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Scorpiored112 and Sam81609

Chapter 4: Action

It was another couple of days before the gang could set off. They were planning around the Fire Nation's subtle movements: silent troops passing around the camp and the Nation's scouts, who were still busily wondering about the grounds of outer Ba Sing Se. The gang also planned around the last of Aang's recovery days, though there was very little time for him left. After much time and careful movements, they were ready.

After Sokka had insisted on wearing his new attire, he and Toph were packing up food and canteens of water for their trip. Katara and Aang were busy tying their own belongings tightly together so they would be easier to carry.

"We really should try and find a new saddle somewhere," Katara said as she tied her sleeping bag to Aang's. She paused afterward. Where would they find a saddle for an animal thought to be extinct?

"Worry about a saddle later," Sokka said impatiently. "It's almost noon; lets get going. Toph, you ready?"

She pretended to look herself over. "Pretty sure I am, yeah."

Sokka rolled his eyes. "Katara, Aang, you guys ready?"

"Ready and able." Aang jumped into the air and landed on Appa's head. "As long as we don't get into any roadblocks, we should be at the Northern Water Tribe in a little under a week." Katara threw one of their bundles up to Aang, who caught it and secured it on Appa's back.

"Hey Toph," Sokka called, "Do you think you can carry something?"

"No, Sokka. Save yourself the burdens. I'm so weak and pathetic!" Toph's sarcastic monotone dropped at the end of her sentence as she fluidly rushed the back of her hand to her forehead.

Sokka picked up the heaviest bag he could find and flung it at the Earthbender as hard as he could, sending her head over heels. She grumbled a bit as she pulled herself into a sitting position. Hitting the ground with her foot, the dirt rumbled, and a second later Sokka was sent flying, landing on the ground at Katara's feet. He looked up at his sister, displeased to find that she was concealing a laugh.

"You walked into that one Sokka," Aang said, running his hand over his little brush of hair. It had grown a little more over the next few days, and had taken on a distinct dark brown color. He was still worried that it had yet to completely cover his arrow.

"Yeah, yeah," he pulled himself up, groaning.

"Are you two going to survive the trip to Ba Sing Se?" Katara asked doubtfully.

"We'll be fine," Toph assured the Waterbender. "Come on Genius, lets' get moving"

Sokka grumbled as he pulled himself up. Aang jumped off of Appa as Toph walked over. "Well, it's been fun," Toph said, kicking at the ground.

"Come on, this isn't goodbye," Katara said bracingly, frowning. "We'll see each other again soon."

"Right," Aang said strongly. "We're all going to meet at the Fire Nation boundaries in a three or four weeks—it'll fly like that," he snapped his fingers.

"All right, enough sappiness," Sokka cut in. "Toph, lets' go. Aang and Katara, you guys should get going—"

But before he could finish, they'd all drawn each other into a group hug. "Take care of yourself," Katara whispered into her brother's ear.

"You too," he said, wrapping his arm tightly around her. After a second they pulled away. Aang and Katara climbed wordlessly onto Appa and looked back at their friends. Sokka was looking solemnly up at them, his eyes hiding the hurt he felt that they were once again being split up. Toph was looking straight ahead into Appa's fur coat, pushing tears away.

"Good luck," they all said in one voice. "Yip, yip" Aang added, snapping Appa's reigns. Appa rose into the air, and they took off. Aang and Katara looked back as they rose into the sky, and saw Toph and Sokka turning back towards Ba Sing Se.

"Hey Zuzu!" said an overly chirpy voice from behind the Fire Nation Prince. Zuko frowned and dropped his head into his hands.

"Tai Lee, I swear, if you call me that one more time—"

"You never saying anything to Azula about it," the former circus girl bounced into his line of sight, smiling. "What's wrong, are you afraid of her?"

"Get lost!" he yelled, losing his patience. Tai Lee seemed to get a kick out of driving him crazy. She did an amazingly good job at it too.

"You're so sensitive," Tai Lee said, whirling around a few times. She jumped down and pushed herself up with her hands, looking at him upside down and grinning. He took it as his chance and pushed away, running down the hallway of the palace. He ran into the first door he could find and slammed it shut.

"Can I help you?" he grimaced; it was obvious he had the worst luck on planet Earth. He had ended up in the throne room with Azula.

"Just trying to escape your maniac friends," he shot back.

"Stop being so childish," Azula said scathingly. "All you ever do is complain, complain, complain; it's so pathetic"

"I'll tell you what else is pathetic," he muttered under his breath.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing," he dropped his glare. He didn't want to argue with his sister, especially now that he was humoring her. The more she got on his nerves, the more he wondered how much longer it would be for him to leave. Regaining his calm, he stated, "So are we going home soon or not?"

