Author's Note:
Well shit...I've been gone waaaay longer than I meant. Sorry guys, between my Marketing and Brit Lit class, I've been swamped. And as of this week I've been assigned to come up with a short horror story and hand in the rough draft TUES...yeah nope :p I also hope everyone had a good Halloween and stuffs! I went as Robin (Damian Wayne version)
Sooo this chapter and the next (which will have to do with EMBER ISLAND PLAYERS XD will be easing into the Badassery of the FINALE! So the end is coming you guys, but don't be sad :D I promise it's gonna be good! So thank you for not losing faith in me, my lovelies (at least I hope o.o) and enjoy!
~th3rdhal3~
It had literally been a prison break. A good portion of my body had been broken and I was out of commission for a while. I had had nine healing sessions with Katara since returning to the temple. Each time was slightly better than the last. I could feel my strength beginning to return slowly. I knew it would take time before I was myself again, but I was ever hopeful.
I saw on the edge of the fountain next to Katara while she finished resetting my knee-caps. Then she used some of the water nearby to touch up my jaw. "Okay, those are looking better and your ribs have made good progress-they should be healed in the next few days." I nodded in response, feeling relieved that my body was recovering faster than I expected. Then, the water-bender had me turn so that my back faced her. "Oohh..." She began as she examined that side of me. I didn't know what to make of her vague observation, but I hoped it wouldn't be anything that couldn't be fixed. I could feel her fingers trailing down my spine to further study the condition of my bones. "Oh spirits..." Katara whispered to herself.
"What?" I asked, not wanting to be kept in the dark about my health and well being.
"It feels like something's out of place." The water-bender told me. "But I can't quite tell what yet." She carefully lifted my undershirt over my head so that I was just in my bindings on my top half. Then, the darker skinned girl paused once more. I held my breath, waiting. "You have a bone protruding from your back." Her voice was slow and heavy. I swallowed, and the saliva felt thick like molasses. How do we fix it? My thoughts were scattered.
The Water Tribe girl called out to anyone close by at the time to give her a hand. Zuko happened to be near and he brought over one of the sleeping mats just like she asked. He placed it by the side of the fountain and stood by, seeing if he could help in any other way. "I'm gonna need you to stand up." Katara slowly helped me to my feet. Ever since I was able to walk again, I automatically hunched a bit because of the injuries to my spine and back. "You need to stand up straight." That would be an issue. I tried to straighten out my spine but soon felt sharp bursts of pain. I quickly returned to my original stature. "You've gotta stand up straight." The water-bender repeated. She knew it pained me to do so and she helped coax me through the process. I bit down hard on my lip and and rolled my shoulders back to straighten out my spine. My lips soon became numb and started to bleed as I continued to bite in order to take my mind off the extremely uncomfortable feeling in my back. "Zuko, brace her." She instructed. The scarred boy complied and held onto the sides of my arms.
Katara then stood behind me, getting ready to go to work on the problem at hand. "This will be over soon. It's gonna be okay." The Water Tribe girl grimaced; I could tell without seeing her face because I could hear it in her voice. I swallowed again, doing my best to ready myself for what would come next. Moments later, I felt Katara's tender hands push into my back.
"GAAHHHHHHH!" I screamed, as the agonizing feeling of bone being pushed back into flesh coursed through me. My voice echoed throughout the temple and it was a miracle none of the cliff dwellings collapsed. I began to lean forward because of the force Katara had on my back, but Zuko was there to hold me up. Those few moments felt like centuries as Katara set the bone back in place. It felt as if everything, muscle and tendon included, was on fire. Even the water that Katara soon summoned from the fountain couldn't sooth this excruciating ache.
I sunk to my knees because of the pain and Zuko knelt with me to brace me. Soon, tears began to run down my cheeks because of how much it hurt. I didn't even try to stop the water from leaking out of my eyes; being strong wasn't a priority. Getting through the pain by any means necessary was. "It's almost done." Katara sympathized as she listened to my cries. "I promise." The water rolled back and forth between the bones and muscles, tightening and restructuring that part of my body. It felt as if it would never stop, but then the pain began to die down. I was able to breathe again, though all I was able to take in at the time were shallow breaths. The agonizing feeling began to lift and I thanked the spirits that it was done. "It's over." Katara sounded just as relieved as I was. I sighed heavily and shifted my posture a bit.
"Careful." Zuko warned me. He seemed very concerned about my movements after the treatment. I understood why he was worried, but they couldn't expect me to keep my spine completely straight at every second. I nodded silently at the prince and tried not to bend too much. Katara added a few wraps to my bindings in order to ensure the injury was kept tightened.
"It looks ten times better than it did a few minutes ago.," the water-bender told me. "But it will still take a short while until you're good as new. You can lie down if you like but not on your back obviously. Oh, and no bending for a couple of days." She added.
I stared at Katara in disbelief. "What?" The word was thick in my mouth as it came out. Half of me heard her clearly, the other half was just a little slow.
"No bending, fighting, running," the darker skinned girl listed off. "or any other strenuous exercise. You have to take it easy or you won't heal right." Katara knew what she was talking about; she was the only master water-bender her age for Agni's sake. The girl was an expert healer as well, and there was no doubt she was right, but I couldn't get over the fact that I couldn't do anything until my back healed. Katara frowned. "It won't be for much longer, Karuna. Just work with me here, please." I really had no other option but to oblige; I wanted my strength back, so I would have to take things down a notch for a little while.
Zuko helped me stand again. "Let's go for a walk." He suggested. It sounded like a good idea to me. Katara rolled up the sleeping mat and then turned to the two of us.
