Burning Bright
Part XVIII
Jin has been mostly lukewarm towards him during his stay with the Avatar and his friends—and Zuko was absolutely miserable about it. He wasn't even sure if they should act as if they knew each other because Jin mostly regarded him with cold apathy, slight hatred and a twinge of revulsion and disgust. She did however, show momentary lapses in her steely and cool facade, sometimes initiating acts of kindness and friendliness towards him while the others, save for the little blind girl, showed nothing but pure hostility. But these moments were quick and fleeting, never once staying long enough for Zuko to find the right time to apologize and give his big and all-important "I'm-Sorry" speech. It seemed as if Jin was confused too on whether to act apprehensive towards him or to act normally around him. It seemed as if she wasn't even sure if she should act like she knew him which was a big understatement since Zuko thought that she pretty much knew him as well as even his own uncle.
And Jin seemed to be determined to ignore him and to make sure that they were never alone together, thus hindering any chances of them actually sorting things out and of Zuko giving his "I'm-Sorry" speech. She was very cold and angry and aloof towards him and it was making him very unhappy and slightly annoyed. What was her problem anyway? Zuko angrily thought as he whacked on a tree with his swords. Here he was, humbling himself into humiliation by begging to teach the one person he chased all over the world, being finally good, doing the right thing and she wouldn't even give him five seconds to talk. He just wanted to explain some things especially after the very messy way they left off in Ba Sing Se.
As Zuko somersaulted, twisted and sliced off another branch with his swords, he began to feel angrier and angrier. What was wrong with Jin anyway? Was it too much to ask for a few seconds of her time so he could say something to her? Does she have to act all cheery and happy and peppy in front of everyone but cold and distant towards him? Does she have to constantly pretend as if nothing ever happened between them? It was the first time ever since he met Jin, that he had truly been angry and frustrated with her. He at least thought that she would give him a chance. But in her constant optimistic state of denial, she continued to ignore every single bad thing in her life, like the fact that things went awry between them.
She was so grating that way.
And another thing was that stupid water tribe boy, his stupid sister and that even stupider earth kingdom boy. Sokka, though he had slightly mellowed out, was still regarding him with guarded suspicion and he made very evident the fact that he knew what was really going on between Jin and him and that he heartily disapproved and that Prince Jerkface and his entire smooth jerk-talking skills better be not used on Jin. And furthermore, Sokka warned him that Jin was his best friend (sort of) and if he ever did something to hurt her, Sokka would boomerang him to the next county.
And his sister was so much worse. It seemed that after Katara got the entire details of what Sokka heard about him and Jin, she was determined to make sure that Jin would always view Zuko as an evil, untrustworthy and maligned dingdong. She often advised Jin about matters regarding her and Zuko (even though Jin didn't seem particularly eager in discussing it) and she was resilient in her campaign in proving to Jin that Zuko was a complete waste of her time and that he did not deserve a second chance. And for that, Zuko found himself steadily despising Katara.
And Haru! Zuko had nothing else to say except that the boy was dumb and not at all anything spectacular. He was the sort who thought that he could impress a girl like Jin by just showing off some clay statues he repaired or something. Zuko snorted. How lame. Zuko could do so much better than him. And what was with the beard? Zuko didn't need a dumb beard to—
"Um…what are you doing?"
Zuko snapped out of his heated punches at the tree and turned around and raised his brow in surprise. It was the Avatar and he was looking at the Prince of the Fire Nation with credulousness and amusement.
"I was um….warming up. You know….for our training," Zuko sputtered as he hastily tucked his swords away.
"Oh. Really? 'Cause it looked as if you were trying to destroy the tree," Aang said, looking slightly incensed, being a lover of all living things, as he stared upon the hacked and sawed off tree.
"I wasn't."
"Are you mad or something?"
"I'm not."
"You seem mad."
"I always seem this way," Zuko shortly countered.
"Oh…okay. Is this about—never mind," Aang said as he looked away.
"What? Is this about what?" Zuko demanded.
"Nothing. I think we should start training. Shall we go back to the temple?" Aang asked as he started to look uncomfortable. Zuko eyed him suspiciously but after awhile he nodded and slowly the two of them ventured back to the Air Temple.
Zuko scowled. He wasn't sure if Aang did it purposely or if it was perfectly good coincidence but as soon as Aang chose a courtyard, Zuko paled after realizing that Jin was using that same courtyard as practice grounds.
"A little harder, Smiley! This isn't fairy camp!" Toph chortled from her place. She was now officially Jin's master as well as Aang's and she relished the feeling of being able to boss and to correct people who were a lot older than her. Toph noticed that Jin was a quick study, though her body didn't seem to have the build of a regular Earthbender. Unlike the solid and strong shapes most Earthbenders command, Jin's body was slim and slender, making some of her movements less forceful than it should be. But still, she understood well enough and she was quick to learn the stances and forms.
Jin's brow beaded with sweat as she tried her best to put more force though she was coming up a little short. Zuko watched in complete awe as she lithely moved about with her forms and stances, her movements becoming less fluid and becoming more and more stiff and rigid as Toph barked orders at her to harden. Zuko vaguely wondered how she could know all these since her feet were still burnt and Jin seemed to realize this too because she said as she crouched, "And how would you know that I'm doing it wrong? You can't even see!"
"Because I have ears, Smiley!" Toph retorted.
Jin huffed and continued with her drill as Toph barked, "Now get moving! You need to complete the last few forms!"
Jin continued with her drill, her face glistening with sweat and her arms and legs becoming more solid, straighter, and more rigid as she progressed, quietly doing a small twist for the finish. She seemed completely unaware of Aang's presence and as she finished the last form, she sighed and said, "Again?"
Toph remained silent for a few seconds before finally shrugging and saying, "Yeah. Your last few forms were a little weak. Harden it a little bit the next round, you got it Smiley?"
Before Jin could answer Zuko spoke up, "Um….Toph could we us this pagoda? We were kind of hoping to train here."
