A nice little reunion occurs here.
Disclaimer: Do not own
Guru Pathik called them all to the courtyard again. Yue admitted that she hadn't visited the area since their arrival nearly two days ago; she had spent most of her time with Pavana and Samira-who wasn't as bad as Yue had first thought-along with the other girls. Aang, she decided, would learn better without distractions. Yue had spent her time persuading Azula and Ty Lee to get tattoos, but Mai had firmly refused. Ty Lee had been the first to cave in.
Samira told them that they didn't really follow the ways of the old Nomads. They ate meat when they found it and the nomad admitted that she wasn't as nearly as spiritual as Pavana or Pathik. Yue couldn't really connect with the girl, though, but she decided that Samira was nice enough.
Yue hadn't seen Aang very much in the last two days. She had only seen him during their meal times-he passed on the meat-and during other odd times of the day. He spent most of his time with Pathik in the courtyard. Yue hadn't had the time to ask him what he was learning with the guru, but he seemed to be enjoying it. He was finally becoming the Avatar, Yue thought.
Then the guru summoned them all back to his tiny, tranquil pavilion of meditation. It was simple, yet breathtaking at the same time, Yue recalled as she entered the courtyard after Sokka and Toph. She could see Aang, barefoot and shirtless, as he sat in a meditating position across from Pathik. His back was to her and she saw the blue arrow that ran along his spine, rising into his hair to arch over his scalp and end in the center of her forehead.
At the sound of their arrival, Aang turned towards them and grinned. "Yue," He said to her and patted the ground next to her. "I'm learning about the Avatar State, Yue…" He looked at the tribal princess as she sat down beside him and leaned closer to her, "It's when the spirit of the Avatar surfaces and I connect with my past lives. Do you remember that time, under Ba Sing Se-"
Yue held up her hand. She remembered well enough.
"That was the Avatar State. I couldn't control it then, but I'm learning to. Guru Pathik said I'm learning to open my chakras and let go of my earthly possessions." Aang grew quiet as he looked up at her with dark gray eyes, "But Yue…if something happens to me while I'm in the Avatar State, if I die…the cycle's over with. There'll be no Avatar spirit." His shoulders seemed to slump. "I learned I had all this power, all these abilities, and then if I screw up,"
The Northern Water Tribe princess smiled softly, encouragingly. "Don't worry," She said, "There'll be nothing to worry about, I promise." She touched his hand, then, and Aang looked up at her. Of course, she thought, the Avatar was the spirit of the world in the body of a mortal. She wondered, if Aang were to die, would the world fall out of balance, or would it die?
The world was living. It breathed and lived like everything else, but Yue wondered if it could ever die. Everything else died, like eventually she would die. Yue hoped it would be when she had grown old, because then she could return the life she had borrowed back to the Moon Spirit. If Aang died in the Avatar State, it would be much more catastrophic.
"Why did you bring us here?" Azula asked from where she sat and Yue had been wondering the same thing. They didn't have to learn about the Avatar State like Aang did, they didn't need to be enlightened about the world. Their job, Yue thought, was much simpler. They simply had to help save it.
Aang smiled before Pathik could speak. He reached under his leg and held up a razor, holding it gingerly. Yue paused and watched the young boy as he brought it up to his scalp. She stretched out her hand, ready to snatch it away from him, but then the first strands of hair fell freely to the ground. There was a line through Aang's hair now, exposing the pale blue arrow that ran along his head.
He was shaving his head.
"So, you brought us here to watch you cut your hair. I feel so enlightened now." Mai deadpanned from somewhere behind Yue and Azula snickered. Yue looked over her shoulder to see the lanky girl resting on her knees, her hands resting comfortably in her lap. "I suddenly understand the Universe much better now."
Pathik, who had been sitting silently in a corner, chuckled. Samira and Pavana, along with Angin, had crowded around their spiritual leader. "Avatar Aang has been learning to open his chakras and release his worldly possessions. He'll reach enlightenment, but he's doing it on his own terms."
Aang dropped the razor and Yue turned back to her friend. His head was now clean of hair and Yue suddenly thought that he looked much different. He was still Aang, but…he looked more like the Air Nomad that he was. His arrow was now fully seen, gleaming blue against his scalp, and he smiled at them. "I think it's time," He said, "That we all embrace who we really are."
Even Azula was silent at that. Yue looked away. For some reason, those words stung. They had been hiding who they really were from each other-she looked at Azula-and then from themselves as well. Yue cleared her throat and then lifted her head, turning towards Pathik. "I want you to help me reach enlightenment as well," She said finally, "Aang is right. It's time we show everyone else who we really are." She was more than just Princess Yue. She was Princess Yue, heir to the Northern Water Tribe, the Avatar's waterbendinger teacher, and a warrior.
