After two weeks I can finally update T.T
I'm so happy I finished this chapter, it gave me so much trouble.
It helped that I worked on My Hero Academia FF Kill La Hero, so give it a look.
Also, I want to announce something: I have finally decided to say fuck it.
People today say we can't write smut or similar things for FICTIONAL characters even if they are underage.
Do these people not know how teenagers are?
Most of them are horny all the time and when they can have sex they will do it!
They won't stop watching porn and having sex with each other because we aren't anymore writing about Fictional Character A having sex with Fictional Character B.
Also, writing should be free!
We should write what we want, it's not my task to monitor kids and teens.
I put the warning on and if they still can read it, then blame the parents not us authors!
It's their mission to protect the innocent of their children.
Even if they talk in school about sex.
I can still remember what we talked about in my teens.
And it wasn't My Little Pony or grades. XD
Sex is something normal and natural and not something to be ashamed of.
And more I don't say.
If you disagree feel free to block me and search for other fanfics.
You think like that, I think it this way.
Let's respect each other's opinions.
I'm telling you this because we will experience together with Aang and Hua the first steps in physical love. I don't think I will let them have sex right now, but dear god I want them French kissing without people coming for my ass.
Also, Zutara is to hot to not have sex when they are a couple ;D
Anyway, we are still a long way away from these things I just wanted to give you a heads-up. ^^
Now on with the story!
Book 1.16: The Deserter
Water.
Earth.
Fire.
Air.
Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony.
Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.
Only the Avatar and Daimon, masters of all four elements, could stop them, but when the world needed them most, they vanished.
A hundred years passed, and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar and Daimon, an airbender named Aang and an earthbender named Hua.
And although his airbending and her earthbending skills are great they have a lot to learn before they're ready to save anyone.
But I believe Aang and Hua can save the world.
It was nearly sunset when Team Avatar reached a little roadside kiosk.
Getting curious they walked up to it.
"This should give us a good idea of what's around here.", mussed Katara reading the posters.
Sokka flips a small pouch to find it empty aside from a few crumbs.
"See if you can find a menu, I'm starving!", groaned the water tribe teen.
"I bet we'll find something to eat here, the Fire Day's Festival.", said Aang, before he read aloud. "Fire Nation cultural exhibits, jugglers, benders, magicians ...This would be a great place for Hua and me to study some real firebenders."
The Daimon, who had Jaiyi in her arms, raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you saying my firebending lessons are not enough?"
"Hua, we learned the scroll up and down.", reminds her Aang. "Now we are making it up on the go and I don't think we are making great progress."
Hua raises a finger, like she wants to argue, then frowns and signs.
Aang had a point.
They knew the firebending scroll by now without even looking at it.
They needed to learn new moves.
"You are right. It would be good to go to this festival."
"You guys might wanna rethink that. Look at this.", called Sokka from the other side of the kiosk.
All joined him to see what was wrong.
The answer was simple.
"Hey, posters of me, Hua and Blue!", grinnend Aang.
The posters looked good!
"Wanted posters! This is bad.", corrected him Soka.
Each of the three who had a poster removed it from the kiosk. Blue just grumbled it, Hua studied the painting of herself, while Aang read his poster.
"I think we better keep moving.", declares Katara.
"The scroll helped us, this could be Hua and mine only chance to watch a master's up close.", begged Aang.
Hua nodded.
"I'm with him. We will never master firebending only with the scroll."
Katara frowned, but she had to admit, the youngest had a good point.
"I guess we could go check it out."
This made Aang and Hua smile, while Sokka and Blue stared at Katara.
Did they hear right?!
"What? You wanna walk into a Fire Nation town where they're all fired up with their ... you know, fire?", questioned Sokka.
Blue wrote his thoughts.
I'm with Sokka. This just screams trouble for us.
Sokka narrowed his eyes at him but then signed: "Can't believe I'm with Mask-Dude on the same side…but this doesn't mean I will stop keeping watch over you mister?!"
All just deadpannend at Sokka.
His paranoia of Blue was getting old.
Secretly Zuko was happy how only Sokka mistrusted him still. It was one obstacle less in his quest to capture Aang and Hua.
"We'll wear disguises and if it looks like trouble, we'll leave.", proposed Katara to the two sceptics.
"Yeah! Because we always leave before we get into trouble.", sasses Sokka back.
However, since the two oldest boys were outvoted, they had no choice but to go with the others to the festival.
Sokka to protect them, while Zuko hoped a chance would turn up to snatch Hua and Aang.
At nightfall, they had nearly reached the town where the festival was held.
