Avatar: Reign of the Black Lotus

((A Link to the OoC))

"mmm..."

There came a soft hum in Zuko's ear, and the blackness of sleep started to slowly lift the veil from him. The feel of bare warmth against him felt foreign, and it was the next thing he noticed next to the soft murmer that happened again. At first it didn't register exactly what was wrong about it, but as it did there was a soft twisting knot in his stomach as he felt adrenaline start to slam into his veins, causing his heart to beat rapidly, causing him to shoot up and grab the hand that was touching his chest, staring at the tanned skin as if he expected that it would be holding a dagger. Instead it was limp between his fingertips, and yet as he looked at it, he realized that it looked familiar in a way that he couldn't readily describe, but itched at the back of his brain in the most annoying fashion. What was he not thinking of.

"Mmmnn... Zuko... what are you doing?" came the soft voice beside him that made his blood turn to ice as easily as if she'd somehow bended it to be so. Zuko didn't look at her, he couldn't. There was something unearthly about the air, the very place that they were in. It was back in the capital... the bedroom chamber of the Fire Lord. Slowly, his golden eyes glanced over towards the nightstand, where the golden flame of the Fire Lord rested there. A part of him wanted to reach out and touch it, but as he reached out the hand pressed to his chest and curled a little, then pressed hard as if to pull him back towards the bed, stopping for a moment after he didn't comply, but just sat there, staring at the room around him in awe.

"Zuko... go back to sleep. I swear, if you make me get up this early in the morning after what we did last night..." There was a lilt in her voice at that and Zuko felt his cheeks start to burn a fiery crimson that made him glad there weren't any open flames nearby to pick up on the sudden heat that seemed to spread through him at that. Finally, he let the fingertips guide him back towards the soft silken pillows, feeling them give in to his weight ever so slightly, the support of the bed combined with the softness of it a perfection that was unparalleled. The first time he'd slept in this bed, he had just rolled back and forth in amazement at what the craftsmen had made for him for his coronation ceremony.

Slowly, he let his eyes go to the person beside him, and they flew open, amazed at what was filling his vision. Her eyes half lidded, the Southern Water bender lay in front of him, just an inch away, her face lazily half buried inside of a pillow. She let out a yawn that seemed so cute that it made him smile a little without realizing that he was doing it, the goofy sort of smile that came on when you didn't want it to and just stayed far too long until anyone who might have been paying attention would ask exactly why you were grinning like an idiot. She nuzzled the pillow a little, and closed her eyes, seeming content with Zukos descent back into the covers.

Zuko reached out slowly, lightly, and let his fingertips touch the faintest whisps of her long hair, feeling the outermost strands for a moment before he let himself fully touch it, as if afraid that she might suddenly explode if he touched her too roughly. Then slowly, boldly he let his fingertips sink into her dark brown hair, which caused her to murmer lightly again at him and open one perfect blue eye opened and stared at him half open, as if exhasperated.

"What are you doing?" she inquired as she leaned up slightly and looked at him, blinking and then opening her other eye as she saw the look upon his face. Her fingertips felt softer than the silken blankets beneath them as she brushed a few strands of his long hair from his face as she looked at him quizically and then gave him a crooked smile a little as she scooted a bit closer to him and leaned in close as if she was going to kiss him, staring deeply into his golden eyes for a moment as she shook her head lightly. "Let me guess, you had that dream again, where Aang and I died, and you were on the run for years and years, trying to figure out a way to survive alone in a world without hope, right? It's just a dream, Zuko... I'm right here..." she said as she cupped his cheek.

Without warning his arms suddenly wrapped around her and pulled her tightly against him, her head landing against his chest, one of his hands moving to the side of her head while the other remained wrapped around her waist. He closed his golden eyes then and took a slow breath in, smelling her scent around him, feeling the warmth of her against him, noting the texture of her hair, every other little detail that he could get in without seeing anything. He just wanted to draw all of it into this single moment and distill it forever. A part of him rumbled lightly as to why he might feel that away, but he pushed it back, trying to forget it ever entered into his mind in the first place.

"Zuko... Zuko... it's okay... sweetie, you're going to hurt me..." Katara grumbled lightly until Zuko's fingertips slipped from her head, his arm reluctantly moving from her body as she pressed up once and failed to get up, then forced herself upright. Zuko sighed a little as he felt her slip from the bed, and he forced his eyes to look at the ceiling as she went for her bath rhobe, not trying to peek at her nudity. Something about it still felt indecent, forbidden, the sort of thing that he shouldn't be doing. He lay there for a long moment until Katara's face suddenly appeared over his own, her eyes narrowing at him. "I know you're not going to fall back asleep now that you've woken me up..." she threatened, and then smiled lightly. "Come on, I'll see if we can't get something hot from the kitchen... the chefs are usually up early..." she offered.

Slowly, sluggishly Zuko got out of bed and put on the soft robe that once he recalled having been coarse, but over time and use had fluffed up until it was almost as soft as the bed that he was used to sleeping in. Taking in a slow breath, he watched Katara disappear around the corner, and resisted his immediate urge to go after her. After all, if she was right then everything here was normal, he could take a moment to really.... breathe. Turning, he slowly went to the hairpiece that signified his position as the Fire Lord, but as he reached for it, he noticed a dull ache in his right arm, and he rubbed it lightly, that was weird, maybe he'd overdone his practice yesterday.

Taking the golden flame in his hands, he lightly swept his hair up and then put it in, feeling the familiar tug of it's weight on the back of his head as he slowly looked around his room. Everything seemed to be in place, all of his trinkets, that he had kept from the road. And there, on one of the stands, there was the ink painting of Uncle Iroh. Smiling a little, he picked it up and looked at it, but it was at that moment that he heard Katara's footsteps coming back. She had a grin on her face that betrayed that she was hiding something, but Zuko played along despite the light narrowing of his own eyes as he watched her approach with seemingly nothing to show for her trip.

"They didn't have anything.." she said glumly, "Except red hot fire muffins!" She pulled her hands from behind her back and in each one there were one of the fiery treats which had been just invented by one of the cooks here. Zuko took one in his fingertips, and looked at it, then looked at her, and smiled a little without really saying anything or taking a bite of it. It felt weird to really feel this... happy.

