Hey guys, sorry it's taken almost a month to update! I'm trying to juggles summer activities with writing lol. I hope everyone's enjoying the hot weather but if you're reading this now than obviously you're either inside or you have to be reading fanfiction wherever you go! Things are starting to come to the conclusion- but that's still a handful of chapters away so enjoy!
~th3rdhal3~
After a tiresome trek, we finally made it to the Western Air Temple. The nomads who lived there generations ago had built their homes on the under sides of cliffs. I had never seen structures like these before and the view was breathtaking. I wondered what it would have been like to see the air-benders thrive in this place.
We landed Appa in the heart of the abandoned dwelling which had an old fountain that was still running in the center. Haru, Teo and The Duke went to go explore; Zaida and Jin decided to go with them. I was the last to come down from the bison's saddle. Seeing as how it was the least I could do, I turned to ask Sokka how I could help unpack and such. Katara unleashed hell.
"Is there anything I can-" As I turned my head to gaze at the warrior boy, I felt a fist plow into the side of my mouth. Before I could so much as react, another hit rammed into my bad eye. I staggered back and raised my arms up in defense. Actually, it was more to check if my jaw was still in tact. I could feel liquid running down the corner of my mouth. Standing in front of me was the water-bender and she was unbelievably livid.
"You!" She shrieked at me, ready to strike again. "Lying! Pretentious! Secretive! Rrrgh!" I blocked all of her hits to the best of my ability but the girl continued to come after me.
"Katara, please. Let's not do this." I pleaded with her, but she ignored me.
"Don't tell me what to do!" She screamed at me and continued to pound me. I had seen Katara angry many times before but not to this degree. It worried me.
"Dammit, Katara! Will you let me explain?" She wasn't going to give me the time of day. The water-bender hit hard and my forearms were starting to hurt from the intense blocking.
"Explain what?" Katara kept right on attacking. "What you really are? How you've been lying to us this entire time?" The Water Tribe girl's words hit me hard and stung me. What you really are...Like she was implying that I was some kind of monster. As if I was some terrible beast that parents tell their children about at night. I was so caught off guard by my emotions that I didn't even attempt to stop Katara from knocking me down. "You won't even fight me!" She had taken the water from her pouch and hurled it at me. Of course I wouldn't fight her; I would never dream of striking Katara. I raised my arms to block the water whip but the impact pushed me back. I hopped back up to my feet as soon as I could in a defensive position. I realized how close I was to the cliff's edge so I carefully stepped closer to the fountain.
"Katara, please, just stop." I really didn't have a right to order her around but she needed to calm down before things got ugly. I wanted her to hear my side of the story but it looked like that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. The water-bender sent another whip at me that turned into ice. It hit the side of my left wrist and the force was enough to send my arm back. Shit! It hurt. I shook my hand out as I winced.
"Fight me!" Katara shouted. The scene became very familiar all of a sudden. "You wanted to wipe out the Water Tribe, didn't you? Well here's your chance!" I was devastated by the words that tumbled out of her mouth. "Fire-bend!" It was a definite deja vu`. It felt like the organs in my body shut down for a split second. The pounding in my ears returned. I felt the steam rise off my head and shoulders. I let the sudden emotion build up until I thought my head would pop off. I was done with serenity. All I felt was so incredibly angry in those few moments.
"Fire-bend...is that what you want?" I flexed my arms at my sides. The heat growing inside my fists was searing hot. White flames crawled up to my elbows. I pulled my arms back allowing the flames to rise. "IS IT?" I screamed at her. Aang's eyes widened as he took hold of his staff and Sokka held onto his boomerang a little tighter than usual. I took a step forward and then suddenly, my other foot wouldn't budge. I glanced down and saw that it was encased with Earth.
"You need to take a chill pill, sifu." My cousin said from a few feet away; no doubt she had been the one to stop me. Across from me, Sokka was restraining his sister from coming after me.
"What the hell has gotten in to you, Katara? She's like your best friend! And we've got bigger things to worry about at the moment." The warrior boy pointed out. I pulled my foot out of the ground but didn't advance any further. I was still pissed but I wasn't as riled up anymore. The cool down helped me see what I just did. I had almost fire-bended my girlfriend into oblivion.