The guru smiled and Samira looked at her curiously. "You," he said, "Have a war raging within you." His gaze traveled over them all, "You struggle with duty and showing the world that there is more to you than what is seen. You don't have to be afraid." His eyes focused on Yue when he spoke and she shivered a little, because she knew he was right. She wasn't sure how he knew it, but he did. He looked at Sokka, "And you, Water Tribe prince, struggle with loyalty. Are you loyal to your family that you left behind and the cause they support, or are you loyal to what you believe in?"
Sokka's jaw tensed and tightened. Pathik, Yue thought, knew how to spot a flaw. It struck a nerve when he pointed it out, but it wasn't as though he was teasing them. He was simply telling them the truth. And it hurt.
"What does Azula struggle with?" Samira asked and Yue saw the Air Nomad girl smirking at the Fire Nation princess. Yue wondered the same thing, because sometimes she thought Azula was perfect. She was always well put together, even when they slept on the dirt, and never seemed to be flustered. Even during the event in Ba Sing Se, she had seemed calm and collected.
Azula lifted her head and smirked, lacing her hands together. Nothing. Yue wanted to say, she's perfectly assembled. She's lucky, she might not have everything in the world, but she has no flaws. At least, not that Yue could see. Azula seemed to never doubt herself, never to show weakness. That's where they were different. Sometimes Yue doubted herself and she was scared a lot, too.
But Pathik smiled softly, as if he knew something they didn't, and opened his mouth. "You want to be perfect." He said to Azula. "You want to have no flaws, and that is perhaps your biggest one. You don't want to admit that you get scared and lonely, and that you question yourself." Azula's eyes widened, but then she wrinkled her nose. "Inhuman perfection," Pathik told her, "will be the end of you."
There was an ominous ring to that and Yue looked at her firebending friend. She didn't seem shaken, at least not physically, but Yue thought she saw something flash across the clear amber of her eyes. Something almost like surprise flashed across her eyes as she frowned, but then it quickly passed. The real Azula was glaring back at Pathik, silently telling him that he had lied. Yue knew he hadn't, though. Pathik knew too much to lie.
Yue half expected Azula to get up and leave, but she didn't. She looked at Samira and Pavana, and Angin and she wondered if they too would have the ability to see someone's greatest flaw one day. Maybe Pavana already had it; she thought when she looked at the little girl. She was quiet and observant, even though she couldn't have been more than twelve years old. It would be terribly sad, though, to look at someone and see nothing but a path of destruction ahead of them.
She wondered if that was what lay in store for Katara, who had been rotted through to the core. Maybe, Yue thought, there was still hope for her. There might still be a tiny glimmer of light somewhere in Katara and it just needed to be pulled to the surface.
Maybe.
"What about me?" Toph asked and jabbed a thumb to her chest. "I'm as solid as a rock, nothing can bother me." She said and smirked. For a moment, Pathik simply looked at her. In some ways, Yue thought, Toph did seem invincible. She was an earthbender; she was stable and hardheaded, and bold. From Yue had seen, the girl didn't step down from a challenge and she didn't take know. She was a rough teacher for Aang, but he had learned more from her than he could from anyone else.
Yue started to think that perhaps Pathik didn't have an answer, for his lips had pressed into a hard line that was nearly hidden by his beard. "Pride." He said finally and offered no explanation, but there wasn't really a need for one. Toph lifted her chin, but the sides of her lips dipped downward in a slight grimace. Pathik, Yue thought, had been right yet again.
After a moment, Yue looked back at Aang. "So," She said, trying to smooth over the uncomfortable air that had settled around them, "Now that you've become all spiritual and Avatar like, how are chakras supposed to help you reach the Avatar State?"
It seemed like Aang tried to recall what Pathik had told them. All of this was new to him, as well. "In order for the Avatar to be the bridge between the spirit world and this one," he said softly, "they have to be able to let go of everything and reach their past lives. The old Avatars."
Of course. There were a thousand Avatars before Aang, they had probably experienced more than Yue could imagine and Aang could access those memories. Those memories and the power that came with it would enable Aang to do things that others could only dream of. It was a lot of power in his hands.
And if Katara had been successful in brainwashing him, that would have been a lot of power in her hands. A lot of power for her to abuse. There would been the power of hundreds -thousands- of Avatars at her fingertips, at her control, and no one would have stood a chance against her. Against the Water Tribes. The tides would have been under Katara's command.
And they all would have drowned.
Some part of Yue felt that it would be her duty to fight Katara in the end. There really was no other option, when she thought about it, because they were adversaries to each other. Katara was corrupt, cruel, and rotted to the core. If the Water Tribes won the war, if she became chief of the Southern Water Tribe, there would be no hope for the rest of the world.
