Sorry, my update was a few days late. I felt like this chapter just kept dragging on and on (even though it's only 7000 words). I had to write it in between working, reading other fan fictions, and sleep…
Yeah, my first chapter of my second crossover is up if you want to see a preview of that.
Fangirl2013: I am glad too. I was looking forward to writing that part, knowing if it didn't happen soon, I would go mad for making Ed so miserable. Thanks for your support!
A Mysterious Illusion: WOOOO, indeed… Yeah, that little panic attack was fun. So are rhymes. Do you have any dimes? Anyway, thanks for reviewing!
KeyStar11: That was convenient. Sorry it didn't get to happen again with this chapter. :P I have a secret…I haven't seen an episode of Avatar since discovering anime back in April, so I read the transcripts to set up my chapters….shh. (Thanks for the review)
AkumanoshippoNiamh: Yay! Forgiveness! You can keep Envy and torture him (it?) all you want. And to answer your other review from my other crossover; Yes. I knew it was going to start off similar, but it will be drastically different. I love your reviews, as always!
Sacrifice
"So, are you really a spirit?" Zuko asked.
"I am not a spirit!" Ed retorted with a happy voice. No matter how annoyed he felt from Zuko's stupid questions, he still could only feel happiness after the wonderful news Zuko gave him.
"Then what's wrong with your hair? Were you touched by a spirit when you were younger?"
"No!"
"So, you were born with gold hair?"
"Yes! I mean, no. It's blond!"
"Are you okay?" Zuko asked nonchalantly.
"What? Of course I am!" Ed beamed.
"You're acting…different."
"Different how?"
"Worse than him." Zuko pointed to Aang. "It's starting to freak me out." Ed smiled and enjoyed the warmth of the fire. They had returned to the temple a few hours earlier, and everyone had been excited to discover Aang could now bend fire. They didn't seem to notice the new jovial aura, or the new spark in Ed's eyes.
"It's great to be alive. Now give me my tea." Zuko frowned and gave the cup to Ed's outstretched hand. He sipped the tea and smiled approvingly. "This is pretty good."
"I've been practicing." Zuko had a slight smile on his face like he was recalling an old memory. "My uncle taught me, but no one can make tea like him. Oh, I know," Zuko announced to everyone. "Would you like to hear Uncle's favorite tea joke?"
"Sure." Katara responded, and Ed was slightly shocked. Katara definitely seemed to hate the firebender…
"I like jokes." Aang said enthusiastically.
"Bring it!" Toph said.
"Okay. Well, I can't remember how it starts," Ed had a feeling Zuko wasn't good at telling jokes. "but the punch line is 'leaf me alone, I'm bushed!'" Ed laughed like a hyena, but stopped when everyone was quiet. Someone coughed. "I guess it's better when Uncle tells it."
"Maybe that's because he remembers the whole thing." There were a few laughs from Katara's statement. Ed didn't laugh. He thought the joke was pretty good. 'Leaf me alone'? That was brilliant! He was definitely going to remember that one.
Zuko gave a cup of tea to Sokka, who stood up.
"Can I talk to you for a second?" The two walked away and Ed curiously glanced in the direction they were headed.
"I'm going to oil my automail." Ed announced, despite the fact he didn't have oil. He hadn't done maintenance on his limbs in over a month, but no one questioned him when he slunk away to Appa. Ed carefully walked in the shadows and hid behind the bison.
"Why do you want to know? What are you planning?" Zuko asked. Ed didn't know what they were talking about.
"Nothing." Sokka said quickly. "Boy, you are so paranoid."
"It's in the middle of a volcano between here and the Fire Nation. You guys actually flew right past it on your way here." What was in the middle of a volcano? Ed wished he had snuck away earlier.
"Thanks, Zuko. Just knowing makes me feel better." Sokka yawned loudly and Ed could hear his footsteps getting quieter.
"Yeah, I'm sure it does." Ed walked around Appa and stood behind Zuko.
"What's in the volcano?" Zuko zipped around and clocked Ed in the chest. "Damn it! Sokka was right, you are paranoid." Ed recovered quickly and glared at Zuko.
"Were you spying on us?"
"I would never do such a thing." Ed faked innocence. "So, what were you talking about?" Zuko didn't answer for a while, wondering if he should answer or tell him it was none of his business.
"A prison. He thinks his father was taken there after the invasion."
"Was he?"