"Be careful you two. I'll see you a bit later. See if you can figure out what the others are up to. It's gotten too quiet."
I felt much better physically and mentally compared to the last few days. Though my spirits were a lot higher, the pain hadn't completely gone away; my body still felt pretty sore. Zuko let me throw my arm over his shoulder and for extra measure, he gently braced his arm around my lower back. Being able to move around was nice, especially when I had been bedridden at since coming back from the Boiling Rock. The warm sun felt soothing against my skin and I didn't mind the sounds of birds and other various critters in the background. It was good to hear nature again. I had grown quite fond of the temple, as had the others.
Then, out of the blue, Zuko asked me, "What happened at the prison?" The new-found warm feeling that I had acquired started to fade. I looked at him as if I didn't quite understand. In truth, I wasn't exactly sure what he was asking. "Well, what went on with you while we were separated?" The older boy rephrased the question. "You never met up with us in the courtyard the second time." I swallowed slowly, recalling the events that had occurred only days ago. For a split second I felt almost...sick. I shook the feeling away and then answered my friend.
"Um, I ran into Mai." Curious, golden eyes met me. "I thought she was going to turn me in at first." I admitted, feeling kind of ashamed for doubting one of my best friends. "We both exchanged some...words, but I think we both got something out of it." When I had left the rave haired girl in the corridor, the look of an epiphany was etched in her face. I had never seen an expression more opposite than her usual stoic one.
"She found me as well." The prince shared. "She saved us." He seemed just as surprised by this as I had been. Though I was glad we were able to sway her over in the end, I had not expected her to take such actions. I nodded.
"She's a good friend." I sighed, knowing well that 'good' couldn't even begin to describe it. No word could be used to paint a picture of how dear a companion she was to me. "And she really does love you." Zuko smiled warmly and nodded in understanding. I could tell just by observing his expression that he felt the same way about her. "I...also ran into Azula again." My tone darkened slightly at the thought of the princess. Zuko's smile faded as well. The two of us walked on in silence for a few moments, not knowing what to say to one another.
"I don't understand how you two were a couple." The scarred boy finally expressed. "I mean, she's so...difficult, cold and sharp. And you're so...not." I shrugged my shoulders at this. It surprised me the specific reasoning why Zuko seemed skeptical about that past relationship.
"Opposites attract you know." I chuckled lightly, remembering a phrase that was often said. "There's a lot more to your sister than you think." Zuko snorted and shook his head.
"No there's not."
"Yes there is."
The prince exhaled slowly. "She lives to make peoples' lives miserable. Ever since we were little, she's gotten a rise out of seeing others in pain. You remember this, don't you?" I nodded my head after a moment, recognizing that there was truth in the boy's words. "She's not a good person, Sankari. Not like you or Aang, or-"
"I have my faults too, Zuko." I cut him off. "Plenty of them." I did not want to be held on a high pedestal, thought of as this 'oh so righteous' being. "I'm far from the definition of 'good'." The scarred teen eyed me peculiarly. He seemed surprised that I had taken offense to his compliment. I could practically see the gears shifting in his golden eyes.
After a few minutes of more silence. He turned his head sideways to look at me and said, "I've always thought you were good." The boy's words helped lift my heavy spirit. "And your flames," he continued. "the white resembles strength through benevolence and pureness of heart." I stared at the stone beneath us and became lost in thought for a moment as the words found their way into my head. "It's a shame that not many fire-benders have those traits."
"Your uncle is one of the small few," I spoke again, eyes still glued to the ground. "And I've failed him as well." The last part was said mainly to myself.
"What?" Zuko asked, catching only half of what I had said under my breath.
"Do you remember two years ago when I found you out at sea?" The boy thought for a minute and eventually nodded. "Iroh made me promise to use my gifts wisely. I've made so many mistakes since then and I have no real control over the White Dragon." I hung my head in shame. I thought about my time in the military, trying to uphold my father's legacy. I thought back to when my treasonous actions nearly got me killed in the Fire Nation.
"The prince put his arm around me again as we continued to walk. "You know, a good friend of mine told me one time, that your past shouldn't hinder your future." Something seemed familiar about what he was saying. "You can't linger on what has happen rather than what will happen. I know you can figure out what you need to do-you're in control of your own fate, Sankari. No one can tell you otherwise. What you've done before doesn't necessarily define you now as a person." I smiled at the prince, realizing that our heart-to-heart underneath Ba Sing Se had stuck with him. It looked like all the life lessons and parables from Iroh were paying off.
"Azula's been the same cruel and manipulative person for as long as I can remember. If she hasn't stared to change yet, I doubt she ever will." It sort of surprised me to hear sorrow and worry laced in his voice. Thought it seemed as though he held only resentment towards his sister, Zuko really did care about her. I personally didn't believe the Fire Nation princess was evil, like most of Team Avatar did. I thought she was severely misguided. There was a difference between the two after all.
Then the conversation went back to Zuko's initial inquiry. "I just don't understand how you could put up with her." The prince plucked a leaf off a nearby vine. "Especially in a relationship setting. She's so controlling." I had to agree with him on that one. The princess did like to have things her way. Zuko let the lead blow off the cliff side by the wind. We watched it waver until it eventually blew out of sight down below. "She just, brings out the worst in people." The older boy sighed. No doubt he was thinking about all their altercations and negative memories in their sibling-hood.
"Well I was able to bring out the best in her." I shared, recalling my seeing of the other side of the princess. "Or so I've been told." I remembered being what seemed like the only one who could keep her relaxed and at bay during our childhood.; this carried on as we grew older as well. A look of sadness and subtle remorse was shown on Zuko's face.