Jin seemed startled at the fact that Zuko was there and she nearly lost her stance when she realized this. She looked at the two and Aang rubbed his head and sheepishly said, "Oh. Sorry. We could use another pagoda if you want—''
"Oh no! No, it's alright Aang. Me and Toph were just finishing," Jin hastily said as she stood up. She walked towards Toph saying, "We'll go to one of the deeper antechambers—''
"Hey, wait a minute, Smiley. I didn't say we could leave," Toph said grabbing Jin's hand before she could leave.
"Oh. But Aang needs to train here," Jin said, carefully failing to mention Zuko's name.
"But you need to train too," Toph pointed out.
"But we could do it in another pagoda—''
"But I want this pagoda."
"What's so special about this pagoda?"
"Because I want this pagoda."
"What makes it different from the others?"
"Because I want this pagoda."
"Well, you can have this pagoda by yourself," Jin peevishly said, losing her patience. She was about to stomp away when Toph grabbed her arm.
"And no, you can't leave. Who's going to carry me around, huh? And besides last time I checked, I'm still your Sifu," Toph chattered fixing an impish smirk on Jin. Zuko started to feel uncomfortable. Toph and Aang shot a conspiratorial glance at each other and Aang gave Toph a very prevalent wink. The two had obviously planned this. Zuko scowled and it seemed as if Jin had finally caught up with what was going on because her previous confused and awkward expression melded into one of anger before slowly changing back into on her unconcerned looks, the only she always manages to give Zuko.
Her voice became visibly harder as she said, "I can't do the drill properly when they're training here."
"Oh, please. It's going to….I don't know….foster stronger levels of concentration," Toph drawled in a careless tone.
Jin seemed extremely annoyed but she could hardly go against Toph, seeing that Toph was her master. Jin in heated steps, went back to the first stance and started to do the drill while Zuko tried to regain his focus. He cleared his throat, crossed his arms, looked at Aang and said, "I know you're nervous, but remember… firebending in and of itself is not something to fear."
"Ok. Not something to fear," Aang hesitantly said. He still looked tremendously unsure.
Beside them, Jin's movements seem to slice through the air and Zuko always found himself staring back at her. When their eyes met, she shot him a resentful glare and that hit a nerve in Zuko's body. What gave her the right to act that way towards him? He wasn't even doing anything wrong! He was just helping Aang out! Zuko lost his temper and he unknowingly said in a loud voice, "But if you don't respect it, it'll chew you up and spit you out like an angry komodo rhino!"
Jin snorted loudly at this comment. Zuko nearly lost his cool. He said, "What?"
Jin shrugged and said, "Nothing."
Toph and Aang looked at each other and snickered. They shared a very knowing glance, as if they had some sort of scheme up their sleeve. Zuko began to feel nervous. What were those two planning?
"Now show me what you've got. Any amount of fire you can make," Zuko ordered trying his best to ignore Jin who was just finishing her drill.
Before Aang could say anything, Toph barked, "Again! Harder, this time!"
Jin silently nodded and returned to the first stance without further debate.
Aang exhaled, took in a nervous breath and attempted to firebend. His palm released a waft of smoke before dissipating in a second. He dropped his shoulders and stared miserably at his failed product as Zuko watched him with a critical eye. He lowered his head and said sheepishly, "Maybe I need a little more instruction. Perhaps a demonstration ."
Aang noticed that Zuko wasn't really paying attention to him. Instead he was staring at Jin from the corner of his eye. Aang smirked and he caught Toph smirking too. He suddenly had an idea.
"Zuko! Zuko! Zuko!"
"What?"
"I said I needed a demonstration," Aang repeated.
Zuko's eyes suddenly flashed as if he had gotten an idea. Of course! A demonstration! He suddenly had the insatiable thirst for Jin to see what he was really capable of with his firebending. It suddenly occurred to him, that she had never seen him in full Firebending mode and he suddenly wanted to impress her. He wasn't quite sure if it would only cause some negative reaction, but he was desperate to at least do something that would impress her or make any sort of impact on her. Or do something that would make her notice him and actually acknowledge him because the cold shoulder and silent treatment were driving him insane.
Zuko stood up straight, puffed his chest up a little bit in pride and said in a slightly confident tone, "Good idea. You might want to take a couple steps back."
Zuko gestured for Aang to move back and Aang obligingly did so. Zuko then turned to Jin who was embedded in a crouching stance and he said a little nervously, "Maybe you should step back a little too….so you know….no one gets hurt…."
Jin snorted derisively and said hardly, "I can take care of myself."
Zuko frowned at her and snapped, "Look! I'm only concerned for your well-being!"
"Really? Because after burning Ba Sing Se down you aren't exactly giving me that impression," Jin said in a cold tone as she heaved her weight upwards and formed a very formidable and very angry stance.
"You know, if you had just given me a chance to explain—''
"Um…Zuko? My demonstration?" Aang piped up, eagerly wanting to break up the rising fight between them.
Zuko looked reluctant to let it go but he nodded and began his first stance. Zuko took a deep breath, grunted and proceeded to firebend. He pushed his palms outwards only to produce a pathetic looking flame. Jin suddenly snickered and as she gave a high kick as she chortled, "That's why you wanted me to step back?"
Zuko scowled and said, "What was that! That was the worst firebending I've ever seen!"
He began to pace around in panic, wringing his arms as he did so.
"I thought it was….nice," Aang shrugged.
Zuko grunted and began to rapidly firebend but to his frustration he could not produce the amount and power of flames he needed. They were getting weaker and weaker with every succeeding move.
"It isn't supposed to be like this!" Zuko angrily said.
"Give it all you got, Zuko! Maybe you're just a little nervous," Aang offered.
"Nervous? Why should I be nervous?" Zuko snapped.
"Um, maybe it has something to do—''
"Look! I don't expect someone like you to understand! Just stand back and let me do my thing!" Zuko snapped as he stepped back and began his first stance.