"You'll never stop, will you?" Azula rolled her eyes, bored.

"We have to go eventually," he said impatiently, crossing his arms. "You have prisoners you have to bring back, remember?"

"And I'll get them back," she said, still sounding bored. "No one asked you to be my advisor or tell me what to do. At the moment, I'm more worried about Ba Sing Se"

He huffed impatiently, whirled around, and walked out, slamming the door behind her. "I'm more worried about Ba Sing Se" he mimicked under his breath. "You should be more worried about the rebellion that's being formed right under your nose."

He went down to the prisons late at night, when he knew the Dai Lei weren't there, and made his plans with Iroh. This needed to be done right; he couldn't rush it like everything else he had done in the past.

So far it was basic. They had to get into the Fire Nation. To do that they, most unfortunately, needed Azula. She'd already said she planned on bringing Iroh back to the Fire Nation so he could be put on trial for treachery. Zuko was going with them, and together he and his uncle would overthrow the Fire Lord. But that was the part where things got difficult. Ozai was bound to have heavy security, and there was no way Zuko and Iroh alone could fight through tons of experienced Firebenders. No matter how good the two of them were, they'd be overpowered in a second. They needed more power.

They needed the Avatar

The thought of working with the Avatar was actually enough to make Zuko laugh; given the chance, the Avatar and his friends would tear him apart in a second. They'd never believe his true intentions, and even though he wasn't sure he blamed them, that didn't help him at all.

He made his way to the lower chambers and opened Iroh's cell.

"Nice day today." It was the first words either Katara or Aang had spoken since they had taken off. In truth, it was getting close to nighttime, but Aang couldn't take the silence anymore.

"What?" Katara looked up from the water, her eyes staring off in no particular direction. She sighed and stretched and replied, "Oh yeah, it's really nice out."

Aang blushed lightly and looked back at the water in front of him. Why did this have to be so uncomfortable? Back at the campsite they'd been able to talk with ease. Now it just seemed unbearably awkward. "What do you think is going to happen with me learning Firebending?" he finally said. Frankly he had been dreading the question, but no other topic seemed more appropriate.

"Hmn?" She looked over at him. "Oh…good question. I suppose we could try and find Jeong-Jeong, but we don't have time for that. The only solution would be to find a Firebender along the way that's willing to help. The problem is, by this time, all the Firebenders are either evil, or probably just too afraid to rebel against the Fire Lord."

"I was thinking…" he paused.

"You were thinking?"

"I was thinking maybe…" he hesitated. "Maybe we could get Iroh to help us, you know, and he could—you know, teach me."

"Iroh?" she made a face, remembering. "I don't know…"

"He helped us before. I mean, even if it was only to help Zuko but—"

Suddenly the end of the battle came to Katara. Her voice erupted, louder than it should have been. "No, no...he helped us afterwards too, when…" Aang looked up as Katara's voice drifted off.

"When what?"

She sighed, "After Azula hit you with the lightning. He gave me time to grab you and escape. He was captured by the Dai Lei though."

Aang's eyes grew wide. He'd never heard about what happened after he was hit by the lightning. "Iroh sacrificed himself to save me?" he asked, shocked.

Katara nodded, looking upset. Aang frowned. He'd always thought of Iroh as just being an enemy. But when he had gone with Iroh to save Zuko and Katara, he'd seen another side to the old Firebender. His heart dropped.

"We have to save him."

Katara looked over, surprised. "We have other things to worry about," she said firmly. "Maybe you want him for your Firebending teacher, but right now we have to concentrate on the big matters, which concerns getting to the North Pole." She placed a hand on his shoulder, a gesture of her frequent care and worry.

Aang sighed, but he knew the girl was right. He would have to worry about Iroh later, and that would only be if he had time. "We should land for the night," Katara cut through his thoughts.

"Oh, right," he looked around and pulled at Appa's reigns, "Going down, buddy."

"I'm tired," Sokka groaned, falling against a tree.

"Oh come on," Toph spun around to face him. "I told you to stay in your regular clothes until we got into Ba Sing Se; it's those shoes of yours that are killing you."

"Oh be quiet," he mumbled, proud of his new attire. "I just didn't want anyone to recognize us, that's all. Besides, it's getting dark out, maybe we should stop for the night."

"No skin off me," the blind Earthbender shrugged. "If you wanna stop, we'll stop."