If Katara became chief of the Southern Water Tribe, she would take over the Northern Water Tribe as well. They couldn't let that happen. Yue wouldn't let it happen, because even though she had turned her back on her tribe, it was still hers. She could not-would not-allow Katara to sink her claws into it.
They had to ensure that Sokka became chief of the Southern Water Tribe. It was the only way. Yue wasn't sure how they would do it, only that they had to do it. Aang had to master the elements, the Fire Nation siblings had to get to Garsai in order to inform their people of the impending eclipse, and Sokka had to become Hakoda's official heir. They had a lot to do, Yue thought, and not very little time.
Her fingers ran over the ridges of the amulet that Lady Kya had given her, focusing on the spirit water inside. Maybe Pathik would have the answers. She concentrated on the water inside of the vial and she could almost imagine that the river beneath that Western Air Temple was carrying the answer towards her. Maybe, she thought, but it wasn't likely.
Mountains, Suki thought, were supposed to be cold. But the mountains around the Western Air Temple were surprisingly comfortable, with the occasional chilly breeze that rippled her hair and kissed her skin. There wasn't much time to focus on the weather, though, because in front of her, Katara was leaping precariously from rock to rock on the outcropping that ran parallel to the river.
Suki was much slower in her trek, though, because she had to make sure that their cheetah falcon didn't slip on any of the rocks. It would be a painful plummet into the river below, one that Suki didn't really want to think about or experience. She guided the animal over another jutting stone, casting a look back at Katara. She was crazy, Suki decided, to run so freely when one slip could shatter her bones into forty thousand pieces.
They were moving towards the Western Air Temple. Suki could see it just in the distance, growing larger and more defined. When she first saw it, she scratched her head and thought her eyes were deceiving her. It seemed as if the Western Air Temple was carved into the mountain side, stretching along the side of mountain. Suki saw nothing wrong it that.
It was just that…the Western Air Temple seemed to be upside down.
Katara didn't seem unnerved by the strange structure and if she was, she certainly didn't show it. Suki didn't ask her, because she was certain that the Southern Water Tribe princess would rant on and on about it showed just how backwards the Air Nomads were. They were a backwards people and would on hinder the march towards peace and unity, so they had to be dealt with early on.
Suki thought about the child Avatar, with his eagerness to please and gentle demeanor. He had seemed a bit backwards at times, she recalled, but she hadn't known him that well. And part of her was a little alarmed that she heard Katara's voice saying those exact words in her head.
The cheetah falcon's foot slipped and Suki heaved hard on the harness before it could lose its footing. "Almost there," she told the beast, patting its chest and she heard Katara turn around in front of her. "When we reach the Western Air Temple, buddy, you'll be able to rest all you want to."
"There'll be no time to rest." Katara said, "We have to stop Yue and Aang, and Sokka. They probably have allies here," The Southern Water Tribe princess looked up at the sky, at the mountains beyond them, and frowned. "I wouldn't put it past them, past Yue. We all know where her loyalties lie. With the Avatar and with the enemy."
Suki cleared her throat as Katara leaped across another rock. "You know back in Ba Sing Se, were you really going to allow the Dai Li to…you know? Brainwash the Avatar?" Suki had just been a messenger, she had ushered the boy into the trap and distracted the others. The rest had been Katara's work. "Do you think it would have worked?"
Katara stopped in her tracks and turned slowly, smiling softly. "Don't call it brainwashing, Suki. I like to think it was a little...memory alteration." She said. "And yes, I was. It would have been so much easier and we wouldn't have had to travel across the world. I don't exactly like the Dai LI's methods, though. I think a skilled waterbender could have done it quicker and faster."
For a brief heartbeat, Suki thought about Hama, Katara's mentor. "Oh," She said and sidestepped a loose rock. Like Hama? She wanted to say, because the woman could already bend blood. What else could she do, that Suki didn't know about? "I think I understand."
"It would have worked either way, though. But we can blame Yue for that." Katara said and resumed walking. "It'll be nice seeing Sokka again, don't you think? I've missed him. I've missed my brother, Suki." Suki thought that Katara sounded genuinely sad, but Katara was kind of hard to read sometimes. "And Yue…I think I might enjoy seeing her again."
Suki nodded, even though she knew Katara wouldn't see it. "I understand."
Katara skipped a few steps, looking down at the river. "I just remembered something, Suki. Tonight's a full moon." She said, but didn't turn. Suki could see the side of her face as she looked down at the water, her fingers twitching ever so slightly.
The Kyoshi Warrior tightened her grip on the cheetah falcon's reins. "Oh," She said but it came out almost as a whisper. "I think I understand." Her voice shook a little and Suki told herself that wasn't scared, or nervous. She looked at the upside down Air Temple, where Sokka and Yue were, and shrugged.