"Go on, take a bite..." Katara urged, putting her hands on her hips in a manner that made Zuko realize that she was going to complain about him making her go all the way to the kitchen for nothing if he didn't.

It tasted good, the way Zuko sort of knew that it would, and he smiled a little, feeling the heat of it burn lightly in his mouth the way that all really great food should. Without much fanfare he slowly walked over to Katara then and lightly slipped his hand into hers, giving it a little bit of a squeeze. "I'm... really happy..." he said, almost afraid to voice it aloud as he looked around the room, and then at her, staring into her blue eyes for a moment as he took in a slow breath, and then lightly released it. "I never told you this..." he said with a light smile, "But I think I started loving you that day you offered to heal me in Ba Sing Se... I just wish I hadn't been so stupid back then that I..."

Zuko's words trailed off as he saw Katara's face twist in confusion, and a chill slowly start to creep up his spine. She tried to hide it though, bowing her head a little and giving a light smile in a way that seemed genuinely... not like her at all. Katara was many things, but meekly staying quiet, avoiding what it was that she was feeling, didn't seem like her at all, especially when it came to him. His eyes narrowed a little as he looked at her, afraid to let go of her hand for the moment, as if she might run away if he did. "What is it?"

"I... I just... don't understand what you're saying... how could I heal you? What would there even be to heal?" Katara said, her blue eyes looking up at him, then away, as if she'd said something strange. Zuko could see her biting her lip as if confused about what was happening, and felt her fingertips pull a little from his own. She backed away into a wall and paused, looking around as if suddenly everything about this place frightened her, the landscape, the very rooms themselves causing her face to twist with anger.

"Katara... maybe it's time for another trip to Lake Laogai..." came a voice that caused Zuko's blood to curdle in his veins, and he spun around to see the face of his sister, his hands coming up as if to fight her, but she didn't even seem to be paying attention to him, rather to Katara who seemed to calm almost instantly at her words and start to stare off into space, her blue eyes shimmering in a way that made them seem dead... made her seem dead, like a puppet who was having her strings pulled.

"What did you do to her?!" he demanded angrily as he started towards her, but Azula pushed him to the side with seemingly little effort.

"What did YOU do, Brother?" she snapped angrily. "You know how much trouble it is when you start talking about the Earth Kingdom around them... now she's going to have to be reconditioned all over again. Honestly! I don't know why you couldn't just find yourself a fire nation girl instead of trying to tame some water tribe barbarian..." she said with an exhasperated sigh. "Thankfully, the new shipment of slaves from the colonies has arrived today, we can just send her back to Lake Laogai on the boats for their return trip."

Zuko stared at Azula as if she'd grown an extra head. "What are you talking about?!" he demanded, but outside of his window he heard the terrible crack of the whip, and he rushed towards it, pushing back the shutters as he stared down at the great courtyard below, watching as the people of the earth kingdom were marched in, their eyes all as glazed as Katara's, their hands bound by rock chains, and lead by the Dai Li, and some brutal looking Fire Nation tasks masters who occasionally would lash one of the slower ones with a fire whip.

"No..." the sound of it escaped Zukos lips and he spun to look at Azula, who's eyebrows were raised in surprise.

"Zuzu, you didn't forget about the shipment again, did you? I swear, if I have to try to find quarters for the new slaves at the last minute again because you were romping about with water bender scum again, I-"

"What is this?!?" Zuko demanded as he flung his arm towards the window. "Why are there people outside in chains? Why are you sane? What's happening to me!?" It felt like his brain was being twisted, and he couldn't make the pieces of it add up, make his senses understand that what was happening outside was actually happening to him.

"Honestly, I don't know why father chose you to lead this kingdom some days. Ever since you conquered the Water Tribes of the North and South, you've been steadily losing your edge..." Azula snorted, and shook her head. Even now, he could see the viper in her eyes twisting slightly. Azula in any form was a conniver, she was plotting her way to try to get his power even now. And his stomach twisted as he realized that his first instinct was a way to thwart her so that he could keep ahold of that power and not let her have any of it.

"No... he'd never pick me.. you were always his favorite, ever since the Agni Kai where..." As he spoke he instinctively reached up to touch the warped skin that was ever present over his eye where the permanent tissue damage had been done, only to find that there was only smooth skin there. Azula gave him a quizzical look as if to question his sanity even further, and then rolled her golden eyes, shaking her head in a sigh as she walked over and shut the blinds to the window, snickering as she beheld the people in chains down below.

Zuko rushed towards the bathroom and once inside of it stared at the mirror. His face was whole again, there was no scar, no marking. As he started to turn he caught Katara's visage in the doorway, her face twisted in the sort of rage that only came with a murderous instinct, her hands raising up as she started to lunge for his throat.

Azula's bolt struck her down in a heartbeat. Zuko didn't ever realize when he'd started screaming as he tried to kneel down beside her on the floor, but Azula grabbed him by the shoulder and slapped him hard across the face and gripped his hair, forcing him to look at himself in the mirror. Side by side, you could tell the relation between the two of them, the same golden eyes, the colorings that were so very similar.

"Why... why..." Zuko stammered, but Azula shook her head and smiled.

"Don't worry, Zuko... we'll find you another toy. You'd have gotten tired of her soon enough, we all do. Eventually you're going to have to give up these childish little games you play with them and find yourself a Queen for your throne... The Phoenix King is starting to grow impatient about you not continuing on the family line..." she said.

"Get your hands off me... I'm not like that... I'm nothing like you!" Zuko bellowed, but as he struggled Azula's grip tightened to inhuman proportions, and he couldn't escape, nor look away.

"Pay attention, Zuko, whether you like it or not, you're a killer, just like the rest of us..." Azula said, and her words reverberated around the room, seeming to echo down to the very pits of his soul. "You can try to hide it, but you'll always be one of us... always..." Azula purred, and in the reflection Zuko could see his face starting to twist into the angry twisted smile of his father...