"Thank you!" He dropped to the ground and started working on a fire. When he looked up, he saw that Toph was still standing, "Stay awhile, why don't you?"

She didn't even crack a smile. He couldn't say he was surprised; Toph was very hardcore. "You need to lighten up a little," he said as he finally got a fire going, "Can you tell where the fire is?"

She nodded and sat down carefully. "So what've we got to eat?"

He dug through his bag, "Mostly fruit, that's all Katara and I could find at the market we went to. Besides, their meat looked rancid. Want an apple?"

She shrugged, and he handed it to her over the fire, taking an orange out for himself at the same time. "So…"

He couldn't believe how weird this was. He just couldn't talk to Toph the way he could to Aang or Katara. She was unknown to him. The only time she ever seemed to crack a smile was when she was making a joke (normally at his own expense). He still hadn't forgotten the incident with his lost Appa posters. "Toph, can I ask you something?"

"Knock yourself out, Captain Obvious. I've got nothing better to do."

Sokka hesitated. His observation skills and people skills both needed work, but he was curious. "How come you always seem like you're really upset about something?" He cocked his head at her. "You almost never smile, unless you're making fun of someone. It always seems like you're in a permanent bad mood." He paused and added, "I'm not saying you have to be as chirpy as my sister and Aang but still..."

She took a final bite out of her apple as Sokka spook, thinking about her answer. She threw the apple behind her and wiped her hands over her clothes. "Well, in terms you'd understand..." She hesitated. "Have you ever been a prisoner?"

He shook his head, and then remembered that Toph couldn't see him. "No, I haven't been a prisoner."

"Well I have, for twelve years, actually. It was miserable. I didn't have any freedom; it was the worst feeling in the world. I didn't have any thing to smile about. The only time I was ever happy was when I was Earthbending, and it wasn't even like I could do that all that often. It was my own personal hell, really. If you had to live like that, would you ever smile?"

Sokka's face stood emotionless, but then remembered that he too had been a prisoner in the South Pole. How many lonely nights had he spent waiting for his father to come home? How many times had he dreamed of being far away from the bitter snow and cold, perhaps in an Earth Kingdom village somewhere? How many longer nights had he stayed wide awake while his younger sister, still too young to understand, would pray for their mother? So yes, in a way, he knew the feeling, and regretted asking. Toph was no lonelier than he was. But he did have, at one point, a village to support him. The village helped a lot.

Considering these factors he finally answered, "But you're free now."

"That doesn't matter," she frowned and pulled her knees up under her chin. "Or it doesn't to my father, anyway. And besides, nothing in life is permanent."

"What do you mean?"

She narrowed her eyes at a tree far away, "He sent my old Earthbending teacher and that guy from Earth Rumble Six after me to capture me and bring me home. That's what the letter I got from my mother was about; it was a trap. They almost had me too. They were just stupid enough to underestimate me; that's the only reason I got away. They aren't overly bright." Toph blinked at the memory. "I wonder if they managed to get out of that metal prison?"

Sokka had no clue what she was talking about now, but he got the gist of what she was saying all together. "It doesn't matter if your parents don't understand you. You're away from them for good now, and you have friends that do understand you."

He waited for a second, and was surprised to see a smile spreading slowly over the blind girl's face, wider than any smile he had ever seen before. "You're right," she said finally, rubbing her eyes. "Thanks, Sokka"

For one glowing second he felt happy—until she added, "I guess even the brain dead have burst of intelligence once in awhile." And then she went to sleep.

Aang whirled around. He was surrounded by flames, they were coming down on him from all sides. "What's happening?" he yelled at the top of his voice. He tried to Airbend, but nothing happened. There was no water around, and he couldn't feel the ground beneath him to Earthbend. The flames were closing him on him. "No!" he yelled, "No! No! STOP"

He threw his hands out, and the flames dispersed. "What the…" he pulled his hands back and looked at his palms, "Did I just…Firebend?"

He looked around at his surroundings, but there was nothing except black. He felt as though he had been thrown into a pot of ink. The boy held his hand carefully, concentrating. After a second, a small flame appeared in his hand. "What is this?" he asked aloud. After a second his face split into a grin. He was Firebending. He was Firebending!

"Wow!" he cried, throwing his hands out. A large cyclone of flames surrounded him. It was amazing!

Suddenly the cyclone started to close on him. "Hey!" he yelled. "Hey!"

He tried to concentrate on it and keep it open, but no matter what he did, nothing happened. He could feel the heat of the flames as they closed on him. "Stop!" he yelled, "Stop, stop right now! STOP!"

"Aaaaaahhh!" Aang shot up, breathing hard. Momo, who was sleeping on top of him, bolted away.