"I don't know." Zuko shrugged his shoulders. "But I have a hunch Sokka's going to do something stupid."
"Sokka is always doing something stupid."
"Did you see him at supper? It's like your personalities switched."
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing. You both have been acting strange. You're a bundle of joy, and he's acting gloomy."
"I'm a happy person." Ed growled. The effect of him learning about the fate of the soldier was starting to wear off.
"Sure. Come on." Zuko grabbed Ed's hand and pulled him to Appa.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Ed shook off Zuko's grip. "I can walk by myself."
"Sokka's going to try to save his dad."
"Are you going to stop him?"
"No. I want to go with him so he doesn't do anything dumb. You with me?" Ed figured there would be no harm done with going along.
"Sure." They climbed into Appa's saddle and waited in silence. Ed yawned and knew Sokka wouldn't slip away until a few hours after everyone else was out. He grabbed a piece of paper and grabbed a nib pen to write something down. Zuko stared at Ed while he scrawled words onto the parchment with his left hand.
"What are you doing?" Ed held up the note to show Zuko. "Um…what does that say?"
"My handwriting is not that bad!" Ed snapped. "It's a letter explaining where we went."
"It looks like scribbling to me."
"Come on! It's legible!" Ed then remembered the language barrier when it came to these peoples' written words. He let his palm rest against his forehead. "Actually, you better do it." Ed gave the paper to Zuko in defeat; it irritated him he couldn't read or write in this land.
"No time. Sokka's coming." They sat in silence and waited for Sokka to climb on Appa. As soon as the boy was in view, Zuko apprehended him. "Not up to anything, huh?" Sokka fell down with a yelp, and to Ed's surprise, no one else woke up.
"Fine, you caught me. I'm gonna rescue my dad." Ed snorted. A father shouldn't have to be saved by his son. "You happy now?"
"I'm never happy." Ed rolled his eyes. Even though he liked Zuko, it was sometimes hard to get over his faults of showoff-ness and negativity.
"Look, I have to do this. The invasion plan was my idea, it was my decision to stay when things were going wrong."
"Terribly wrong." Ed decided to add.
"Not helping." Sokka hissed between his teeth. "It's my mistake, and it's my job to fix it. I have to regain my honor. You can't stop me."
"You need to regain your honor?" Ed sighed. Why was everyone here obsessed with honor and destiny? "Believe me, I get it. I'm going with you." Sokka glanced at Ed, waiting for his reasoning for going.
"You need to atone for your mistake? My life the past few years has been about regaining something I lost. So, to put it in words you understand, I know how it feels to search for lost honor. It is much better when you have someone with you, and that's why we're coming with."
"But, I have to do this alone." Ed jumped down punched Sokka in the gut.
"You stubborn bastard!" Sokka didn't listen to a damn word he said.
"How are you going to get there?" Zuko questioned. "On Appa? Last time I checked, prisons don't have bison daycares." Sokka recovered and stood up. Zuko's point was valid. "We'll take my war balloon." War what? Sokka wrote a quick message and tucked it under Momo's legs. They walked and finally ended up at Zuko's balloon.
"What is this thing?" Ed questioned.
"My war balloon." Ed scrunched his nose at Zuko's vague answer.
"Yeah, the guy that invented those submarines made them. I helped!" Sokka beamed with pride.
"But what does it do?"
"Seriously?" Zuko and Sokka asked at the same time.
"Well, I've never seen one before."
"You don't remember seeing those giant ones at the invasion?" Sokka asked, shocked. Ed shook his head.
"I was…preoccupied." Ed negligently motioned to the fading burn on his arm.
"Oh…sorry."
"Just get in and you'll see." Zuko said irritated. No doubt he wanted to stop dilly-dallying. They filed into the basket and Zuko began to send blasts of fire into a furnace. The red balloon filled with light and gradually ascended to the air. Ed was fascinated and annoyed at the same time.
"So, you guys can make crazy tanks and balloons for people to fly in, but you don't have cars? That's ridiculous!"
"Car…?" Zuko started, but Sokka cut him off.
"Don't ask. He's not from around here."
"Is that a weapon?" Ed laughed at Zuko's question. The only time it was considered a weapon was when Mustang was behind the wheel.
"No. Why do you people thing everything is war related?" The memory of Sokka thinking Ed's puke was a weapon crept into his mind.
"My dad's good at war." Zuko sent another burst of flame into the furnace.