"Then you'd be the last hope for her."
Later that night, I joined everybody by the fire to eat. Though the excruciating pain had left earlier that morning, all of my back and spine still felt very sore. Bending certain ways didn't feel too great and this made it hard to sit in certain positions. There was a spot open next to Zaida and I made my way over. Jin helped me down because she realized I was having a hard time. "Take it easy there." The Earth Kingdom girl advised me.
From across the circle, Suki addressed me. "How are you feeling?" Concern was evident in her light blue eyes. I sighed and itched the back of my neck. I felt exhausted yet I hadn't done anything at all that day. I couldn't wait to be back to my old self.
"I'm hanging in there." I answered the Kyoshi warrior. "It's fun, you know?" I chuckled sarcastically. She offered a crooked smile in return and laughed as well.
"As long as you're enjoying yourself." She teased me. I grinned in response and then Zaida handed me my soup. I took the bowl gratefully and felt the warmth of the contents. I brought the bowl up to my mouth and began to indulge. It tasted like komodo-rhino meat based broth. It was pretty delicious.
"You eat soup weird." Sokka looked at me funny. I soon realized that I was the only one in the group who wasn't using a spoon. Toph elbowed him in the ribs.
"Unlike you, it's just her eating habits that are." She jeered. Hakoda and the blind girl laughed the loudest out of all of us. I grinned from ear to ear and continued to drink my soup the way I had always done.
A short while after dinner, I noticed that Katara was sitting with Aang. The Water tribe girl had been spending a lot of time with the avatar ever since we made camp at the air temple. Though I hated to admit it, I felt slightly jealous; Katara used to spend almost every moment of the day at my side and now we barely were in each others presence. Maybe it wasn't what I thought it was, but the air-bender had had a crush on Katara for a while. The kiss between the two during the invasion didn't help convince me otherwise too. I knew I shouldn't have felt envious ; mine and Katara's relationship was very complicated at the time. We weren't exactly separated, yet we weren't together either. It was hard to say.
I scowled to myself, the bitter feeling still present, then picked myself up off the stone. Since Sokka and Zuko were spoken for as well as out of the question, I decided to go chat up the only single guy around my age. You guessed it: Haru.
"What's shakin'?" I asked, sitting down next to him.
"You could be...if you know what I mean." The long haired earth-bender replied with a mischievous smirk. His humor caught me off guard for a split second, but I soon wound up laughing with him. One would have thought we were old friends the way we connected in those first few moments. "I'm just kidding. You... probably think I'm really weird now." It was quite the contrary. I wasn't expecting the perverseness of his answer, yet I still found it humorous.
"Eh, no weirder than me." I shrugged with a smile. I asked him how he knew Aang, Sokka and Katara and he told me about the time they visited his village. He also told how they had freed the other earth-benders in his village from an overseas Fire Nation prison. It was strange but the more I spoke with him, he reminded me of Sameer. Of course, Haru wasn't quite as jumpy or wired as Sameer had been, but it was the little similarities really; his devotion to his friends, his pride for his bending and what he believed was right. And though I didn't know the earth-bender boy very well, I found myself sharing things with him I wouldn't tell just anyone; the death of my parents and of my adopted father, the lost feeling that kept coming back, all of my uncertainties. I just felt like I could trust him and felt comfortable talking with him. One might call it an 'earth-bender connection', as silly as it sounds, but that's what it felt like.
At one part of our conversation, this sudden feeling of dread took told of my gut. I'm not quite sure where it came from, but I felt anxious. Haru noticed I was acting a little off. "You okay? If you have to toss your cookies, please don't do it on me." He chuckled. I shook my head at him. I didn't feel nauseous. I actually couldn't really describe the feeling.
"I'm not sick...I just have this weird feeling-a gut instinct or something." Haru raised an eyebrow curiously and waited for me to go on. "I think we should leave the temple soon. I...we've been here a while now and I don't think it's a bad idea to consider relocating." If we stayed in one spot for too long, we'd be sitting turtle-ducks. We also had to figure out how we were going to win the war now. All our reinforcements were either captured or in hiding, which meant we needed a plan of action soon.
"Well this is a pretty good spot." Haru glanced around the temple. "Besides Zuko and that assassin, nobody else has poked their heads around. I'm pretty positive this safe haven will do us good till it's time to act again." The earth-bender boy seemed very confident that we were in goods hands. I figured I should relax some as well; everything would be okay. I was simply over-complicating things as usual. Later, when I laid down to go to sleep, the sores in my back seemed to lift and I took this as a good omen.
I abruptly woke to the sounds of exploding stone. My heart was practically pounding right out of my chest as I carefully rose to my feet. Once I took in my surroundings, I saw Aang already on the defense, sending back bombs projected at the temple with his air-bending. Soon, Fire Nation airships were visible; a small fleet it seemed. They had found us after all. The ships had already taken out one of the bridges connecting to other parts of the temple, and were closing in. Aang sent a giant gust of wind towards the enormous panels attached to the columns surrounding us. They shut, acting like a barricade for the time being. We still weren't exactly safe however.
The ceiling shook and stone above began to crumble. "Lookout!" Zuko cried, as he launched towards Katara. The prince was able to get them both out of the way in time, but the water-bender didn't seem too grateful. The ground underneath us rumbled and shook some more, and this distracted me from my left. One of the blasts hit a side column, resulting in chunks of stone projecting at us sideways- particularly at me. My head must have been in dreamland, which would explain my non-existent reaction time, because I froze up.
