42Author's Note: Three weeks later and I have now come to you with an update. This chapter is the longest one yet, and I really hope you all enjoy various aspects of it. Despite the length of the chapter though, I know it's a lot of filler and I've not doubts you could probably skip past about 3/4 of the dialogue. For the purpose of the story though, it was a must I stick to canon to this point. I assure you though, you'll want to stick around for chapter four, which has been in the works for quite some time...
Also, I start school on Wednesday, so if updates come a bit slower, I apologize. I have a full course load this semester, as well as some extracurricular things outside of my classes. I would also like to thank everyone who reads, favorites, alerts, and reviews this story. It really makes my day to know people are actually interested in reading this, so I again thank you all.
Anyway, I suppose you want to get to the chapter now, am I right?
Three
Pressure
Exhaustion hit the girl like a tidal wave as she plunged into the soft mattress of her bed, its shimmering embroidered comforter wrinkling beneath her and feeling cool against her skin. Thus far their time in the city of Ba Sing Se had been eerily calm and humiliatingly strict, and their encounter tonight with the Cultural Minister had proven to Katara just how much she underestimated her blind friend. From the beginning, the rumors of Ba Sing Se being a utopia were simply a covertly hidden crusade by a corrupted official to keep the citizens ignorant. Long Feng had said that keeping order in the city was the Dai Li's way of making the citizens feel safe, and Katara seethed at the thought. Did the entire government really believe their city was impenetrable, as its name suggested? Whatever they thought, Katara didn't care. The only thing she could see was that the Dai Li were indirectly placing all these citizens' lives into Fire Nation hands with no means to defend themselves.
Rolling onto her side and throwing her legs over the edge of the bed, Katara stood and found her way to the washroom. Gazing into the mirror, she noted how the make-up had faded and smeared, observing her face from one cheek to the other. She reached for a clean rag and dipped it into the basin, wiping harshly at the rouge and shadow, wincing at the cool, sharp dampness of the cloth. As she brought the now multicolored rag down from her face, she remarked that the blush and shadow had seemingly combined around her left eye. When she reached to remove the stubborn powders, she paused, the creeping familiarity of another person's face filtering in her mind and staring back at her in the mirror.
Before the Waterbender could stop herself, she said aloud, "I wonder what ever happened to Zuko… if his uncle is all right…" She glanced down into the basin then up again, a grim smile flitting on her face as she admired her now pristine complexion. Dipping the rag into the ever dirtying water, Katara gently swiped at her face again. When she looked up, her reflection was accompanied by Toph's.
"Hey, Toph," she turned and leaned against the marble counter. "Do you need any help removing your make-up?"
Katara could see that the girl was reluctant and thought better of it and offered the cloth to her. "Here," then she scooted to one side to allow Toph room as her smaller companion began cleaning her face. The two stood in silence for several minutes.
"Anything left?" The Earthbender queried, her sightless eyes focused on the basin.
Katara pushed off the wall and brought a hand to Toph's face, maneuvering the girl's head up, down, side to side. "You're good," she declared, taking the cloth and wringing out the excess.
"So," Toph began, "you were saying?"
"Huh?"
"Zuko and his uncle," she clarified. "You were wondering what happened to them. What brought that on?" Toph sat on a pouf in the corner of the grand bathroom and began to pick at her toes.
"Oh, I was removing my make-up when it smudged around my left eye and it made me think of Zuko."
Toph's brows furrowed. "What do you mean?" She stopped her grooming.
At first Katara thought the girl could not be serious, but abruptly remembered in a Sokka-like manner that Toph was blind. The youngest of their group, Toph was so capable and rarely asked for assistance that most of them would completely forget that the girl lacked the ability to see physical characteristics, such as a person's eye color… or a large, intimidating blemish on the face of the enemy.
Hesitant, Katara blathered ungracefully, "It-it's just that Zuko, Iroh's nephew… Well, most of the left side of his face around his eye is scarred. I can't exactly describe its color to you," Toph frowned, "but from the looks of it, it's definitely a burn wound."
"How'd he get it?"
Katara dropped her hands into the murky, make-up water. "We're not sure. We speculated on it once. Sokka believes it was likely a training accident. Aang didn't wish to speculate and I agreed, though honestly…"
"Honestly what, Sugar Queen?"