Katara still fought against her brother's grip."You know, I didn't expect this from anyone-especially you." The water-bender stated. Though still enraged, her voice was a tad bit less hostile. "You said you were going to open up more-you said you were going to stop being so cryptic. " This was true. I had promised the girl that I would at least try. "I just wish you would have followed through and on that and told me the truth." She shook her head and turned away from me. My throat was dry but I took a deep breath and defended myself anyway.
"You want the truth?" It wasn't so much a question as it was clarification. "Fine. I'll tell you the truth." Aang and Sokka looked a little worried by the curtness and power in my voice. Katara crossed her arms and eventually looked at me again.
"I was born in the Earth Kingdom. I was taken from my home after our city was attacked. My step-father was a General and took me back to the Fire Nation to live with him. He taught me how to fight and how to fire-bend. I became well acquainted with the children of the Fire Nation- that's how I know Azula. I guess they thought I was a pretty good bender because not long after, Ozai appointed me as one of his Generals." I paused to let that part of my spiel sink in. "I didn't know what the hell I was doing- I was twelve years old. I was blind to reason and I was unaware that the war was wrong. Every nation thinks that they're right and at the time I believed that everything I was doing for my country was right.
Eventually I learned my true parentage and who I really was. After that, I succeeded from the Fire Nation. Then I found Toph and, well, I've been fighting for the Earth Kingdom ever since." Katara studied me silently for a few moments.
"Why should I trust you now? Why should we trust you after today?" I shrugged my shoulders.
"Because I'm being honest. I'm no longer one of them." I was sincere. Katara sighed; she wasn't quite as mad now. Then she laughed dryly.
"See you say that, but how do we know that's the case?" She questioned me. "You kept that part of your life pretty concealed until now. You could be trying to sabotage Aang's training. How do we know you didn't have ulterior motives from the get-go?" Sokka stroked his chin thoughtfully, and it seemed as though he was considering his sister's theory. I felt so alienated then, like I was no longer a part of their group. It hurt that Katara was interrogating me in such a way. It was if our relationship had completely faded away in mere hours.
"You better watch your accusations, miss priss." Toph stepped away from the pillar she was leaning against. "She's on our side, so chill." It was good to know that someone had my back.
"You mean this doesn't irk you at all, Toph?" Katara asked the blind girl. The small earth-bender scratched the back of her neck and sighed.
"Well, maybe it did!" The younger girl sounded as if she was hiding her innermost feelings on the matter. "But it doesn't change the fact that she's my cousin and my first true friend. I trust her with my life." The blind girl concluded. I turned my head to grin at Toph, even though she wouldn't see the expression. Maybe somehow she'd feel it.
Aang glanced back and forth at all of us. "I believe Karuna." He declared, which surprised me a little. "If she was really bent on stalling my training, she wouldn't have helped coach me alongside Toph. I mean, it was kind of a shocker that to find out what we did, but she grew up learning one way just as we all have. We can't blame her for that. And in all the time she's been with us, she's never given me a reason to doubt her loyalty to the team or the friendship that we have with her." I wanted to capture the avatar in a bone-crushing hug. His support of me warmed my heart and helped raise my spirit. The kid had a good head on his shoulders, he really did.
"Aang's right." Sokka agreed. "I'm not gonna persecute her for something she did a while back when she was someone else. I don't agree with it by any means, and it won't be something I'll forgive and forget overnight. Things might be different between all of us now-I already have this feeling. But we've gotta get it back to the way it was before. We can keep arguing back and forth but the real problem isn't going to be resolved." The older boy reminded us. "Right now, let's transition our focus on what has to happen next." The Water Tribe boy began to lead us towards a different part of the temple. The water-bender still glared at me with cold and calculating eyes. She then followed her brother. Oh boy.
The five of us sat on the stones that were placed to look like a meeting or gathering area. Toph sat on the tallest one, naturally, and Aang and I sat on one side while the Water Tribe siblings sat across from us. "Alright..." Aang broke the initial awkward silence. "What's the new plan?"
"The new plan is the old plan!" Sokka informed us. "Master all four elements and confront the Firelord before the comet shows up." That made perfect sense to me. We just needed to stick to our original goal.
"Oh sure. No problem. I'll get right on that." The avatar sarcastically remarked as he threw a small rock against the larger stones.
"No one said it was going to be easy, Aang." Katara pointed out from across the way. "We could go find Jeong Jeong." My ears perked up. Jeong Jeong. I had never met the man but I knew a great deal about him. He was infamous for deserting the Fire Nation army. I wondered how the group came across him in their earlier travels.