"Get down!" All of a sudden, I was grabbed by the back of my tunic and pulled into a crouching position close to the ground. What luck! A moment too late and I would've certainly been in trouble! I glanced down at the arms that held me carefully. The seemed...feminine. I looked up at my savior to see the concerned face of Suki. "You Bei Fongs have a knack for close calls." The Kyoshi Warrior teased. I found my voice again and chuckled silently.
"What can I say? We laugh in the face of danger!"
"Well you're lucky you still have a face to laugh with." The brunet pointed out. This was quite true and I was very thankful for her actions. Suki then pulled us back on our feet and off towards the tunnel my cousin and Haru earth-bent as an escape route. The whole group started filing in, but then I noticed Zuko remained where he stood.
"Go ahead-I'll hold them off!" He shouted over his shoulder to Aang, who was trying to coax Appa into the tunnel. Seconds later, the scarred boy darted off over the crumbled panels and towards our attackers.
"Zuko! Wait-no!" I started to jog after him but then realized it wouldn't do me any good at all to chase after him. All the muscles in my lower back began to ache again; particularly the one that connected from my leg to my back. Suki grasped my arm and pulled me back before I could go any further.
"He can handle himself." She reassured me. "We have to go. Now!" She was right. If we didn't get a move on soon, the whole cliff side would crumble. I could feel the very earth give way beneath me and knew it was only a matter of time.
We were having a hard time ushering App into the tunnel. The Sky Bison was not a fan of the underground in the least bit and he wasn't budging whatsoever. "Aang. He has to comply." Katara told him. "There's no way we can fly out of this." The nomad continued to tug on the reins of his animal friend, but Appa kept resisting. Sokka sighed, contemplating our scarce options. The Water Tribe boy turned to his dad and our friends.
"We'll have to split up. You guys take the tunnel and get out of here!"
"Where does it lead?" Jin asked, concern lined her voice. We all stared into the darkness of the tunnel.
"I'm not sure." The darker skinned boy admitted. "But Haru will lead you all out. Hopefully you can get to the stolen airship. That's your best bet." The plan sounded alright and though it wouldn't be my first decision to separate it seemed the only feasible solution. Katara objected however.
"No! The Fire Nation can't separate our family again." At first I thought she referred to just her brother and father, but then I realized it encompassed everyone else as well. Hakoda reassured his daughter that they wouldn't be apart forever, and the siblings said their goodbyes to him. In the short moments we could spare, Team Avatar bid farewell to our friends and comrades. I thanked Haru for mentoring me, Hakoda for his support and inspiration and Teo and the Duke for all their help.
"Stay sharp." Jin advised as she embraced me. "Things are gonna get nasty before they get right again." I nodded in understanding. Take care, I sighed. I would certainly miss the Earth Kingdom girl. Though our first encounter was a controversial and strange one, I had a great amount of respect for her after I got to know her.
Zaida hugged me next and I dreaded the idea of leaving my best friend yet again. "I'll see you soon!" She promised, as optimistic as ever. I held her tight. She was like my sister and I considered her family. I hoped she would be right, because if not...well, I couldn't even begin to think about that. Then, she looked past me to address Aang. "You're not alone." She declared, lifting her bangs to reveal the hidden arrow tattooed high on her forehead. The avatar's eyes widened in realization and he gaped at Zaida in utter silence. All this time he had thought he was the last of his group. It must have seemed to surreal to him. Everyone else was equally surprised but we couldn't let it distract us for too long. Soon the others retreated into the tunnel to get away. Aang stared after Zaida with a certain glint in his eye, like an epiphany had struck him dead on.
I climbed into Appa's saddle, with the help of Suki, to join the rest of the team. Toph felt the sides of the stone wall before hopping up to sit with us as well. "If we fly out this way, I can clear away all this rock." I rose to my feet.
"Let me help you." No sooner had I volunteered, Katara yanked me back down.
"No. You can't bend now-you haven't finished healing!" I was about to argue further with the water-bender, but then Aang readied App for take off. Seconds later, we were soaring up and forward; a small barricade of rocks remained in front of Appa for a brief moment. They fell once blue fire came in contact with them. The flames could only have been made by one person...Those were my last thoughts as something heavy and solid struck me in the back of my head. I fell face first in the middle of the saddle and then my vision went dark.
When I woke up, we were gathered around a campfire and I was laying on the grass among them on top of a sleeping bag. The moon was full, indicating nightfall had occurred. I glanced around quickly, soaking in my environment. We seemed to be stationed on some open plains near the ocean. It took about two seconds before this pounding sensation erupted in my head.
"She's alive!" Sokka's goofy voice was the first I heard. I raised my hand up to the base of my skull, to the root of the throbbing, and felt a nice sized bump. "It was much more swollen before Katara worked on it." The Water Tribe boy informed me. "You've been out for hours. You had us worried." I sighed heavily and wiped the sleep out of my eyes.
"Spirits, why do I keep getting these injuries?" I mumbled into my hands. My friends laughed, and though I knew it was with me and not at me, (at least I hoped) it didn't make me feel any better. I shook my head. "Anyways...what I miss? I'm assuming we got away." More chuckles resulted from my last comment.
"Zuko saved us!" Sokka relayed the events to me. "He fought off Azula so we could escape safely!" Everyone raised their cups in unison and cheered 'To Zuko!' Well, everyone except for Katara. The Water Tribe girl scowled subtly and removed herself from the rest of us. Her actions were a bit strange and puzzling. And the matter seemed pretty rude.
