of the crowd. They applauded ferociously, as did the original band.

"Toldja we wore a few hats." Fuego yelled over to Katara.

"Yeah, but you're not the only ones." Oscuridad said, as he moved up to the stand. "Think you guys can do one more?" he asked.

"At this point, I think we could do an entire concert." Fuego replied.

"OK then, here's the plan…" the quickly whispered a song to the others, who nodded and took their positions. Moving to the stand, Oscuirad said, "This song is for two people who are beginning to learn what my wife and I have known for a very long time." With that, the bat began to sing, as Tierra began to lightly beat his drum;

Tough, you think you've got the stuff
You're telling me and anyone
You're hard enough

You don't have to put up a fight
You don't have to always be right
Let me take some of the punches
For you tonight

Listen to me now
I need to let you know
You don't have to go it alone

And it's you when I look in the mirror
And it's you when I don't pick up the phone
Sometimes you can't make it on your own

We fight all the time
You and I...that's alright
We're the same soul
I don't need...I don't need to hear you say
That if we weren't so alike
You'd like me a whole lot more

Listen to me now
I need to let you know
You don't have to go it alone

And it's you when I look in the mirror
And it's you when I don't pick up the phone
Sometimes you can't make it on your own

As Fuego began to pull back and allow Desierto to pick the notes out, Zuko stepped behind Jin and put his arms around her, as she put her arms around his neck. The others saw this, but just smiled as Oscuirdad continued the song.

I know that we don't talk
I'm sick of it all
Can - you - hear - me - when - I -
Sing, you're the reason I sing
You're the reason why the opera is in me...

Where are we now?
I've still got to let you know
A house still doesn't make a home
Don't leave me here alone...

And it's you when I look in the mirror
And it's you that makes it hard to let go
Sometimes you can't make it on your own
Sometimes you can't make it
The best you can do is to fake it
Sometimes you can't make it on your own