The Highest Bidder

Chapter Twenty-Three: The Case of the Missing Lotus Tile

Katara was frightened when her eyes fell upon Zuko, and she struggled to pry his hands off her. It was quite impressive to see a girl fight him for once, though I could tell that he steadily grew impatient.

"Ah," Zuko grunted in frustration; he shoved the Water Tribe girl to me, and I caught her as she started to fall into the shallow end of the river. "You take her." He grumbled something about "Stupid peasants…Interrupting my missions…Always something."

"Come on, let's go," I sighed, gathering Katara's wrists in my hands.

She waited for Zuko and the other pirate to walk out of ear-shot to speak.

"You know," she snapped irritably, "for a girl that argues a lot with that jerk, you seem to obey him whenever he bosses you around."

"That's because that jerk is my superior officer," I said bitingly into her ear. "Now shut up and walk." I shoved her forward.

We continued to walk to the river side.

"What are you?" she said desperately. "You can't be Fire Nation; you're not a bender. I've seen what you can do. You don't have to use your powers to capture Aang. He's good; the Fire Nation only wants to destroy—"

"I know what the Fire Nation wants," I snapped at her, pulling her arms toward me. She gasped when I pulled too hard. "I know what the Fire Nation has done; I know what they're capable of. Prince Zuko is my superior officer, and he's also—"

"But you know that Aang is good, he's a monk. Why are you threatened by him?"

"Shut. Up," I said angrily.

I stamped hard on the back of her heel, and she cried out in evident pain. Zuko's attention was drawn to us as I pushed Katara against the trunk of a small tree. Zuko handed me a line of rope. I stayed in front of Katara; her bright, blue eyes widened as the rope left my hand and swept behind her, wrapping around her wrists over and over again.

"Why have you kidnapped me?" demanded Katara. "What have I done?"

Prince Zuko approached her.

"You're traveling with the Avatar. I know he is with you."

"No," said Katara, "no, I left them back in the woods. I went off on my own. I don't know where they are."

Prince Zuko glanced at me; I shook my head.

"My Commander," said Zuko in a silky drawl "disagrees. She can tell when a person is lying. You are lying to me. Tell me where he is, and I won't hurt you or your brother."

"Go jump in the river!" Katara snapped fiercely.

"Zuko," I said, rather impressed, "she's not going to tell us anything. She's been traveling with Avatar Aang for nearly as long as I've known you; her loyalties are—"

"My loyalties," Katara interrupted me brutally, "are to Aang, and there's nothing you can say or do that will make me tell you where he is."

"Oh, don't tempt me," I hissed, throwing a finger up in her face.

"Mura," said Zuko. He brought a hand to my shoulder and held me back, pulling me out of Katara's face. He pondered something momentarily. In the silence of the forest, a toot from the ship emitted gently. Red fluttered in the air and perched on my shoulder.

Katara's expression hardened when she saw it for some reason.

Zuko's voice softened, trying to reason with her,

"Try to understand. I need to capture the Avatar to restore something that I've lost: my honor. Perhaps," he said, circling the small tree to which she was bound, "in exchange, I can restore something that you've lost."

Zuko withdrew a necklace; the stone was engraved with Water Tribe inscriptions, which was made by a betrothed as a wedding present. Zuko held it in front of Katara's neck to show her what he meant. Shock moved across Katara's features. As Zuko walked away, she became agitated.

"My mother's necklace… How did you get that?"

"I didn't steal it, if that's what you're wondering. Tell me where he is."

"No!"

I made a face palm to my forehead, and I immediately regretted doing it; I forgot that I sported scars from the incident in the Fire Temple. The captain of his pirate crew rolled his eyes; he was impatient.

"Enough of this necklace garbage. You promised the scroll!"

As the captain reached for the scroll that was kept kempt in my belt, I waved it from my body; and it hovered into Zuko's outstretched hand.

"All good things," I taunted with obvious relish, "to those who wait."