They stopped on a hill and Aang told their animal friends to hide. Momo and Jaiyi dived into a bush and Appa hid behind the little bush.
It was adorable!
Then it was time to disguise themselves...
Blue just put the hood of his robe even deeper over his masked face. Hua, Sokka and Katara put on their black cloaks while Aang pulls his orange shawl over his head with a smile, making him look ridiculous.
"It's like you're a whole different person …", retorted Sokka sarcastically, while Hua and Katara giggled.
Blue just shook his head.
"Let's go.", said Aang cheerfully.
After a few minutes they enter the bustling town.
People with masks were everywhere, children played and they nearly got run over by a costume dragon.
"I think we need some new disguises.", told Katara studying the people with the masks.
"Where are we gonna get masks like that?", wondered Sokka.
It seemed like the universe was good to them tonight since they heard a man calling: "Get your genuine Fire Festival masks here!"
"That was surprisingly easy."
Blue keeps his mask since they sold Blue Spirit masks too, so hopefully, no one would conclude he was the real Blue Spirit, while the other picked out their mask.
Hua chose a white with red markings kitsune mask, Katara chose a lady with makeup, Sokka a blue smiling mask with petals around the rim, and Aang chose a red mask with a frown on it.
After looking at them Katara removes Sokka's mask, revealing him to be frowning, and Aang's mask, revealing him to be the one smiling.
She places Sokka's original mask over Aang's face and Aang's over Sokka.
You could feel Sokka frown even more.
They walked around for a bit looking at the attractions. Sokka nearly burned himself with this food called Fire Flakes.
Not even he was hungry enough to eat them full.
They watched a little puppet show with Firelord Ozai who burned down an earthbender and decided to move along.
Too macabre for them.
Then Aang sees a big crowd and leads his friends there, Sokka murmurs that it was probably an execution.
Zuko heard him.
And it didn't make him feel good.
The other where the whole time on edge at the Fire Festival, while he remembers happier times, going with his mom and uncle and Lu Ten to them and enjoying them.
How Sokka said that the main attraction of the festival had to be an execution…was this how the other nations saw the Fire Nation?
That when they celebrate, they like to execute people?
What he learned with his tutors so long ago was how the Fire Nation wanted to spread their technological advance over the primitive nations, but this?
It made him question things again.
He was never more thankful as the show turned out to be a magician who needed a volunteer for his next trick, picking Katara. Aang thought she was in danger and airbenden the fire away, which turned into confetti and lost his mask.
As a distraction, Aang made a silly dance, while Hua and Sokka freed Katara from her seat, as people recognised Aang as the Avatar.
Then a wild chase took place and a man in a hood helped them to flee with explosions.
Aang called for Appa with his whistle and they flow away from the festival.
The Avatar praises their new ally for his quick thinking with the explosion and setting off the fireworks, while Sokka impressed tells him how the man knows his explosives.
That's when the man turns around and they see he is a Fire Nation Soldier!
The man corrected them.
He was once and his name was Chey.
The group lands to make camp.
When the campfire burns, Chey begins to speak.
"I serve a man.", he says. "More than a man really, he's a myth, but he's real, a living legend, Jeong Jeong the Deserter. He was a Fire Nation general, or wait, was he an admiral?"
"He was very highly ranked, we get it.", stops him Sokka unamused.
"Yeah! Way up there! But he couldn't take the madness any more. He's the first person ever to leave the army - and live. I'm the second, but you don't get to be a legend for that. That's okay though. Jeong Jeong's a firebending genius. Some say he's mad - but he's not! He's enlightened."
Did Aang and Hua hear right?!
"You mean there's a firebender out here who's not with the Fire Lord?", they chorused together, Aang even stood excited up. "We've gotta go see him! He can train Hua and me!"
"We're not gonna go find some crazy firebender!", makes Sokka clear.
Even normally Firbender where a pain in the butt, however a crazy ex-general/admiral living in the woods, just screamed trouble!
Annoyed Chey comes to his master's aid. "He's not crazy! He's a genius! And he's the perfect person to train the Avatar and Daimon! That's why I followed you into the festival."
Now the annoyed Sokka makes clear how he was thankful for the help, however, they would leave for the North Pole in the morning.
Now Hua and Aang protested together.
"Sokka, this could be our only chance to meet a firebending master who would be willing to teach us!"
"It can't hurt just to talk to him.", agreed Katara with the two youngest.
"That's what you said about going to the festival! Why doesn't anyone ever listen to me?"
"Is this again about your instincts?", mumbled Hua, yet Katara and Aang heard her and giggled.
As Sokka turns to pout, he almost runs right into a spear.