"I think someone did it to him, on purpose. The thing reaches from his lower cheek up near his hairline, and then goes around his left ear. It just radiates pain, and despite the fact he's our enemy and having seen what fire can do, I don't wish it on anyone to be burnt so severely. There's also the fact that, when he tied me to a tree—"
"Wait! Scarface tied you to a tree?" Toph's eyes widened in amusement and stifled her giggles.
Katara actually winced at the nickname, but chose to ignore it. "Yes, I stole a Waterbending scroll from some pirates and Zuko caught up with us at the port city. I was jealous of Aang because he was catching on to Waterbending so fast, so that night I went to practice alone and Zuko kinda came outta nowhere. So that I wouldn't escape, he tied me to a tree and dangled my mother's necklace as a bargaining chip. I had lost it on a previous escape and am still not sure how he found it, since he said he didn't steal it and if there's one thing we know about Zuko, it's that he's not a liar."
"You guys were a wreck before you found me weren't you?" The girl viciously smirked. At times, Toph could really unnerve the Waterbender, but this time she just rolled her eyes.
"Yes, we were," she admitted for her companion's amusement, "but as I was saying, when Zuko tied me to that stupid tree, I got a good look at it. Zuko is terrifying in his own right, but that mark makes him seem all the more angry and intimidating, particularly since his left eye is permanently narrowed as if he's squinting to see out of it."
Toph stood from her seat and stretched; her expression contemplative. "Do you know if he can see out of it?"
Katara had emptied and cleaned the basin and wrung the cloth of excess water one more time before folding it across the counter-top. She sighed, "I'm not sure. I suppose it's something you two could have in common. Whether he can see out of it or not, it doesn't hinder his abilities in any way. Though, now that I think about it, in the times I have fought him, he does favor his right side, but that doesn't make him any less of a formidable opponent."
Toph didn't say any more for several minutes then stunned Katara from their silence by asking, "So you heading to bed now, Pirate Wench?" The Earthbender laughed maniacally as she felt Katara tense at the new nickname and her heart rate rise angrily. "Well, I guess that's goodnight then… PirateWench." She ran from the room before Katara's temper overflowed and ice daggers followed her. You make it far too easy, Sweetness.
A whimper forced the scarred teenager to snap open his stinging tired eyes from his unrest and turned over toward the source of the sound and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. His uncle's loud snores did not help him any to try and fall asleep, but then again sleep had never come easily to him: At least not since the night his mother had cryptically awoken him and only to find out the next morning that he had indeed not dreamt of her abrupt departure from the palace.
"Everything I've done, I've done to protect you," she had whispered, desperation in her voice that Zuko had not remembered ever previously hearing. "Remember this, Zuko," she had tightened her grip around his shoulders, "no matter how things may seem to change, never forget who you are." His mother had concluded pointedly, he himself had still been attempting to gain some semblance of wakefulness, but the words had stuck to him like a chill on a winter's night.
At ten years old, Zuko watched his mother flee his bedroom whilst pulling an uncharacteristic cloak over her head. She had given him once last glance, such love reflected in her eyes for him, never to again see her caring, golden eyes that were so like his at the time. When the young prince had lain back down, he turned over to one side, completely unsure of what to do next. Several ideas came to mind, to follow her, but before he could even come to a decision, soft snores emanated from his fragile frame.
Shaking himself from his reverie, Zuko observed that Lian was awake, her little hands balled into tiny ineffectual fists and she whimpered a second time. The teenager was beginning to understand why she'd been waking in the middle of the night recently, but he didn't want to acknowledge that his uncle had been correct about Lian missing her mother. I wonder how thoroughly he enjoys being right all the time…
The first occurrence happened the night that crazed Freedom Fighter, Jet, had decided to out him and his uncle as Firebenders before a crowded tea shop. If the prince's heart had beaten any faster, he was sure it would have burst forth from his chest leaving him for dead, but his uncle acted quickly by refuting the accusation. Though Zuko was sure that they would be hauled off by the soldiers occupying the shop, he was surprised to find that everyone was on their side, but the triumph of that victory had no chance to solidify before it was snatched out from under him as the men clad in black and green robes placed Jet into custody. If anything, the entire ordeal had further cast his thoughts into doubt about this supposedly grand city.