"Just like the rest of us..." Zuko's reflection mouthed at him.

Zuko's form shot up from the sleeping bag that he was in, bared chest gleaming with light amounts of sweat as it violently heaved forward again and again. He could hear the violent beat of it thudding in his ears like the rapid beat of a tribal dance. Without thinking his left hand raised up and touched the edge of his face, feeling the scarred flesh there. It was strangely comforting to feel it, as over the years it had become something of a part of his identity, something that made him who he was... even if it was a liability, he wasn't sure that he would get rid of it even if he could.

As the events of his dream rolled through his mind once again, he felt a dull ache in his chest, trying to forget the end of his dream, the horrific truth that was presented to him, while at the same he tried to cling to the delicious lie that had been present at the beginning of it. The smell of her, the feel of her, the sensation that for once, he could actually be happy. That the world might just once... forget that Zuko existed, and would treat him the same way that it might treat another, offer him a chance at happiness, at a normal life.

Slowly his head pressed against the tops of his knees as he curled them up to his chest and tried to ignore the stinging in his eyes. Katara was dead, and nothing he could ever do would make it be less so. How many times had he wished that he were the Avatar, just so that he could enter the spirit world, try to talk to Katara's spirit, if it were even there. He knew that it probably wasn't, but there was a chance, wasn't there? That maybe, just maybe she was somewhere, watching over him. Finally knowing in death how he felt for her in life.

Wiping his eyes, he slowly went into his small bag of items, taking out a pair of ink pictures. One of them was of his Uncle that he'd had commissioned after the fall of Ozai, remembering how much he'd missed his Uncle when he'd been gone with the Avatar, and his Uncle had escaped from prison without him. The other one, he almost didn't want to look at, but the morning ritual of it had been so ingrained into his mind now that it seemed wrong not to. It was a picture of Katara and him that had been drawn by a street artist of surprising talent.

They'd been out in the city on one of her visits to the capitol, and he'd flagged them down, recognizing both of them from the tales of the Ember Island players, a note which almost made them both leave immediately. He'd begged for the chance to be able to draw them both, however, and though Katara was against it, Zuko had managed to convince her. It was in the examination of that, which made him realize that he was starting to hide feelings for her that were not what they should be, and not at all what she'd expected. Maybe it'd been the fault of the Ember Island players for putting it in his mind, or maybe it'd been something that had been there all along...

As he began to look at it, he blinked a little, and felt that familiar sting in his eyes. He tried to smile for her, but it was hard to do. With trembling fingertips he reached out towards the rough paper board of it, not daring to touch it, afraid to smudge the ink on it, but instead stopping a few inches from it, closing his eyes and trying to remember again the way her hair had felt underneath his fingertips... what it'd been like to just caress her and not think about anything but being close to her, and being happy.

Frowning a little, he opened his eyes, and put the pictures away, making certain that the golden hair piece of the Fire Nation was still in with his items. It was the closest thing that the Fire Nation had to a crown, and he wasn't sure if he was keeping it out of some sort of monument to a legacy that had been destroyed by the Black Lotus, or because it was made of solid gold, and thusly could be melted down and sold if the Outsiders really ever ran into money troubles that they couldn't get out of with a little hard work.

Sliding out of his bag, he looked over at Nizhoni sleeping near by, his golden eyes going over her form. Sometimes, if he squinted, her sleeping form almost looked like it could be Katara's.. if he squinted. But her hair was different, and ultimately she wasn't the same. Even if she'd looked exactly like Katara, she wasn't Katara, and sometimes it was all he could do to actually look at her without making it obvious that doing so often caused him pain.

A sharp stab in his arm caused his mind to shift from the idea of her and look at the ground he'd been sleeping on, noting that a rock had likely been jabbing into it while he slept. A bit of exercise would get the kink out, he imagined. Padding on silent feet he left the group, moving to a grassy field nearby where they wouldn't hear him, but he'd still be able to notice if something attacked them. They were in a densely wooded area, so if one of the three elements attacked it was likely to stir sleeping birds, create smoke, or some combination of the two.

On the outskirts of the meadow he tossed his coat and shirt on a branch, and then felt along the three for a sturdy enough branch to do his morning routine of pullups, doing them until his arms gave out from exertion, then waiting a moment to regain a little strength before pulling himself up into the tree to hang upside down for his crunches, abs stretching and seeming to pulse with life and soreness as he worked them, making them feel as if they were made from iron instead of flesh and bone.

Zuko was still a bit lanky looking, as that was his form, but while his muscles weren't overly huge they were extremely dense, and anyone who got a look at him shirtless would easily be able to see the washboard abs that came from intense physical conditioning. With no fanfare, he finally flipped down off of the tree branch and landed in a squat, a sheen of sweat across his body, making him look as if almost as if he'd been misted by the same morning dew that clung to the tips of the grass here.

Morning was the best time to practice his moves, because the dew kept the dry grass, brown with the days of summer, from catching fire even when he used his firebending moves. From a distance, he could, after all, be any other firebender, it was only up close that people recognized him for who he really was. Walking out to the middle of the field, he slowly bent down to stretch, touching his forehead to his legs and doing various other stretches to get limber enough to really exercise, and then taking a deep breath, he began.

The key to good firebending was in the breath. From Iroh he'd learned that Earth Bending was something completely different, more based off of a firm stance. As for the others, he couldn't rightly say, but of what he knew from water bending and air bending it dealt with manipulating the internal energy of the opponent for the former, and various aspects of the mind for the latter. But then, he'd never been able to bend anything but fire like Aang had been able to, and so, he accepted that for the most part it was plain speculation. One couldn't truly understand firebending after all, unless one could bend fire.

Still, in his years on the run, Zuko had found himself following his Uncle Iroh's example and looking at other forms of bending in order to attempt to create a unique form of his own. It was still, in some aspects, fire bending, but for example, redirecting lightning, or the fire whips had hints of other styles incorporated into them, if one looked hard enough.