"What's Sugar Queen's deal?" Toph asked, sharing my exact thoughts. None of us had an answer for her.
"It's so weird being enclosed." My cousin shared. She stared up at the top of the tent though she could not see. I had to agree; it was the first time in a while where we had camped out in tents. The tents did help whenever the weather was cold, but I preferred sleeping out under the stars. I laid on my stomach with the side of my face pressed against my pillow.
"Yeah, it's a bit different than what we're used to." I agreed with her. "I don't know if this is gonna make us stand out more or less." From a birds-eye view, one would certainly spot the tents, but then again they'd probably still see us if we didn't have them either. Toph shrugged her shoulders and twirled a piece of wheat grass around in her mouth. Then, the opening of our tent flap lifted up and in walked Suki.
"Wrong tent." I cracked a smile. "Sokka's across the way." Instantly, the Kyoshi Warrior's face went flush. She stammered for words.
"What...? I...who said I was looking for Sokka?" The brunet protested. I raised my eyebrow at her and she gave me a weird look. I closed my eyes and shook my head. Yep. She was definitely going to see ponytail. "Have either of you seen Katara? She's been gone since dinner." Suki changed the subject. Toph lazily shook her head. I hadn't seen the water-bender either so I had no answer to offer.
"Want me to go look for her?" I asked, slowly rising to my feet.
"No need." Suki dismissed my offer. "I'm pretty sure Aang and Zuko are looking for her. Can't imagine she's gone far. Just keep an ear out, okay? I'm not sure what's wrong. She seemed fine until tonight." I didn't understand Katara's bitter mood either. From what I could pick up, she was still on edge with Zuko. Would there ever be peace between the two?
"We will." I confirmed. Then she bid us goodnight and exited. A sudden silence washed over the tent but as soon as the warrior was out of earshot, Toph glanced over in my direction with a smug expression on her round face.
"How much you wanna bet she's going to see Snoozles after all?"
"My thoughts exactly!"
"Is it your turn to take a little field trip with Zuko?" Was what I heard Aang ask Katara when I woke up the next morning. Oh, she's back. The avatar was feeding Appa some hay while addressing the water-bender. Zuko carried a knapsack with him which led me to believe the answer would be yes. Katara confirmed my prediction by telling Aang she needed to borrow Appa.
"What's going on?" I asked as I approached the three.
"We're going to find the man who took my mother from me." Both mine and the air-bender's eyes widened. This trip that the two were going to take would have a definite purpose; they weren't just going to locate the person responsible.
"And what do you plan on doing once you find him?" I questioned her, though already I had a general idea. The Water Tribe girl stared at me with distant and disheartening eyes, yet said nothing.
"Achieve closure and justice." Zuko spoke for her. "She needs this." The scarred boy really believed that? I sighed and shook my head.
"No. You're going to get even. The one who seeks revenge digs two graves." I recited a saying my father had told me once in passing. I remembered how horrid the concept was from my own experiences. The night I succeeded from the Fire Nation would stick with me forever. The blood would never be clean from my hands- avenged blood no less. The damned spot would never come out, no matter how many times I had tried to wash it out.
"Fine! Katara snapped. "So what if that is my plan? It's what he deserves. It's what's fair." The grave tone in her voice led me to believe that she was dead serious about this one.
"Life isn't fair," I reminded the water-bender. "Well all get screwed over at one point or another. You can't just go around delivering justice as you see fit. It's not up to you to do so." I looked up to the sky, gazing at whatever spirits and higher powers might have dwelt up there.
"She's absolutely right." The Air Nomad backed me up. "You're starting to sound like Jet." My ears perked up at the mention of the Freedom Fighter. Like Jet? How so? What in Agni...Katara whirled around to face us again.
"It's not the same. Jet attacked the innocent!" What was she talking about? No. Not Jet. Not my Jet. He would never. "This man...is a monster." Determination shown in her ocean-blue eyes.
"Whoa, wait..." I stepped in, my confusion clearly displayed. "What's this about Jet?" No one seemed to hear my inquiry. Either that or they figured it would be too painful for me if I knew the truth.
Sokka paused the making of his flower necklace and joined the four of us by Appa. "Katara, she was my mother too. But I think they might be right on this one." I was surprised that Zuko still sided with the Water Tribe girl. I assumed it was because he wanted to earn her full respect and trust.
Then, the water-bender said one of the coldest things to her sibling that I had ever heard. "Then you didn't love her the way I did!" The Water Tribe boy's eyes widened immensely at her remark. Hurt and disbelief were written all over his face. I felt for him; his sister was just angry and probably didn't mean what she had said. "Now that I know he's out there, now that I know we can find him, I feel like I have no other choice." This definitely wasn't the case. There always is another option. Aang seemed to be reading my thoughts.
"But you do have a choice: forgiveness." The avatar did not want her to go through with this. I didn't want to either; I was afraid her rage and resentment would make her do something she would regret later.
"That's the same thing as doing nothing." Zuko argued. There was a bitter tone is the prince's voice too. Everyone's grumpy today...I still couldn't believe that he of all people supported Katara's decision to go seek out vengeance.
"No it's not." Aang stood his ground. "It's easy to do nothing, but it's hard to forgive." I was impressed at the kid's wisdom. The monks had certainly taught him well. Katara wasn't convinced though.
"It's not just hard. It's impossible." The girl stormed off and Zuko went after her.
"I hope she does the right thing." Aang sighed mainly to himself. The Air Nomad sat on one of the rocks around the fire pit. He looked worried and I didn't blame him. After the conversation had the previous morning, I kept thinking about Katara and Zuko's trip as well.