"Zuko….what are you planning to do?" Aang asked worriedly. Zuko had a gruff look in his eye.
"I'm going to try to complete a drill. Now stop talking! I can't concentrate!" Zuko said and in an instant he began a series of moves, kicks and spins. As Aang watched on, with his eyes wandering to Jin once in awhile, he realized that it looked as if they were dancing with Jin performing her strong and rigid earthbending drill and with Zuko doing his heated firebending drill. They moved past each other, always within reach but never getting themselves in each other's way. In a way, they looked like so graceful.
Aang suddenly had a brilliant idea.
Nothing thrilled him more than matchmaking or doing mischief in other people's business. And no one was easier to mess with than Zuko, who was so easy to rile up. Apparently Toph thought so too because as Aang swiftly grabbed his glider, poked Toph and whispered, "Wanna give them a little help?" she gave a silent chuckle before nodding.
As Zuko started to transcend into a different stance, Aang airbent a gust of air from his behind at the same time that Toph earthbent a small pillar from the back of Jin's heel causing the two to falter in their stances and to land on top of each other.
Jin looked a little confused and she murmured, "What the—''
"Hey are you okay?" Zuko asked immediately worried that Jin was hurt.
Jin suddenly frowned at him and snapped, "Ugh! I'm fine."
"I was only asking," Zuko said through gritted teeth.
"Well, I think that you hardly care about me anyway. And what were you doing in my way—''
"I'm in your way? You're the one who bumped into me—''
"Well something hit my foot—''
"Something knocked me from behind—''
"Wait—''
"Wait—''
"Toph—''
"Aang—''
"What?" Toph and Aang said in unison with an air of innocence.
Jin got off from Zuko's chest and pointed an accusing finger a Toph saying, "That was completely uncalled for!"
"I don't have any idea what you're talking about!" Toph said with an air of false sweetness.
"You….you….you…"
"What's the matter Smiley? Me and Twinkletoes were only trying to help out," Toph said as she wrinkled her nose and looked away.
"Help…..out?" Jin said sounding confused.
"Oh come on! We all really know what's going on between you and Sparky!" Toph snickered.
Jin opened her mouth ready to say something but she quickly decided against it, preferring to turn around in an angry huff and yell, "Ugh! You guys are so immature!"
Zuko scowled as he leaned against a wall and watched Appa lie leisurely about near the fountain. He felt ridiculous and stupid and miserable. He lost his firebending, Jin wouldn't talk to him, that stupid water tribe boy was annoying him even more than usual…..All in all the day summed to nothing but disappointment and embarrassment. He couldn't even impress Jin with his firebending because there was no firebending for him to impress her with. And to top it all off, he was still an outcast. No one wanted him around the campfire or around dinner. Everyone still regarded him with suspicion. He was probably just going to starve to death.
From the corner of his eye, he stared at Jin as she laughed brightly along with everybody else at a joke Sokka was telling them.
She looked so much different. Her eyes, showed a deeper, darker, more miserable undercurrent beneath them and he suddenly realized that gone was the carefree girl he had met in Ba Sing Se. And in her place was someone who had been broken and beaten by the war, someone who was trying to keep up an optimistic front despite the ravaging destruction of fire that threatens to envelop around her.
And it was all his fault.
Jin had every right to be angry with him.
But does she have to be so angry that she refused to even talk with him?
His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the silent and unassuming pitter-patter of footsteps. Zuko suddenly became aware that someone was approaching him. He whirled around, ready to attack, thinking that it was someone trying to subdue or kill him, but it was only Jin, an apathetic look on her face with a bowl of soup in her hands. Zuko felt ridiculously embarrassed as he stared out at Jin, his arms raised and ready to attack.
Jin silently regarded him with a cool stare, her eyes a little softer and holding more warmth than it had ever had in days.
"Dinner," she said in a semi-cold, semi-friendly voice.
Zuko grabbed the bowl, peered at its contents and said rather stupidly, "Um….what's this for?"
"It's for eating….you idiot. What else is it for?" Jin said sounding slightly amused by Zuko's suspicious reaction. After a few minutes of awkward silence she drawled in a careless tone, "I wasn't sure if you if you ate yet, so I brought you a bowl. Come on. We're not the bad guys we're the good guys. We don't let people starve. And don't' worry—that's not poisoned."
Zuko looked up and was mildly surprised to find that she had not left yet. Usually, she refused to be alone with him. It seemed to him that she thought it was the most revolting thing possible right now.
The two of them stared at each other, the unsaid anger and the hurt pulsating through the atmosphere threatening to swallow them whole. Zuko looked at Jin and saw that she was looking at him with an open but guarded stare and he suddenly understood that this might be his only chance to apologize to her, to make things up to her, to clear things out with her because she was the most unguarded and approachable she has ever been since he first saw her again. It was as if she was giving him a chance to explain himself.
Zuko felt as if they were such at a great distance from each other despite being only a few meters apart, the empty void of unsaid hurt, disappointment and anger expanding and expanding until Zuko could no longer do anything but watch as the two of them slipped away from each other. He wanted to stop this from happening. He wanted to fill the void.
For a second, it seemed as if Jin would let him.
Zuko began, "Jin, I'm—''
She cut him off and said in quiet and strangely distant voice, "There's something wrong with your bending. You should tell the others about it."
And with that she silently padded away, leaving a very annoyed and confused Zuko.
"We've been riding for hours. I don't know why, but I thought this thing would be a lot faster," Zuko said as he leaned back and watched Aang's profile grip the reigns tightly. He was still in a sour mood after the way things went down with his conversation with Jin. He huffed and stared off into the distance as Appa steadily flew across grassy fields. After his completely awful conversation with Jin, he informed the others about his lost bending abilities. Eventually, after many discussions and side-tracking, everyone decided that it would be a great idea to learn firebending from the original source. He had Toph to thank for that, with all her spouting out about badger-moles. So on the next day, he and Aang were now on a mission to the ancient sun warriors' old settlement to learn more about firebending and perhaps get some of Zuko's old skill back.