When the crowds had dispersed and Zuko followed customers back into the tea shop, he quickly strode to the back room to check on Lian only for her to become rather belligerent when he tried to leave to tend to the last patrons of the night. Pao, his boss, had come into the back room then. When his server had not arrived within the allotted five minutes granted and upon seeing that the young father was having a bit of difficulty, the owner offered to allow Xiu Lian on the floor since it was the end of the night anyway. Lian proceeded to toddle behind him for the remainder of his shift, and several customers asked and commented about her, making Zuko feel slightly exposed and uncomfortable. For once the prince turned tea shop server was thankful for his uncle's increasingly grandfather-like tendencies as it diverted attention from him as well as allowed for him to serve without worrying about Lian stumbling into him and possibly having hot tea spilled all over her.
Now as the young man sat up on his elbow and remarked the discomforting expression on her face, he readjusted his position on the bed and sat against the dingy frame and gently placed Lian into his lap. At first she welcomed his comfort but soon crawled off of him and sat against the wall, sucking on one of her fists. Zuko removed it from her mouth. She resumed the action and after a few tries to get her to stop, he opted to allow her to continue and she crawled back into his lap and lay against him. Almost like a reflex, he began rubbing smooth circles into her back and hefted her higher so her head would be against his shoulder. She fussed and grasped his clothing in her hands, her surprisingly sharp nails digging into his skin through the fabric.
Zuko almost panicked when she began to cry and he patted her back and attempted to sooth her. "Um, shh, there's no need t-to cry." When her tears didn't subside and not wishing to disturb his uncle, he stood from the bed and headed downstairs into the small foyer of their complex where he continued his ministrations. "Shh, shh," he shushed gentler this time, pacing the floor and rocking her. I can do this.
"I-I know you miss her," he stuttered, so unused to comforting another individual, let alone a small child. The wetness of her tears and saliva on his shoulder did not make it any more bearable. "Y-you have me, I-I guess." He drew her body closer to his own, actively increasing his internal temperature as the night air that breezed through the cracks of the dilapidated building was quite cool. "I'm probably not what you expected, and honestly I have no idea what the hel-heck I am doing. I suppose it's a learning experience for the both of us."
The 16-year-old could not gauge just how long he stood there, shuffling from one side of the room to the next or when his daughter's discomfort had settled into something resembling a sound slumber, but the young man's eyes cracked open when a hand came upon his shoulder and roused him from a surprisingly unhindered sleep. Sometime between when he had come downstairs and his endeavors to appease Xiu Lian, he had sat in one of the sparse furnishings occupying the entry way and fallen asleep. Realizing how much lighter he felt, he frantically glanced around only to discover his uncle about a meter away with the 14-month-old held limply in his arms, her mouth parted slightly as she continued to sleep.
"Were you up all night, Nephew? You could have come and got me if you needed assistance."
Though still groggy, Zuko hastily retorted, "I can't always be asking for your help with her."
"There is no need to be hostile, my nephew. I do not mind helping you and my grandniece, and despite the loss of sleep and peaceful hours of Pai Sho, I quite enjoy the pitter patter of her around our apartment and in the kitchen of the tea shop we work." Lian briefly stirred in the retired general's arms and Iroh noticed his nephew sit up straighter with bated breath and wide eyes, but released a sound exhale when she did not wake. "Come, Li. I have made breakfast and I will not allow you to skip out on the most important meal of the day. You will need the energy for work today. Pao has informed me that midweek is the busiest time for his little shop."
Zuko mumbled a select number of curses as he stood from his seat, stretching then heading for the stairs up to their flat.
His uncle, who followed closely behind him, then stated in his adopted grandfatherly tone, "She is most adorable when she is asleep."
"Yeah… If only she would actually sleep at night."
Several weeks had passed since the incident of the rogue teen with the twin hook swords, but patrons, often soldiers on duty in the lower ring, would stop the sullen tea server and question incredulously where he had learnt such a skill as Dao swords. Zuko would answer a rehearsed phrase or monosyllabic reply, but would never elaborate further when queried on technique or other such matters. So much for remaining anonymous, he sneered. Hearing the bell overhead, his shoulders slumped for what seemed like the millionth time that day as several customers entered the tea shop. He remarked that a few wore attire one would not find in the lower or middle rings, one being a man with large, glittering jewels on his hands and flanked by body guards on either side. Zuko shoved his curiosity away, replacing his momentarily perplexed gaze with his usual scowl. Gracing the men with his presence, he uttered the memorized greeting and took their order.
"Three orders of Pu-erh, Uncle," he called as he strode up to the counter, eyes narrowing as his ears were assaulted by the sounds of his uncle's "singing." Thankfully, no one else could hear him. "What are you doing?"
"I'm steeping tea, Nephew, and did you say 'Pu-erh'? Someone has expensive taste."