As his workout progressed, Zuko's movements progressed from the simple action of throwing fireballs that dissappated a few feet from him, as well as fire waves that moved with the arcs of his hands and feet, to more advanced moves he'd made over the years. A sudden forward kick to the chest with his heel flared a plume of flame outward that caused his body to propell backwards and launch into a sommersault in the air, twisting in a way that might have made Ty smile as his hands thrust forward and scortched the ground where he'd once been with a flame thrower intensity burn as he landed.

Another imagined oponent caused him to ignite both feet one curling around so that while he spun upward his other foot blasted flame outward in a twister of fire and searing heat in a move that Zuko really had yet to name or fully perfect. As he ran through what he knew, and experimented with some of what he didn't, he tried to clear his mind for what was about to come.

The cold blooded fire.

After his ascension to the throne, he'd worked night and day to achieve the peace of mind to master the movements, to seperate himself from his emotions enough to call down the electricity that Azula had so easily weilded. It was a sort of power he rarely used, however, for only a few firebenders could do it, and it was the sort of thing that could cause him to easily be recognized. Still, they were far enough away from civilization out here that it was unlikely anyone was watching, and so he let a bolt of lightning rip from his hands across the sky.

As he tried to summon more, his mind flickered to the last time he'd seen Azula weild it's deadly power, the feeling of Katara dead in his arms, the fact that the Avatar was gone forever. As he continued his move suddenly he felt the power twist as he lost control of it, of his emotions, and with a sudden burst of smoke and fire the energy exploded right next to his body, throwing him back and sending him tumbling through the grass.

"DAMN IT!" he snapped as he slammed his fist down hard enough to send a plume of fire up four feet or so. His heart pounding he stood up and glared at the spot where he'd just been. It'd been the same since he'd been outed. He could briefly control it... but full control of lightning had been lost. The control, the clarity of mind that Zuko had once had was gone.

In the distance, a few birds flew out from the trees, probably reacting to the noise he made.

Probably.

Zuko's eyes narrowed as he slowly got up, grabbing his shirt and making his way silently through the underbrush, stalking silently back a different way then he'd come. He was being paranoid, he knew, and yet at the same time he couldn't help but be. Too many close calls with the Black Lotus... too many times trusting someone who'd revealed themselves to be a traitor in their midst. He wouldn't put anything past them, and so even if the rest of the Outsiders might think he was crazy, he still stalked about as if an assassin was waiting around every corner.

This time, the paranoia paid off.

Up ahead in the bushes he saw a man standing. The man looked as if he could be any other traveler, simply lost on his way, eyeing their camp as if debating whether to go ask them for help or not. But as Zuko studied the man's outfit, he caught the small floral pattern that had been stained into the fabric under the man's arm. He was a scout for the Lotus.

The man slowly gripped his wrist and raised his flat palm to the sky, which caused Zuko's eyes to widen. Signal flare. Without even thinking about it, Zuko slammed his fist forward and blasted the man off of his feet with a fireball, sending him tumbling through the bushes, a few feet from the camp. Zuko wasn't sure if any of the others were awake right now, but it didn't matter. He felt a roar errupt from him like a berserker's call as he leapt over the brush and tackled the man as he tried to stand up, tumbling and rolling until he was on top.

Flailing the firebender thrust his palm towards Zuko, which Zuko barely managed to shove to the side as a fireball erupted from it, doing the same with the man's other wrist, and then slammed twisted his arm to slam his elbow into the man's ribs, feeling a few break beneath the assault. Seeing an opening, Zuko's fist came crashing down against the man's face, pulling back to do it again, and again, until blood splattered against the ground.

And then the sound of laughter paused Zuko's assualt as he felt the man chuckling beneath him. "Even if a petal falls, the Lotus blooms again..." the man said with a twisted smile, the motto of their little organization. "Your little group is already surrounded..."

"You're lying..." Zuko spat. "I saw you trying to signal your friends... they have no idea where you are... you're all alone..." A twisted smile came to his face as he drew his fist back for a knockout punch, but the man beneath him smiled again.

"Maybe... or maybe you should get ready to bury some more of your friends." he gurgled through blood stained teeth.

Zuko's eyes flew open, his whole arm igniting in fire as he drew his fist back, oblivious to what else might be going on around him at this moment. Anyone who was there would see the look that was in his golden eyes now, a look that Zuko had rarely ever gotten before, but seemed to teeter closer and closer to the more heated their engagements got.

Taking in a breath Zuko gritted his teeth as he drew his hand back further and prepared to bring it down.

This strike would leave a corpse in it's wake.

Nizhoni fell asleep easily that evening. The Water Tribes had always made quality, comfortable gear. Before she had left the Northern Water Tribe, she had spoken with many of the men who had traveled outside the country to the Earth Kingdom and the Southern Water Tribe. They explained what it would be like, and they gave her a list of things without which she shouldn’t be caught. However, she was also taught how she could acquire some of the things she may need, but she had never been the hunter-gatherer sort of person, so she hoped she would never have to deal with being caught without those things. That didn’t keep her from paying close attention to their advice. Now that she was on the run, that advice had been used on more than one occasion.

In the beginning, it had been easy. She traveled with a group of Water Tribe warriors and benders. They taught her a lot while she was with them. They trained as waterbending, and she was able to train with the warriors with her katana. There were even times when she was able to train with both. Being the only healer of the group, she was also able to enhance her healing skills. While she was pretty good with a sword, and she was an excellent bender, healing was her specialty even above fighting styles. However, she could definitely hold her own against her fellow tribesmen.

They moved slowly to the Southern Water Tribe for a short visit of one month before they made their way through the Earth Kingdom. They helped several villages recuperate after the war. Eventually, Nizhoni wanted to explore the Fire Nation, but most of the group with which she traveled wasn’t ready to travel to those islands. They still held a great deal of distrust and resentment about the attack on the North Pole and the Moon Spirit that had occurred a little over two years earlier. Only two people were brave enough to venture to the more tropical environment with her. The rest remained in the Earth Kingdom, but the two separate groups kept in touch.

Many of the people in the Fire Nation cities held the same resentment of the Water Tribesmen as the Water Tribesmen held for those citizens, but there were others who welcomed them. Nizhoni truly felt that peace was not just a dream of the ancient past. With the new Fire Lord, peace had come. Some would take some convincing, but others were already accepting it with open arms.