"Yeah, it seems to run in the family." Sokka, that idiot!
"Hey, hold on!" Zuko turned defensively to Sokka. "Not everyone in my family is like that."
"I know, I know. You've changed."
"I meant my uncle." Sokka sure did know how to say the wrong thing at the wrong time. "He was more of a father to me, and I really let him down." Ed wondered what Zuko meant by that. He did run away from home, so maybe that's what Zuko was meaning by letting his uncle down.
"I think your uncle would be proud of you. Leaving your home to come help us? That's hard, right, Ed?" Sokka lightly tapped Ed's shoulder.
"Yeah." Ed looked down at his feet. Technically, he didn't leave his home to help out the group; he attacked them at first. He was sorely missing his little brother, and everyone else from home. Even Mustang.
"It wasn't that hard." Ed glared at Zuko.
"Really?" Ed was thinking the same thing as Sokka. "You didn't leave behind anyone you cared about?" Zuko shook his head. "What about you?" Sokka turned to Ed. "You never talk about your home."
"I didn't ask to come here." Ed growled and wished he could walk away to be left alone, but that was hard to do in a tiny space. "I don't have a home." He whispered.
"So you didn't care about anyone there?"
"Shut up! I have a little brother that I care about."
"You never talk about him."
"I happen to…l-love him very much." Ed faltered as that foreign word slipped off his tongue. "As soon as I get back home, I'm going to return him to normal." Something sparked in Sokka's eyes; he had just remembered Ed's campfire story.
"What?" Zuko sounded and looked very confused. Ed ignored him and continued.
"I also have a girlfr-… a childhood friend waiting for me."
"You just said you didn't have a home." Zuko was beyond confused.
"That's not what I meant. Once I get out of this land, I'll return to my own and make things right."
"So, your childhood friend…" Sokka said slyly. "…is a girl? Does little Ed have a crush?"
"No!" Ed could feel blood rush to his cheeks. "And don't call me small!"
"I had a girlfriend. Mai." Zuko said to break the tension from Ed hearing the dreaded height related word.
"That gloomy girl who smiles a lot?" Sokka asked with a smile.
"Yeah." Zuko sighed dreamily. "Everyone in the Fire Nation thinks I'm a traitor. I couldn't drag her into it." Ed nodded. He would've done the same thing if he was in Zuko's position.
"My first girlfriend turned into the moon." Sokka said it so normally that Ed thought he misheard the words. Sokka's girlfriend….turned into the moon? Ed looked into the sky and glanced at the crescent moon. In no way did those words make sense in the slightest.
"That's rough, buddy." What the hell? Even Zuko thought Sokka's statement sounded normal. Maybe it was a common occurrence for people to turn into the moon. No, that didn't make sense. His friends were simply touched in the head. Ed sat down and leaned against the basket and quickly fell asleep.
"There it is!" Zuko announced and both Sokka and Ed snapped awake. Ed looked and saw an island with steam billowing out of it. The prison wasn't in sight. Then Ed realized it was literally in the volcano.
"What happens if it erupts?" Ed asked curiously.
"It's been dormant for a long time. We should be safe."
"If it's dormant, then why is there smoke coming out of it?"
" 'Cause it feels like it." Ed glared at Sokka, and his answer was never given. The balloon seemed to be gradually descending as they approached the steaming volcano.
"How exactly does this thing fly?" Ed knew it was flying from the hot air the fire caused. What would happen if the air in the balloon wasn't as warm as the air outside? "Won't this thing start to si-" Sokka nearly tackled Ed and clamped a hand over his mouth. Ed slapped the hand away. "Do that again and I'll bite you worse than the first time." Ed growled between his teeth.
"Just keep going." Sokka told Zuko. The balloon soon went out of control and headed for the water.
"We're going down! The balloon's not working anymore." In a last attempt to regain control, Zuko sent fire directly into the balloon.
"The air in here is just as warm as out there. If someone wasn't an idiot, I could have told you that earlier." Ed grumbled and watched the boiling water as it was getting closer.
"What are we supposed to do?" Zuko panicked.
"Crash landing?" Sokka said innocently. The balloon skidded across the water and eventually struck land. The crash landing had enough force behind it to throw its three passengers out onto the rocks.
"So what's your plan now?" Ed stood up and crossed his arms.
"Yeah. How are we going to get out of here if the balloon doesn't work?" Sokka was met with two unfriendly glares.