"That's not what I meant, and it was ordered by that man," Zuko jerked his head to where the bedecked man and his guards sat. "He's from the Upper Ring."
"We have been graced with many customers from the Upper Ring lately."
"Why they would come here is beyond me," the teen scoffed, gazing beyond his uncle. "Where's Lian?"
"She is right here," Iroh stepped to one side to reveal the child beside him. "She seems to enjoy my singing, unlike her father."
Zuko winced, and not due to his uncle's reference to him, but the idea that his daughter enjoyed the sounds of cat-owls in heat yowling in the night. "Please tell me you're joking."
As if understanding the question and wanting to answer herself, Lian tugged at her great uncle's robes and piped up, "Unkee! Pway, pway!"
Iroh smiled at this gesture. "I am sorry, little one, but I cannot play. How about another song?"
Zuko rolled his eyes. Realizing that a good five minutes had passed, he glanced over his shoulder to scan the room and noticed a few tables were empty with leftover cups and plates. His face betrayed his utter distaste for his job as he glided to the tables in question and began stacking dishes onto the tray he held. Whilst doing this, Iroh had finished the expensive order and served the men for whom it was made. Gracing the gentlemen with a friendly smile, the Dragon of the West turned on his heel back to the kitchen, having left Lian where she sat rooted near several cupboards filled with things she would likely love to get her bitty hands on.
Before even halfway there, Iroh was stopped by a man's voice, "So you're the genius behind this incredible brew. The whole city is buzzing about you!" The old general had turned round again, hoping that no loud clangs would arise from the kitchen. "I hope Pao pays you well," the man then admonished, the fat rings on his fingers shimmering in the low lights of the establishment.
Smiling again, Iroh responded, "Good tea is its own reward." Were it possible, the old man had no doubt that he would have heard his nephew's eyes roll dramatically.
"But it doesn't have to be the only reward," the man added. "How would you like to have your own tea shop?"
Iroh could have sworn he had heard the man incorrectly and almost dropped the teapot and its contents. "My-my own tea shop?!" he cried, stunned. "This is a dream come true!"
Zuko had only paid attention to part of what was transpiring in the little shop, having been busy collecting dishes and taking them to the kitchen. When he walked past, his uncle addressed him. "Did you hear, Nephew? This man wants to give us our own tea shop in the Upper Ring of the city."
The business merchant then spoke, "That's right, young man. You're life is about to change for the better."
Not enthused by the idea of moving to the Upper Ring only to continue his job as a tea server, Zuko replied gravely, "I'll try to contain my joy," and pulled off his apron and headed outside.
Iroh's happiness dimmed slightly at his nephew's response, but was soon brought forth from his contemplations by a loud clang from the kitchen, and the grand tea server went into a sprint. He and Pao found that Lian had opened a cupboard which outpoured disorganized pots onto the floor. The spoon Iroh had given her earlier to play with was in hand and used at a stick to bang on the pots, which amused her to no end. Iroh breathed a sigh of relief and Pao watched on sadly, knowing that he was about to lose his most prized tea server and the man who had revitalized his little shop.
Outside the business, Zuko leant against the wall and kicked small pebbles beyond his feet. The rustling of paper lifted his attention from the ground and to the air as he noticed a flyer of sorts floating toward his now awaiting hand.
Later, before afternoon settled into dusk, Zuko walked back to his flat with a new purpose gradually filling him. When he entered, he found his uncle packing his chest and Xiu Lian seated in her wooden high chair eating neatly cut pieces of fruit and bread from the tray attached.
"So I was thinking about names for my new tea shop. How 'bout The Jasmine Dragon? It's dramatic, poetic, and has a nice ring to it."
Always having a one-track mind, Zuko declared, "The Avatar's here in Ba Sing Se," he held the leaflet for his uncle to take, "and he's lost his bison."
Iroh observed a determination in his nephew's voice he had not heard since the young man had requested to properly train again. Placing the leaflet upon the table, he said, "We have a chance for a new life here. If you start stirring up trouble, we could lose all the good things that are happening for us."
Zuko released his white-knuckled grip of the window and turned irately toward his uncle. "Good things that are happening for you! Have you ever thought that I want more from life than a nice apartment and a job serving tea?"
Earnestly, Iroh answered, "There is nothing wrong with a life of peace and prosperity. I suggest you think about what it is that you want for your life," – and Lian's – "and why."
He glared out the window once more. "I want my destiny."