"Appa's right, Zuko. In our group, typically we start out our missions with a more upbeat attitude," Aang said as Appa gave a mighty roar.
Zuko sighed and said as he rested his head on the saddle, "I can't believe this."
Aang shrugged and said, "Don't worry. You'll get the hang of it."
The two of them continued to journey in awkward silence with Zuko twiddling his thumbs trying to desperately to think of topics which would induce a decent and amiable conversation while Aang was trying to figure out interesting ways to get Zuko to be more upbeat. It was funny how people like Zuko and Jin could attract. Jin was upbeat and optimistic while Zuko was pessimistic and always saw the worst in every situation. Barely anything could faze Jin's patience and temperance while Zuko was so easy to annoy and to rile up. Jin was carefree and fun-loving; Zuko took things to varying degrees of seriousness. It was amazing how two people who were so different, who were such polar opposites in ideals and personalities, could actually be together.
Aang decided that he should try at another attempt at cheering Zuko up. Aang said, "So…feeling cheerful yet?"
"No," Zuko bluntly replied. He was staring off into the distance with a listless expression as he picked at Appa's saddle. The silence ensued and Aang was left feeling very awkward. What was he supposed to say to Zuko anyways?
"So….how's it going?" Aang asked after awhile.
"Nothing much."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"So nothing's bothering you?"
"No."
"Really, 'cause it seems like something's bothering you," Aang said.
"Ugh! What's with all these pointless questions!" Zuko exploded losing patience and temper.
Aang cringed but being the calm pacifist he was, he merely shrugged and said, "Well, we've got a half-a-day before we arrive at the Sun Warriors' dwellings so we have to talk about something."
Zuko gave an audible, "Humph" and looked away muttering and mumbling under his breath.
"So what's got your beef?" Aang ventured once again.
"Nothing's got my beef. And would you give it a rest?" Zuko snapped.
"No, I won't. And something's obviously got your beef—''
"Well, they can have it."
"Zuko—''
"Look can you keep your eyes up front! I don't want you to meet an accident or something—''
"And what are we going to crash into? The clouds—''
"Ugh! You are so infuriating—''
"Is it Jin?"
"What?"
"Is what's bothering you about Jin?" Aang asked in a completely calm and serene voice while Zuko started to shake and quake in complete anger.
"No!"
"Well I think that it's about Jin—''
"That's none of your business—''
"Because if it's about Jin, I'm sorry for messing around with you guys back when we were training," Aang apologized in a sincere tone.
"This is not about—''
"I just thought that you guys needed to loosen up with each other—''
"Would you give it a rest!" Zuko said before completely ignoring Aang. The thick and uncomfortable silence that hung in the air continued to pervade punctuated by Zuko's angry mutterings and scowls and Aang's clumsy attempts at trying to start a conversation.
Finally, just as when Aang was about ready to give up, Zuko suddenly said, "Does she…does she ever talk about me?"
"Huh?" Aang said as he squinted his eyes at Zuko.
"Jin. I mean, does she….mention me or talk about me or something?" Zuko demanded sounding slightly impatient.
"Well….."Aang mused.
Zuko looked at Aang expectantly.
"No. Not really."
Zuko scowled and looked away.
"But I know that she still thinks about you. I mean whenever Sokka makes fun of you, she looks kind of offended and she never joins in when we make fun of you or insult you," Aang said in a re-assuring voice.
"Wait! You make fun of me?" Zuko demanded in a flummoxed tone.
"Well…back in the…heh….good old days….but that's really not the point. You don't have to worry about anything. She'll come around eventually. I'll bet she's just really confused on how she's supposed to feel about you," Aang re-assured.
Zuko snorted and said, "Don't worry. It's pretty obvious about the way she feels about me. She hates me."
Aang gave a hearty laugh and said, "No, she doesn't—''
"Well if she isn't, how come she never gives me a chance to apologize to her? How come she often acts like I don't exist? I mean….one minute she's nice to me and the next she hates me! It doesn't make sense!" Zuko said sounding more and more frustrated with each and every word.
"Well….you did burn down Ba Sing Se—''
"But if she'd just give me a chance to explain—''
"And you also betrayed her, not to mention you tried to kill us all again by sending the Combustion Man—''
"I never meant for him to hurt her and that's not his name—''
"All I'm saying is, that's a lot to swallow and even harder to ignore. It's just that….she's trying hard to forget about the bad things you've done Zuko but she can't. Not yet," Aang said.
"Well…if she would just talk to me, I'm pretty sure that we could sort things out," Zuko huffed.
"Well….she likes to avoid bad stuff and this thing you two have going on…it's pretty bad. I mean, really, really bad. Just give her some time, Zuko. She's probably just trying to figure out how to see you in a good light again," Aang said as Zuko gawked at him with utter surprise.
After a few minutes of silence, Aang said, "I think we're here."
Zuko merely smiled at him and said, "You know what? I think you're a pretty smart kid."
"Yeah, that's a great dance you two learned there," Sokka drawled as soon as Aang and Zuko finished performing in front of everybody else. Zuko returned to camp with much higher spirits, and he was more than eager to share his new discoveries to the group, even if they weren't exactly as enthusiastic. Jin watched him and Aang with a measured glance while he performed while Katara looked at him with pure loathing. Sokka, always in his humorous disposition, provided a mocking commentary while Toph looked uninterested and that stupid earth kingdom boy, Haru, watched him with a critical glare. Zuko sniffed. As if that scared him. He's seen worse.
"It's not a dance. It's a firebending form," Zuko defensively insisted.
"We'll just tap-dance our way to victory over the Fire Lord," Sokka sarcastically said as he made mocking dancing motions.