"We'll figure something out! I suspected it might be a one way ticket."
"You moron! Don't you think anything through?" Ed said with a quiet tone so he didn't alert any guards.
"You mean you expected this to happen and you still wanted to come?" Zuko's arms were now crossed as well.
"My dad might be here! I had to come and see!"
"Who cares? Your old man can take care of himself if he's a great warrior like you say." Ed tried to make his words sound nice, but they came out hostile.
"Just because you have dad issues, doesn't mean the rest of us do." They all stared at each other blankly and awkwardly.
"Um, my father is-" Zuko started.
"A huge bastard." Ed finished for him. "Now get rid of the evidence and let's go."
"What?" Zuko questioned but Sokka knew what Ed was talking about. Sokka went over to the balloon and pushed it into the bubbling water.
"Why did you do that?"
"It doesn't work." Ed stated.
"Yeah, and we don't want anyone to find it."
"I hope you both know what you're doing. There's no turning back now." Sokka and Ed nodded, then they all stood by the enormous fortress's wall. "Great. How do we get in?"
Sokka pulled out his boomerang and stuck it into the wall. "We climb." Sokka tried to prove his point and fell after pulling his boomerang out to stick it up further.
"I'll get this one." Ed quickly calculated the components making up the wall and clapped his hands. A small door was transmuted and the three shuffled inside. Ed returned the door back into the wall, and quietly snuck through the halls.
"We need to find a storeroom." Ed whispered. They walked cautiously through the basement of the prison and hid whenever a guard walked by.
"There's one." Zuko pointed to a sign on a door. The door wasn't locked so they piled in and frantically searched for uniforms in their sizes. Ed shamefully went for the smaller ones and hoped his friends wouldn't make a remark.
"Okay." Sokka clapped his hands. "We need to find my dad as soon as possible. Lay low, you too. It won't matter if anyone sees me, but you both are easy recognizable. Just stick togeth-" Sokka cut himself short when guards stormed past the hallway the three were scheming in.
"Guards!" A soldier yelled. "There's a scuffle in the yard. Come on." Hesitantly, they followed the mass of people into the prison yard. Ed suddenly felt his hair being pulled and he turned around quickly.
"Your braid was sticking out." Sokka whispered and tucked Ed's hair into his uniform.
"Okay." Ed had to extra cautious. It was easy enough to hide Zuko's scar behind the helmets, but it was much more complicated to hide flowing locks of golden hair. Prisoners and guards alike were standing in a large circle around two people.
"I didn't do anything! I'm going back to my cell." Ed could hear a gruff voice say, but he could see over anybody's heads, so he pushed and shoved through the people to see what the commotion was.
A guard was waving a fire whip and Ed hesitated slightly. He was undercover, that man wasn't going to blast him with fire.
"You didn't bow down when I walked by." Ed already loathed the arrogant bastard. He had an urge to help the prisoner and knock the guard out. Apparently, Zuko had the same idea and Sokka grabbed both their arms before they did something reckless to jeopardize the mission.
"What? That's not a prison rule."
"Do it!"
"Make me." Ed liked this prisoner, he just hoped he wasn't incarcerated for a heinous crime. The guard attacked the prisoner with fire, but it was easily deflected; yet, for some reason, the bastard looked happy.
"Firebending is prohibited. You're going in the cooler. You!" He pointed to Sokka, who looked terrified. "Help me take him in." Sokka leaned toward Ed and Zuko.
"Meet back here in an hour." He whispered. Ed and Zuko nodded, then watched Sokka walk away with the prisoner.
"You two," A commanding guard motioned to Ed and Zuko. "Disperse the prisoners and take them back to their cells." Zuko nodded and Ed raised his hand in salute.
"Yes, sir!" Zuko side glanced at Ed, but the guard seemed pleased and smiled, then walked away to control the prisoners.
"You should act respectfully, even if they don't deserve it. It's part of our cover. Don't blow it by acting like a private who never went to basic boot camp." Ed said quietly to Zuko. He nodded and they herded prisoners back into their cells like cattle.
One prisoner decided to be funny and lifted his foot slightly so Ed tripped over it. Ed fell to his hands and cursed at the prisoner, who was now looking down at him with shock. Everybody seemed to be staring at him, so he flipped his head to look at Zuko. His braid slapped his cheek from turning his head fast.