"What that means is up to you." Before Iroh could further ask his nephew about how Lian fit into this destiny that someone else had bestowed to him, the child pushed her cup of juice to the floor.
"Uh-oh," she put her little hands to her mouth, eyes wide with hints of amusement and a want for attention.
Zuko breathed steam, closing his eyes and trying to regain some semblance of composure, and then walked away from the window to clean up the mess his daughter had made.
Uh-oh is right, Iroh thought darkly.
Katara stood with her arms folded tightly across her chest, the whole of her emanating rage and mistrust as she observed him. He had stumbled upon her near a fountain where she had gone to plaster posters to the walls when he approached her. As she had gazed upon him, the usual swagger to his walk and the haphazard way he chewed on the prairie grass, she reached unabashedly for the water from the fountain and let loose a torrential flood on the poor sap. He had scaled back as far as he could until she managed to corner him into a wall and stapled him the brick with sharp daggers of ice. His steely brown eyes met her wrathful blue ones just as the rest of her group came by when they heard the commotion, flanking the two.
Though Toph had only joined their little entourage a few months prior, through her ability to see with the Earth she had concluded that Jet was telling the truth (and that Katara had serious, unresolved issues). He wanted to help them find Appa. Due to this fact alone, Katara's singular opposition was swiftly outmatched by those of her companions, so she threw back her distrust but did not swallow it. One wrong move and Jet would be hers to maim.
Jet led them to a barn several blocks away from where they had convened and told them what he had heard. Seeing nothing but hay and peeling walls, Katara threateningly begun, "If this is a trap—"
"I told you, I work nearby! Two guys were talking about some giant, furry creature they had. I figured it must be Appa."
Before the Waterbender could attack, Toph's voice echoed through the room, "He was here!"
Aang rushed forward and swept the wad of fur from Toph's outstretched hand. He stroked it forlornly and allowed his shoulders to slump. "We missed him."
"They took that big thing yesterday, shipped him out to some island. About time, I've been cleaning up fur and various, uh, leavings all day," an older, hunched man sweeping the barn said, shuffling past.
Aang, jumping at the chance to discover his lost friend, frantically interrogated, "What island? Where's Appa?"
Wearily, the janitor answered, "Foreman said some rich, royal type on Whaletail Island bought him up, guess for a zoo or such. Though could be the meat would be good…"
"We've got to get to Whaletail Island!" The Airbender paused. "Where's Whaletail Island?"
"Far… very far." Sokka laid out the map for everyone to partake, pointing as a small 'whale tail' shaped island that resided closely to his and Katara's homeland. "Here it is. It's near the South Pole, almost all the way back home."
Everyone kneeled around the paper, Katara taking a quick, mistrustful glance at Jet, and then continued to gaze at the map. "Aang," she addressed her friend, "It'll take us weeks just to get to the tip of the Earth Kingdom, and then we'll need to find a boat to get to the island."
"I don't care," the boy ground out. "We have a chance to find Appa. We have to try."
Katara understood his desperation, but she caught herself before she protested to the idea aloud. Appa was an important part of their group, she had to remind herself, and he was not only their furry companion but their means of getting quickly through the nations, across the oceans and up the mountains. Though Aang's intentions were completely personal, as Appa was one of the last relics of his people as well as his best friend through thick and thin, Appa was of the utmost importance in their quest to end this war.
Before she could ponder this further, her thoughts were interrupted by the creepy janitor. "Must be nice to visit an island… I haven't had a vacation for years…"
She then crossly asked, "Don't you have some more hair to clean up?"
Soon agreeing upon their next destination, the gang filtered outside and into the street and thought up ways to get to the island. Katara not only avoided Jet, but Toph too, since the Earthbender confronted her in the barn about her previous affiliations with the Freedom Fighter and discovered through her unique sense of Earthbending that there indeed had been something there. Toph would never let her live it down. Little wretch, Katara thought bitterly.
"We can take the train out to the wall, but then we'll have to walk."
Katara inwardly groaned at having to walk through miles of terrain again, especially after their almost fatal trek through the Si Wong Desert then the Serpent's Pass.
Cheerful as ever, Aang said, "Don't worry; on the way back, we'll be flying."
"We're finally leaving Ba Sing Se." Toph threw her arms wide into the air. "Worst city ever!"
Katara's anger was just starting to fade when a raspy, feminine voice cried out from behind her.
"JET!"