Azula watched as Samira and Pavana moved in circles around each other, never turning too fast as they held their hands out before them. They made sure to never put their back to each other for too long, their eyes locked on the feet of the other. Azula thought they looked like cowards, because neither of them was attacking. Azula spotted a least four opportunities for Pavana to attack, but she took none of them. The Fire Nation princess sighed and cupped one side of her face with her hand.
Ty Lee, on the other hand, was watching with rapt attention. She stood next to Azula, whispering the moves that Samira and Pavana used. "Quick pivot," she said softly and turned quickly, her braid flying. "Soft left step," She threw a quick jab at the air, "Slight turn."
Samira paused, dropping her arms. "She moves just like an airbender," She said and smiled softly, "Never thought I'd see that." Pavana paused beside her, her hands on her hips. "Hey, girl, if we teach you some more airbending moves that you can use in your fighting, will you show me your little jabs?" She asked and smirked.
Azula looked over at Yue and Toph as Ty Lee stepped forward, grinning wildly. Samira stepped forward to meet her and bowed, smiling softly at the acrobatic teenager. Her gray gaze flickered over Azula and Yue, "You two, join in. And you, too, earthbender." She looked at Toph and Mai.
Toph shook her head as Yue and Azula stood. "Nah, I think Needles and I are just going to watch. Well…not watch because…" She said and crossed her arms in front of her chest, smirking. "I'm not very good with stepping lightly, you know." She was an earthbender; her movements were heavy and sturdy.
The Fire Nation princess took note of the thin arrow tattoos that crawled up Pavana's arms. They weren't quite like the Avatar's, but she decided it was because they were different types of Air Nomads. Beside her, Yue smiled and Azula remembered what the old guru, Pathik, had told her.
She desired a perfection she could never have.
Azula wasn't quite sure she believed that, because Pathik was old and had probably spent most of his life with airheaded nomads. She looked Samira, who was demonstrating how to move in a spiraling motion without tripping. Azula put her hand on her hip, narrowing her eyes. It was simply moving in a circular fashion. She could do that with her eyes closed.
She stepped forward with her right foot first, twisting her body and setting her left foot behind her first. She spun quickly, feeling the cool Air Temple air brush over her cheeks. But then, her heel and the toe of her boot tangled together, causing her feet to twist together and her body fell forward.
The floor of the Air Temple was hard, and damp against her cheek. She growled and turned her head away from the stone, pushing herself to her feet. Azula looked up at Samira reached out to her, her hand outstretched. Pushing her pride aside, the firebender grasped the Air Nomad's hand and climbed to her feet. Yue looked sympathetically at her.
"Maybe next time," Samira said softly, "You should pay attention instead of acting on impulse. I know it's hard for you." She took a step away from Azula and pressed her toe against the sole of the Fire Nation princess's foot. "Put your feet a shoulder width apart. Don't lock your knees, relax."
Azula wrinkled her nose and complied, widening her stance. Ty Lee and Yue seemed to catch on easily to the stance. Ty Lee was a non-bender; she was nimble and adaptable to change. Yue was a waterbender, sliding into different forms came easily to her. For a moment, Azula felt a pang of jealousy and anger.
"Put your left foot forward," Pavana said softly, "And turn your right foot outwards while pressing the sole against your left heel," She looked over at Samira, as if for approval. Azula remembered that Pavana really just a little girl, even though she was the only airbender that lived at the Western Air Temple. "Then turn. Don't spin," She said, "Turn."
Yue turned at the same time Azula did, grinning at her. "We're moving like airbenders, Azula! We could use these moves in our own bending to make new moves." She said and turned again, holding her hands out in front of her. "The art isn't lost." Azula thought she heard the waterbender whisper. "They didn't win."
She was talking about the Water Tribes. They hadn't succeeded in destroying every fragment of Air Nomad culture. They hadn't been efficient enough. But the Fire Nation could have. The Fire Nation could have crushed the Air Nomads. They would crush the Water Tribes, too, but not out of revenge. Fire was the superior element. Firebending was above all.
Azula looked at Yue and frowned. The white haired girl was the princess of the Northern Water Tribe. If they destroyed the Northern Water Tribe, they would destroy her people. And they would destroy her. Azula swallowed. Yue almost seemed like a friend to her, and Azula was suddenly wondering if she could do that. If she could really end Yue and her people, and Sokka, too.
She couldn't. Azula wasn't sure if that was a sign of weakness or strength, but she knew she couldn't.
From the corner of her eye, she could see Zuko entering the room. He was followed by Angin, Sokka, and the Avatar. The Fire Nation princess paused and straightened. She could use the airbending moves and create her own firebending forms, forms that Zuko could never grasp.