"Aang?" Katara's voice cut the still air and his strange breathing. She quickly lifted herself out of the blankets and raced to his side. "Are you okay? What was that?"

"Fine," he said, wiping his sweaty forehead. "You know, just another dream." He hated it when she worried for him for nothing, and he cursed himself for screaming and waking her.

"Are you sure?"

There was a silence.

"Yeah," he laid back down on his side. His head throbbed with thoughts. Suddenly he sat up. "Katara?"

She had started to turn to her sleeping bag. She turned, her eyes bright against the darkness. "Hmn?"

He paused and stood up. His stare was intense, and his face was flushed. "I'm sorry."

Confused, she asked, "For what?"

"For what happened before." He looked down at his hands, again wracked with shame. "When we were with Jeong-Jeong."

Katara smiled and took his hand. She couldn't help but laugh. "You're not still thinking about that, are you?" she asked him. A questioning and curious tone succumbed her voice.

"I am, yeah." He sighed and looked around. They'd landed in a clearing just outside of the forest. It was roughly midnight, but Aang felt wide-awake.

"Tell me, Avatar," Katara stated quietly, "what this is all about." She pushed him to sit down. For a while the silence entranced them. They sat quietly, cross-legged, and uncomfortable.

His eyes drifted back to her, and he said in an almost defeated voice, "I can't do it."

"Do what?"

"I can't Firebend!" He looked away. "I can't Firebend; I can't win this war. I can't help anyone." He drew his knees up under his chin. "I'm useless."

"What are you talking about, Aang?" Katara asked, surprised. She sat closer to him. "You're one of the most useful people I've ever met!"

"You don't understand." He wrapped his arms tightly around his knees and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to push back the tears. "I can't do this…this Avatar thing. Learning Air, Water, and Earth are all no problem; they aren't dangerous. But the Avatar State and Firebending…I can't do them. I can't. They're the biggest part of being the Avatar, and I can't deal with them..." His voice parted in between the words. He was whispering, almost to himself. "I just can't!"

He yelled that last part at the top of his voice. A flock of birds exploded from a nearby tree, squawking loudly as they took off into the night. Momo, who had just fallen back to sleep on top of Appa, jerked awake for the second time. Appa grumbled loudly as his eyes opened.

"Aang," Katara said after a second of the disruptive silence. "Aang, look at me, please."

Aang's eyes burst open, obviously moist. Katara's words shot him straight and hard. "What aren't you telling me?" she asked him. "What's so bad you won't tell me, but you'll tell Toph?"

How did she know! You idiot! You and your loud voice! Aang's palms immediately grew sweaty. Had Toph told Katara of their talk? This was embarrassing. Utterly and without a doubt the most embarrassing thing Aang had ever had to deal with. He bit his lower lip.

"I heard you talking to her," Katara quickly explained. "I didn't hear all of what you said, but I heard enough to know you're hiding something. Aang, I'm your friend, you know that right?"

The boy nodded and his companion smiled.

"Then you know you don't have to hide things from me. You don't have to suffer alone, I'm here with you; we all are, Toph, Sokka, and I. We'll always be here to help you, but you have to let us."

He looked up at her, his thoughts still swirling inside his head. Why was he so afraid to tell her? What was the big deal? Aang cursed Katara's ability to make him feel so comfortable. He put his legs down and smoothed the thinning cloth over his knees. He sighed, "Katara?"

"Yes, Aang?"

The command was mixed within his throat. Suddenly a heavy rush flowed to his head and he felt like vomiting. But he embraced the feelings, embraced Katara's stare, and forced his lips to utter what he had wanted to say for a long time.

"Katara...don't ever leave me."

The girl stared at him, clearly not surprised by this command. She held his hand, tightening her grip. "I won't. What makes you ever think I would do such a thing?" She pulled him to his feet, still smiling. "Aang, I won't ever leave you. And I don't want you to think about that anymore. It's not going to happen now and it's not going to happen later. And thinking about this is obviously getting in the way with all this Avatar stuff you have to worry about." She shook off his concerns with a wave of her hand.

It was quiet again. The companions looked deep into one another's gaze. "Is that it? That's all you wanted to tell me?"

Aang nodded vigorously, his hand swooping to the back of his neck. "I know it doesn't really sound like much but—"

He didn't finish. Katara had pulled him into a tight hug, kissing his cheek. "You're so adorable sometimes!" She whispered to him. "Don't worry about this anymore." She walked back to her sleeping bag and feel asleep as Aang, confused and excited and warm, followed suit.