"Damn." Ed said to himself. His helmet was laying on the floor feet away from him, which revealed his blond hair. "I'm gonna run," Ed hissed through his teeth so only Zuko could hear. "You have to capture me." Zuko didn't nod, but the look in the eyes gave away the fact that he understood.
Ed stood up and brushed off his clothes and waved a hand to the guards. "Hi." Ed smiled evilly and sprinted through the unsuspecting guards.
"Wait!"
"Freeze!" Ed had no intention of surrendering and ran down the hallway, hoping Zuko would be able to keep up. The plan was definitely not going well, but they could still save Sokka's father. Zuko would gain the trust of the other guards if he were to capture Ed, then he would be given valuable information.
Zuko, as well as dozens of others, raced behind Ed and shouted feeble commands at him. A few fireballs were thrown near him, but none of them were dangerously close. Ed could see Zuko back tracking and running in a circle to cut him off. Grinning, Ed grabbed the railing and jumped off from the second floor to land on the main floor.
"Get back here!"
"Stop!"
"Come quietly!" Well, it was already too late for that. He scanned the floor above, but he was slammed into the ground by a guard that had jumped on him from above. Ed flailed his arm until it collided with the apprehender's side.
"Ow! It's me." Zuko groaned.
"Oh, in that case…" Ed punched Zuko again and tried to roll him off.
"What are you doing?"
"It's gotta look convincing." Ed managed to throw Zuko off and threw another punch. Zuko caught the offending fist and once again used his body weight to pin Ed down. Because the boy was much bigger than him, Ed couldn't throw Zuko off a second time and stopped struggling. He was going to need his energy for an escape later.
More guards rushed into the room and surrounded Ed. Slowly, Zuko stood up and pulled Ed up by his hands, which were immobilized against his back. Ed was taken to a cell, with guards on alert ready for the alchemist to snap, and was given plain prison garb clothes. He stared at them awkwardly, waiting for the guard to close the door to give him privacy.
"Close the door." Ed stated nonchalantly. The guard scoffed and eyed the new prisoner. "Close the damned door." Ed repeated, this time a little angrier.
"No. Hurry up and change." The guard spat.
"No! I don't need a pervert watching me change." Ed walked to the cell door to slam it shut, but the guard created a fire whip and swung it close to Ed. Too close.
Instinctively, Ed backed away, but continued to give the bastard the worst look possible.
"I need back up!" Ed's eye twitched.
"I didn't even do anything!" He protested as five guards swarmed the tiny cell.
"He refuses to change his clothes."
"Shut the stupid door, and I will." Ed grumbled and crossed his arms. The guards came closer and attempted to pull at the uniform.
"Get away from me, you perverts!" Ed swung his arm and leg, which was successful at keeping the guards at bay. Some of the guards summoned fire, but Ed wasn't letting any of them near him.
"Out of the way. What's the problem here?"
"He won't change his clothes."
"That's because you're all sick bastards!" Ed interjected.
"Everyone out. I'll take care of him." Oh, Gate. What was this guard planning on doing to him?
"Ed, what are you doing?" The guard asked when the door closed and they were alone.
"Huh? Zuko?" The teenager nodded his head.
"You're causing a ruckus."
"Well, sorry for not wanting to be stared at while stripping down."
"…It's their job. They were making sure you weren't concealing any weapons."
"They could've done that without fondling me."
"Stop being so stubborn. Don't give them a reason to kill you. Remember; they don't think you're exactly human."
"Stupid bastards."
"We'll come by tonight to let you out. Just stay here and try to behave."
"I can get out myself…"
"Behave." Zuko hissed. "We can't ruin the plan, so relax here for now."
"You better not forget me."
"I won't. Now hurry and change your clothes." Zuko tossed Ed the heavy garbs and waited.
"Turn around."
"Ugh!" Zuko turned around and angrily folded his arms. "You done yet?" Ed threw his guard clothes at Zuko to let him know he finished changing.
"If you forget me, I'll break myself out and kick your ass."
"Don't worry about it. See you later." Zuko slammed the door shut and Ed was left in the darkness by himself.
A few hours had passed gruelingly. There was nothing to do in the dark cell but think, which Ed didn't feel like doing since it only made him think of home. And Alphonse.
He tried to eavesdrop on the people guarding his cell, but they weren't talking at a loud volume, so Ed couldn't make out what they were saying through the thick iron door. All he knew was he wasn't allowed out of his cell under any circumstance. He was simply too dangerous. Good thing they didn't know he could easily escape with a clap of his hands.