The trio were enjoying themselves on Ember Island during the end of the second year away from home when they first received news from their kin in the Earth Kingdom who had received news from the North Pole. Chief Arnook had passed, and a new leader had taken his place as the Chief. Because Yue had become the moon spirit instead of marrying, Arnook had no heirs to take his place. Instead, someone Nizhoni had never fully trusted or liked had taken that spot. One week later, she learned that Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe had also perished.

Instinct had told Nizhoni that something wasn’t right. Chief Arnook and Chief Hakoda were not old men, but they seemed to pass away of natural causes unknown to any. Even the Northern healers could discern no foul deed in the passing of their beloved Chief. Those in the Earth Kingdom and the two who had accompanied the healer to the Fire Nation all wished to return home to mourn the death of their former Chief and to see their families. Something pulled the Water Tribe woman away from that same path. She traveled to the Earth Kingdom instead, for she felt that the Fire Nation would no longer be as kind to her as she had first felt.

It was there that she discovered the Earth King had also perished. She had never met him, but she had heard he had been of sound mind and healthy body the first time she had visited the Earth Kingdom. However, she was now hearing that he had been sickly before his passing. The waterbender had no idea what would have caused such a sickness, but she kept feeling that all of this was wrong. The rumors that told of how Zuko killed the Avatar and Katara before fleeing to the Earth Kingdom also made her uneasy. She wanted to believe them, for who else could have done such a deed? However, she was not one to disobey her inner feelings, and she was reluctant to listen to the rumors or to contribute to them.

Nizhoni should have been happy when she heard that peace had brewed between the three nations, but she felt as if a dark shadow had fallen over the world instead. She knew the only way to discover what truth she could discern would be to find Zuko.

The waterbender was unable to find him for a very long time. Nearly two years passed before she could find him, and the only reason she did was by chance. She had deserted any hope of meeting him at all, for the Earth Kingdom was bigger than any other nation, and many people had burn scars from the war. However, she had thought she could find him because his facial scar was so distinctive in the wanted posters in every town.

Nizhoni had actually been traveling to the other side of the Earth Kingdom where a boat would take her home. It was within a forest near mountains that she found the former Fire Lord. It had been an awkward and difficult meeting, but she knew it would be worth it for the truth. It seemed to take far too long to gain enough of his trust for him to tell her his story, but it was well worth the patience she had to enforce within herself for it. He seemed like a bright, golden flame amidst a world lost in darkness. He gave her hope, and she joined his cause. He was the Blue Spirit, but together they formed the Blue Spirit Clan. Shortly after, another joined their group.

The woman was the first airbender she had seen since Aang had visited the Northern Water Tribe and defeated the Fire Navy. She knew then that they were fated to find each other. Nizhoni knew if there was at least this one, accidental airbender, there would be more. The world could again contain four nations as it was always meant to be. Balance could be restored despite the end of the Avatar. The humans could accomplish this of their own accord- or so the young woman hoped.

This was how she happened to be sleeping upon the ground in a small camp of three in a wooded area. Her sleeping bag was comfortable despite the rocky ground, and she slept soundly for a long while. Her sleep was dreamless- or so she thought, as she could not recall the dreams she may have had- until the dawn began to lighten the sky. She dreamed of things that left her frightened and uneasy, and she awakened with a start and a gasp, clutching her bag tightly as she breathed heavily. As soon as her eyes opened, the visions of the leafy branches of the trees wiped the memory of her visions far from her thoughts.

Unable to shake the feelings with which she was left, she simply lay in her warm bag, looking around. The trees were still green with summer, but a select few had begun to wither with the closing of the season. It was beautiful watching their colours become brighter as the sun rose higher in the sky.

After a couple of hours, she heard a murmur from Zuko. Silver-blue eyes moved toward his sleeping form. A look of peace was upon his face for short time, but soon his brows moved together, and she knew he was having another bad dream. He often had them, but he had yet to tell her about what they concerned, at least not any more. Only one dream had he discussed with her, and that was only a summary of the details that had occurred when the Avatar had been destroyed.

Four months on the run together may have had her face on a couple of wanted posters- though a significantly smaller number than his- but he would not tell her some things. Sometimes she wondered if he had ever truly given her his trust, but he must have to some small extent or she would not have been permitted to keep him company.

Every time she was awake to witness his having nightmares, she longed to go to him, to draw his dark hair away from his face and to comfort him. He probably wouldn’t have accepted it from her, or so she felt. They hadn’t known each other long enough for that in his eyes, she supposed. It didn’t stop her from feeling other things.

When she saw his body bolt upright into a sitting position, she closed her eyes to feign sleep while he rifled through his things before she thought she felt his gaze upon her. If he thought she couldn’t see the sometimes pained expression in his eyes when he looked at her, he was wrong. It hadn’t been difficult for her to guess his feelings for Katara. Who could blame him? She had been inspirational not only to her own people but also to people all over the world. She had been strong, independent, a prodigy of her craft. Nizhoni may have been fairly close to Katara’s healing abilities, but she was nowhere near her skill as a fighter. Perhaps it was jealousy over the feeling Zuko still harbored for the dead waterbender, but often Nizhoni felt inadequate in comparison to the deceased girl, though she had been older than her. She never let it show, though.

Then he left, and, after a while, she could hear his flames from afar. It was only then that she remembered her ill feelings that were left after her dream, and she rose for the day. For some reason, the waterbender could not shake the feelings. It made her alert as she tidied the camp sight while Wing slept.

She rolled her sleeping bag and tied it in that position with the thongs that had been attached to it for that very purpose. She did the same for Zuko’s bag, though she left his other personal belongings alone. She then proceeded to comb her hair before returning all of her belongings into her sack. She would wait for Zuko to return before she began cooking their breakfast. There was no telling how long he would train this morning, and she figured it would be best that he have to wait a few minutes for the food to cook than to have him arrive after it had cooled or overcooked.

