Sifu Arizony:You always leave me tongue tied. Mai is very misunderstood and its nice to show a new facet of what she could be. In some ways she is also liberating Aang. Her introduction was pretty sweet.
dhygn: I wanted realistic you know. Not "Oh my spirits, i love you Sokka and i love you Toph." I mean really who falls in love like that, well real love anyway. I know sharing is caring but that is going too far. I don't think Aang would like to share.
Shinobi Bender: I love Suki, I just don't see her with Sokka. She is still cool. I might end up doing two endings, I'm so conflicted.
MikeJCaboose: Hey, you're still reading right. That's all that counts, well that and you still liking it.
Sironblood1: Mai can be vindictive if she is really pissed. All that trouble to have her kill him. I think Aang might be ticked. "Dammit Mai, I just brought the guy back." "sorry Aang, my bad!". Don't tempt me.
EdwardTwilightObsession:I edited and lost a part. Yes that is a guy.
doctor anthony: You so keep me going.
See I told you I had the other piece. I reached 4,000 words with this chapter so I'm cutting it in two. I'll try to upload the second part tonight but I'm still a bit under the weather.
I might just hit thirty chapters. Darn I was shooting for 25.
Iroh followed Katara and Mai. All three were silent as they regarded the still body of Firelord Zuko.
"Zuko, I tried so hard." Iroh cracked unable to hold in the sorrow of having lost another son. Mai excused herself motioning to Katara.
Katara shook her head and moved to console the stricken man. Katara waited patiently as he tried to regain his control. He sniffed and bent to place a kiss on the body of the boy he had raised.
"He fought Aang didn't he."
Katara was ready to leap to Aang's defense but Iroh was apparently not going to condemn the nomad. "Before he left he told me what he was plotting. I cautioned him about using force against Aang. Not because of the avatar state but because the pain Aang's endured would make him more aggressive if pushed."
Katara brought out her pouch and coated the sheet that covered Zuko. The water absorbed into the body and not the blanket. Under Katara's tutelage it grew blue and then white. "Aang left and told us to care for the body. I do this everyday a couple of times a day. It keeps Z--his body preserved."
"Aang has gone to the spirit world to try to bring back Zuko. He's been gone four days now and there's still no sign if he has succeeded or not." the light receded from the body and Katara corked her pouch.
"Time in the spirit world is different than here. A day is but minutes there. I would know." Iroh replied.
"Can I ask for your advice?" Katara saw the small nod and she plunged into her predicament. "When Zuko got here he was so angry. I didn't see anything. I just heard and what I did see and hear…do you think Zuko really misses me or Mai?"
Iroh had not moved from his nephew's side but he looked at Katara and asked, "Do you want him to care about either of you? Would it make it easier if he didn't?" The young woman stared at him as if he had all the answers but he had no idea what to tell her.
"Not really."
He scratched his beard in hopes of some enlightenment. Finding none he turned to the waiting waterbender. "Zuko is a complicated person. He loves you and Mai in his own way. What that means only he can tell you. What is most important here is how you feel about him."
His words did no real effect on her worried face. Iroh patted her hand and led her from the makeshift altar. "We must return I have a feeling all of your questions will be answered today. Aang has returned and he is not alone." He threw one more look at his still nephew. "I will see you soon."
Several Hours Later
The sun was slowly descending into the ocean turning the normally blue depths into a kaleidoscope of colors. The beauty of the sunset was lost on all the temples occupants. Iroh had left several hours ago with momo when the sun had still been hanging in the middle of the sky.
Suki had attempted to keep their attention with the spy she had brought but once Mai had gotten what she could out of the petrified man, the group had lost interest.
"Hello Wai-Lei, I'm Mai and I want to know everything." Her smile anything but friendly.
"Do you think you can cooperate or will I have to drag things out of you." She had emphasized this by lightly dragging the tip of the dagger across the gag in his mouth.
In that moment it became apparent why Azula had recruited Mai.
The gag fell apart in Mai's expert hands and Wai-Lei spilled his guts afraid Mai would literally do it for him. 'Personally he thought the Firelord crazy for wanting this one back. There was a desire for blood in her and it showed clearly through her narrowed eyes.'
"Firelord Zuko contacted us six months ago. He had tried to locate your ladyship but had no luck with the pirates he had originally hired. He heard about a group of archers and sought us out. He met me personally at the Wild Borkypine," Wai-Lei swallowed nervously.
"He was recommended by a bounty hunter. She claimed he was looking for his lost fiancée. Of course we all assumed he meant Lady Katara." Wai-Lei let out a cough as Toph accidentally let a small pillar hit him in the gut.
