The Avatar Abandoned
Summary: Aang wasn't frozen for 100 years, he wasn't even born in the Eastern Air Temple. He was born into a family of travelling Air Nomads who were living in the Earth Kingdom of Ba Sing Se. However, when he was five, his parents discovered him playing with little figures made of fire; even though he was an Air Bender. Knowing their son could only be the Avatar - the first in over 100 years, they panicked and abandoned him in the Fire Nation, hoping they would never have to see him again.
Chapter Summary: In which Aang meets the Blind Bandit and Sokka and Zuko have a falling out. (Based on Book 2: Chapter 6 - The Blind Bandit)
Warnings: AU/AR, slash, Zukaang, possible rating increase.
A/N: Whoop, more updates! And I may not be so swift in updating, my computer has an STD and it needs sorting. T^T Feel pity for me and my infected computer! Another excuse is that I really can't write romance at the moment seeing as I have been going through a rough patch in my own romance life. So yeah. Pity again.
Also, I'd just like to say YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME! We made 50 reviews with the last chapter! The next goal is 100 reviews, haha! The lemon I promised will have to be in later chapters, sorry. I kind of added in a few extra chapters without meaning to. No clue how I managed it, though. So yeah. Weirdness, heh.
Thanks to the following people for reviewing!
I LUV SETH - I thought I made Sokka kinda OOC, glad you didn't think so! ^^
noien-sama - Thank you so much!
PonyboySlashLover - Yeah, I wondered that too. I guess cause it's unusual for two boys to be travelling together or something. :/
xx-just a reader-xx - I don't like you. AND I CAN'T BELIEVE I ADDED IN ANOTHER CHAPTER BY ACCIDENT!!!!
'Right,' Sokka said, taking charge. They had landed in the Earth Kingdom a few minutes ago and after making sure Appa was safe, they had headed into a village to pick up some supplies, and, in Aangs case, a few tips on Earth-Bending. 'We'll all get the supplies we need first and then we'll go looking for any Earth-Benders, okay?'
Zuko snorted slightly, managing to mask it as a cough under Aangs reproachful stare. 'Okay then!' Aang said cheerfully. 'We'll meet back here in an hour or so, then?'
'What? No!' Sokka spluttered, but Zuko and Aang had already wandered off.
' ... You do realise they'll be gone pretty much all day, from the looks of things?' Katara asked her brother. (1)
'Of course I do!' Sokka snapped back. 'Oh, well, we might as well go and find something to eat while we're here.'
Katara rolled her eyes at Sokka. She would be the one to get stuck with him.
Aang and Zuko were wandering through the streets aimlessly, not really looking for any particular object or item, just glad to be alone together.
'So, any ideas what to do?' Aang asked, interupting the comfortable silence that had grown between the two. Zuko shrugged and opened his mouth to reply, why a man jumped infront of them, brandishing a bunch of leaflets.
'Hello there, Sirs - Ahhh!' He broke off with a shriek and dropped his leaflets as Zuko bunched his shirt in his hands. It was the same guy as the one back before they went to the circus. 'Don't hurt me!' he squealed, dropping the leaflets and throwing his hands up to protect his face.
'You again!' Zuko snarled, pushing the guy into a wall. Aang looked in interest at the leaflets scattered across the floor.
'Master Yu's Earth-Bending Academy?' Aang muttered curiously, stooping to pick one up. He glanced over at Zuko who was still threatening the Leaflet Guy. Sighing he poked Zuko in the ribs. 'Leave the Leaflet Guy alone, he's only doing his job,' Aang said before wandering off down the street. Zuko shot one last glare at the Leaflet Guy and dropped him, the man sliding into a heap on the floor. Snorting, the ex-Prince hurried after Aang.
'Can we check this out please?' Aang asked Zuko in a pleading voice. 'This Yu might be the guy I need to teach me Earth-Bending!'
Zuko looked at the leaflet with his eyebrow raised. 'If we do go and see 'Master Yu' then have you got enough money to pay him? I doubt he teaches for free,' Zuko said, sceptically.
'I don't need money,' Aang replied smugly. 'There's a coupon on the back and it says the first lesson's free!'
----
Zuko was watching the lesson in interest. He hadn't had much chance to see Earth-Benders in action, seeing as this was the first time he had ever left the Fire Nation in his life. Aang was in a dark green earthbender training uniform and a round helmet - much to the younger boys distaste. Zuko had laughed outright when he had seen they other boys Aang was to be doing the lesson with. They were all younger than the Air-Bender by about three or four years and smaller than he was by a head. However, they all stood like statues, looking forward, and Zuko couldn't help but be slightly impressed by this obvious show in discipline. Zuko chuckled into his hand when he saw Aang hurridly copy them as Yu returned.