"Girl, you're irritating me…" the captain started to come toward me with evident threat; however Zuko intervened on my behalf. He produced the scroll in one hand, and in the other, he made a fire in the palm underneath it.

"I wonder," he said warningly, "how much this is worth."

As the flames barely licked the Waterbending Scroll, the pirates—including the captain—gasped and some cried 'no!' The captain stepped away from me, and Zuko's handful of flames extinguished.

"Apparently a lot," he drawled. He tossed me the parchment, which I slipped into the holster of my belt like before. "Now you help me find what I want, you'll get this back, and everyone goes home happy. Search the woods for the boy and meet back here."

The Pirate Captain gritted his teeth, but he didn't challenge him.

"Fine," he said sullenly.

The pirates retreated into the woods. Zuko stepped away for a few minutes to go into the ship for a cup of tea. He ordered for me to keep an eye on the Water Tribe peasant. That left Katara, Red, and me standing by the river side.

Katara frowned at me.

"I still don't think that you should be helping the Fire Nation," she said grudgingly.

"For a peasant, you certainly can't keep your mouth shut," I retorted, sitting in the dirt.

"You don't even look like the Fire Nation type."

"I didn't know that there was a look," I said coldly.

Katara leaned her head back against the tree trunk. For a moment we were blanketed by silence.

"You must think," I said, "that because you and I are both women, it's easy for you to talk to me. Well, don't mistake my kindness for weakness."

"Kindness? You tied me to a tree."

"And you think that's the worst I can do?" I said, laughing slightly. "You really don't know who I am, do you?"

"I don't have to know who you are to know that you're a cruel person who wants to see the world burn. I thought telekinetics were supposed to be gentle people."

"Ah, so you do know a few things, hm?"

"Apparently, you don't."

I quirked an eyebrow at her.

"Well, you're spunky, I give you that one," I sighed. "It's better to see that the Waterbenders still can go down swinging."

"What are you talking about?" she snapped.

"Well," I reasoned, "the last time the Fire Nation visited the South Pole; it was to destroy the last of the Waterbenders. Looks like they missed one, hm?"

Her eyes slightly widened.

"I'm also smart," I added. "Just so you know."

"Yeah, well, for somebody who's smart, you really don't know who the real hero is around here. Aang is supposed to be creating world peace. How can that happen if your boyfriend is hunting him all the time?"

"There is no such thing as world peace," I said strongly.

"There won't be if you hunt him. You have an amazing ability, but you're just helping the Fire Nation rule over the Four Nations if you don't use your powers to help Aang. You're supposed to be good. You're supposed to help. Even if you're a witch—"

I exploded,

"I'M NOT A WITCH!"

The tree to which Katara was bound vibrated furiously against the ground.

I realized that I was losing control again, and I turned away from Katara to attempt to relax. Red, who had been perched on my shoulder, cried out in dismay and agitation, flapping his wings rambunctiously.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I said quickly, grabbing him out of the air. "Sorry…Sorry…"

Katara's eyes stared at me in obvious shock.

"See," she said, "why can't you do that when you're not chasing us?"

"Because my loyalties lie with Prince Zuko."

"Why?" Katara demanded. "Because he's Fire Lord Ozai's son? Because he'll kill you if you don't threaten a few people or burn down a town? What's wrong with you?"

"Don't try to talk to me about things you don't understand," I argued temperamentally. "You don't know anything. Just shut up until the pirates come back with your friends."

"Why are you working with the pirates anyway?" said Katara, pressing on.

"I told you to shut up."

"But—"

"HUSH!"

Katara's tree trembled again.

"Damn it," I hissed. "You're making me lose my temper…"

Red cried out in protest. I had to duck as he attempted to attack my face with his razor sharp talons. Zuko returned to us after a few minutes, and he came upon me with a few extra scratches than before. He gave me a look, which I returned with a gesture for him not to ask. I simply pointed to Red, who was sleeping cheerfully on my shoulder, calm and collected as a meadow vole.