Zuko ground his teeth, stomped towards Sokka and snapped, "It's a sacred form that happens to be thousands of years old!"
"Oh yeah? What's your little form called ?" Katara demanded.
Zuko bristled and after awhile, he mumbled in an embarrassed tone, "The Dancing Dragon."
Everyone laughed and Zuko tried to keep his temper.
"Fine! But just know that you've insulted a very important and ancient tradition performed by the original sources of firebending!" Zuko snapped peevishly ready to storm off into his room as usual.
Before he could do so Jin suddenly spoke up, "Hey quit it, guys. Zuko's right. We shouldn't insult ancient culture."
Zuko stared at her in disbelief as did everyone else in the circle.
Jin shrugged and said, "What? I just think it's kinda…cool."
One minute she was giving him the cold shoulder and staring at him with hateful eyes and the next she's standing up for him and being nice and friendly. Zuko stared at her, expecting her to be amiable and friendly but her face had closed down into a cold and apathetic expression once again.
Zuko huffed and stormed off.
He could never understand what was up with Jin.
Girls were crazy.
The days wore on in simple idle and bliss. Aang practice waterbending, early in the morning where the sun was gray and cool and a fine mist clouded in the air. He would then take a short break devoted to carefree fun and leisure before being promptly herded away into Firebending training by Zuko. Zuko insisted that they train at noon towards early afternoon, when the sun was at its peak and strongest. He wanted Aang to feel the coursing power of the sun through his veins and he wanted to make sure that he would be able to firebend at the best possible level. The late afternoons, when the sun started to sink, would be allotted to Toph, who showed no mercy with her charge. Toph drilled Aang harder than she had ever before; the two often practiced late into the evening or at least until Katara yells at Toph that enough is enough.
Zuko, though not as excluded anymore, still felt uncomfortable among his new found companions and he was much more at home sitting at a far corner with Appa and Momo as company. It never bothered him too much mostly because it gave him an excuse to try to squeeze his apology speech to Jin. Jin, who often felt sorry for him, made it the subconscious habit of bringing him his dinner. They barely spoke and their exchanges were curt but Zuko decided that it was better than nothing and he might as well follow the Avatar's advice of giving her time.
Katara wasn't warming up to him in the least bit and that suited Zuko just fine. She was a naggy busybody who interfered with everyone's business and he didn't care whether she liked him or not.
The same goes for that insipid water tribe boy. He was so infuriating with his mocking comments and completely unnecessary sarcasm. And the little blind girl was no different. She was as mischievous as a kitten-fox and he was growing weary of hers and the Duke's antics.
During the first three days in his stay with this quirky little group, four memorable events happened, not all of them good.
The first was with the Avatar.
Zuko had once again dragged him away from playing earth soccer with Toph and Haru, and he was now giving a very important lecture on the importance of breathing in every Firebender. It took him about twenty seconds to realize that the Avatar wasn't completely paying attention to him. Instead, he was toying with something under his sleeve.
"What are you doing?" Zuko demanded.
"Sifu Hotman—''
"Don't call me that!"
"I'm bored."
"Well, this is a Firebending basic. So you can't be bored," Zuko shortly said.
The Avatar suddenly shot up, wind flapping at his behind as he said, "I have a great idea on how we could improve our breathing!"
"Um…"
"There's a windfall tunnel in this temple!" Aang eagerly said.
"A what?"
"A windfall tunnel! You know, a tunnel with a steep incline….a tunnel that goes downwards! We used to use it as training grounds for our flying!" Aang enthusiastically said as he began to bound up and down in exaggerated steps, caused by the little spurts of wind he was making.
"And how is that supposed to help with your breathing?" Zuko demanded as he bounded after Aang.
"The air pressure is really great down there. Boy, would our breathing be challenged!" Aang piped up and before Zuko could do anything about it, he found himself peering over the edge of a windfall tunnel feeling more nervous than he should be.
"Aang….how are we getting down there?"
"Don't worry! I brought re-enforcements!" Aang enthusiastically said and before Zuko could say anything else Toph and Jin suddenly came into view with Toph having the same mischievous expression she always sported and with Jin looking slightly annoyed.
Zuko then realized that this was another ridiculous scheme.
"Um….what are we supposed to be doing here?" Jin asked Toph.
Toph shrugged and said, "You're getting a lesson on breathing, Smiley—''
Jin argued, "What? But Earthbending isn't even rooted in breathing. It's rooted in patience and strength and power—''
"Blah blah blah. Now who's your master again? Oh, that's right. Me. So anyways, Twinkletoes and Sparky need some help and it's a good opportunity to practice earthbending from a distance. You ready?" Toph said as she forcefully pushed Jin forward.
Jin didn't look amused but she agreed nonetheless.
"I'm going first. Then you next, Smiley. When we both reach the bottom, we both earthbend pockets or carts for Sparky and Twinkletoes, okay?" Toph said as she went forward and earthbent a small, rock cart at the edge of the tunnel.
And without further ado, she leaped on the cart and began to spiral downwards yelling, "Give my love to the Badger-moooolllees….."
Jin was next and Zuko silently made way for her as she earthbent a cart and followed Toph's example. She didn't look nervous though she did look apprehensive. After a few minutes, she hopped on the cart and began to careen downwards. Zuko waited for anything, any noise, any indication that the two had reached the bottom. Finally after hearing a thud, another cart suddenly rose from the edge.
"Sweet! Now that's earthbending at a distance! Did you see that Smiley?"
Zuko could hear the faint echo of Toph's triumphant voice.
"Um…"
"I'll go first. Meet you at the bottom, Sifu Hotman. And be sure to keep your breath," Aang said as he eagerly hopped on the cart.
"Aang, this isn't such a good idea—''
But before he could finish, the Avatar had already shot downwards giving an excited yell. After a few seconds, Zuko heard a thud and the audible voice of Toph rang, "Nice drop Tiwnkletoes! Hey, Sparky you're up next! Smiley try earthbending a cart for him!"