Enraged at the teen she had once harbored a less than innocent crush, Katara spun around and accused, "I thought you said you didn't have your gang anymore?"
Bewildered, the older teen yelled, "I don't!"
Smellerbee threw herself at the former leader of the Freedom Fighters, relief washing over her as she tightened her grip. "We were so worried! How did you get away from the Dai Li?"
"The Dai Li!" Katara seethed.
Toph could have sworn she heard and felt an entire block's worth of water pitchers shatter in the distance.
"I don't know what she's talking about," Jet pleaded.
"He got arrested by the Dai Li a couple weeks ago," Smellerbee started to explain. "We saw them drag him away."
"Why would I be arrested if I've been living peacefully in the city?"
Toph blinked a few times before she crouched to the ground and brushed her palm against the earth. Jet's heartbeat exchanged between slow and quick, unsteady like his thoughts and the words he uttered. The girl's on the other hand was quick but sincere. Worry was the only thing filling her heart. As the Earthbender gauged their cardiac responses, she realized that something was definitely amiss. "This doesn't make sense." She could feel everyone's eyes on her. "They're both telling the truth."
"That's impossible."
Not wishing to flood an entire city by stupidly acting without thinking, Sokka thought briefly before uttering, "No, it's not. Toph can't tell who's lying because they both think they're telling the truth. Jet's been brainwashed," he pointed to the older boy.
Toph almost thought the guy's heart was going to burst forth from his chest and devour him as he distressingly answered, "That's crazy! It can't be! Stay away from me!"
The group, along with Smellerbee and Longshot, stepped purposefully forward toward the former leader of the Freedom Fighters.
It had taken several rounds of brainstorming and useless ideas from Sokka before Katara figured out that she could help Jet release the mental block of his brainwashing by using her Waterbending. She uncorked the water skin and relished in the coolness of her element as it gloved her slender hands and she brought them around Jet's ears. Instantly, Katara saw him visibly relax and his head lolled forward as she hoped the memories came to him, though she could not see them. When he lifted his head from his crouched position, a resiliency briefly flashed in his eyes that had not been there previously, and Katara could only relish the possibilities.
Tentatively, he stated, "They took me to a headquarters under the water, like a lake."
"Wait!" Sokka's outburst startled everyone. "Remember what Ju Dee said? She said she went on vacation to Lake Laogai."
Jumping from his seat, Jet proclaimed, "That's it! Lake Laogai."
Almost a day after his small confrontation with his nephew and the boy having snuck out of the flat later that same night, Iroh began to grow suspicious as to the boy's activities and had asked their neighbor, a widower, if she would kindly look after his grandniece. She had smiled pleasantly and taken the youngster off his hands, Iroh thanking her for such kindness and offering to help her in return should she need a favor. Knowing that Lian was safe, Iroh traced his nephew's path to Lake Laogai.
Before he had begun the siege of Ba Sing Se almost a decade ago, Iroh had studied and memorized many an ancient map of the city. Though he had not acknowledged his nephew's accusation that the city was a prison, the old general grimly knew the boy had been correct. Due to the city having originally been underground, when it had begun its ascent to higher terrain, much of that original city had been turned into covert military and training facilities for the Dai Li. As well, there were several prisons and rehabilitation centers for those who did not adhere to the "cultural heritage" of the city.
Having learnt the inner workings of the city years before, Iroh easily navigated his way to Lake Laogai. A friend within the walls had told him that the quarters of the Dai Li had been moved from the ancient city to a dungeon-esque bunker beneath the lake.
"Expecting someone else?"
The Blue Spirit flashed his swords ominously before the Sky Bison, the large beast shifting uncomfortably before the masked man. He stepped forward and circled the creature curiously. He had never been this close to it before, and was surprised to find it was smaller than he had imagined, much like his surprise when he found out the Avatar was a 12-year-old kid (which he had yet to figure out exactly how that worked).
"You're mine now."
Approaching the animal warily but with confidence, the noise of the door sliding open caught his attention and he maneuvered to face whoever dared interrupt his gaining upper hand in this mess of a hell hole. When he saw who entered though, his heart plummeted to his feet and his eyes widened considerably beneath the blue Oni mask of his alter ego.
"Uncle?"
Feigning curiosity, Iroh stroked his beard as he spoke, "So… the Blue Spirit. I wonder who could be behind that mask."
Sighing, Zuko removed the mask obscuring his face. "What are you doing here?" he bit out more harshly than he had intended.