It was mid-morning when the pirates finally returned to the river side, and their search had been successful. They had caught Sokka and Aang with large fishing nets; both boys were alarmed at their predicament, and they stared in astonishment to see Katara bound against the tree. As the pirates bound Sokka and Aang by their wrists, a well-rested Iroh strode merrily beside Katara, a simple expression on his face.

As was the bargain, I handed the scroll to Zuko, who was ready for the transaction. The pirates stood perpendicular to the Fire Nation. Because I didn't trust pirates, I sensed that whether or not they obtained the scroll or if we managed to grab the Avatar, both sides were going to be in a grand fight, which I was looking forward to all night.

"Nice work," Zuko said sincerely.

Katara and Aang glanced at each other with similar worried expressions. She was limp from standing all night.

"Aang, this is all my fault," she whimpered.

"No, it's not, Katara."

Iroh leaned in toward her and said,

"Yeah…It kind of is…"

Katara eyed him strangely.

I chuckled to myself. Zuko and the Pirate Captain faced one another. Even at this point, I knew that there was going to be a difficult impasse.

You know what I'm talking about, all of you.

"Give me the boy," said Zuko.

"You give us the scroll," the Captain replied.

It would have probably went on like that, though I highly doubt that the pirates would have never learned that Aang was the Avatar or that they would have realized that a Fire Nation didn't have any use for the scroll if Katara's brother would have kept his mouth shut.

Sokka opened his mouth,

"You're really gonna hand over the Avatar for a stupid piece of parchment?"

Zuko pointed to Sokka,

"Don't listen to him! He's trying to turn us against each other!"

The captain looked at Aang.

"Your friend is the Avatar?"

Sokka wriggled out of the pirates' hold and scooted beside the captain.

"Sure is, and I'll bet that he'll fetch a lot more on the black market than that fancy scroll."

"Shut your mouth, you Water Tribe peasant!" Zuko said, becoming livid.

Aang poked his head out from the captain's side, concerned,

"Yeah, Sokka, you really should shut your mouth…"

"I'm just saying," said Sokka, "it's bad business sense. Just imagine how much the Fire Lord would pay for the Avatar. You guys would be set for life!"

And just as I expected, the Pirate Captain nonchalantly looked at Zuko and waved his hand,

"Keep the scroll! We can buy a hundred with the reward we will get for the kid."

The pirates started to walk away.

Zuko's face tinged pink.

"You'll regret breaking a deal with me!"

Zuko and the guards that were on either side of him unleashed a torrent of flame, which bathed the ground underneath the pirates, who all jumped out of the way. And thus, general melee was born. The Pirate Salesman, Barker, jumped into the midst of the Firebenders with a war cry. Prince Zuko and his men attacked Aang and Sokka to obtain them; but just as they attempted to get near them, four pirates jumped in the way to defend their captives. I stepped in front of Zuko and pulled invisible ropes; the legs of the four pirates were jerked madly, and they fell to the ground in disbelief.

My Messenger Hawk cried out madly and left my shoulder; from the small tree, a ring-tailed lemur was chomping down on Katara's bonds, freeing her. Red went after the Avatar's pet lemur, named Momo. The pirates that I had tripped dropped smoke bombs and the battlefield instantly became a foggy mess.

"I love my job, I love my job," I said excitedly, feeling that adrenaline rush. "I like it, I like it!"

The Fire Nation soldiers approached the edge of the crowd outside the smoke and were drawn into the fight by arms of the pirates from the fog. A pair of arms grabbed me around my neck and raised me off the ground, and I gagged from the fierce grip. I kicked and writhed in the arms of my captor, and as I punched him in the gut, I felt the pang of armor.

"Whoops," I said, looking at Lt. Jee. "Sorry…"

From the fight, the Avatar was running through the smoke. Although I couldn't see him, I knew that the tense vibration of a fast wit and the light pair of feet was the Avatar. He was all over the place, and I could feel him around me. Without little thought, I flew invisible hands all over the place, grabbing legs, arms, and clothing all around me.

