Avatar The Last Airbender Fan Fiction ❯ Ainoko ❯ Chapter Six ( Chapter 6 )

I'm far too easily distracted.

 

Chapter Warning: Evil princesses, the death of a loved one, escaping, and family members

Ainoko

Chapter Six

 

“What's this?”

 

Aang felt his heart jump a bit. “It's Katara's necklace.”

 

Kyoui took the necklace and pulled it over her head.

 

“She told me it was an heirloom,” Zuko said. “It seemed the proper thing to do to give it to you.”

 

“What about this necklace?” Kyoui asked. She held up the crudely made pendant.

 

“That's the one I gave her,” Aang answered quietly.

 

She lifted it over her head and smiled. “Cool. What now?”

 

“I guess we wait until night.”

 

“That's boring.”

 

“Sunset's a few hours off. You should get some sleep until then.”

 

Kyoui touched her new possessions carefully. She'd slept most of the day. When she'd awoken, Aang and Zuko had reached a grudging truce—at least grudging on Aang's side. Of course Zuko had helped greatly, pointing out exactly where they were and the best way to avoid being found. Once Avatar sightings were up, though, they'd have to be even more careful.

 

Kyoui suspected a bit of paternal instinct at work.

 

She also wanted to stay, just a little bit. But she knew Aang was ready to go, and she didn't want to be left behind. How often did one get a chance to travel with the one and only Avatar?

 

---

 

 

Azula cursed loudly. She was this close to pushing someone overboard, and the crew was keeping good distance.

 

“What do you mean we can't dock?”

 

She shoved the captain angrily and let out a growl.

 

“I think you underestimate the situation. I suggest you rethink.”

 

The captain frowned at her back. Whomever they were following, they'd pay hell once the Fire Lord caught up with them.

 

---

 

It was dark.

 

And it was much easier to see the flames from the ship docking to the east.

 

“We screwed yet?” Kyoui asked.

 

“Maybe…” Aang answered. “We could sneak away.”

 

“What if they find—“

 

“I doubt they will,” he said sharply and ran forward to the place they hid Appa.

 

She frowned but followed closely. Zuko had run off somewhere…

 

She paused and stopped. “Aang.”

 

“What?”

 

“I have a bad feeling.”

 

---

 

Azula took three steps onto land and already knew something was wrong. She pointed the men towards the cave and made her own path.

 

“Come out, come out, wherever you are...”

 

There was someone nearby, and she turned carefully.

 

“Does the little princess want to play?”

 

The tone was a bit too jolly for her liking. She took a step back, stance ready to fight.

 

“Show yourself,” she said sharply.

 

“It's cowardice to hide. That's what we were taught.”

 

Her expression turned to surprise. She recognized the voice. But it couldn't be…

 

She felt the oncoming heat of the fireball and quickly dispersed it. She could see him in the trees, smiling down at her like a Cheshire cat.

 

Her expression hardened. “A ghost and nothing more.” But she could feel the palm of her hands stinging with the misplaced attack.

 

“Blaming your problems on specters?” He jumped down, the levity leaving him at once. Yes, this was the Zuko she remembered.

 

This is your end, brother.

 

“You escaped death the first time,” she grunted and made an arching motion with her arm. “But not again.”

 

A whip of electric energy formed and she struck him. He dodged, just barely, and moved to knock her over. She was too quick, kicking him in the gut and sending him back. He lunged again, sloppily, and she easily side-stepped him.

 

“Did you see your daughter, Zuzu?” she asked innocently. “Certain family traits, considering the treason and all.”

 

She's just taunting. Ignore.

 

“I'm the bad child?” He gathered up a fireball, thrusting it at her. Another string of electricity reached out to grab him, and he quickly dodged it. “I know the truth. Why the fire Lord died barely a day after the Avatar's capture.”

 

She grinned, giving another array of attacks. He barely managed to avoid them. “Did you figure it out? I knew you would. But where is the proof in an exiled prince. No one dares speak your name. You're nothing more than a phantom! You don't exist! I've wiped you from the earth!”

 

Her attacks were getting more desperate. Was she scared? Had her ghosts come back to haunt her?

 

“Everyone knew! You spent half of your time looking over father's plans and telling him they were too kind! You set up your own strategies to defeat his own. The only good thing he'd thought up, I believe you said, was the idea to harness the power of the comet.”

 

“SHUT UP!” She gave a scream of rage. Flames spurted from her finger tips like angry claws. She'd loss too much of her concentration to use her personal powers. “What do you know? The prodigal son? Hardly. You were too caught up in your own vendetta that you forgot you wanted to come home! I was the proper child to become ruler, just as father was chosen over uncle!”

 

He easily quelled the flames around him, snaking them towards her like darts. “I remembered my country. I remembered my people! You and father were so ambitious, you destroyed anyone who got in your way. That's why you killed him. You killed the Fire Lord.”

