Disclaimer: Still down own Avatar ----so sad... :0(
A/N: this was inspired by scene in TBR wherein Sokka and Hakoda were talking and Hakoda said he knew of Zuko.
Mai and Ty Lee found themselves sitting on the ground amongst the warriors from the invasion, watching the Kyoshi warriors train. A tentative peace between them after both girls had informed them how they ended up in prison.
"So, don't you girls feel like you lose your identity when wearing uniforms?" Ty Lee's questioning voice breaking the awkward silence.
The kyoshi warriors stopped in their training and regarded Ty Lee questioningly, "what do you mean?"
"Well, aren't you afraid of not ever being your individual person?", Ty Lee stood up from her spot on the ground, "We fought you before, not only do you wear the same uniforms, you have the same fighting style, you're weapon of expertise is the same… its-its…"
"What she means to say is that she can't understand why you'd want to be part and parcel of a matched set", Mai said monotonously from her spot on the ground.
"Yeah, what she said", Ty Lee looked to the young women in front of her, "you're even referred to as the 'kyoshi warriors', most people here probably don't know your individual names"
"We're a team"
"But, Mai, Azula & I were a team", Ty Lee shot a small smile at Mai, "We dress differently, we fight differently…the princess, the acrobat and the assassin – separate individuals not one and the same"
"Maybe that's why we're standing as one and you 3 are divided" came a sassy remark from one of the warriors.
The remark hit a nerve causing Ty Lee to tear up a bit.
Without warning, the said warrior was pinned to a wall by a knife with Mai towering over her.
"I thought they relieve prisoners of all their weapons"
"Not if they don't know exactly how many knives you have", Mai neared the girl and removed the knife, "Fighting was something the three of us did together, just for the fun of it, nothing more"
Ty Lee smiled knowing her friend was just being protective of her. She placed a hand on Mai's shoulder, "Maybe they have a point. We weren't on the same footing. We fought for the fun of it, and we also had our own different reasons. To me, it was bonding time with my 2 closest friends, to you, it was to escape boredom and catch a glimpse of a certain banished prince, to Azula, it was to make her father proud and prove she wasn't Zuko"
"Fighting in a war is fun?!", A huge man with a small voice asked dubiously.
Mai turned around to face her friend and the warriors around them, "We weren't fighting in a war, we were chasing Azula's brother and consequently the Avatar"
"Consequently?", Bato gaze intensely at both girls, "so, its true, what people say. That Prince Zuko was burned & banished by his own father…and that he couldn't return home without the Avatar?"
"Among other things", Mai said as she sat back down on her spot with Ty Lee right beside her.
"What do you mean that the princess wanted to prove to her father she wasn't Zuko?", Bato sat across them, "If Zuko was my son, I'd be proud of him"
"I mean he's probably one of the most powerful firebenders his age" added one man from the water tribe who also neared them, " I heard he's beaten generals, admirals and other benders with more experience than he does!"
"Why would his father be proud of that when he had a daughter who could beat those high-ranking soldiers when she was only ten?" said Ty Lee.
"He fights honourably", added one of the kyoshi warriors, "he burned our village to get the Avatar, but when Aang left, he left us alone, if it were anyone else they'd have burned our village to the ground and killed most if not all of us just because they can!"
Mai merely raised an eyebrow at her.
"Uhm – Firelord Ozai burned and banished Zuko because he spoke out of turn at a war meeting", Ty Lee said hesitantly, "they were going to send young Fire Nation soldiers up against experienced Earth Kingdom soldiers as bait while another regiment would attack from behind…Zuko thought it was wrong and said so to the general who proposed the plan"
Everyone stared blankly at them, clearly at a loss for words.
"And he was burned and banished for that?!" asked Bato incredulously
"No, he was ordered to fight in an Agni Kai – a fire duel" Mai said monotonously, obviously trying to seem unaffected by it all.
Ty Lee reached for her hand and faced the crowd who was by now sitting around them, "He and the rest of us thought it was going to be against the general, but it wasn't, it was against his own father. He didn't fight back, he didn't block…he just took the hit"
"That just validates our point", Bato said after a moment of silence, "It is dishonourable for a son to fight back"
"So you mean he was right to just take the hit then" Mai said vehemently.
"No, I'm saying his father was wrong in his actions" Bato said calmly.
"His father wasn't only wrong", the mechanist snorted, "he was stupid if everything we heard about the fire prince is true. Having a son like that on his side, we don't have a chance at winning this war. Now that he's on our side, the chances of us succeeding improves"
Mai raised an eyebrow at him, "Excuse me?"
"Even if the Avatar beat the firelord, there will still be a war if their successor – the crown prince will be on their side. If the prince is anything we have heard he is, then we may actually see peace"
Ty Lee glanced sideways at him with a questioning look, "What have you heard?"
"We heard that he's relentless and determined. An enemy to be reckoned"
"We heard that no matter how many times he failed, fell and got hurt, he'd just keep standing right back up and fighting back", said an earth bender, "we heard his ship was blown up when he was in it, but not even a day later he stowed away on a naval ship to the north pole and actually had the avatar within his grasp"
"It is said that no cause is lost with Prince Zuko", said Bato, "after all it was impossible and foolish to search for the Avatar, but he did find him. No cause is lost, if there was but one fool left to fight for it."
"Oh, so that suppose to make me feel better?!" Mai said standing up.
Ty Lee slowly stood up and faced her friend, "Yes Mai, you should be proud of Zuko. He has always been the Champion of those who can't fight for themselves, and Zuko always fought for whatever he believed was right and when he fought, there was no question of him winning or losing that fight because he wouldn't stop unless he did win! Not even when he fell and failed countless times!"
"He takes chances no one in his right mind would take, Ty!" Mai said glaring at her friend, "No cause is lost if there was but one fool left to fight for it. Am I suppose to be happy knowing that Zuko would be that fool?!"
In ways only a friend would know, Ty Lee knew even when there were no telltale signs of it that Mai was trying her best to hold back tears.
Ty Lee grabbed her friend in a hug, "He'd be the fool the world needs, Mai. During and after this Agniforsaken war"
And that was all that was needed to be said before Mai broke down and cried.
A/N: Thoughts???