"Look, Aang!" Ty Lee called out from behind Azula and the young Avatar looked up. "I'm moving like you do, now! Look at us!" She said and Azula could hear the smile in her voice. The airbending boy grinned back at them, as if overjoyed that they were embracing a part of his culture.
Ty Lee could embrace the life of an Air Nomad all she wanted, Azula thought, but she would still be Fire Nation. It ran through her blood and would always be a part of her, even if she covered herself in Air Nomad tattoos. There was no hiding it.
"What are you guys doing?" Zuko asked as he approached her, followed by Sokka. A teasing tone eased into her older brother's voice, "You've mastered firebending, so now you want to be an airbender? I don't think being the Avatar suits you." He said.
Azula reached up and patted the Fire Nation prince on the top of his head. "I would make a rather nice Avatar, Zuzu. I do wish I could say the same to you, but I wouldn't dare lie to you." She said and she heard Sokka snicker. "Airbending looks like a rather easy element, but I sure it would be difficult for you. I think you would catch on, one day."
Zuko bared his teeth and Sokka clapped the Fire Nation prince on the back. "Come on, Zuko," The Water Tribe boy said, "Don't take it to heart. Little sisters always get under your skin like that. At least your sister isn't determined to destroy the world as we know it and…" He looked off to the side, setting his jaw. "I'll stop, now."
Yue nodded as she stepped up behind Azula. "Sokka abdicated and his little sister, Katara, isn't really fit for the job as heir apparent." She looked back at Aang and Pavana, "Our people killed theirs. And she's completely fine with that. She's the reason why we left Ba Sing Se." Azula could hear bitterness creeping in Yue's tone and for a moment she was surprised, she hadn't thought that such an emotion lived in the Water Tribe girl. "It's her we're against."
Azula looked at the Water Tribe pair and then at the Avatar. She did not comment, however, and instead turned to leave the room. "I'm going outside," She said and looked pointedly at Yue, silently offering her to venture after her. "I want to check on Sanjiv."
The white haired girl trailed after her as she left the room. The air in the halls was cool and comforting, and seemed to breathe with the sighs of ten thousand dead airbending spirits. Azula was aware of the sound of her footsteps falling just before Yue's as they walked out throughout the temple, to the courtyard where they had entered two days ago.
"There's a full moon tonight," Yue said as she came to Azula's side. She cast a sidelong glance at the firebender and gestured towards the roof and the sky. "Waterbenders can feel it. Our abilities are better at night and during the full moon. They're at their zenith in the early days of summer, during the Silver Moon. That's when the moon is closest to the earth."
Azula nodded. She knew that, but the Fire Nation had never used its name. She blinked as they emerged from the inner halls of the temple, stepping into the courtyard. Night had fallen and she hadn't even noticed. The fountain glowed silver and the stone ground was a pale, ghostly white.
The air was cold now, without the warmth of the sun, and Azula shivered just a little. Her firebending would keep her arm. It was dark, for the moon hadn't risen yet, and the mountains were just black masses against the starlit blue nighttime sky.
Yue took a step forward, her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "I've always felt safe under the full moon. You know," She said and looked over her shoulder at Azula, "The only reason I'm alive is because of the Moon Spirit. I could never betray the spirits by supporting the war. But I think that the only reason they've allowed it to happen is because they're testing us. They're testing humanity."
She paused and put her arms around her shoulders. "They're seeing how far we'd go without the spirits to stop us." She laughed softly and her voice shook just a little, "I think we've gone pretty far."
The ground shook and Azula heard distant yelling. She looked down at the river below and down at the steps that curled along the Air Temple's exterior. She could see people marching up them, followed by a horde of beasts. Even from where she stood, Azula saw that they were led by two girls that seemed to be the same age as her.
Yue saw them, too.
"No," The waterbender whispered, shaking her head. "No. It's the Water Tribe. It's Katara. She found us." Her voice rose in pitch, "No!" She grabbed Azula's shoulder, forcing her around to face her. "We have to fight them, Azula. We have to protect the Air Nomads and Aang!"
Obviously. Azula thought and pushed the girl away from her. "Then go, Yue. Tell the others and make sure the Air Nomads are safe. I'll hold them off." She had been longing for a good fight. Yue hesitated and Azula glared at her, "I said go! I can hold them off, trust me."
Katara kept looking at the sky, as if waiting for the moon to rise over the mountains as they ascended the steps towards the top of the Air Temple. She half-walked and half-ran, and Suki had to jog to keep up with her. "There's Yue!" She cried and pointed, "I see that treasonous liar!"