"I can't! It's too far off!" Jin's voice rang through the hallway.
"Don't give me that! What kind of person did I teach anyway? Chicken liver?" Toph drawled loudly.
Zuko leaned over the edge and called out, "It's okay. I could just stay here and—''
Suddenly a cart rose, propelling him backwards. Zuko groaned and examined it and saw that it was slightly rough and shaky.
"Toph….maybe this isn't such a good idea. I don't think I made it stable enough," he heard Jin frown.
"Get in Sparky!" Toph yelled, completely ignoring Jin. Zuko reluctantly got in and just as he expected, nothing good came out of this little excursion. The cart Jin made was indeed a little shaky and careened downwards in a shaky fashion. At the last few meters, Zuko's cart jolted and he was thrown off it, as he pummeled towards the wall.
Cursing and muttering under his breath, he scowled as everyone laughed. That's it! He was through with these ridiculous games! He was going to march Aang back up there and continue his lecture on breathing—
"I'm so sorry. Are you hurt?" Jin asked in between giggles.
Zuko stared at her in surprise as she held a hand out.
"Well?" Jin impatiently said.
"Oh…ugh thanks…," Zuko mumbled as he grasped it and steadied himself back up.
"I'm sorry about the cart," Jin said in an apathetic voice though her lips were curved in a smile.
"It's okay and uh….thanks," Zuko smiled staring at her sheepishly.
From behind them, Aang and Toph high-fived and snickered conspiratorially.
The second was with the Water Tribe Boy, the Duke, Teo, Haru and the little blind girl.
"Zuko! Hide me!" Sokka suddenly said, bursting into his room. Zuko, completely startled shot up and stared at the Water Tribe Boy as he ambled towards him, looking panicked and stricken.
"What's wrong? Is the Fire Nation is here?" Zuko said sounding a little groggy but his voice slowly gaining the sharpness of being alert.
"No! But Jin and the Duke are after me! And Teo and Toph! I'm dead! And possibly Katara too!" Sokka frantically said as he tried to find a suitable hiding place. He finally found one near a withered and nasty potted plant, and much to Sokka's disgust, he had to bear with it.
"Why?"
"Because I took the money back."
"What?"
"Honestly, you are so stupid sometimes! The money! I took the money Jin and Duke won and Toph and Teo from our Four Kingdoms game!" Sokka hissed.
Zuko's eyes flashed in realization. Sokka and the rest were playing the gambling card game, Four Kingdoms, and for all of Sokka's apparent skills of deduction, he had forgotten that Jin and Toph were two very sneaky players. Jin won most of his money while Toph won half. Jin decided to share some with Duke, who was her tag-along teammate while Toph had to give some to Teo who helped her in the last round. Zuko was invited but he declined since he really wasn't into gambling games. Haru didn't win any and Zuko was quite smug about that.
"I don't recall Katara playing with you," Zuko frowned.
"No…but she specifically told me not to let…children…you know Duke and Teo….play and—''
The door suddenly burst open and the roaring voice of Toph echoed, "Where is he? Where is he?"
"Where's who?" Zuko said as he whirled around and pushed the potted plant backward pressing Sokka close to the wall.
"Sokka! I know you know where he is Sparky!"
"Sokka? Nope. Haven't seen him. Try his room," Zuko nervously chortled.
"He isn't in there. Oooh, when I get my hands on that scumbag—''
"What exactly did he do?" Zuko asked cautiously.
Teo suddenly wheeled himself in and snapped, "He stole our money!"
"Huh?"
"From our Four Kingdoms game!" Teo impatiently explained.
"Listen, here Sparky!" Toph suddenly shrieked pointing a finger at Zuko.
Zuko stared at her blankly.
"If I find out you've been keeping something from me….you're dead!" Toph snapped, swiftly moving her pointer finger across her neck, signaling dead meat. And with that she and Teo stormed off.
"Turn yourself in, right now!" Zuko hissed as soon as they were gone.
"What? Are you crazy? Did you just see how mad they were?" Sokka chattered.
"Why did you have to steal the money back?" Zuko snapped.
"Because it was our grocery money—''
The door suddenly flew open and in strode a very annoyed Katara, her eyes rimmed with dark circles, her hair flying everywhere, making her look downright scary. She snapped at Zuko, "Have you seen my brother?"
Zuko nervously eyed Sokka who rapidly shook his head. Zuko mumbled, "Um….no?"
"Well…if you….if you do….you better tell me because he…is…so…dead!" Katara hollered.
"Um…."
"Did you know that he let the Duke and Teo play a gambling game? Did you? How unethical and immoral! Teaching gambling to people at that age!" Katara ranted.
"But um…Toph played," Zuko offered trying to calm Katara down.
"Toph is no child! And did you know he just gambled all of the grocery money away! All of my money away!" Katara ranted.
"Um…no?"
"Ugh! Boys!" Katara shrieked as she whirled around and left.
"I'm not going to let you drag me down with you!" Zuko whispered as soon as Katara left.
"Well, I'm not going down in general!" Sokka shot back.
"Just turn yourself in—''
"No—''
"Stop being a coward—''
"Stop being a jerk—''
"Zuko?" a soft voice said. Zuko whirled around and found Jin looking weary and tired with the Duke trudging at her side.
"Um…hey Jin…."
"Where's Sokka?" the Duke cried.
"I don't really know—''
"So you don't know where he is?" Jin shortly said.
"No, but I have to tell you something—''
"Come on Duke. We won't find anything here," Jin quietly said as she led the Duke away.
"How many times do I have to tell you? It's the Duke!" the Duke piped up as they left.
Zuko barely had time to react at Jin's very prevalent snub and coolness. Suddenly a hand clamped on his shoulder and he heard Sokka's voice say for once without any hint of sarcasm "Thanks, man. I owe you one. And oh—about her? She'll come around eventually. Don't worry too much. But until then, stay away from her. She needs space."