"It's not gonna even be possible!" The Air Nomad flopped on his back. "Sure, like we're ever going to run into Jeong Jeong again." He didn't seem even the least bit interested in the idea of searching for the fire-bending master. "Where am I going to find a fire-bending teacher out here?" At this, Sokka stared at the ground for a split second before glancing over at me. I made eye-contact with the boy and nodded. I cleared my throat.
"Ahem. Aang?" The air-bender looked left at me, then realization hit him. It was actually pretty humorous as I watched the light bulb switch on in his head.
"I can learn fire-bending from you!" He blurted out enthusiastically. I smiled a little bit at the excited air-bender. The boy sat down cross-legged and ceased his spaz attack. "That is, if you'll teach me." He added. I thought back to when I had promised myself that I would never fire-bend again. I shifted in my seat uncomfortably.
"I would like to Aang, it's just that I made myself a promise that I would never fire-bend after I left the Fire Nation." I hugged my knees into my chest.
"Yeah well you kind of broke that promise." Katara pointed out in the least subtle way possible. I had a feeling she would be angry with me for a long while. I looked down at the floor in silence because I knew she was right. Aang gave me a sympathetic look.
"When I was trying to learn from Jeong Jeong I ended up hurting someone, so I promised myself the same thing." I looked up at him. "I've been dreading learning how to fire-bend since then, but it's something I have to do. And I think you were meant to be my final teacher. The reason we found you and Toph was so that you could each teach me an element. If we're in this together, maybe it won't be so bad."
I thought about what he had to say. He was right; we were both destined to do this. And in order to fire-bend, one had to give up fear. I'd have to let go of all the pain and sorrow that I associated this element with so that I could follow through with this. I couldn't tell him no. The fate of the world was counting on him-and our decision was crucial to our victory. "I'll teach you." I responded. "You have to learn." The avatar jumped up and down in rejoice. Sokka was grinning from across the way and even Katara displayed a pleasant emotion.
All of a sudden, Toph hopped down from the stone. "That's gonna have to wait. We have company." She jerked her thumb behind her. Once Appa moved out of the way, we could see him as clear as day; the Fire Nation prince.
This wasn't the first time I was shocked to see Zuko somewhere. It was rather strange and surprising that we'd find him here at the Air Temple of all places. "Hello. Zuko here." He announced his arrival in a chipper voice. Instantly, everyone was on the defense. "I heard you guys arrive so I came to meet you here." The scarred boy said. The four were all ready to retaliate if needed until Appa began licking Zuko as if he were a long lost friend. This caused Aang to lower his staff. "Well, what I wanted to tell you guys is that I've changed and I'm good now." He began to explain. "Oh and I can teaching fire-bending to you." He looked at Aang.
"You can't possibly think that any one of us would trust you." Katara rounded on the prince. "After everything you've done." She did have a point there. I knew Zuko had good in him, but unfortunately that side of him was buried under the anger and hatred that consumed him since banishment.
Sokka agreed with his sister. "Yeah! All you've ever done was try to hunt us down and capture Aang! Besides, he's already got a teacher." The warrior boy nodded his head towards me. That's when Zuko noticed my presence.
"Sankari?" He actually recognized me this time. The prince slowly approached, as to not set off the others. I saved him the trouble and came over to where he was and embraced him. "The last time we saw each other...I...I'm sorry."
"It's okay. You didn't know." I reassured the conflicted boy. "What the hell are you doing here?" I asked him. My teammates eyed us with caution, and distaste. Zuko let go of me so he could further explain.
"I've done a lot of things in the past that I wish I could correct and I want to make up for them now. I want to help the avatar because now I know it's what's right." The prince then turned to my friends who were still in defensive positions. "It was wrong to try to capture you and I'm sorry I attacked the Water Tribe. And I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you. I'm trying to-" My eyes widened at this. So did everyone else's apparently.
"Wait a minute...you sent Combustion Man after us?" Sokka pointed his boomerang at Zuko. The prince tried to explain but Toph cut him off.
"That guy locked Katara, Karuna and I in jail and tried to blow us all up!" The scarred boy looked confused by the mention of the name 'Karuna' but he looked past that to try and find the right words to say to the little earth-bender.
"I'm so sorry!" The dark haired boy tried to apologize. "Like I said, it was wrong for me to-"
"He almost killed us on a train!" I complained, still in disbelief that it had been Zuko who had sent the powerful man after us. I knew the prince wanted to get to Aang but I didn't think he would go to that length. Aang lowered his head; he seemed almost sad.