Suki squinted as they ran, taking some of the steps two at a time. She could see two people standing on the ledge of one of the temple outcroppings, but she couldn't tell who they were. When she blinked, the taller of the figures had disappeared and the other was looking back at them. "I don't think that's Yue." Suki said softly and Katara snarled something that Suki didn't understand.
The blue fire came at them quick and without warning. Suki let out a gasp and a breath of relief when the blast missed them. A firebender. Yue, if she was even at the temple, was in league with a firebender. Suki had never seen blue fire before, not even in nature. A powerful firebender.
"Oh, Yue," Katara growled as the firebender sent another volley of blue flames at them, "It seems like you really are a disloyal woman. Working with the Fire Nation?" She snarled and uncorked her canteen, turning the fire that came at them into harmless steam. "Those firebenders and Ba Sing Se were probably your friends!"
Suki pulled her fans from her hips, brushing by Katara as she darted up the last few steps. The firebender had paused and Suki brought her arm back, flicking her wrist and releasing the fan. It cut through the air towards the bender, hissing quietly.
In the starlight, Suki could see that the firebender was a girl. Her amber eyes blazed as she ducked, knocking the fan away with a blast of fire. Suki bared her teeth and launched herself at the firebender. "Aren't you a long way from home, firebender?" She snapped, leaping to the side when the shorter girl shot a ball of fire at her.
The girl returned her snarl with an equally intimidating one, "I should say the same thing about you." She said and her eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise when Suki grabbed one of her fists, wrenching it behind her back. "You're not Water Tribe."
Suki jerked her head to the side when the girl thrust her palm towards her face. She caught it with her other hand, forcing the girl's wrist back. "You must be more than a one-trick antelopony." She said and the firebender's eyes blazed with indignation. "That must have stung, didn't it?"
The firebender let out a wordless shout and lashed out with her feet, throwing up a spurt of flame from her heel at Katara. The Southern Water Tribe princess had been standing near the fountain, her features shadowed in the darkness, but she pulled the water from its source, lashing out with a whip and sliced a hole in the firebender's shirt.
"Where's Yue?" Katara said softly, darkly and the firebender narrowed her eyes. "I know she's here. Now tell me where she is!"
Suki grabbed the girl's topknot when she roared in anger. The Kyoshi Warrior leaned over the firebender, making sure to avoid her lashing feet. "You heard the princess."
Yue burst into the room, her chest begging for more air than she could breathe in. Sokka looked up when she gasped, trying to force the words out of her mouth. She gestured wildly, pointing back at the way she had come.
"Yue, what's wrong?" Sokka asked, looking over her shoulder. "Why are you out of breath and where's Azula?" He grabbed her arms, shaking her gently when her chest began to heave. "Come on, Yue, I know you remember how to breathe."
"The Water Tribe!" The words exploded from her mouth and she let out a gasp of relief. "Katara and her army is attacking the Western Air Temple, Azula's holding them off!" She cried and pointed to Pavana and the other Air Nomads, "We have to get them out of here and we have to help Azula!"
Samira stepped forward and narrowed her eyes, "We're going to help you. Pavana and Angin are going to find Guru and get to safety. I'm going to fight." She glowered at the little airbender when she tried to protest, her voice softening, "Pavana the youngest airbender alive. We have to make sure she's safe. And we have to stop the Water Tribes from destroying our home a second time. Now let's go!"
Zuko caught Yue's shoulder as they rushed from the room. Angin and Pavana were headed in a different direction, to where the Guru's courtyard was, while they hurried towards Azula. "Yue," He said to her, "Is Azula alright?" He asked and Yue could see fear and genuine worry for his sister.
"Azula's strong," Yue said as they raced down the corridor, "She's not going to go down without a fight. She's not going to go down at all. She's one of the strongest people I know. She won't give up. You should know that better than anyone." She glanced at him from the corner of her eye as they ran.
The Fire Nation prince seemed to slow for a moment, as if thinking about it. "Yeah," His voice was quiet and Yue barely heard him, "I should."
Yue called the water from her canteen to her as she burst into the courtyard. The Water Tribe soldiers had begun to force their way up the stairs and they met no resistance. Her friends poured out of the hallway, throwing themselves into the battle.
The Northern Water Tribe princess cried out, scanning the courtyard for Azula. There she was forcing her way across the courtyard with streams of blue fire. She was facing an auburn haired girl, who was deflecting her blows with war fans. Suki.
A female soldier lunged at her and Yue ducked, bringing up a whip of water that wrapped around the dark haired woman's waist. She cried out in surprise, struggling to get free as Yue raised both of her arms, throwing the soldier into two others that were hurrying to her aid.
Where's Katara?
The ground rattled underneath her and Yue turned quickly to see Toph forcing the earth up. She clenched her fists and then unclenched them, throwing a jab into the air. The earth followed her command, smashing in several soldiers and sending them tumbling back, sliding down the stairs.