Zuko simply scowled as the Water Tribe boy scrambled away to find another hiding place.
The third was with Katara and it wasn't a very pleasant one.
Zuko didn't want to elaborate much except that in his unfortunate haste in things, he knocked over the soup bowl, sparked Katara's wrath and induced her to waterbend him into a pillar.
"You….are such a jerk! Now look! I have to do it all over again!" Katara yelled as she began to mutter around in anger at how she was now going to prepare the soup all over again. Toph snickered from her place while Aang shot him a sympathetic stare. Sokka gave him a look that said "suck it in" while Haru and the rest remained entirely indifferent. He didn't want to catch Jin's expression. He was too annoyed and frustrated and embarrassed.
As he stood up to wash some of the water away from his face, someone suddenly thrust him a towel. He looked up and saw that it was Jin and he felt only more embarrassed.
"Wipe your face. We're about to have dinner," Jin said in a hard and unfriendly voice that was totally mismatched with her friendly gesture.
See?
Things like that make him confused on whether Jin was still angry with him or whether they were on the road to reconciliation.
The fourth and final memorable experience was with Jin and Zuko did not like to be reminded of it that much.
Toph, having trained Jin masterfully, was delegating Sifu duties to her more and more in favor for going around the town with Sokka. Katara heartily disapproved and Jin wasn't too eager as she was worried that she might not be experienced enough to teach the Avatar. Toph merely shrugged and dismissively said that it was hardly a matter to fuss about. Jin was perfectly capable of training with Aang since she mastered at least three more scrolls ahead of him.
In a way, it was all Toph's fault why it happened in the first place.
Before Aang proceeded to his earthbending training, Zuko and Toph often trained Aang by fighting him with their combined firebending and earthbending skills. These fights lasted only for fifteen minutes since Toph would get bored and Zuko would get impatient. They often had a perfectly decent time since Toph was very nice (in her own way) towards Zuko and so far they had done this without much difficulty and qualms for the past two days. That was until, Toph decided that she wanted to go see the circus with Sokka and Teo and she had once again left training duties to Jin.
Things started well enough. Jin and Zuko made their stances, the two of them staring at each other with apathetic looks while Aang stood in the middle. Zuko made the first move and together they progressed into a fight with Aang fending off their attacks.
Things however, started to grow heated and Aang started to notice that Jin and Zuko's attacks were directed more at each other than him.
"Um guys…" Aang nervously began.
Suddenly a fireball hurtled past him, sailed through his head and nearly hit Jin's side.
"I'm sorry!" Zuko quickly said, though he sounded slightly angry.
"No problem," Jin said through gritted teeth and suddenly a rock pillar rose and snagged Zuko's ankle causing him to fall down.
"Oops. I'm sorry," Jin hissed sounding not sorry at all.
"No problem!" Zuko snapped back and before Aang could do anything, a wave of fire sliced through the air and nearly hit Jin. Jin barely dodged it and she angrily earthbent an earth wall and sent it straight to Zuko.
"Um…Zuko? Jin? You guys are supposed to be fighting me…" Aang said as soon as the focus was not on him now.
Suddenly an earth column hit Zukos' side. He gave a startled gasp before rolling back up and shooting a jet of flame towards Jin that she narrowly missed. He hissed, "What's up with you anyway? It was only an accident."
"Just like burning Ba Sing Se down was an accident…." Jin hissed as she whirled around and sent an earth ball at him. Zuko surprised her by crushing it to a million pieces, simply by just punching it.
"You know I never meant for that to happen! If you'd just give me a chance to explain!" Zuko roared as he firebent a fire whip.
"There is nothing to explain!" Jin snapped as she dodged Zuko's fire whip.
"Yes, there is! And you are just too stubborn, too close-minded to give me a chance!"
"And you're just trying to avoid the fact you've done something wrong!" Jin yelled back.
"I know I was wrong okay? I know I was wrong and I know I hurt you! But you can't keep ignoring all the bad things in the world Jin! Because if you do it's going to pile up on you!"
"I'm not ignoring anything!" Jin snapped.
"Yes you are! You obviously still like me and you're ignoring and putting off talking with me because you hate confrontation!"
"Shut up, Zuko!"
"I just wanted to explain some things to you! I wanted to apologize! Why is it so hard for you to give me a chance?" Zuko cried, his voice losing its stability and calm. Jin angrily punched the ground and it sent a small tremor down his way.
"How dare you turn this all on me? Don't you dare make this my fault! You are such an evil person, Zuko! Did you know how many lives were taken by the invasion in Ba Sing Se? Do you? Do you? Hundreds and hundreds, all innocent most of them mothers and children all for the stupid glory of the fire Nation! All for your stupid honor!" Jin roared as she earthbent a huge pillar towards him, her face looking fierce and angry.
By then everyone had gathered around them, including Toph , Teo and Sokka who had come back from their trip. Sokka nervously said, "Hey guys….no need for your lover's quarrel to be this serious…."
In a quavering voice she yelled as she sent it towards Zuko, "You know what Zuko? You would have been better off dead!"
"Really?" Zuko hissed, the anger and the hurt melding into one common entity.
"Because…because being dead is better than being the evil person that you are!" Jin said finally regain her voice.
There was a strange and queer silence that followed.
Finally Zuko found his voice. He roared, "AND I KNOW THAT!"
Jin jumped backwards at his outburst, a little startled at the tone and degree of his voice. After a few minutes of strange silence, Sokka said, 'Um, guys, the two of you need to calm down—''
"No you don't know! You don't know Zuko! Do you have any idea what you put me through?" Jin demanded, her voice fighting for control. It started to quaver. She cried, "I thought that you were different Zuko! I thought that you were a kind, sweet, caring boy! You made me….you made me like you….so much…only to go and turn around and stab me in the back and cut every single thing that I hold dear and care about! You took away Ba Sing Se, my only source of peace and comfort! My brothers, my only family in this stupid, messed-up world! And you took away my heart and just went out there….and…and smashed it all for your stupid honor and glory and you know what? I hate you for it! I take back what I said back in the tunnel! I hate you Zuko! For lying to me, for destroying hope! You destroyed Ba Sing Se, the Avatar, my brothers and they were the only sources of hope for me! You know how much I needed it at a time like this!"