"After everything you did? No. We're never letting you join us." I felt for the prince. He was finally turning his life around but we had rejected him. It wasn't exactly fair.
"You need to get out of here, now!" Katara added. I looked at the four of them, trying to get their sympathy. I felt that maybe we were being too harsh. There could have been a better way to turn him down.
"Katara, d-"
"Don't you 'Katara' me!" The water-bender snapped. "I'm still not through with you. You better watch it, otherwise you're out next!" I raised my arms in surrender and backed off from the pissy girl. Zuko didn't give up as easily. The boy knelt to the ground before us.
"If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner." The boy couldn't be serious. I shook my head at him.
"Zuko, no...you should leave." I advised him. Though I truly didn't want him to go, I had a feeling it would work out better for everyone if he did. Katara was still fuming and I could only imagine what would happen if he remained in our presence any longer. Katara sent a wave of water at the prince, knocking him back and thoroughly soaking him.
"Get out of here, and don't come back!" She warned him. I felt bad for the conflicted boy. I watched him walk away; his head was hung and he was dripping from head to toe. I wished Katara had refrained from striking him. It didn't sit well with me. Poor Zuzu...
"Obviously he's trying to lead us into some kind of trap." Sokka concluded as the five of us started to unload the gear from Appa.
"It's like when the three of us were in prison in Ba Sing Se." Katara glanced over at me quickly before looking back at her brother. "He starts sympathizing with us and talking about his mother-making it seem like he's an actual human being with feelings." Whoa. That comment bothered me. Katara was in a really bitchy mood at that moment.
"Hey now!" I began to call her out on it, nearly dropping the sleeping bag I held in the process. "Just because you guys have had ban run ins with him in the past doesn't mean he's not a person!" The water-bender ignored what I had to say. Her brother acknowledged me.
"He plays people though. He wants you to feel sorry for him so you let your guard down, then he strikes." I shook my head at the warrior boy. He didn't know anything about Zuko. None of them did.
Katara began to set up one of the sleeping bags once we were closer to the cliff wall. "His act worked too. I did feel sorry for him. I felt like he was really confused and hurt-" I stopped the girl before she could continue.
"That's because he is. Believe me, I've known the guy for seven years. He's had a lot happen to him throughout his life and most of it had a negative effect on him." Katara scowled and stood up.
"That doesn't excuse any of his actions." I nodded in agreement.
"True, but you should still try to see where he's coming from." I suggested.
"Considering his messed up family and how he was raised, he could have turned out a lot worse." Toph voiced her opinion. My cousin picked up on more than we gave her credit for.
"Why are you defending him?" The Water Tribe girl questioned the blind girl. Toph stepped away from her pillar to approach Katara.
"Because you're all being extremely judgmental and heartless-ripping his character to shreds. I wasn't with you guys in the beginning, so I don't know how bad this guy used to be, but come on! He wasn't lying when he said he had changed. I could feel the sincerity. And now he's willing to help us win the war-someone who probably knows any or all future plans of the Fire Nation, but you won't even give him a chance?" The little earth-bender stamped her foot for effect.
Aang brushed past her. "We're not having Zuko join our team." He flat out told her. Toph growled and turned her back on everyone.
"You know, sometimes I wonder who's really the blind one here." And with that, she stomped away. I watched her leave for a moment, then I hurried after my cousin.
Toph had requested to be alone for the rest of the day. I guessed she was still pretty ticked off at the others. If I didn't know Toph at all I would have insisted on accompanying the girl wherever she planned on storming off to. But I knew better, so I gave her some space; I learned a while back that people like Toph and myself needed space to blow off some steam.
Night had fallen and the blind girl had still not returned to where we had set up camp at the Air Temple. I started to wonder if she got lost. Toph's a big girl, I reminded myself. She can find her way back. I was sitting by myself on the stones, thinking, while the others gathered around the fire by the fountain. The tension from earlier had died down, but I still did not feel completely comfortable, so I chose to distance myself from them. Zaida and Jin strayed away from the group to join me. Zaida brought over a nice, warm cup of tea for me and took a seat beside me. "You alright?" She asked me.
"Yeah, we could hear Katara chewing you out earlier. Don't know what the hell for though." Jin added, sitting down beside me. I sighed and began to drink my tea.