"I think she will." I shared, taking a seat beside him. "She's angry now, but it'll pass. Katara has a good conscience- I have faith in her." I secretly wondered what her decision would be upon finding the man responsible for her mother's death. I wanted to believe that she would choose not to unleash her wrath, but that was a tough call. After all, I wanted revenge when I learned that my father had died. It was a natural reaction I suppose.
Aang smiled wryly at my input and his spirits seemed to rise a little. He nodded in silence and straightened out his stature. "So...Zaida's an air-bender?" The avatar changed the subject. I nodded in response. "A real air-bender? How come she never told us before?"
"I..guess she didn't feel she needed to." I shrugged, offering an answer. "She's been so used to hiding it her whole life that maybe it's second nature to her." I would never have known Zaida was an Air Nomad had she not revealed her tattoos and bending to me. She had learned to blend in well.
"But how is that possible?" The monk was suddenly doubtful. "All my people were wiped out in the attack one hundred years ago." Well I doubt she tattooed herself for kicks, baldy. I had to think back to stories Zaida told me about her heritage.
"She told me that her great grandmother left the Easter Air Temple in her youth and lived in the mountains of the Earth Kingdom." Aang gave me his undivided attention. "Because her family went into hiding they survived the genocide. When I met her, she was all by herself...she never told me what ended up happening to her family. I don't know if she has them anymore." Aang gave a sympathetic look. Of course he could relate to her; he was an orphan as well. It kind of surprised me that I had never thought to ask her about her family until now. All this time I thought I was alone in this world, and Zaida most likely had no one.
"She has her mastery tattoos." The avatar observed. "She must be good. How old is she? It's not common to receive those so early. I'm an exception because, well, I'm the avatar." Aang chuckled.
"Zaida's my age." I answered him. "Maybe a year older or so." I soon realized that was another question I had never bothered to ask her. I was starting to feel like a crummy friend. "I'd say she's a talented bender from what I've seen. It was very rare that she would air-bend, due to fear someone would find out." I explained.
"I can't wait to see her again, after all of this is done." The Air Nomad expressed. "There's so much to talk about- so much to ask her." Excitement lined his voice and shown in his light, gray eyes. Then the boy grew serious for several moments. It seemed as though he was contemplating something. "Do you think we'll have to repopulate?" The air-bender suddenly asked me. His voice had dropped to a quieter tone. I almost chocked on my saliva. Had I a drink in hand and it would've surely been spewed all over the grass.
"Say what?"
Aang's cheeks grew a subtle pink and he twiddles his thumbs. "Well, Zaida and I are the last air-benders. Is it our duty to repopulate to save our race?" I could tell he seemed uneasy about this subject. For a split second I felt hopeful; if the monk was considering getting together with Zaida, that meant he'd be sacrificing Katara. Wishful thinking clouded my mind and distracted me from the bigger picture.
"I think you should end up with whomever you choose, buddy-not solely for 'duty' purposes." I voiced my opinion. Aang stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"She is nice though, and pretty...and funny too!" It sounded like the boy was trying to convince himself that this was what he needed to do. I couldn't just sit and let him talk himself into the idea.
"But do you really have feelings for her?" I asked. "You should be with someone because you want to. Not because you have to. I mean, maybe the two of you get to know each other and the chemistry is there. Great. But you shouldn't make that decision based on obligation instead of love. You shouldn't even be thinking about marriage and reproduction stuff yet-you're twelve right?" I laughed, nudging him in the shoulder.
"One-hundred and twelve!" He poked me back, with a grin on his face from ear to ear. I bopped him playfully on his arrow and crossed my arms.
"Whatever. You're plain old twelve to me, kid." He'd forever be like a younger brother in my eyes. Though I did have to admit, the boy had really grown and matured since I had first met him. Aang was definitely going to go far.
Towards early afternoon, I found Suki doing some stretching exercises in the clearing. I headed out into the plains to join her, seeing as how I'd eventually have to regain my flexibility one way or another. "Hey there." The warrior girl greeted me once I sat down near her on the soft grass. I leaned forward with my leg extended and grabbed onto the bottom of my foot with both hands and held the stretch. It wasn't too bad; nothing felt strained yet.
"So I was wondering," I started to ask her, during the midst of our warm-up. "If you'd like to help me get back into shape." Even though I'd only been injured for six days, I needed to get back into the swing of things.
"I'd love to," the brunet replied. "but didn't Katara strictly forbid you from doing anything of the sort?" I shrugged my shoulders and titled my head to either side as an answer.
"What she doesn't know won't hurt her." I didn't think it would effect my healing too much by getting a little training in. Suki gave me a curious stare before complying.
"Alright, but if you do something to permanently screw your body up, don't say I didn't warn you." I nodded eagerly. Part of me felt guilty for not abiding by the rules Katara asked me to follow. But the other half of me saw no harm in keeping myself in shape and prepared.
Suki rose to her feet and I stood as well. In my art form, the opponents' attacks and body are used against them." She motioned for me to throw a technique at her. I decided to execute a standard ridge-hand, for starters. The Kyoshi Warrior was fast and caught my arm halfway with an inside-to-outside block. She grabbed my wrist, with swift movements, swept my left leg out from under me, and leaned forward, resulting in me teetering backwards. I let out a small exclamation while I was airborne for a split second before landing on my butt. "Like so." I hopped back up to my feet, feeling a bit discouraged. I didn't enjoy being caught off guard. I stayed idle for a few more silent moments before taking another swing at her; this time I aimed a straight punch at her torso. Suki was two steps ahead of me, to my surprise. She grasped my wrist at an angle as the punch came towards her and pulled me forward. As she did this, she side-stepped but left her right leg bent so I would stumble over her knee. Down I went again, this time head first. I ducked my head and performed a shoulder role in order to prevent injury. I didn't land it as well as I could have, but it wasn't any real pain.