In a flash, they are surrounded by men wearing straw hats, light armour, tribal make-up, and wielding spears.
Oh-Uh!
The Spirits hated him, Zuko was sure.
Not only was going to the Fire Nation Festival a disaster, no, but now he was in one of the huts of deserters and traitors of his country!
If his father ever found out he was near the infamous Jeong Jeong the Deserter, he could forget his throne and say hi to a nice little cell on the Boiling Rock!
Maybe Uncle Iroh was right and his plan did have flaws.
No, he couldn't think like that!
As long as he keeps his "Blue" theatre-going, no one would ever need to know how he captures the Avatar and Daimon.
Still…when he was a boy, Zuko remembered how Uncle Iroh talked about Jeong Jeong, calling him a military genius and a dear friend.
Could someone, whose uncle so appreciated, really be a bad guy?
The part of him, that was formed through propaganda, said yes, but his emotional side, who trusted his Uncle said no.
So…does it mean the Fire Nation, his father, was in the wrong?
It was like someone threw a bucket of cold icy water on him.
How could Zuko think such traitorous thoughts?!
He was his father's and his nation's loyal servant!
That's why he did this spiel of being friends with Aang and Hua to capture them for his nation.
For his honour and to eliminate their biggest treat!
Still…he looked at the people who slept beside him.
Katara was nearly snuggled on his side, which was not good for his racing teenage hormones. He was still a teenager and she was a beautiful girl, who was too trusting of him!
Sokka slept behind him to not make any funny business happen.
Like Zuko would do anything to Katara.
Sweet and fierce Katara, who naturally took him in in their group and acted with him like they were old friends.
She didn't deserve the heartbreak he would cause her when he took Aang and Hua away.
Zuko had seen and felt how Katara saw the two youngest as her own.
But he wouldn't have a choice.
He never has a choice.
Then there were Aang and Hua.
Hua slept on Aang's chest, gripping his robes, while Aang embraced the smaller girl.
They looked like two puzzle pieces.
A perfect fit.
Just none of these two wanted to look reality in the face.
Behind his mask Zuko signed.
He was already a way to invest with everyone, even with Sokka when they squabbled over random things, it would only hurt when he betrayed- when he had to fulfil his mission.
More than normal he wished for his Uncle's advice, okay, Uncle Iroh would sprout some weird proverb nonsense, but then he would help Zuko figure it out.
Another sign left his lips.
He should try to sleep.
Thinking this all over and over wouldn't change a thing.
He NEEDED his honour, his place as the crown prince back.
He wouldn't leave the Fire Nation in the perfectly manicured hands of his cruel sister!
Azula cared for power, not for people.
It's then that Chey enters their little hut.
So much for sleeping.
Careful, with Hua still in his arms, Aang sits up.
"What happened? Can we see Jeong Jeong now?", he whispered, while Hua cutely snuggled up closer to him and Aang stroked her black hair.
Yeah, these two were already a couple and didn't even notice.
How did Katara said to Zuko? Aang and Hua were two lovable idiots in the mysterious ways of love.
He had to agree.
Meanwhile, Chey made a face.
"The thing is…he only wants to speak to the Daimon since her next element is Fire. He doesn't want to talk to you at all. After talking with the Daimon he wants you all to leave immediately."
"Finally!", shouted Sokka, which woke now everyone up. "Let's hit the road."
"Why won't he see me?", wonders Aang, while Katara and Hua yawn and rub the sleep from their eyes.
"He says you're not ready. Says you haven't mastered waterbending and earthbending yet.", Chey explains.
"Wait, how does he know that?"
"He saw the way you walked into camp. He could tell."
"I'm going in, anyway!"
"Wait Aang!", stops him Hua. "I should probably talk first with Master Jeong Jeong. He did ask for me. Maybe I can sway him to teach you too."
Katara nodded. "I'm with Hua. Let her talk with him first."
After a second to reflect on it, Aang agreed.
That's when Chey let the metaphorical bomb explode.
"He wants to talk to the Blue Spirit too."
All eyes zero'ed on Zuko, while he started sweating.
What did the infamous deserter want from him?
Maybe his rigid body told Chey what he was thinking since the man said to him: "I dunno, why he wants to talk with you. Maybe because you are fighting against the Fire Nation too?"
"Or because he IS Fire Nation.", whisper-shouted Sokka.
For that, Katara hit with her elbow the side of his stomach.
Ignoring Sokka's paranoia Hua stood up and waved to Zuko.
"Come on, Blue let's talk to Master Jeong Jeong."
Did he have a choice in this matter?