"I've been compromised." I breathed, after swallowing the soothing liquid. Jin didn't seem to follow but Zaida was on the exact same page as me. The green eyed girl bit her lip.
"How'd they find out?" She inquired. I shrugged.
"Azula." Zaida opened her mouth slightly in realization and then nodded in silence. I pushed the hair out of my face. "It was bound to happen one way or another. I knew eventually I would have to fire-bend again."
"Whoa..." The tan girl exhaled. "So that's what it was all about...wait, you're from the Earth Kingdom-aren't you an earth-bender?" I nodded my head. "So wait," Jin tried to piece together the puzzle. "You're an earth-bender and a fire-bender...how is that possible?" I shrugged. That was a question in which I had been searching for the answer for a long time.
"Well, bending isn't a genetic thing." Zaida explained to the other girl. "I mean, from what I've observed over the years, that doesn't seem to be the case. You have to have the will power to do it. And Karuna's got enough will power to bend two elements." Jin wasn't shocked or appalled to hear I was a fire-bender. She was more intrigued than anything.
"Holy spiritual shit!" The Earth Kingdom girl exclaimed. "You realize how incredible this is, right?' I gave her a blank stare. "You've got like half of the avatar's power. With you and Aang, there's no way we can't win." My ears perked up. The girl brought up an excellent idea.
"I've never tried bending both at the same time." I told them. "I don't know if I could do it." Zaida gave me a look of encouragement and that was the indication that I needed to start training again. If we were to truly end this, Aang would have to master his avatar form and I the White Dragon.
I felt surprisingly tired the next morning. I yawned loudly and cracked my back; it popped a few times. That didn't sound particularly good. I wandered over to where just about everyone was gathered near the fountain. There was a big vat that steam rose from that was by Katara and the water-bender was handing out bowls of rice to everyone present. She nodded curtly at me upon my arrival.
"You seen Toph?" The darker skinned girl asked. I stretched my arms out some more and shook my head.
"No. I just woke up. Everything alright?"
"Well none of us have seen her since her little temper tantrum yesterday." Sokka told me. Wow. Was Toph that pissed off that she stayed away from us all night?
"She's probably exploring the Air Temple." Haru said. "There are some pretty fun spots to practice earth-bending." He, Teo and The Duke then ran off to go watch Teo ride down some ramps in the temple. Aang and I were about to set off to go find her when all of a sudden, we heard a loud pounding behind us. A hole in the cliff wall spewed out dozens of rocks along with Toph. I knew something was wrong immediately because the blind girl was crawling out of the rubble.
"Toph! Are you okay? W-what happened?" I rushed over to my cousin's side.
"My feet got burned!" She cried. I inspected the bottoms of her feet and sure enough they were red.
"How did this happen?" I asked her. My cousin laughed nervously.
"Well, uh, I kind of went to see Zuko last night." On cue, the other three gasped. "I don't think he meant to do it though."
"You did what?" Aang hollered.
"I thought that maybe if I talked to him we could work something out." The small earth-bender explained while Katara went to work trying to heal her feet.
"Why did you go without me-or anyone else?" I wasn't angry at her, I was just frustrated that she didn't use her head. There might have been a better outcome had she been smarter with her choice.
"I don't know! I just thought it would be better if I went alone." My cousin mumbled. Sokka stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Zuko's clearly too dangerous to be left alone. We have to go after him." What? No! I couldn't believe that's the solution that the boy had come up with.
"No. We don't have to do anything! It was an accident for spirits sake!" I protested. Aang sighed and shook his head.
"Sokka's right though." The avatar backed up the older boy. "After what he did to Toph, I don't think we have a choice." Yes, yes we do have a choice! I inhaled deeply and stared at the ground grimly. I couldn't hunt down Zuko. And I wouldn't.
Sokka and I carried Toph over to the fountain so she could soak her feet in the cool water. "Ahh, that's the stuff." My cousin sighed as she felt the water's soothing relief. "Now I know what it feels like to be you guys. Not being able to see with your feet sucks."
"You might have to get used to that for a little while." Katara informed her. "It might take some time for your feet to heal." Toph sighed in response and kicked her feet under the water.
A whizzing sound caught my attention. I glanced up just as something collided with the cliff overhang above us. The cliff shook and loose rock began to fall. "What the heck was that?" Sokka looked around wildly as he and Aang picked Toph up out of the fountain. I spotted Combustion Man up on a ledge adjacent to us. I looked again and saw Zuko as well. From what I could hear, it sounded as if the prince was ordering him to stop. The scarred boy wasn't having much luck; the metal man was hell-bend on destroying us. Another explosion took care of the golden fixture around the fountain. I lifted the stone from the floor to use as a shield for the five of us; Zaida and Jin had already taken cover behind some pillars.