A blast of fire to her side drew her attention away from the camp, and her hand made ready at the stopper of one of the two water skins she always wore on her person. The water was already drawing in a stream from the nozzle as her mind finally realized it was Zuko who had committed the action, and he had attacked another person. At first, Nizhoni could not discern the gender, but that wasn’t important. Her first thought was of the Order of the Black Lotus, for she could think of no other reason why Zuko would attack another person.

She began to move forward, but the scarred man’s fierce growl slowed her pace. She suddenly felt afraid for the man who was no longer in control of the battle as Zuko launched himself at him. The waterbender heard the man’s words, and she felt fear and rage creeping into herself, but they did not blind her. The rage that etched itself in deep lines over Zuko’s face filled her with even more fear than the Black Lotus member could have done. She was too far away when his arm drew back, covered in orange and red flames, so she did the only thing she could do that she felt was right.

“Zuko, stop!” She yelled as the water erupted fully from her water skin, shooting at the firebender. It wrapped around his arm, causing a burst of steam to explode around him, but she made sure the pressure was enough to at least halt his arm mid movement if not enough to throw it back. It definitely wasn’t enough to throw Zuko from the instigator, but she had probably saved the foul man’s life.

She ran toward them even as her water shot before her, and she made it to them seconds later. “Zuko, don’t do this.” She gasped. “Don’t become what they say you are. You’re not a killer, and you’re not a terrorist. If you kill him, it’s only going to fuel the flames of their propaganda! You’re better than that!” As a healer, she didn’t condone the deaths of even those who would kill them. Sometimes deaths happened, but this man was practically defenseless. He had been wrestled to the ground, and Zuko had broken his nose. The waterbender would not heal him, but she would at least save his life.

His cruel laughter was in her ears, so she kicked his skull with her boot, rendering him unconscious. Her long fingers moved to Zuko’s shoulder. “Come on. We can’t stay here. We’ll carry his body away to disorient him, and we’ll leave before he awakens. Let’s go.”

Puffy pink clouds dotted the fading lavender skies as a crescent moon hung overhead, bidding the sun farewell. Below, ocean waves broke the shore where turtleducks paddled along, quaking. Dark, black rocks, blanketed in shadow, peeked up over the surface of the water, the waves crashing over them before pulling back again. The smell of sea salt was in the air, and a cooling breeze blew over the beach. A dark figure in the sky, lit only by the dimming sun, flew just under the cloud cover. The sound of her garments against the wind could be heard from below, along with the reverberated whooshing melody of her glider, its leathery wings piercing through the air at high, unnatural speeds. The young woman was going so quickly, that tears swelled in her eyes to water them. She blinked them away with a giant grin and then closed her eyes happily as she whizzed around a cliff overlooking the vast expanse of the ocean.

The girl was in her early twenties, thin, and had long, straight, dark hair that danced behind her. Her eyes were steely, but strangely warm at the same time. The moon was the only thing lighter than her soft skin tonight as she performed a series of loops from high above the world. Her laughter and giggles stirred the attention of the turtleducks, whose puzzled expressions led to confused quaking.

She was an Airbender.

Wing Song still remembered that very monumental day when she had discovered that her great grandfather was an Air Nomad. It was her last remaining grandmother who shared this information with her, not knowing at the time that Wing herself was also an Airbender. It wasn't until later that Wing discovered this for herself, after having had no luck attempting Earthbending, despite having been born in the Earth Kingdom's capital city, Ba Sing Se. Curious, and not thinking much of it, Wing tore her thoughts from Earthbending practice to trying to bend the air instead. Much her to surprise (and annoyance), Wing had blown a gust of wind throughout her room. The noise and sound of her things falling and breaking had attracted the attention of her mother and older brother Jin, along with their Grandma Song. When they emerged into the then young girl's room, they each had a theory as to what happened, but none, other than their grandmother, seemed to even have had the thought that Airbending was to blame cross their minds.

"So you did it?" questioned Jin, a hopeful and proud smile across his face. "You Earthbended, didn't you? Caused a mini quake in here?"

"No, Jin, I don't think so..." disagreed their mother, who was waering a suspicious look. "Wing, is something wrong? You know you can talk to us. If you haven't gotten it yet, that's fine. It'll come. Just give it some t--"

"No, that's not it!" cried Wing, still stunned, sitting amongst her wreckage, eyes wide.

Grandma Song just smiled, saying, "Well, I'll be..."

After that day, Wing gave up trying to Earthbend and started applying her knowledge she already possessed in proper meditation into teaching herself how to bend air instead. To her delight, her family was all very willing to help in any way they could. Grandma Song gathered all the Airbender belongings she could find from her husband's father (the Airbender Feng) that she had stashed away in storage collecting dust and was the one to teach her the ways of the Air Nomads. Wing's mother was her constant support, waking her up early each morning to a hearty breakfast, putting her to bed at a reasonable time at night, and motivating her to keep going. Her brother, Jin, was the willing (and sometimes unwilling) target for her bending techniques and abilities. He also trained her in the art of fighting with the daggers he had given her as a gift. They all knew that Wing was special, for her abilities made Avatar Aang not alone after all, and they each were under the impression that Wing would one day leave them to dedicate herself toward the war that her and her brother's father had already given himself over to.

The war ended though years later, and their father returned safely home, though he was permanently paralyzed. It seemed as if Wing would never need her Airbending skills and that they all could live peacefully and happily from now on. Sometimes, such things are just never meant to be. Grandma Song's intuition was right all along. When word got out that Firelord Zuko had murdered the Avatar and was now on the run, chaos spread like wildfire. Each nation's ruler mysteriously died and was replaced. Panic replaced the tranquility in people's hearts that had made home there after the Avatar ended the war. None of the Songs were that naive to believe that Zuko, despite his past, was truly the monster that they claimed he was. Wing never believed that he was the one that killed the Avatar. Perhaps her trust in him was foolish and presumptuous, but her instincts were true, and they pointed her in the right direction. When she heard about his band of Outcasts, she knew she had to go and join them. The time, at last, finally felt right.

"Don't be a stranger," Jin had told her that day. "You can always come back to visit us." Jin and his father now worked at their own family restaurant called The Golden Liondog. As much as a part of him wished to join her and to protect her, he knew he was needed at home for his family and to help his father run their restaurant.