It shocked me that I hadn't seen that one coming either. Such extreme defenses for such minor attacks, I mused to myself. Normally, I never used take-downs against small scale techniques. "We don't have to keep going if you don't want." Suki offered. I shook my head and rose to my feet again. I wasn't a quitter. I wasn't done yet. "Given other circumstances, you might prove differently but right now it's looking like you rely a lot on your bending to fight for you. It's showing. You've got the right stuff- I can see that. You just need to learn how to apply it better." The warrior girl encouraged me. I felt hopeful yet doubtful at the same time.
"You can disarm benders as if they're toddlers," I pointed out, remembering what Zuko had told me about her fighting-particularly at the Boiling Rock. "Where did you receive your training?" Suki shrugged off the praise and responded modestly.
"The island. It's taken training since being a little girl to reach the level that I'm at now. Though I will say, most benders I've encountered have lacked in skill. Now if you were allowed to use your bending, I'm pretty sure you'd win this fight. But since you can't as of right now, I have the advantage because hand-to-hand combat is my expertise." Her explanation definitely made sense. An important element of fighting was close range combat and it would benefit me to excel in this field with and without bending. "Let's make this interesting," the brunet had a sudden idea. "Whoever is standing last, the other owes them a favor." That would definitely spruce things up. I agreed to the terms. It would certainly motivate us to perform our best.
"So any favor?" I asked to clarify.
"There might be a few exceptions, but yes. Any favor within reason." Suki explained. Fair enough, I thought. She rolled the sleeves up on her red top of the prison uniform she kept as the sun shown down on us more intensely. My tunic was already sleeveless, so I had no worries there. We shook hands then moved into sparring positions, bodies sideways and arms up at the ready. Then it began.
The Kyoshi Warrior showed no signs of initiation, so I took it upon myself to make the first move. Unlike the previous few times, I threw a quick jab but didn't fully execute the attack. My goal was to fake her out. The brunet was already raising her arm at an angle to block when I drew that arm back and punched fast with my other hand. Suki was able to react quickly, but my fist grazed the material of her shirt. The warrior girl used this opportune moment when my arm was still extended to strike the side of my head. It didn't hurt, but it was definitely enough to catch my attention. I retreated back a short distance to regain my composure. My blood pumped hard and I was sure as Agni riled up now.
I twisted my body and threw a round-house kick at her. As soon as I did so, I immediately regretted it; the kick came from the back leg and to make it worse, it was sloppy. Suki side-stepped effortlessly and struck the back of my knee with a palm-heel as my leg was mid-air. The force of her strike sent my leg down and a lot farther to the right than it was intended to go. I almost ended up going into the splits and had to use my hands to push myself back up onto my feet. I turned around, right shoulder first and barely had enough time to react to a fist coming my way. I deflected my opponent's attack with a sweeping block with my left and front-snap kicked with my right. Suki moved forward and against the inside of my leg so that she was not on the receiving end of my kick. Now that she was so close, it was difficult to attack or defend and this was a great advantage for her. She was able to hit me in the side before I could move fast enough to block. The next strike she through, I was ready. I pivoted back and stopped her arm with an inside-to-outside block. Then I aimed a punch at her with my left but she blocked it with both arms, striking my left forearm hard. Her closest fist came towards my head in a back-fist. I bent my top half back a bit to evade her technique and moved my right leg against the inside of her left so there was little space for her to maneuver. As I moved my right arm up to clear her's out of the way, Suki popped me in the chest with a quick jab. Dammit! I had let my guard down again. I quickly recovered and sent a sudo technique at her neck. The girl stepped back, caught my wrist in a butterfly-block and twisted my arm behind my back. The sensation in my shoulder and upper back was pretty uncomfortable and I wanted to kick myself for getting into that situation. I twisted away from her grasp and hit her in the ribs with a palm-heel. Suki let go of me and took a few steps back; I did as well. We circled each other for a few moments-waiting.
I took a few deep breaths in that time to slow my racing heartbeat. This slight break in combat allowed me to reflect on how I was doing. It was then that I remembered the most important element of martial arts was defense. And during our round I had neglected this component. Almost every technique I had performed had been offensive and it had backfired over half of the time. The reason Suki was such a successful fighter was because she followed principles of earth-bending; she was waiting for the right time to strike. So why couldn't I do this? I was an earth-bender for Agni's sake-a fire-bender too for cryin' out loud! Was my martial arts a waste? My training for nothing? The air from my nostrils grew hotter as I grew more agitated and angry. My palms felt tingly now and I was ready for around two. Be fast. My eyes locked onto the Kyoshi Warrior. Be agile. My father's voice echoed in my head. Be accurate.