Not if he didn't want to blow his cover.
So he followed Hua to Jeong-Jeong's hut.
They squabbled a bit about who should go in first before it was decided Zuko should go in first.
Jeong Jeong surely wanted to talk longer to Hua as she was the Daimon, than he who was a vigilante.
Yeah, Zuko had a bad feeling.
The feeling got worse when he stepped into the hut and saw Jeong Jeong already turned in his direction, fixing him with a knowing look.
Nervous Zuko bowed before him.
He wondered what Jeong Jeong wanted from him.
Yawing Hua was sitting beside Master Jeong Jeong's hut.
He and Blue were talking quite long.
What did a Firebending master need to tell their friend, which took so much time?
If she wasn't so sleepy, she would thought about it more, but Hua wanted just to fall back in Aang's arms and sleep till midday.
She was really tired, okay?
That's when Blue stepped out of the hut. Her friend stared down on the floor, seeming pensive.
"Hey Blue.", she greeted him, standing up. "Is anything alright?"
Even if his mask didn't show his eyes, Hua felt them formally on her.
Something desperate and sad was in them.
"Blue?"
He just patted her head and walked in the direction of the forest.
Did he need time to think?
Hopeful he would return soon.
With a sign, Hua stepped into Jeong Jeong's hut.
She could smell the soft fragrance of jasmine as she bowed before the master.
"Master Jeong Jeong it is an honour to meet you.", she greeted him.
"Raise, girl."
So she did as she was told.
Jeong Jeong had wild white hair, a scar going down one of his eyes and wore simple black clothes.
He was currently making tea.
That's why she smelled jasmine.
"Take a seat."
She kneeled in perfect seiza before him. Jeong Jeong handed her a cup of tea.
"Drink. It's a brand a friend of mine likes quite much, it will help you to stay awake."
Hua thanked him with a bow and tasted the tea.
Mmh, what a filigree and delicious taste.
Jeong Jeong's friend knows his tea.
"You wanted to speak with me, Master?"
"Indeed, girl. I know you aren't an earthbending master yet."
How did he know?
"But you are getting closer. Your next element is fire."
She nodded.
"I'm currently training in it with a scroll, but there isn't anymore for me."
"I see.", hummed Jeong Jeong, sipping his own tea. "You need a master."
"Are you offering yourself, it would be a great help and honour, Master."
"This would mean, you have to leave your friends and your Avatar.", he told her simply. "He needs to learn water and has to go to the North Pole, if you wanna learn fire you have to stay here with me before you rejoin him to learn earth."
It was like a slap in the face!
Leaving….Leaving Aang, Katara and Sokka?
Staying here all alone?!
What?!
"I had a feeling.", declared Jeong Jeong with wise eyes. "You and the Avatar were brought together too soon and started to learn together 100 years ago, I'm correct?"
Not trusting her voice Hua nodded, before she croaked out. "I lived in the Southern Air Temple a few months before Sozin's Comet came. With me was an Earth Sage, Master De, who trained me in earthbending, while Aang should have perfected his airbending. Since then we have always been together."
"What fools.", grumble the master. "I can understand letting you meet so soon and tell your destinies because the war was on the horizon, but starting the bond between you was foolish! An Avatar and Daimon pair normally meets once at 16 then four times a year, when each season begins, till they have mastered their respective elements. Then the bond should take root and lead to love or companionship. But this mess…only complicated things. You can't anymore be without each other."
This made Hua bite her lips nervous.
Should she ask?
She needed to ask.
"Will you teach Aang then with me?"
"No!", he said loud and clear. Even the flames of the candles rose up. "He needs to learn water and earth first! But I recognize I can't keep you from your Avatar."
Jeong Jeong handed her a little chest, which she hadn't noted before.
"Here are some Firebending scrolls. More advanced than the one you have surely. Learn with this, till you and the Avatar come to learn fire from me. But before master earth and water. This is the best solution for the mess the monks and Earth Sages did 100 years ago."
The Daimon thanked Jeong Jeong with a bow, hugging the chest to herself.
"Go in peace, young Daimon."
"You too, master."
Hua knew when she was dismissed, so she went to their hut for the night.
How should she explain to Aang that Jeong Jeong didn't want to teach him?
In the end, Hua's worry was for nothing.
Somehow Aang convinced Jeong-Jeong to teach them both.
So the next morning, while Sokka fishes, Katara practices her waterbending and Blue still hasn't returned, the Avatar and Daimon stand bandy-legged, on flat stones in the river.
Jeong Jeong stands a foot or two away on the bank in front of his cottage.