"We're going to miss you," Wing's mother said with tear-filled eyes, embracing her in the longest hug of her life. "You stay safe, Wing. You don't have to be a hero. If things get bad, there is no shame in running, if it means your life."

"You're an amazing young woman, Wing," her father told her. "We are very proud of you."

When it came time to leave, Grandma Song came out with an old, wooden rod in her hands. When Wing questioned her about it, she said, "This is the glider that belonged to your great grandfather. I've kept this heirloom along with his other things all these years." Noticing Wing's puzzled look, as she had been given all the other Airbender artifacts and scrolls that belonged to her great grandfather minus this, Grandma Song continued with a smile in her voice, "I wanted to save this for you for when you would truly need it. The Air Nomads each received arrow tattoos on their bodies, mimicking the markings of the flying bison, that would signify their mastery over Airbending. I thought that instead, for you, this glider could mark you as having earned that proficiency."

Wing hugged her grandmother tightly, whispering a heartfelt "Thanks," through her own tears.

That had been almost four months ago now.

Soaring higher, Wing propelled herself through the cool night air, up and up, until the world shrank and the quaking of the turttleducks faded away. She flew through a gap in the clouds, which had now turned dark as the sun was hidden behind the other end of the world. When she was finally above all the clouds, she slowed herself down, gliding over them gently. When she let a hand fall from her glider to caress them, they didn't wet her hand like she had assumed. Instead, she was gathering soft, fluffy cotton. It seemed dense enough to support her. Closing her glider in midair, the girl dropped and fell into a bed of fleece. It was so peaceful, lying there alone, away from the rest of the world. Everything seemed so far away now. The troubles of the world were so miniscule compared to what she was gazing at above her -- a black blanket stretching all around, with millions of twinkling lights decorating it. She loved staring up at it, envisioning herself flying high enough to land on a different planet.

Wait a sec, Wing thought to herself as she lay there on the clouds, I can!

She floated up to a standing position and opened her glider once more, then took off, going higher and higher. She was going to reach outer space. She was going to leave the world and see what else was out there. She was really doing it.

And then, BOOM!

Like an explosion, she was falling toward the earth. She heard what sounded like fire being shot at her, felt herself being hit, even though she wasn't injured. The atmosphere changed from black to blue as she reentered it. This time, the clouds were not like pillows, and they did not catch her. She fell right through them and was soaked to the bone as she did. The black ocean lay under her now as she kept falling, faster and faster, the air around her screaming. She couldn't stop herself. Her glider would not open and her Airbending was not working. She was going to die. Then, there was a crack of lightning...but it sounded worse than lightening and made Wing feel sick. A pounding echoed through her head. Closer, closer, the trees, the rocks, the water all drew nearer. Here it comes.

"Zuko, stop!"

It was Nizhoni, a Waterbender girl that belonged in Zuko's group that Wing had joined. What was going on?

Wing's eyes were wide open now, her heart racing. She had not died; she had only been dreaming. But what were those noises? Pushing air below her, she stood up to take in the scene. It appeared both Zuko and Nizhoni were awake, but there was another person there with them -- a man. Zuko had him down on the ground, bloodied, and badly hurt.

“Zuko, don’t do this.” Nizhoni was saying. “Don’t become what they say you are. You’re not a killer, and you’re not a terrorist. If you kill him, it’s only going to fuel the flames of their propaganda! You’re better than that!”

Wing's eyes narrowed. As tired as she was, her brain was beginning to work, the wheels in her head turning. The man at their campsite must had been a spy for the Black Lotus. His clothing helped to indicate as much.

"Zuko..." was all Wing could say. Her eyes were pleading, not all unlike Nizhoni's. She watched, frozen.

His whole body trembled, as he hesitated, staring fully into that abyss of darkness there before him. He'd never taken a life in cold blood, never purposefully attempted to kill someone when there was another option, but then, he'd not had his hands on a member of the Black Lotus before. He'd never been able to send a message to them, something that said, 'I've had enough'. He'd been chased from his home, then chased across the Earth Kingdom countryside. Everywhere he went he was dogged, hunted for how he looked, branded a terrorist and a traitor, and the few that believed him didn't compare at all to the legions that thought that he was the closest thing their world had to a living demon. His name lived in infamy along with famous mass murderers and people who had plotted to overthrow the world. And after all of this time...

He'd stopped caring about it.

Before he could make a choice either way, suddenly his arm was surrounded by water, the icy chill of it trying to douse the flames that had surrounded his arm. As steam started to rise from his arm he growled for a moment, his golden eyes staring at Nizhoni with a hatred that seemed to almost parallel that for the man in his grip, and with a fluid motion his fingertips reached upward to grab the man's wrist, twisting it until he groaned in pain as Zuko stood up and placed the heel of his foot against the man's neck as he held the man's wrist at an odd angle to keep him from struggling. The move had a clear meaning. It kept one hand free while he kept the man beneath his foot in mortal peril.

With a sudden snap of his right arm outward it ignited in even brighter flames, extending out until it became the trademark fire whip as his golden eyes stared down Nizhoni as she approached, daring her to betray him.

She might have seen her actions as saving him, but it was clear from the look that he gave her that he saw them as an act of treason to their little group. He'd told her about the advisors he'd had, the generals that betrayed him, and gleam in his eye betrayed what she might have feared, that he was expecting that she would betray him too. The dark scowl that he bore seemed almost alien to the person that she'd known, but as of late Zuko's anger had been eating away at him, and his confrontations with their persuers had been getting darker. He'd tried to keep the pair of them out of the direct conflicts as much as possible, Wing especially, due to the fact he wanted to keep her bending abilities a secret from the Lotus as long as possible.

As she approached him he didn't move, just stared at her coldly, openly daring her to attack him again, the fire whip in his hand blazing with heat and menace as it scortched the ground. He felt the man in his arms struggle a little and he pulled tighter, starting to cut off the man's air slightly, watching his eyes bulge a little as he looked at the water bender, and felt her arm come up on his shoulder, his eyes flickering to it then to her as if to ask her why it was there in the first place.