Up on the ledge, Zuko continued to fight with Combustion Man. He fire-bended at the man, but our attacker tossed him aside. The metal man sent an explosion at the prince. Zuko! When the smoke cleared, the dark haired boy was no longer on the ledge. "Zuko!" I screamed out. Oh no! No...no...NO! I dropped my gaze slightly and saw the prince hanging onto a large vine underneath the ledge for dear life. It felt like a great weight was lifted off my chest. He was alright. Thank spirits!
Aang took action next. He created a tornado with his air-bending and sent the twisting winds at Combustion Man. Our attacker leaped over the tornado and landed on a lower ledge. The metal man continued to open fire at us. Katara summoned the water from the fountain and hurled a large wave up at him. As the water came down, she turned the wave into hundreds of sharp icicles. As good of an attack that it was, it wasn't enough to stop Combustion Man. The assassin shielded himself from the ice and once the projectiles had fallen, he aimed down at us once more.
"Run!" I hollered to Aang and the others. As we sprinted towards the pillars and side-panels of the temple, I glanced over my shoulder and gasped. I hurled myself at Katara mere seconds before the stone underneath her exploded; it was extremely loud and incredibly close. I got up quickly and pulled Katara to her feet. Then, the two of us darted behind the pillars where the others were taking cover.
"Someone mind telling me, who the fuck is attacking our asses!" Ah, Jin. Always a pleasure with the language. Zaida knew as much as she did, but she was able to piece together that it was obviously someone sent to take us out. She explained this to Jin.
"He's going to blow us off the cliff side!" Toph hollered, feeling the cliff dwelling weaken. Katara peered around the corner and nearly got her face blown off by another explosion. Stay put, dammit!
"I can't step out to water-bend without getting blown up!" She shouted at us over the noise. "And I can't get a good angle on him from down here!" Some one was going to have to draw him closer while the other could wait for the right moment to strike. I took a deep breath and knew what I had to do. I didn't make the quick decision because I was trying to win back Katara...(well not entirely at least) I just didn't want us to plummet to our dooms. Combustion Man needed to be stopped.
"I'm gonna get him down here so you guys can attack." I told the group.
"Hang on, I might be able to get an angle on him." Sokka stopped me. I shook my head and inched closer to the edge of the pillar.
"'Might' and 'can' are two different things." I reminded the Water Tribe boy. I turned to face the girls behind me.
"Zaida! Is my bow by my mat?" She had asked if she could try it out the night before and she was the last person to touch it.
"Yeah!" The short girl yelled back at me. "It should be! Wait...you're not serious are you?" She already figured out what I was planning on doing. I rolled my eyes and flicked my wrist at her to show that I wouldn't be discouraged from following through. I crouched down and got ready to spring forward.
"Okay, stand by until you can get a clear shot!" I instructed the group. Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I turned my head to see Sokka's concerned blue eyes staring into me.
"Don't be a hero, storm." He advised me, shaking his head slightly. I smiled wryly at him and saluted the warrior boy.
"Aye aye, ponytail!" As I sprinted out from cover, I could hear Katara shouting something after me, but I couldn't make out what she was saying from all the explosions and my pounding heart.
I ran towards what was left of the fountain and I could see the assassin clearly. I twisted my arms across my body, creating a landslide on the ledge he stood on. The shifting rock caused the man to jump down to the level just above me. The metal man was still gathering his bearings and this gave me the perfect opportunity to retrieve my bow. I sped towards the cliff wall where our sleeping gear was and snatched my bow and quiver which were lying beside my mat. Combustion Man fired after me, though I was now out of his range. As I doubled back around to confront him again, I saw something zipping through the air; it was Sokka's boomerang!