Suki nodded her head at me, trying to egg me on. I responded by shaking my head and extending my hand. I curled my fingers down to touch my palm and beckoned for her to come at me. The brunet cautiously inched closer. I restrained myself and waited for her to make the first move. The girl quickly brought her right leg up and bent it back as she swung it at me. I caught her hook-kick before it came in contact with my face. I pushed her leg back down and she had no choice but to turn in the direction I sent her leg. Suki whirled around with another hook-kick at me, but with her other leg. It was high enough where I could lower my stance and avoid being hit. I noticed that while she kicked, she pulled her arms apart ever so slightly. I quickly palm-heeled her in the side. Once the warrior girl's leg was back on the ground, she executed a spear-hand technique which I blocked with a reverse ridge-hand. The brunet moved swiftly and kneed me in the stomach. The impact wasn't enough to make me double over, but I grunted upon being struck. I retaliated by striking her in the chest with another palm-heel. I was so focused on pushing her back to create more space that I overlooked her next move. A flash of maroon was what I saw before a throbbing pain started in the corner of my right eye. It began to work its way down my jaw line and sideways past my ear. Something began to trickle down the side of my face. When I opened my eyes the vision in my right was completely shot; I could only see dark red because the blood further prohibited my retina from receiving light. I could barely see Suki now, but I raised my arms in defense again, ready to keep going.
I started to pick up on subtle differences in my opponent as I continued to brawl with her. Her attacks and movements seemed vaguely familiar, like I had seen them many times before. There was a fiery, hot aura around her, unlike the friendly competitiveness I felt only moments ago. When she stopped my back-fist I felt sharp nails around my wrist. Huh? I followed through with a round-house kick which she blocked by raising her knee. It was then that I realized long, dark hair flowing from my adversary's head; black. My movements grew faster as did hers. Every attack was countered or deterred and every block was precise and effective. My fists cut through the air at great speeds, hitting my opponent in the ribs, chest, collarbone, and other various target areas. For the first time yet in this match, she was having a hard time keeping up with me. Suddenly, I saw golden eyes and something triggered inside of me.
I struck the girl in the front with several palm-heels. These were my signature technique thrown with my arms; they represented leopard paws. I then pivoted around her, taking full advantage of the moment and struck her from the back and either sides. I sent a barrage of knuckle-punches and open palm-heels at her, which she was seldom able to block. The girl found a window of opportunity and aimed kwan-sudos at my head. I raised my fists, stopped her strikes by prohibition her arms from drawing closer and pushed them out to either side. Her middle was now exposed and I turned my body sideways, drew my right leg back for a split second and plowed my foot straight into her.
Once I lowered my leg down from the side-kick, shooting pain started up in my temples. I paused for a moment to hold my aching head and also to wipe the blood out of my eyes. The viscosity was low because it had sweat mixed with it. I shook my hand out towards the ground and the red from my fingers now painted the tips of the green grass below me. I shook my head to get the visions and images out of my mind. At first I didn't even realize that I was panting-I had exerted a lot more energy than I would have originally thought. When I tore my eyes off of the ground, I gazed ahead fifteen feet in front of me. The Kyoshi Warrior stooped low in the grass, her arms wrapped tightly around her stomach. My face fell once I saw that her head was down. Shit...
I rushed over to the brunet, despite the soreness of my legs and crouched down beside her. "Suki, I'm so sorry! I don't know what the hell just happened- I never meant too..." The warrior girl hadn't responded yet and I worried that I had fatally wounded her. Katara was still away and I didn't know much about healing at all. We'd be in a predicament for sure. "ah...shit." I couldn't believe my actions. "I'm so, so, so incredibly sorry. Oh spirits this is all my fault." I apologized again. A few moments later, Suki placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Don't...don't worry about it." She shrugged it off through shallow breaths. "I...have to...admit. Haven't taken...a blow like that...in...long time." The brunet didn't seem angry, which surprised me a little bit. She remained clam when there I was, panicking like a housewife. The warrior girl really was a trooper. I smiled wryly at her. "Nice work...y-...you win." She congratulated me, giving me a nod of approval as well as respect. Funny thing was, I didn't feel like too much of a winner. It didn't feel right, and I couldn't claim to be the victor of this match.
"Nah." I disagreed with her. "That was a pretty cheap shot. It wasn't fair and square, so you won." I told the blue eyed girl. She stared at me curiously for a brief moment. "Besides, you're still on you're feet." We both glanced down to see that, sure enough, both the warrior's feet were planted firmly on the earth. "I hope you can forgive me." I sighed and held out my hand to her. Suki's breathing steadied and she smiled warmly at me.
"Of course I can." She accepted my help and I pulled the both of us up on our feet. "But I do hope you know that I'm going to kick your ass next time." I chuckled at her remark. In a way, Suki was like Mai with when it came to humor. It seemed as if I had known the girl for years the way we bantered with one another. Suki was really great. You've got a keeper here, Snoozles. Sokka was lucky to have such a wonderful person like Suki in his life.
"Oh? What makes you so sure of that?" I teased her as we approached the campground. There was a smug grin on my face. The Kyoshi Warrior hit my arm playfully.
"Because next time...I'll be deadly serious next time!" Her face suddenly went stoic and earnest for a moment. As soon as I burst out laughing, she cracked as well, joining in with a fit of giggles of her own. I was glad that Suki had joined Team Avatar. She was a devoted member and I knew that the more I got to know her, the more she'd prove to be an amazing friend.
I noticed that as we walked back, she continued to hold her stomach with one hand over the spot where I had kicked her. "You sure you're okay?" I asked. Though the warrior girl was a tough cookie, I wanted to make sure that I hadn't severely hurt her; I would feel even more terrible than I already did. Besides, our team didn't need any more injured members. I had a feeling that if Katara knew what we did, she'd be screaming at us till the hippo-cows came home.
"I'll survive." She reassured me and I believed her. "Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?" The brunet chuckled. I had never heard that phrase before but I liked the sound of it. It held a certain power in its message. I began to think about all my brawls and near-death experiences. Indeed they had shaped me and molded me into the person that I was now.
"Yeah," I smiled. "Somethin' like that."