"I was just about to ask you the same thing. What do you plan to do now that you have found the Avatar's bison? Keep it locked in our new apartment? Should I go put on a pot of tea for him?"
Ignoring his uncle's implication, Zuko said, "First I have to get it out of here."
"AND THEN WHAT?" the 16-year-old was somewhat taken aback by his uncle's incense. "You never think these things through! This is exactly what happened when you captured the Avatar at the North Pole! You had him, and then you had nowhere to go!"
"I would have figured something out!"
"NO! If his friends hadn't found you, you would have frozen to death!"
"I know my own destiny, Uncle!" He turned away from the former general, gritting his teeth as perplexing thoughts swirled through his mind.
"Is it your own destiny," Iroh started coarsely, "or is it a destiny someone else has tried to force on you?"
"STOP IT, UNCLE. I have to do this!"
"I'm begging you, Prince Zuko! It's time for you to look inward, and begin asking yourself the big questions. Who are you? And what do you want?" As the boy hurled his Dao swords and mask to the floor, Iroh proceeded, "And what of Xiu Lian, Prince Zuko? Whether you wish to acknowledge it or not, her future and safety lies solely in your hands. As her father, she is your responsibility. I am simply here to help, and I cannot always be here to bail you out."
"I know that, Uncle," he answered stiffly without facing him. "I couldn't leave her with Qian Na." Iroh was taken aback by the shift in conversation. "Once Lian could walk properly, she was going to take her to the forest and leave her to fend for herself against creatures ten times her size. The wolf-bears would eat her in a single bite." Zuko picked up a single sword and worked his way around the bison, slicing the chain restraints clean through. The bison groaned in thanks and apprehensively watched the two people until the older one ushered it to fly out the grate in the ceiling.
"I could not leave her," Zuko repeated again, still gazing upward after the bison, "especially knowing her future. All her mother wanted to do was go home, but because of me, her parents would not allow her to return. Not until she 'did away with the abomination'. I could not allow her to discard Xiu Lian like a piece of rotten meat, to… abandon her. So I made a deal with her. I would take Lian and she could go home, but on one condition: To forfeit her title and right as Xiu Lian's mother.
"Did I do the right thing, Uncle?"
Iroh's eyes watered slightly, and he languidly swiped the stray tears from his tired eyes. "Yes, Nephew. I know you do not believe me, but you have more honor than most men three even four times your age. I only wish you could see that, and apply it to all walks of life. You will fare better should you do so."
The afternoon had unfolded into tragedy as Smellerbee wept over Jet's prone body as Longshot stood at the ready should anyone intrude. Jet flitted between consciousness and unconsciousness for several hours before someone came through the threshold. Longshot had his arm pulled all the way back, but hesitated when he noticed it was a woman. Her kimono was a plain, pale yellow with elaborately green, embroidered cuffs and quite disheveled much like her mussed, shoulder-length black hair.
Her eyes were wide and frightened with obvious tear stains down her face. Her breath hitched when she noticed the young man on the stone floor, a girl weeping beside him. "Oh dear…"
Longshot did not move when she jogged past him, a noticeable limp in her left leg. He did not feel she was a threat, and from her obvious clothing she was one of the many Ju Dee's that roamed this kingdom. But unlike the pristinely coiffed women in the dark room with the single Dai Li agent, this woman looked as if she had been handled quite roughly. The silent archer did not wish to speculate on it any further and continued to watch the doorway.
Smellerbee stared up at the woman without shame, her bottom lip trembling and face stained with tears, soot and minerals from the battle. The girl trusted Longshot's judgment and allowed the woman to kneel on the other side of Jet, where she gently took his wrist into her hand. Smellerbee wondered briefly as to how she had come to have what looked like restraint bruises upon her wrists, but swallowed away the curiosity when the woman's breath hitched.
"H-his pulse… It's very weak. Wh-what happened?"
"First, who are you?"
The woman shook her head, as if afraid to speak. "I went by Ju Dee, but now I don't know anymore," she breathed, stroking slicken hair away from the young man's face. Her heart wrenched painfully and her pulse was evident at the base of her throat. Even in the dark she could see his pallid, yellowing skin. "I-I'm not an expert. I-I don't e-even know why I know this, but your friend… He's internally bleeding, and, um, from his yellowing skin… his liver is failing."
"Please tell me there's something we can do," Smellerbee pleaded, Longshot allowed himself a quick glance beyond his shoulder to the two women.