The stairs.
"Toph!" Yue cried and the younger girl snapped her head around to face her. "Flatten the stairs!" The tribal princess scanned the crowd for Mai and Samira. They caught her eye and she pointed in Toph's direction, praying they got the message. Her heart skipped a beat when they did, leaping over to the earthbender's side.
Sokka and Zuko were fighting back to back. The Fire Nation prince lashed out with barrages of fire while Sokka beat off the soldiers that came too close. Yue sidestepped as a Water Tribe warrior slide by her, yelping when she turned the ground under his feet to ice.
The moon was rising, peaking over the top of the mountains as they fought. Yue cast a glance at it, silently whispering a prayer before her feet nearly slipped out from under her. The white haired teenager let out a cry of surprise as ice climbed up her legs and she brought her hand down, casting it back into water and narrowing her eyes.
Part of her expected to see Katara, but instead she saw an elderly woman glaring at her. Yue thought she recognized her from somewhere and she forced her brain to recall where she had seen the woman. In Ba Sing Se. She had been an ally of Katara's the whole time.
From behind the woman came the Southern Water Tribe princess, her features strangely calm. "Princess Yue," she said, "It is quite the pleasure to see you again." A smile spread across her lips, "Under unfortunate circumstances, but the full moon is rather beautiful. Wouldn't you agree, Hama?"
Hama. The name came surging back and Yue looked at the old woman. She had been Katara's old tutor when she was younger. Yue wondered how many from her past had sided with the Southern Water Tribe princess. Then she remembered that to them, she was the enemy. She was the traitor. She had the perfect life and she threw it away.
There was a collective shout as the rest of the soldiers clambering up the stairs began to slide back down, clawing for a hold against the suddenly smooth rock. Yue looked to see them tumbling back against each other and their beasts, screaming when they were clawed or thrown roughly. Toph was standing near the first remaining step, her arms stretched out on either side of her body.
Yue turned back to face Katara and she found that she wasn't afraid. You don't have to be afraid. She narrowed her eyes and called the water to her from the fountain, holding it at ready. Her muscles twitched, screaming to bend and she looked at the moon. She wasn't afraid. She really never had been. She didn't had to be afraid, not now. Not ever. There was a war raging her and now she wanted to show the world the real Yue.
She lashed out with an ice-tipped whip in the younger princess's direction, following by a jet of water that she drew from the fountain. Katara ducked and caught the next blast of water, turning in a quick circle as she sent it back at Yue in the form of glinting blades of ice.
The Northern Water Tribe princess winced she didn't move fast enough and one of the blades grazed her cheek, drawing a thin line of blood. She moved to the side, raising her hands above her head and swinging them in a slow, elegant circle before directing the water at Katara. Yue ducked low before the younger girl could retaliate, guiding the rest of the water over her shoulders in a whip.
It knocked Katara back a few steps and she slid, pressing her heels into the earth. A few strands of her hair had been knocked loose and the girl bared her teeth in a savage snarl. "I'm going to destroy you, Yue." She growled and made a grabbing motion, spreading her fingers and snapping her wrists forward.
Yue threw up a shield of ice as Katara's wickedly sharp blades slammed into it, causing thin cracks to run along the sides. If she had been fast enough, if her reflexes hadn't been quick enough, they would have hit her face. She was certainly that she wouldn't have been able to rise from that.
Out of the corner of her eye, Yue could see Azula leaping into the air, swinging her leg in an arcing kick that brought cerulean fire down between Yue and Katara. The Fire Nation princess landed at Yue's side, looking up at her with a smirk. To Yue, she seemed as if she had just walked out of a spa instead of a battle. Not a hair was out of place.
"So," Katara glared at Azula, "I suppose Suki wasn't enough for you?" She asked and Yue turned her head quickly to see Suki engaging in battle with Ty Lee, throwing angry blows at each other. "Very well, it's about time someone's come to help little Yue." She smirked and sidestepped with Azula threw a disk of fire at her head. "It's a full moon and you still need help, Yue."
Yue bared her teeth and turned her ice shield back into water, lunging forward. "I'm tired of you!" She snapped and held the water out to her side, forcing her feet to push her into the air. She brought the water down in a great wave, letting out a wordless shout of anger. She crashed down upon Katara, grabbing the Southern Water Tribe girl by the shoulders and rolling towards the pillar that supported this part of the temple.
In the moonlight, Hama appeared, but Yue didn't care about that. She scrambled to her feet away from Katara, pressing her back against the pillar as the younger princess climbed slowly, calmly to her feet. The full moon seemed to hum behind her, vibrating against her skin and calling to her.