"Widen your stance. Wider! Bend your knees. Now, concentrate.", tells them, Jeong Jeong. "Good, good!"
"Wait! What do we do now?", wonders Aang, while Hua sends him a look that screams don't speak!
"Silence! Talking is not concentrating! Look at your friend, is she talking? Even that oaf knows to concentrate on what he's doing!"
From Sokka comes an offended Hey.
"But what are we concentrating on?", asks Aang again and Hua makes an aport-the-mission sign.
"Feel the heat of the sun. It is the greatest source of fire. Yet, it is completely balanced with nature!", explains Jeong Jeong.
Hua nods, takes a deep breath and closes her eyes.
She tries to feel the warmth, only concentrating on that, but, of course, Aang has to interrupt again: "So when do I get to make some fire?"
"Concentrate!"
"Aang, you make ME lose my concretion!", shouts Hua together with Jeong Jeong.
Their teacher leaves them and Aang feels embarrassed. Even more when he hears Sokka and Katara giggle behind him.
He blushes.
Hua just signs and follows Jeong Jeong's instructions.
She wants to become a better firebender, if she has to start at the beginning she will.
A while later, Jeong Jeong returns and leads them high up on a mountain.
Aang can't keep himself from asking if they can make fire now, only for their teacher to say he brought them there to breathe.
The Avatar was in disbelief, but he followed Jeong Jeong's instructions.
Then he leaves the two alone again.
It takes Aang exactly five minutes before he whispers: "Hua, hey Hua!"
The spoken to girl just continued breathing, trying to ignore Aang.
She wants to fulfil this exercise to Jeong Jeong pleasing.
Sadly Aang calls her again a few times.
Hua loses her nerves when he pokes her.
"What Aang?!", she shouts. "What is so important?!"
"Come on, you have to think this is wasting our time. We already can do firebending moves.", Aang whines.
"Aang, I think we should listen to our teacher. Jeong Jeong knows more about this then we both together. Look, he already corrected our stance. We were all wrong."
The boy huffs a little.
But it was so boring!
It was more fun learning firebending with Hua and the scroll.
"You know what, I'm going to talk to Jeong Jeong.", declared Aang.
"Aang that's a bad idea, just do the exercise."
However, her other half was already on the way to their master.
Hua couldn't help herself to huff.
Aang, the airhead, wanted to have fun, then really learn the elements.
Did he think the war was a joke?
Well, she at least would listen to Jeong Jeong.
She didn't know how much time passed, it was like she had fallen into a trance when she heard someone come for her.
Silence was around them.
Curious she opened one eye.
It was Blue!
"Hey, Blue, were where you? We have been worried.", she tells him.
Blue only stares at her.
A bit nervous Hua opens fully her eyes.
"I'm currently meditating, feeling the sun, you know for firebending."
Still nothing from her friend.
A bad feeling took its place in Hua's stomach.
Then Blue finally moved, coming towards her.
After Katara healed Aang's burn, they finally noted their missing friends.
"Where are Hua and Blue?", wondered Katara.
She had a bad feeling in her stomach.
"She is probably still where Jeong Jeong left her. I know where.", said Aang calmly.
Jaiyi yipped it at him in a way that said let's hurry and pick up my girl.
So Aang flows Appa in the direction of the mountain.
What they found there surprised them.
It looked like a battlefield, with burn marks on the ground, yet strangely Blue and Hua were sitting there together, talking with each other.
The girl even seemed to have cried.
"Hey Hua, Mask-Dude!", called Sokka for their attention. "Need a lift?"
"Hey guys, that would be nice.", sniffled Hua and Blue patted her shoulder.
They helped them on Appa and Katara fussed over Hua.
"What's wrong Hua? Did you hurt yourself?"
"No, no…Blue and I talked."
"He can talk.", sassed Sokka in between.
All ignored him.
"Blue wants to give you something Katara.", told Hua.
Now all were curious.
Blue took something out of his pocket and gave it to Katara.
"It's my mother's necklace!", shouted Katara happy. She thought she would never see it again. "Blue where did you find it?!"
"I found it on the prison ship you started a riot with the earthbenders.", talked Blue for the first time to them.
His voice may have been a bit muffled from his mask, but the other three know this voice well enough.
Sokka got his boomerang ready.
"I know it!", he shouted.
Slowly Blue took his mask off...and they looked at Prince Zuko's calm and somewhat defeated face!
Muhahahaha I hope you like the cliffhanger!
I wonder what will now happen? :D
Let me hear your theories!
I hope the next chapter won't take this long, but if it does please be patient with me and motivate me with comments so I keep on writing :D
Till next time 3