'Ju Dee' bit her lip. "We-we can make him comfortable." She stood, though almost fell when her ankle just about gave way, but Smellerbee was up on her feet to anchor her. "Th-thank you. We-we should l-leave b-before we are discovered," she started shakily. "I know where we-we can t-take him."
Jet's vision was hazy as he wandered the deserted plane he found himself on. His strides were aimless and when he reached for his hook swords to clear away the tall grass, he realized that he did not have them on him. Glancing down his body, it also dawned upon him that he was not wearing his usual attire, just a simple light brown tunic with a green belt. Perplexed, he glanced beyond the ever burgeoning fields of prairie grass and heard the sounds of splashing. The young man dashed into a sprint, ignoring the stalks of plants whipping his face as he ran ever faster and suddenly found himself in a clearing. One by one, houses transpired before his very eyes, and familiarity washed over him.
"Jet!" a high-pitched cry came forth and he was engulfed in a tight hug.
The thought of who the voice belonged to shred his heart. It could not have been possible. "Su Lin?" he gazed down only to find her large brown eyes boring into his.
"You've come home, big brother! Mom, Dad, Jet's home!" the four-year-old sprinted toward a house nearby, and immediately the teenager recognized the splintered shudders and inviting doorway. It was as if his feet had a mind of their own as they guided him to the entrance.
Before reaching the threshold, a woman and man came to the door, Su Lin bouncing on the balls of her heels between them, with her favorite stuffed pet Mr. Snuffy. Jet's heart swelled so, that he had to pause to catch his breath as it jumped into his throat. Tears lined the teenager's eyes and his bottom lip trembled and before long he found himself kneeling on the ground, sobs engulfing his rugged frame. The three figures rushed to his aid and enveloped him in a large, group embrace. The man reached for Jet's shoulders and gazed nostalgically at his son, the once young boy having now grown in a handsome, young man.
"Father?"
"Welcome home, son."
"You're safe now," his mother blinked away tears. "You have done what you could, baby," she maternally stroked his cheek.
"It is now time for you to rest, my son."
Smellerbee sobbed against Longshot, soaking his shirt through, but the young man did not care in the least. With the help of Shi, as she had requested to not be called 'Ju Dee' any longer, the two Freedom Fighters had arrived at a peaceful clearing, where a singular tree grew atop of hill, one grave marker all ready there. Smellerbee and Shi had made Jet as comfortable as they could, considering that the young man's breathing grew shallower by the minute, his eyes glazed slightly and limbs shaking from a fighting effort not to die.
Longshot had to keep moving, as standing by his friend in his final hour overwhelmed him so he feared he would fidget the entire time, and to him that seemed terribly disrespectful. The silent archer crouched before the other marker, where he was met with the highly rugged looks of a young man in a Fire Nation soldier's uniform. Longshot was unfazed by the soldier's obvious heritage, and almost even relieved that someone cared for him enough to bury him (as they would to Jet once he passed), unlike the majority of soldiers who would lie in heaps until the smell of their decaying bodies became too much, then they were burned.
Lu Ten, he read the name. I hope you don't mind sharing this place with our friend, Lu Ten.
"Longshot," Smellerbee called him, her voice thick with emotion.
The archer nodded and came by her side, taking her hand in his as Jet's body shuddered violently. The woman, Shi, teared silently and stifled her cries into her cupped hands. Longshot ushered her over and took her hand as well, giving both of them a tight squeeze. Smellerbee leaned against him and rolled her head into his shoulder as Jet breathed out anguished.
Swallowing, Longshot let go of Smellerbee's hand and placed it on Jet's chest, his clothes drenched in sweat and the potent scent of death lingering ominously. "You have fought all your life. Don't fight this."
Though Jet had for several hours remained unresponsive, a stiff tell-tale nod came from him, his eyes alight for a single moment but steadfastly dimming as evening descended upon them. "Th-then for m-me, d-d-don't e-ever stop f-fighting," he sputtered, blood spewing forth from his mouth. With his last and final breath, he proclaimed, "Y-you will a-always be F-Freedom F-f-fighters to m-me. It-it's t-time for me t-to r-rest."
Smellerbee lay across their fallen leader's body, her sobs howling into the cooling air of dusk. Longshot reached over her and lowered Jet's eyelids, the tears he had not allowed to come before spilling down his face. Shi's body wracked with anguished cries, her entire world and existence having been shattered today only to end in death.
I will take care of them. I will continue fighting. Justice will be served, and I will one day see you again, my friend.