"I'll take over from here." Ed could hear a loud voice that sounded like Sokka. A crack of light blinded Ed momentarily until his eyes adjusted to the light flowing into the cell. Sokka's smile greeted him and he motioned Ed to follow him.
"Where's Zuko?"
"Change of plans. No time to explain, let's go!" Ed and Sokka rushed outside and went to the waterside. There were a bunch of people he did not recognize standing next to a large tub looking thing.
"Who are they?" Ed motioned to the four newcomers.
"That's Suki." Sokka pointed dreamily to a girl with ear length hair. "Those are some prisoners who…got involved."
"Oh. So, are we ready to go?"
"You go ahead. I'm not going." Ed raised his eyebrows.
"Sokka?" Ed asked while he held the bridge of his nose.
"Hm?"
"You're an idiot."
"Thanks?"
"We're not about to leave you here by yourself, dummy." Zuko and the girl, Suki, walked over to them.
"I'm not leaving you, Sokka." Suki said and Ed could've sworn he saw both her and Sokka blush a little bit.
"I'm staying, too." Zuko said, and Ed realized he was wearing a prison garb uniform.
"Zuko, what happened to your clothes?"
"Uh…I sort of got caught."
"So I sacrificed myself for nothing?"
"Yeah…sorry about that."
"Whatever. What's done is done. So now what do we do?" The three strangers were in the tub floating across the boiling lake.
"We gave up our only chance of escaping. I hope we haven't just made a huge mistake." Sokka gulped and looked up at the gondola.
"Probably…" Ed grumbled. He was getting tired and antsy. A blood curling scream echoed off of the rocks.
"The plan failed! They're caught." Ed glanced at the tub and saw a claw reeling it in. Alarms blared and guards were yelling. A metallic screech indicated the gondola was starting to move.
"If my dad's not there, we've risked everything for nothing."
"…I know how that feels…" Ed said quietly to himself. The gondola stopped moving and several prisoners filed out of the doors. Once it was emptied, Ed and Sokka's heads dropped. Sokka's dad wasn't in there.
"Hey, you!" A guard yelled. "Get off the gondola!" Ed smiled when Hakoda stepped out, and he turned his head to look at Sokka.
"Dad…" Sokka said with relief. This hadn't been for nothing, after all. Lantern lights became visible from the side of the prison as the sirens continued to shrill.
"Sorry to interrupt on your parade, but we have company." Ed motioned to the lights. Ed clapped his hands and created a door in the side of the wall. "Get in." Ed stood and let his friends in, then started to shut the door without following them.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Sokka asked, startled.
"I'll distract them. Hurry up before they realize you're gone."
"But, they'll hurt-" Zuko started.
"No buts. Leave." Ed slammed the door shut and destroyed it. There was no turning back now. He ran ahead several feet until he looked up and saw a watch tower. There should be no cells under them, so he clapped and touched the wall. The wall exploded and Ed could hear the panicked yells from the nearby guards. Surely the explosion would be a big enough distraction to help his friends avoid suspicion, because if Sokka, the last undercover person, was caught, the mission was doomed.
"Hey, you! Stop!" The guards were already closing in, and Ed froze. He knew he was going to get caught sooner or later, so he decided he would avoid punishment later and give in now. His friends should be safe by now anyway. Ed slowly raised his hands, knowing better than to make the fire people angry.
"Stay where you are!" Ed rolled his eyes; he hadn't even moved an inch. A fireball came bursting out of one of the guard's fists, which Ed easily dodged,
"What the hell! You almost hit me!" Ed yelled.
"We said stay still!"
"I am, you bastard!" Another fireball came hurtling towards him. "Watch what you're doing!"
"Surrender peacefully."
"I am!" Ed yelled and held back the urge to beat sense into the fire freaks. "See? My hands are up, I'm not going to hurt-" The guards were approaching and one yanked on Ed's braid, then kneed him in the gut. "-you…" Ed wheezed out while trying to regain his breath. "What's…your…problem?" Ed said between heavy breathing. Were they trying to provoke him? It sure seemed like it.
"Stop resisting." One of them demanded.
"I'm not doing anything." Ed snarled.
"We'll use force if you don't come quietly." Ed recognized this voice. It was the same guard that demanded a prisoner to bow before him.
"I give up. Just take me back to my-" Ed was cut off when he was smacked across the face. It was definitely more painful than the time Ross had slapped him.