Aang was nervous. This didn't seem like such a good idea afterall. For one, he was back in ugly yellow and green clothes with a stupid hat to cap it off. Second, there were three other boys in his row and they were all stood opposite another row of boys - except that row all had rocks. Really big rocks that were more like boulders than rocks. And his row had nothing to defend themselves with.
'Take your stances,' Yu snapped.
Aang looked around confused as all the other boys took the same stance. He opened his mouth to say he had no idea what to do, but Yu cut him off.
'Now, strike as if you're punching through your opponents head!' he continued loudly, striking a pose.
Aang looked alarmed for a second, and started to raise his hand to say something, but before he could say anything, the boy opposite Aang kicked the boulder into the air and then chucked it across at him. The rock hit the Air-Bender square in the chest and knocked him backwards into a large ceramic pot across the grounds of the Academy. The pot exploded in an impressive cloud of dust and clay fragments. Master Yu approached Aang purposfully as Zuko tried to stop himself from laughing out loud and offending the winded Avatar.
'So,' Yu said with a large smile plastered across his face. 'Are you ready to commit to more lessons? If you pay for the whole year in advance, I'll bump you up to the next belt.'
Aang, buried in the rubble, just groaned in response as more debris slid down over him.
----
About twenty minutes later, both of the boys had left the Academy, Aang back in the brown slacks and orange tunic that he had bought when they had first left the Fire Nation.
'Well, that was a waste,' Aang grumbled, brushing some left-over bits of rock and dust from his hair.
'I don't know,' Zuko replied, grinning. 'I thought it was pretty good.' Aang punched him in the ribs, a sour expression on his face, smirking slightly as the ex-Prince let out an 'ouch' and rubbed his side.
Sokka and Katara turned around the corner and Sokka marched up to them, glaring. 'Where have you been? We've been looking for you two everywhere!' he scowled.
'Since when did you become our mother?' Zuko retorted, glaring at the Water Tribe boy.
Sokka snapped something in reply, but Aang had stopped paying attention. Two of the boys from the Academy were walking past, talking loudly.
'I think The Boulder is gonna win back the belt at Earth Rumble 6,' the first kid said, gesturing wildly.
The second boy snorted. 'Yeah, right. He's gonna have to fight his way through the best Earth-Benders in the world to even get a shot at the champ.'
Aang ran over to the boys, pushing through an arguing Sokka and Zuko. 'Excuse me, but where is this Earth-Bending tournament held, exactly?' he asked them politely.
The first student looked down at Aang for a moment, before he replied. 'It's on the Island of Noneoya – none o' ya business!' he said as both he and his friends laughed loudly and walked off, obviously pleased with themselves.
Aang scowled as Zuko, Sokka and Katara walked up behind him, Sokka laughing. Katara and Zuko just looked pissed at the boys.
Sokka wiped a tear from his eye as he stopped laughing. 'Ha, ha! None o ya business - I got to remember that one,' he muttered, still grinning.
Katara smiled and puts her hands on Aangs shoulder, not noticing the glare that Zuko shot at her.
'I'll take care of this,' she said in a comforting tone, again missing Zukos glare and Aangs slight look of annoyance at being babied.
Katara ran after the two boys who were turning down an alley, waving her hand in the air. 'Hey strong guys, wait up!'
Zuko and Aang shared a look, while Sokka was examining a bag he had bought. 'You know, I really don't need this bag, why did Katara let me buy it?'
Katara came back around the corner. 'Look what I got! Two tickets to go and see Earth Rumble 6!' she said proudly.
'How'd you get them to give up their tickets?' Zuko asked suspiciously as Aang just snatched them delightedly.
'Oh, a girl has her ways,' she said, smiling.
Back in the alley the two boys were frozen to the wall in shock - and in a hefty amount of ice.
(1) I'd just like to say, that Katara and Sokka don't know that Zuko and Aang are together, they just think that they're very good friends ... or something. Katara has her suspicions though.
A/N: Yay, chapter finished! Awesome win! The rest of the episode in in the next chapter, so come back later! I thought it would be good to end it there, because I just love that bit on the episode, haha. Katara does kick some Earth-Bender butt, heh.
Also, I owe many thanks to avatarspiritmedia(dot)net! They have all the transcripts from the Avatar episodes and they have been MUCH help with this chapter as I can't watch the episodes on my laptop. Diseases on your hardware arn't fun! Make sure they use protection when interfacing with other hardware! There are many bad things out there, haha!