"You're tired of me, Yue?" Katara asked, even though Yue couldn't see her from where she crouched. "But Yue…why?" Her voice had lowered into a pitiful whine. "You can't be tired of me, Yue. I know you've done a bad thing, Yue, but I can forgive you. I need your help."
Yue dared poked her head around the pillar and a spear of ice nearly ran through her forehead. She gasped and pressed herself against the column, her heart racing in her chest as a few strands of hair floated to the ground. She had to get back to the others, back to Sokka and Azula, and Aang. Aang!
The Northern Water Tribe princess rolled forward, scrambling to her feet when Katara turned. She let out a shriek and she found that she was afraid. She was afraid. The white haired waterbender propelled her body across the stone, falling on her knees when Katara swept ice under her feet.
"You're a treasonous liar, Yue. Haven't you done enough damage?" Katara asked and Yue laid still, her hands stretched out in front of her. She could hear the younger waterbender approaching slowly, her steps crunching against the ice. She knelt next to Yue's head and grabbed her hair, lifting her face from the ice, "But you can still change. I still have hope for you, you know."
Yue turned quickly, thrusting her palm into Katara's face and pushed herself to her feet. She looked over her shoulder to see Katara racing after her, blue eyes blazing with seething hatred. The older princess nearly cried out in relief until she saw Hama.
Something was wrong.
Something was oh so wrong.
Hama's gnarled fingers were held up, her hands contorted in some kind of disturbing position. Her face was wrinkled in a savage snarl and her fingers twitched ever so slightly. Yue followed the direction of her glare, catching sight of her friends.
Azula let out a cry when she saw Yue, her eyes wild with what looked like fear and alarm. "I can't move!" She cried and Yue could see her limbs twitching and trembling. "That witch is controlling me!" She was bent forward awkwardly, one arm in front of her and the other behind her back. "She's controlling us!"
"Behold, Princess Yue, this power." Hama said and Yue looked at her friends, screaming and trembling in pain. "This is the power that moon has given us. Bloodbending." The elderly woman moved one hand across the other and Yue saw Aang's body move to almost crash into Zuko's. "It lives in you, too, Princess Yue. You are, no matter how much you run, just like us."
Yue turned. Her friends. Her friends were in pain, their own bodies being used against them and she could do nothing to help. Hama was bending the very blood inside of them, subduing them all without a fight. She let out a choked scream as something in her tightened and Yue decided that this was ultimate pain she could ever feel. Her body was forced forward, onto her knees.
Katara came around to the front of her, her hands curled in the same grotesque way that Hama's was. Out of the corner of her eye, Yue could see Suki looked out almost in disgust at the move. Katara tightened her fist ever so subtly and Yue wished she could grasp her chest, where the pain intensified. "I guess you know what it's like now, when no one helps you! Or when everything you do is to no effect." She narrowed her eyes. "Smile, Yue! Smile and tell all of your friends what they need to know."
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Yue cried as Katara forced her to her knees.
"Don't lie, Yue." Katara said and her hold on Yue's blood loosened just a bit. "You never really left the Water Tribe. We came up with the plan before you left Ba Sing Se. You said you were going to get the inside information on the Fire Nation, so we can win the war. You said you hated the war and you wanted to end it." Her eyes glittered, "You said you wouldn't leave me."
Azula gasped and Toph growled, even though they were powerless and immobile. Yue looked pleadingly at them, her eyes wide. "I never said any of that!" She cried and turned her head to look at the full moon, shining down upon them. Please, Moon Spirit, I need you. "You have to believe me! She's lying!"
Something in her burst, then, and flooded through her veins. Yue let out a gasp and glared at Katara, fighting against the waterbender's control as she forced herself to her feet, her knees shaking with the effort. Katara's fingers twitched and she pushed Yue back down, snarling, but Yue decided she would not go easily. She pushed against Katara's bloodbending, crying out when her body seemed to wrap around itself.
"Get down, Yue!" Katara growled and Yue could see she was struggling to maintain control, narrowing her eyes.
"No." Yue said, grabbing Katara's wrist. "I said no." She turned to face Hama, her teeth bared in a primal snarl. "Let go of my friends!"
Hama exchanged a look with Katara and then nodded. "Yes, Princess," she said, "I'll let your friends go." She relaxed her hands and Yue could see her companions letting out sighs of relief. Yue moved to release her hold on Katara's arm, but then things seemed to move too quickly. She caught sight of Hama bringing her right hand back, as if to strike something, and she heard a shout of pain.
Aang.
The young Avatar flew through the air, slamming into the wall and sliding down it in a sort of way that made Yue feel sick. He lay motionless on the damp ground, one hand stretched out by his head and his newly shaven head glistening. He didn't move. He didn't move! Yue's mind screamed until she silenced it.
No. Please, no.