"I said give up."
"I am, damn it!" Ed roared and attacked the stupid guards and punched as many of them as he could. It didn't take them long to overpower him and use Ed as their own personal punching bag. Ed took the blows, and even though it hurt, he had been in worse pain before.
"This is for Xu!" The bastard guard shouted amongst the others' yelling.
"…Shoe…?" Ed managed to ask between blows.
"You almost killed my brother!" The guard then punched Ed in the face. The bastard had a brother? And he cared about him? Ed hadn't almost killed any-…oh. The soldier. His luck had to have been the worst luck in the world. His guard was the soldier's brother, and he wanted revenge. If anyone dared touch Al, Ed would freak out, but he wouldn't try to kill the one responsible. Well, maybe he would, but he would do it alone, without the help of a dozen cronies.
"Hey! What's going here?" A new voice said, and the kicking and hitting ceased.
"We found the escapee. He was resisting." Several of the guards showed the newcomer their bruises that Ed gave them before they gained up on him.
"…Lies." Ed managed to muster.
"Shut up." A guard used his heel to jab Ed in the ribs.
"That's enough. All of you are in serious trouble. Let's go." The new guard motioned the others to leave, and he leaned over the downed boy.
"Get up." Ed had been hoping it was Sokka, but it wasn't. It was just a guard who had morals, but still had to treat Ed like a prisoner. A runaway prisoner. Ed trembled and stood on his feet while wavering dangerously from side to side. The guard placed his hand on Ed's shoulder to keep him balanced and led him to a large white room packed with unoccupied beds.
Immediately, Ed knew what this place was. It was a prison hospital. Ed was told to lay down, which he obeyed, even though he did not want to be here. Three guards were stationed at his bed while a nurse tended to his wounds. For once, it felt weird not being healed by Katara via water bending. The guards stared him down, like they were expecting Ed to do spontaneous back flips while juggling.
Ed didn't want to close his eyes when enemies were only inches away, but a combination of sedatives and sleepiness forced him to fall asleep.
"Why did you help him? He's a demon." Ed was starting to regain consciousness, but decided to keep his eyes closed.
"Don't believe everything you hear. He's only a child."
"He tried to escape! I don't care if he's a spirit or a child, he's still a convict."
"Then don't worry. The warden will begin his punishment once he heals." Ed opened his eyes and panicked when everything was dark. He tried to touch his eyes, but his hands were cuffed to the sides of the bed. "I think he's waking up." No, if he was awake, he would be able to see. He struggled against the bindings and shook his head back and forth.
Amazingly, he could see again. A damp cloth fell from his eyes and slumped to the floor. Ed immediately felt stupid for freaking out about a stupid rag covering his forehead and eyes.
"Hey, kid. You okay?" The guard seemed mildly concerned.
"I'm fine." Ed muttered.
"That's good to hear." A new voice spoke. The guards stood up and bowed to the person who entered the room and strode next to Ed.
"Uh, Sir? He's not ready to leave the infirmary yet."
"Nonsense. If he says he's fine, then he's fine." The man turned and gave Ed a grim smile. "Right?" Ed turned his head to look away. "Look at me when I am talking!" The man demanded, and Ed was afraid he was going to get beaten again. He turned his head slightly and stared at the man with malice.
"Good. See how easy that was?" He turned to the guards. "Take him to the interrogation room. We're going to have a nice, long chat." The man exited the room with his arms crossed behind his back.
The guards lifted Ed off the firm mattress and assisted him to a room with only a simple chair. He was seated and fitted with shackles around his arms and legs. The bindings were loose enough so Ed could clap if something went wrong.
The man, who Ed figured was the warden of the stupid jail, walked into the room with deliberation.
"Is this how you normally treat guests?" Ed asked bitterly when the warden appeared to be observing him.
"Don't worry, those guards have been properly punished. No baked goods for a week." Was he actually serious? Ed wanted to slug the warden in the face. "Now, I think we should be friends." The warden said coldly with an unfriendly smile on his face.
"No thanks."
"Let me rephrase that. You will obey us, and your past will be forgiven." Yeah, right. Wait, who is 'us'? There was only one person in the room.
"Nah. I don't befriend bastards." The warden scrunched his face in anger and made a motion to hit Ed, but stopped when the door opened.
"…Princess Azula!" It was Zuko's sister! What was she doing here? "I'm sorry, I can't get him to break." Oh, joy, they were talking about him.