The aerial weapon zoomed sideways and then came back around at a crucial moment. Just as Combustion Man was about to shoot me down with his mind, the boomerang hit him in the center of his forehead. Surprisingly, the force was enough to knock the hulking man over. Of course, it wasn't enough to keep him down. "Aw boomerang!" Sokka whined once he saw Combustion Man rise to his feet. After regaining his composure, the assassin targeted me again, only he seemed to have a hard time pinning me down; I wasn't moving though. With fast hands, I reached over my shoulder and drew an arrow. I shot the projectile right when the metal man was inhaling. The arrow was right at the markings of the ripped man's head when his forehead started to spark. Then, he spontaneously combusted , taking out the ledge he had been on as well. The explosion was bright and tons of rock rained down. A gray smog cloud was left in his place and the metal arm fell, never to be seen again. And that was the last we saw of Combustion Man.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but thanks Zuko." Aang bowed his head to show his gratitude once the brawl was over.
"Hey, what about us?" Sokka gestured to himself and me. "We had the boomerang-arrow thing." He struck a pose. What a ham! Zuko approached us and I trotted over to embrace him.
"Are you okay?" I asked the older boy, feeling relieved that he had made it through the battle. The prince returned the hug and nodded his head at me.
" I'm fine, just a little shook up is all." He reassured me. Zuko then turned his attention to the others. "Listen, I didn't explain myself very well yesterday." The prince began. "Through the past few years I've been a lot and it's been difficult. But I've realized that I had to endure all that to see what the spirits really had planned for me. I thought I had lost my honor and that my father was the only one who could return it to me, but now I know that no one can give you your honor; it's something you have to earn for yourself by choosing to do something noble or what's right.
And the only thing I want right now is to play my part in ending this war. And I know my destiny is to help you restore balance to the world." This time around, the group heard him out and listened to what he had to say with great respect. Zuko also apologized to Toph for burning her feet.
"I think you are meant to join our us." Aang replied. "In the beginning, we were enemies because of our differences and misunderstandings of each other. And now, we're here setting these differences aside in a civil way. Though we're all from different nations," The avatar glanced at everyone present. "We all have a common goal. Peace. And in order to accomplish this, we must unite." The air-bender then pulled us to the side for council. He asked us if we'd be okay with adding Zuko to our team. Toph and I said yes almost immediately and Sokka said he'd go along with what ever Aang decided. Katara was extremely hesitant but she too said she'd agreed with whatever Aang's decision would be. We had come to a consensus; The prince was now part of Team Avatar.
"I promise, I won't let you down!" Zuko exclaimed enthusiastically. Katara and Aang began to walk off into the temple, followed by by Sokka who carried Toph. I hung back to accompany the prince since no one else would.
"Together again at last, eh Zuko?" The older boy smiled at me and put his arm around me as we started to walk in the direction the others disappeared to. I had missed moments like this; before I had knew about Raiden, Zuko was like my big brother.
"I did say I would come back, didn't I?" It warmed my heart to see the dark haired boy at peace with himself at last. The old Zuko I had first became friends with had returned and I was overjoyed. I nodded my head.
"You kept your promise, Zuzu." The prince chuckled to himself and shook his head.
"You know, if it was anyone else calling me that, I would've socked them in the face."
Aang relocated everyone inside the temple, so we wouldn't be as easily seen as we were an hour earlier. I helped Zuko carry things into his new room. "That reminds me," The boy suddenly thought as he placed his knapsack on the bed. "My sister misses you." My ears perked up at this and I tore my gaze away from the window. "She pretended not to care back in Ba Sing Se, but I could see through that facade." The prince took out a small portrait of Iroh and stared at it for a moment before placing it down. "It killed her when we got word that you were dead." I stared down at the floor, feeling my gut turn. "I mean, it hurt me too and Uncle as well. But Azula hasn't been the same since. It's subtle because, well let's face it, she thinks she's this impervious, iron wall." I almost laughed at that comment. "But I can see the change. You two were really close, weren't you?"
My eyes shifted around a little bit. "Yeah, we were..." I sighed, remembering my life back then. "It's a shame. But we've got each other now. That's what counts." I hugged Zuko again. It was affection that the two of us needed and greatly appreciated. He and I had both gone through a lot-especially within the past year. I felt even more connected with him as I shared this tender moment with him. Then I noticed Katara leaning against the threshold.
"Can I have a word with him?" she interrupted. It wasn't exactly a question because I knew she'd barge right in regardless of our answer. I looked up at Zuko and he nodded placidly at me. I left the two of them alone and headed off to my temporary room. As I headed down the teal and beige hall, I could hear the water-bender laying into the prince. Something about how she would be watching him like a dragon-hawk and that since I trusted him she would opt to give him a chance. I felt kind of bad for the prince. Barely a half our into our team and Katara was already threatening him.