And her eyes started to rim with tears though she was fighting for control. Jin bit her lip. She refused to weep for him. What Jin had said had struck a chord in Zuko's heart. Zuko frowned at her and said, "Jin, I had no idea. I'm sorry—''
"You…you made me fall for a stupid lie!" Jin snapped.
That hit a nerve in Zuko's body.
"And that's what you think then? Because I'm not some perfect little earth kingdom boy like Haru—"
"Don't drag him into this!"
"—that since I'm the prince of the Fire Nation…it was all a lie! All the feelings….were a lie!"
"I had feelings for Li, not Zuko! And as far as I'm concerned….Li's dead and gone, behind the walls of Ba Sing Se! I've left him there and he's nothing but a memory now! I liked Li, not you Zuko! And Li...Li is dead and gone, hidden and left behind Ba Sing Se!"
"Then Agni help him!" Zuko roared and with that, their argument escalated to a higher, more dangerous level.
Zuko then realized that they were at one of the deeper antechambers now. Zuko grunted and sent a wave of fire towards her and Jin dodged it, running up a wall, somersaulting and sending an earth wall as she landed. Zuko tried to hit her with a fire-whip but Jin rolled over and twisted on the floor. Zuko began to throw a series of Firebending punches, fire balls escaping with each one, and it began to barrage Jin. Jin narrowly missed them all, shielding and often blocking them with an earth wall. She roared and sent earth spikes towards him.
"Um….guys….I think the two of you got your point across each other. You could stop now," Aang hastily said as he tried to come in between them.
"Stay out of this Aang!"Jin snapped.
"This wouldn't have happened if someone would just give me a chance to explain and say sorry!" Zuko growled as he sent fire balls at her with his kicks.
"Sorry doesn't fix anything!" Jin growled as she crouched and dodged it.
"We have to do something! They'll kill each other!" Sokka said as he stepped forward.
Toph suddenly stopped him with her arm and she said, "No. The two of them need to figure this out and if it's this way they're going to do it….then I'm not stopping them. And besides….it's good practice for Jin. I see that I've taught her well."
Sokka gaped at her and howled, "You are insane! Aang?"
Aang looked as if he was mulling it over for awhile before finally saying, "Toph's right. This there fight. We shouldn't interfere."
Jin and Zuko raged on, they're fight becoming more and more intense as it progressed. All the unsaid hurt and anger suddenly exploded and boiled over causing an immense and tremendous fight between the two of them. All the unsaid anger Jin felt towards Zuko exploded and so did Zuko's anger at Jin for not letting him explain. Jin's once peaceful, easy-going and carefree natured was decimated and she stared at Zuko with pure anger and hatred in her eyes. She sent an earth column towards Zuko. Zuko easily dodged it and it exploded on one of the walls, shattering it a little and causing some bricks to tumble down. Zuko sent a jet of fire towards her. Jin propelled some of it with an earth shield though a few marks could be now seen on the pillars.
"Um…Aang…..I get that we have to let them figure this out and stuff but should we really let them destroy a whole ancient temple?" Sokka asked as Jin dodged a fireball.
"You're right. This has gone too far," Aang firmly said as he stepped forward.
And just as Zuko was about to hit send another fireball through Aang, Aang flew up in the air and he suddenly went down with such force that wind swept through everywhere, causing both Zuko and Jin to fall backwards.
"Enough!" Aang roared.
Jin and Zuko stopped and looked at each other, their eyes looking slightly guilty.
The two of them were panting hard.
"Guys, this isn't the right way to solve it!" Aang began.
"I told you he was up to no good," Katara piped up from her place.
Zuko scowled at her while Jin blinked some tears away.
Jin merely turned around and said in a bitter voice, "Aang…I don't think we should train anymore."
And with that she left and went to her room.
Whoa. That was so intense. But anyways, maybe some of you felt that it was a little too extreme but I just went with the flow of how I felt it would've gone down. Betraying a person is really a lot to take in and forgive. I don't think Jin could feel better about it, anytime soon. The timeline officially alters here, so expect that it might be a little different from the next chapters onward.
I'm lame I know for updating so late but between my job and my ever-so-plenty essay and research papers, I'm having trouble squeezing this in. I'll try to update faster but I just want to warn you not to expect too much. It would probably take me two weeks to get another update down.
But anyways, to those who took the time to read this and add this to their favorites, or me as a favorite author, or had this story alerted….thank you so much!
Much Kudos to those who reviewed:
To Lunar Calling: Thank you so much for your review! You have no idea how awesome that made me feel.
To tgbwe: Sorry for updating super-late again! I'll try my best to speed things up next time. Thanks for your review. It really made my day.
To Panther-Freedom02: Yeah, Sokka's being a major douche but he's just trying to protect his friend. The cross over idea sounds pretty cool. I think I'll look into that when I finish this fic.
To Alana C. Jones: Whoa. You just find new ways to make me happy everyday! Thank you so much for the review! It's like….worth more than gold ^_^
To Kokomojeezus: Thank you so much! They'll make up very soon, I promise. But anyways, thanks again for the awesome review! I swear, that sent me flying to the moon.
To ArrayePL: Thank you so much for the review! It made me feel awesome!
To SuperninjaX: That's one of the best reviews I've gotten! Thank you, thank you so much!
To glamouraj: LOL, I know that my chapters tend to be too long sometimes but thanks for sticking through it. Thank you so much for awesome, awesome review.
To MarieZenalou: Thank you so much for that great review! Whoa, you guys are so awesome that I feel so guilty for updating so late. But anyway, thank you so much!
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