"That's a shame, he could've been useful to us." Her voice sounded sharp and cold.
"Stop talking about me like I'm not here." Ed said monotonously, trying to conceal his anger.
"You're just a liability to the Fire Nation. Good bye." The crazy girl moved her hand in a circle motion, and lightning seemed to cackle off her fingertips. She aimed it straight at Ed's heart.
Ed knew better than to be unprepared when scary looking ladies entered a room. He had clapped his hands, which went unnoticed, as soon as Azula came into the room. When she started to do the freaky lightning thing, Ed touched his chains and destroyed them before he was zapped. Even the amazing Fullmetal Alchemist couldn't fight against the speed of lightning, so he did the only thing that made sense to get out of the situation.
He punched the psychopath girl in the stomach with his right hand and dashed to the courtyard. He pushed past prisoners and guards alike in a desperate search for his friends. He might have to leave without them if he couldn't find them fast enough.
"Ed? We've been looking everywhere for you!" It was Sokka, and Ed's fast beating heart started to calm down. "Oh my gosh! What happened to you?!" Ed realized he must look pretty banged up, but now wasn't the time to ask petty questions.
Suki came storming through the yard with a bound figure on her shoulders. Ed almost laughed victoriously when he saw the man was the warden. They rushed to the gondola and headed for the other side. Halfway across, both Ed and Zuko were panic stricken. Azula was coming toward them by using freaky blue fire.
"She's going to kill me." Ed and Zuko said quietly at nearly the same time. Azula apprehended Zuko and Ed while Suki was distracting the girl in pink. The blue fire was deflected by Zuko, and Sokka made a move with his sword to swipe at Azula. Ed clapped and made the metal under the girl's feet unstable, which made her fall, but she grabbed a side railing and pulled herself back in.
"Is she a homunculus?" Ed joked to himself; it seemed impossible to even leave a scratch on the girl. No one paid any attention to his strange question and continued to fight.
"They're going to cut the line!" The girl in pink hollered and jumped to the other line. Azula followed her friend and smiled.
"Goodbye, Zuko. Peasant." Ed snorted. It must've been a family trait to call people they didn't like 'peasants'.
"Mai?" Zuko said and looked down.
"Who?" Ed questioned.
"My girlfriend. She saved us." Zuko was right. His girlfriend had stopped the guards from sawing the cord, and she was now facing Azula.
They stepped off the gondola and looked around. How where they supposed to get out of here?
"My sister was on the island." Zuko announced, which Ed didn't think was necessary. "She must've come here somehow." They walked around and found a giant war balloon. "That's our way out."
After a short few hours, they finally made it back to the temple. Katara and Sokka were hugging their father while Ed watched from the inside of the balloon.
"Did yours ever do that?" Zuko asked quietly to Ed.
"What?"
"Hug you?" Ed was shocked, but still tried to recall those very old memories.
"I don't know." He answered truthfully. "I can't remember. What about you?" Zuko shrugged his shoulders, then extended his arm.
"Come on. You should get those injuries checked out."
"They're not even noticeable."
"Your eye is the size of a melon and it's black. You've got bruises everywhere."
"Fine." Ed leaned against Zuko awkwardly as he limped toward Katara.
"Ed! What happened?" Katara rushed over with her water pouch.
"Uh, misunderstanding." Ed smiled weakly, and Katara rolled here eyes.
"Can't you go anywhere without getting hurt?" She inquired as she began to heal Ed's minor injuries.
"Not really." Everyone stared at Ed as soon as they all found out what happened on their little fishing expedition.
"You punched Azula," Aang was looking at Ed with wide eyes and a wide mouth, "and lived?" Ed nodded and smiled. He could easily take that fire sociopath down.
Outtakes
"Sokka! Just hit her with your sword already!" Ed yelled to the water tribe boy who had just missed a chance to hit Azula.
"I can't!"
"Why the hell not!?"
"My show is rated TV-7!" Ed clapped his hands and created several large metal spikes, which were successful at hitting Azula.
"Mine is TV-14! Ha!" Ed shouted in triumph.
Now for something completely different…
Updates will no longer be every other day, as you can see. I will update on Fridays now, since I don't have class on Fridays. I can't guarantee how often I will update with school starting. I'll go with every two week updates…that sounds good.
Sorry. Don't hate me.
Thanks for reading and for your lovely reviews.