 

She paused, her composure returning. She smoothed down her hair, flexing her fingers. “So what? You'll not get a confession out of me. Did you think that would worry me? Do you think you can bring me in by my own darkness? No, brother. There are no ghosts here. Just decomposing bodies of traitors and conspirators. The good guys don't win all the time. This just isn't your day.”

 

With a horrific battle cry she ran forward, power sparking at her fingertips. Zuko fought back, blocking attack after attack and returning with one of his own. She pushed him back against the trees, and he kept his ground.

 

Zuko could feel his body giving out. This was too much exertion, too much he hadn't done in too long. But he couldn't just give in. If it took his own death he would kill his sister. Azula would pay for her crimes in blood.

 

He managed to grip her shoulders. With a simple twist he turned her topside, and she crashed against the ground. She caught a kick to his shoulder before landing, then swept his legs out from beneath him. In a quick flourish she hit him with an electric blue whip, and he bit his lip to keep from crying out.

 

“Scream all you want,” she hissed, digging her nails into his skin. “The pain won't go away.”

 

Ghosts can't feel.

 

She pressed her palm against his chest, and he felt something drive into it. She withdrew, smiling, showing off the blade hidden in her arm.

 

“Are you still human enough to bleed?” she asked, raising the blade out, holding it threateningly.

 

He grabbed her wrist and drove the knife into herself. In his weak state he could barely manage a steady shot and hit her shoulder blade. She growled, threw him back, and slammed the blade into his stomach.

 

“I guess even ghosts have some life in them. Goodbye, brother.”

 

In the distance, he though he saw Katara.

 

---

 

Kyoui suppressed a cry.

 

No.

 

No.

 

Aang grabbed her wrist, and she held a hand over her mouth to stop her scream.

 

“He's dead,” he whispered.

 

Remorse layered his tone. For a moment, he wondered back to when he was twelve and still naïve.

 

“Could we have been friends?”

 

He caught himself smiling.

 

“The minute you got your self-righteous head out of your ass.”

 

“Come on,” he said softly. “I know where we should go.”

 

She nodded and let him lead.

 

---

 

Azula groaned, staring at her dead brother. Of course the bastard had managed to leave his final mark. She stared at his face for a long, long time, and blinked.

 

I'm not…

 

She touched a finger to the corner of her eye.

 

…Crying?

 

She was losing it. The sooner she got this damn girl out of her way, the sooner she could go back home.

 

Perhaps there was something still within the princess that kept her human. She'd always been violently cruel, and even when paternal blood had spilled over her hands, she hadn't felt so…

 

I hate you.

 

It was a silent thought to the corpse. Then, with a shake of her head, she turned away and continued her mission.

 

---

 

The bison lifted silently and easily into the air. The moon wasn't even out; there was nothing to give them away. It would be swift flying until morning, where they would have to find refuge somewhere else.

 

Aang held the reigns tight in his hands. The sky was cold, and uncurling the fingers might be more of a chore. He stared at them a while, waiting for something he wasn't quite sure of. Kyoui was huddled in a blanket in her own corner, her eyes open but unseeing. The glint of tears shone in the starlight. Like this, she didn't look like Katara, like Kyoui, like anyone but a lost little girl, desperate to hide from it all.

 

Aang knew some good places to hide.

 

---

 

Kyoui stirred. “Where are we?” she muttered, looking down. All she saw was ocean.

 

“We're gonna reach the Earth Kingdoms soon,” Aang announced.

 

“Oh, okay. What are we going to do there?”

 

Aang thought for a moment. Kyoui almost thought he didn't hear the question, until he turned around and smiled.

 

“I've got friends.”

 

Notes:

I hope they're still friendly.

Okay, so I really wanted to get this chapter, because we all agree how amazing it is, right? (::martyred::) So it's shorter than most of the other chapters. I'm sorry I'm getting lazy.

So, before, I had all the story in one notebook. Then I stopped writing in the notebook. Which means all further words will probably be written straight on the computer. I don't know what effect that'll have, but let's hope it's still good.

The main reason I didn't finish is because I didn't know what else to do! We've freed the Avatar (check), we've uncovered some dirty little secrets (check), and then I got your hopes up before crushing them (check). What else could I possibly do? I didn't want to bring anymore dead characters back to life, because I've used that gimmick. Go me. Then I remembered there were other characters in the story.

Duh.

And there were some characters we didn't know about when the story started that have shown up. Which means one of our favorite characters (or one of my favorite characters) will swoop in to save the day.

And there's a pairing I can't resist putting in, but you'll see about that later.

On a completely unrelated note, I'm looking at the map of the world, and the creators are geniuses! Ba Sing Se and Lake Laogai has been there the entire time. Holy fuck!

Though I can't quite figure out where the Kyoshi islands are. I want this story to be as accurate as possible. This is proving hard with my short attention span. I'm pretty sure I know where most of the stuff is, but still…

Alright, time to review.