Mai glanced at her but Toph shrugged, "Sorry. Nervous tick. I'll try to be careful." Sokka and Suki giggled into their hands but Mai ignored it.
"Keep going. How did you find me?"
"At first we looked for Lady Katara but then we found out she was still at the palace. We then began looking for you but nobody had any idea when you had actually left the palace." He grimaced as Suki tightened the rope painfully.
"There was a rumor that you had become acquainted with the Avatar." Wai-Lei tensed waiting for the next blow but he just got a hissed response from the angry girl.
"Acquainted…"
"No disrespect meant, Lady Mai. Most of the servants were loyal and refused to divulged that you had even been traveling with the Avatar. A man with cabbages told me that he has seen you atop the great flying beast that was always seen in the Avatar's company." Wai-Lei relaxed when Suki slackened the rope and he was able to sit up instead of laying face down on the ground.
"You haven't answered my question. How did you find me?" Mai growled, the knife cut through some of the ropes and she bound his hands and feet together leaving him curled in the shape of a crescent.
"We followed the monk. He stopped at all the air temples and then all over the earth kingdom. We had almost given up hope but then we saw him go to his volcanic home. We stayed with him until he left carrying some package and he came here." The spy relayed quickly, he didn't want to really hang around anymore.
Besides him and his men had gotten their gold. He wasn't going to get gutted for free. He'd seen first hand what this woman could do with her weapons.
Mai had stopped interrogating the man, she was thinking back. 'Package? What package had Aang brought with him. The robes. The air nomad robes. That was what it had been.'
"You been here for three months observing me." Mai turned and kicked the man down, "I can just imagine what you must have reported. How much of our privacy did you violate you scum sucking leech." Mai had dropped her knives and was now beating the man with her fists.
"What did you write to Zuko? What did you tell him? Did you write that I was sleeping with Aang? Did you tell him how we took swims at night? Did you write him about how he helped me conquer my fear of heights. Well did you?" Mai was restrained by Sokka, who pulled her away from the now unconscious and bleeding man.
The rest of the group had been stunned to see the composed girl break down but nobody more than Katara.
Mai wrenched herself from Sokka's arms ready to attack the man again. Sokka grabbed her a second time and she gave in. She didn't remain in his embrace, before long she yanked away from him and sat on the ledge of the courtyard, her back to them.
"I feel so violated. He was out there all along watching our every move. He saw private things and reported them to Zuko, who didn't give two shakes of a lemur's tail about me when he was messing around with Katara but I bet that changed real fast once he found out I was happy," Mai said bitterly.
"He took the last bit of sanctuary I had left." Mai dropped her head to her knees and sobbed quietly.
Katara could feel the group's eyes on her and she bowed her head not daring to contradict what Mai had discovered in her rage. "Did you know about the spies, Katara?" Suki asked.
"I had suspicions but nothing concrete. Zuko stopped telling me a lot of things a little after Mai left," she shrugged nonchalantly but inside her stomach was twisting with the urge to be sick. She was aware of how close her friend and former lover were but hearing it from the source was enough to make the food want to come back up.
Suki retied the unconscious man to a pillar out of the way and out of sight. If they didn't see him maybe they couldn't ponder just how much wrong had been done to all of them. For a while the crackle of the fire was all that was heard. Mai and Katara in their own personal torment.
"Uncle Iroh is back." Toph exclaimed out of the blue. The gang raised hopefully gazes as the former general meandered into their camp. He carried a sleeping Aang in his arms.
"Where was he? Is he ok?" Everybody clamored at once.
"One at a time." Iroh laughed. Mai grabbed a kettle and placed it on the fire. "Yes, tea would be much appreciated after such a long journey."
"Where did you find him?" Suki asked.
"He was by the ocean, the tide had returned both of them to us. Whatever Aang has undertaken has been done and he is very tired." Iroh yawned, "as am I. Maybe we should save the story and the tea for later."
The lateness of the hour suddenly became apparent and all the occupants yawned together and grinned. "I'll lead you to Aang's room." Mai said quietly. Iroh followed and they disappeared into the darkness.
"I can't wait to see what happens tomorrow." Sokka muttered sarcastically.
"Shut up, Sokka." Toph said leading her boyfriend away from the other girls and to their room. "Good night, guys," she waved.
Suki waved but Katara stared into the flames. Her face pensive. "How do you do it? Suki."
The question caught of her guard and she removed her hand from the kettle. "Do what?"
"How do you see Toph and my brother together? Does it hurt to see him with someone else?"