"Aang," cried out Sokka's voice, "are you there?"

"I'm over here!"

"Where?"

"I'm right here!"

He bended a gust of wind to separate the fog. When he did, he was surrounded by spears and swords, right in the middle of the battlefield. Realizing this, he returned to the smoke to its state and retorted,

"Never mind, I'll come find you!"

Becoming irritated, I flew through the foggy mess and found Zuko and the Pirate Captain fighting: Firebending vs. Sword. They faced off; but no one was gaining any advantage. As Zuko fought with the captain, a whip flew in the air and lassoed the scroll from out of Zuko's belt harness.

I pulled the length of nine tails with an invisible hand and pulled hard; the pirate attached the other side cried out in surprise and landed, face first, into the shallow end of the ocean. The Waterbending Scroll floated toward me; before I could grab it, the Pirate captain slammed into me with full force and shoved me into the river as well.

The captain's iguana parrot snatched it out of the air, screeching triumphantly. Then the Avatar's flying lemur coerced it; they fought while flying. Red came into sight, and he screeched malevolently, grabbing the Waterbending Scroll from the pair that were fighting. The two realized that Red had escaped with it, and the three of them squabbled, landing hard in the sand.

The Pirate Captain came toward me with his sword raised over me, ready for a triumphant strike.

Disoriented from landing so bluntly in the water, I looked up wearily to see it. The sword came down—

WHOOSH!

A huge torrent of hot flames scorched above me. I looked behind the pirate captain, and Zuko's face was livid with rage. He threw blast after blast, and it backed the pirate captain away from me. Realizing that the captain had just tried to kill me, I grew furious instantly.

Water surged around me.

The pirates and the Fire Nation soldiers stopped fighting as the water fell over them with an avalanche of salt water.

That's right about the time when I realized that Aang, Sokka, and Katara were gone. Zuko and the Captain's fight was rudely interrupted by an agitated General Iroh.

"Are you so busy fighting that you cannot see that your own ship has set sail?"

"We have no time for your proverbs, Uncle!" Zuko said combatively.

Iroh pointed in my following gaze,

"It's no proverb."

The pirate captain's mouth dropped as his ship literally sailed downriver.

"BLEEDING HOG-MONKEYS!"

He took off in that general direction.

Zuko burst out in hilarious laughter.

To our left, Zuko's ship followed the pirate ship, loaded with pirates. To my disturbing account, one of the pirates mooned us as the ship passed us by.

"Hey!" Zuko said, taking off. "That's my boat!"

Iroh scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"Hm…Maybe it should be a proverb…"

Zuko called,

"COME ON, UNCLE!"

We chased after them, though I'm not too sure what we would have done if we caught up. I mean, really; we were on the shore and they were in the middle of the river. However, karma must have paid off during our journey; for in the short while that Avatar Aang's crew fought off the pirates, both ships fell off the side of a gigantic waterfall. Aang's flying bison, Appa, flew below the waterfall to catch its falling masters. They flew off in the horizon. Zuko looked over the edge in dismay,

"My boat!"

Iroh and I struggled to catch our breath. Red perched on my shoulder, tired as ever.

I was slightly puzzled when I heard Iroh laughing to himself. I looked at him, curious to know what exactly was so funny, especially after what we had gone through that day.

He regained his breath and chuckled,

"Hehe, Prince Zuko, you're really going to get a kick out of this. The missing lotus tile was—" he produced it from his robes—"was in my sleeve the whole time!" he had a huge smile on his face.

Zuko, trying to control his breathing and temper, snatched it as fast lightning from Iroh's hand and pitched it fiercely off the edge of the waterfall.

"Well," I muttered, "at least we know that the white lotus tile is now in the river. So we won't have to search the Merchant pier again."

Zuko gave me an extremely annoyed look.