It was night when I decided to go for a walk around the temple to stretch my legs. Though it was dark out, the insides of the hallways were lined with torches so there was ample light to see. I was barely four steps out of my room when I saw the water-bender leaned against a hall pillar with her arms crossed. I really didn't know what to say to her then, so I just shoved my hands into my pockets. I felt something familiar.
"Hey," I approached her. "This is yours. I forgot I still had it." I held out her mother's necklace. I had been keeping it safe for her ever since we had first started going around incognito in the Fire Nation. The girl grabbed it from me without saying anything and I felt a little bad for having kept it as long as I did. She put the jewelry around her neck and what she said next caught me off guard.
"What was between you and Azula?" The darker skinned girl then folded her arms again. My breath hitched. Shit...
"Huh?" I asked, dumbfounded.
"You heard me." The Water Tribe girl remarked. My brain was running a mile a minute. I said the first thing that came naturally.
"Nothing." Oh sure, denial, that's a good one.
"Do not, lie to me." Katara warned, narrowing her eyes at me. "Especially now." I shifted uncomfortably on my feet. How does she know? Had she heard all of my conversation with Zuko earlier that afternoon? "I can tell you two weren't just acquaintances. I can read between the lines." She referred back to our run in with the princess during the invasion. "She got real vexed when I grabbed your arm." Katara must have pieced together some things from observing my interaction with her. At that point I figured lying my way out was pointless. The water-bender was already pissed at me, trying to cover up more truth would only worsen the situation.
"We...that was a while ago, Katara. It's irrelevant at this-"
"So you did have a thing with her." The water-bender interrogated me. I felt myself blush. I wasn't a fan of bringing up past relationships; especially ones that didn't end so well. And I certainly didn't like discussing the topic with someone who I was currently seeing-but I wasn't quite sure where Katara and I stood then.
"I..well-yes...but-that was ancient history! I'm over it!" I did my best to explain.
"Are you?" She questioned me. I stared at the girl blankly, not being able to believe we were having this conversation.
"Look, I know you're upset and frustrated at me for what I did, but you don't have to keep searching for more reasons to hate me. Yes, I was involved with her at one point, but that doesn't mean I'm still loyal to the Fire Nation. I've burned those ties. And if I wanted harm to come to Aang or anyone else, I would've let Combustion Man blow this place up sky high." Now I was frustrated. I turned sharply to take a different route out of the temple but Katara stopped me.
"What you did today was dangerous and insane." All of a sudden, her open hand collided with the left side of my face. The slap stung and I instantly rubbed the sensitive skin. "Never, do that again." She ordered me. Then the water-bender grabbed the back of my head and pulled me into a passionate kiss. I was so stunned by her actions because she had been so angry with me the past few days. Butterflies fluttered around in my stomach as I felt the satisfying sensation of her lips on mine. Eventually she pulled back, much to my innermost dismay. "That was for saving our skins." She told me. My brain must have shut off at some point because I leaned in to try and kiss her back but the darker skinned girl shoved me away. "You're not off the hook. I'm still mad at you." I was still in a daze because of what just transpired in the last few seconds. Wait...what? "And you still never answered my question, so I'll leave you with that." Katara turned away and retreated down the hall and around the corner. I stood in the hallway in utter silence. What the hell just happened?
"Did she just...did you just?..." I nearly jumped at the new voice. I whirled around to see Sokka holding a handful of scrolls, giving me the most peculiar and confused stare. He was also pointing to where Katara had been standing only a minute before and this caused some of the parchment to fall out of his grasp. I didn't understand.
"I thought you knew! Why else would you make that comment about me joining your tribe the other day?" I reminded the warrior boy.
"That's because I saw you flirting with Cato at the bay!" I did what now? I thought back to the day of the invasion and recalled conversing with one of the younger Water Tribe men. He was a good looking guy, but I wasn't interested in him.
"He asked me about my bow, Sokka! If you consider that flirting, then spirits help you!" I waved my arms in the air for effect. The warrior boy laughed nervously and began to fetch the fallen scrolls. He most likely felt ridiculous now for having jumped to that conclusion.
"Normally I'd ask if I could watch but um...yeah, my sister. Awkward..." Sokka twiddles his thumbs. Really? I slapped my palm to my forehead and slid my hand down my face.
"How...did you get a woman? How?"
"Because I'm the Sokkster! That's how!" I rolled my eyes at the boy and began to head down the hallway to the left. That boy. Seriously.