Suki sat across from Katara answering carefully, "Sokka and I were on our way out by the time he became interested in Toph, if you know what I mean."
Katara 's eyes flickered to the light and settled on Suki. "We drifted apart. I was always in Kyoshi and he was at southern water tribe or at one of the temples or at one of the earth kingdom's cities. The point is we didn't have a lot in common except for the fighting or the war." Suki rubbed her hands warming them on the fire.
"We were better friends than lovers and when he finally saw Toph and how much she cared for him, well it clicked. I understood because Sokka was always honest. Any move he made was after our relationship ended."
Katara flinched and raised her wet blue orbs to Suki's surprised brown ones. "Thanks Suki. I needed that. I know what to do now." Katara got up and left.
Suki put out the fire wondering what Katara had meant. She suddenly shared Sokka's view about what tomorrow would bring.
Aang's Room - Later that Night
It was still dark out when he finally opened his eyes. He remembered the beach and being carried by Iroh but after that nothing. 'I must have passed out.'
At first he almost pinched himself, 'Was he still dreaming?' He would have laughed aloud had it not been for the lateness of the hour. If he had been able to paint he would have for sure gotten this tableau. Everybody was in his room. He let his eyes adjust to the darkness to be certain. 'Yep everybody is here.'
Sokka was laying against the wall his arm curled around Toph, who had her neck bent at a very uncomfortable looking angle. 'He didn't envy her in the morning.' Suki was near the door and Iroh was on his back in the middle of the room, "Yes, Jasmine would be lovely."
Aang snickered. 'Dreaming of tea, I bet.'
Katara's pallet was close to his bed but there was no sign of Katara. Mai was laying next to him. 'Poor Mai, you look tired.' He tiptoed out of the bed not wanting to wake her from what he was sure was much needed sleep. He slid his tunic on, shivering in the cold room.
"She's in the prayer room, the one three doors down from my herb room." Mai guided. She rolled onto her side and away from him. He climbed back into the bed, "go back to sleep, I'll be back soon." He kissed her cheek affectionately then tiptoed to the door, closing it behind him.
Mai went back to sleep pretending the side next to her wasn't empty.
Aang followed the scent of Mai's herbs, they were much stronger than he remembered. Maybe after being in the spirit world the living world was more heightened. He counted the doors but it was obvious where Katara had been spending her night.
She was concentrating on putting a layer of water on Zuko's body. Her water seem to hum before it glowed then died out. "Dammit, why aren't you working." Katara flung the water and it hit the stone floor with a splash wetting her bare feet.
"Hey Katara." Aang greeted. Katara bended the water off the floor and into her pouch.
"Hi Aang. How are you feeling?" she asked.
"Like I've just returned from the spirit world," he smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. " I brought Zuko with me." Momo flew into the room and sat on Zuko's chest.
"That's not funny, Aang." Katara snapped.
"I'm not joking Katara. I was too weak after to carry Zuko so I had to use one of my animal spirits." Katara looked at him in confusion." Every avatar has a spirit guide. Roku had a dragon, Kyoshi had a platypus bear and Kouric had an otter penguin."
"Kouric? Was he the water tribe Avatar before you?" Katara asked.
Aang bended himself so he was hovering directly over Zuko. "Yeah, I have one but all the avatar's can part some of their energy to carry another. Appa is my animal guide but I can use some of my energy and Appa's for Momo."
"Does it drain you? Why do you need Momo? Why not just use Appa?"
"It does but Appa is too big for this. I need Momo because he is smaller plus he was available at the time. He is carrying Zuko's spirit. I only have a few more minutes before he is lost forever and I need to concentrate." Aang replied.
Katara's unease grew as Aang's tattoos glowed. His feet were planted on either side of Zuko and the power of the Avatar was digging the stone further into the ground. Momo flew directly into Aang's face. His white colored eyes looked directly into Momo's.
Momo's dark brown stripe lit up and he stiffened. Aang held Momo suspended over Zuko with one hand. His other hand splayed over Zuko's mouth. The light left Momo and the rabbit monkey toppled to the floor but Katara caught him before he hit.
The energy moved and traveled through Aang making his whole body shake as the radiant beam exited his fingertips and entered Zuko. Aang toppled as well but the Avatar state kept him suspended and lowered him until Aang could stand on his own.
Katara cradled Momo and stood next to Aang letting some of his weight lean against her, "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, just a little woozy." Aang replied. He swayed and righted himself as he approached the body.
The sheet slipped off the firebender's face and Zuko took his first breath.