"They don't need any fuel for their lies. If they're..." he paused as he started to say what Nizhoni was probably worried that he was going to say. 'If they're going to make me out to be one anyway, why NOT kill the man?', but his words trailed off as he heard the soft words from the Airbender, his eyes flickering to her for a moment, softening there, perhaps only because she'd not dared to try to stop him. Then slowly he looked at Nizhoni, then down at the man in his arms, feeling that intent inside of him starting to rise up again. It'd be so easy to snap his neck...

But before he could, the waterbender femme kicked the man in the back of his head, and Zuko watched as his eyes rolled up in the back of his skull, growling a little as he finally dropped the man's wrist, brushing the water bender's hand from his shoulder coldly. Even as far from him as she was she'd be able to feel the heat radiating off of his bare chest as he still was bending fire, and after a moment he let the flame whip disappate from his fingertips as he looked at the man, then looked at the water bender, his eyes moving back and forth as he thought about what to do about him.

"You're right." he said softly, pausing for a moment, and then shaking his head. "We do need to pack up camp, and get out of here shortly." His eyes trailed to hers as he narrowed his own as if to tell her that he didn't necessarily agree that leaving the man alive was either the best thing to do, or that it was what they should have done. Stepping around the water bender he made his way to his things and grabbed some rope, walking back towards the man as he started to bind his ankles together, then grabbed the end of the rope and slung it over one shoulder, looking at the pair of them.

"Wing, can you scatter the ashes from the camp fire and try to dust over any footprints that we may have left around camp?" he said, then tried to offer her a little bit of a reassuring smile, though it didn't meet his eyes.

Those golden eyes landed on his bed roll next, noting that the water bender had rolled it up for him while he'd been practicing, his eyes looked to her next and then back to Wing. "We need to be ready to move when I get back. I'll deal with him." he said, turning as he started to move, pausing when he heard the water bender take a step towards him to stop him, or to ask him if he was going to kill the man as soon as he was out of eye sight. He turned around slowly to stare into her eyes with his golden ones for a moment, then turned around and started to walk off.

Either she trusted him, or she didn't.

Regardless of what the water bender decided, Zuko had no intentions of killing the man any more. Despite his remaining anger he could still the horrible words echoing in his head again and again. 'You're a killer, Zuko'. It made his stomach turn because a part of him realized how true it was, how easy it would be to cross that line forever and never look back. How many times had he gone right to the brink with it but turned back because he was too scared, or was afraid that people would look at him the wrong way. But the question still plagued him even now... was it the wrong choice? In order to win this war, would he need to drench his hands in as much blood as the Black Lotus had, or even more?

Finding a tree with an adequate amount of height and branch strength, he tossed the rope over one end and hoisted the man up on the branch, hanging him upside down by it. He was sure that the Black Lotus would find him before he died, as satisfying as it might be. Once the man was upside down, he grabbed whatever items he could from the man, enough coins to get them lodgings for a few evenings in a hotel, as well as paying for some meals on the run. He also had a dagger on him which looked like it was at least worth a few coin.

The rest of what he had on him was junk, save for a scroll that was written in code, like all of the other messages he'd seen from the Black Lotus. He placed it along with the other items, then grabbed the knife again, bringing it to the man's clothing to cut off a couple of thick strips of it to bind the man's hands firmly behind his back, and to gag him so that even if his friends were close by he couldn't call out to them for help. Let them hunt for their missing man as dilligently as they hunted him, for once.

By the time he got back to the camp, he'd covered himself up with his shirt and coat, and nodded to the pair of them as he placed the items he'd confiscated with the rest of his things, throwing the scroll in with a couple of others he had, and studied often in a potentially futile attempt to try to break the code that they wrote to each other in. It'd be good to get some idea of where they were or what they were doing, but he imagined if they noticed that he was taking the notes, that they'd soon change their system, if they hadn't already.

"Let's head North, to the Northern Air Temple..." he said quietly, grabbing the makeshift hood that he wore and slipped it on as they prepared to travel. The pair of them could easily travel without much notice across the landscape, but he would always have to cover his face, regardless of where he went to. There had been a time when a wide brimmed hat had been enough to let him pass through most places unnoticed, but that was back when his scar wasn't a dead give away to exactly who he was. Zuko couldn't help but wonder, though, how many people had been persecuted in his name for having similar scars caused by the fire nation incursion.

As he walked along, he studied the land, looking for any signs that the Lotus may have followed them. Thankfully it didn't seem like they had, but he wasn't so sure that they might not have someone in wait for them closer to the air temple. It was a gamble to go there, but Zuko secretly hoped that he might find an old friend there...

The last sky bison.

Appa hadn't been seen since Aang had died, and a part of Zuko wondered if the Sky bison hadn't grieved himself to death over the loss. Still, he'd managed over time to figure out a way to get to the Southern and Eastern Air temples in the hopes of finding the bison, only to walk away empty handed. The Northern Air temple was perhaps the last hope they had, as Zuko didn't dare lead them to the Western Air temple, which was practically in the lap of the Fire Nation.

Nizhoni was shocked when Zuko looked at her with a loathing he had never directed at her before this point. She stood frozen in place for a moment, and she allowed what remained of the water to fall away from him. She knew she couldn’t let him see the pain it caused her to have him look at her like that. She tried to make her face a mask of concern to hide the look of sadness that threatened to break through, but she had no idea how well she hid her true feelings. She was concerned, but that almost seemed a dim thought in comparison to the selfish twisting that moved through her belly.

The waterbender didn’t even take a stabilizing breath as she moved forward to place her hand on his shoulder, despite her fear that he had created the fire whip solely for her. If he attacked her, she would defend herself, but she wouldn’t strike him again, and her hand didn’t even tense toward her water skin because she wanted to show that she wasn’t the threat he may have believed her to be at that instant. At the time she had thrown he water over his arm, it had seemed like the only thing that would have worked. Nizhoni wasn’t sure that he would have even heard her voice through his rage, and she didn’t want him to become a killer. She doubted very much that he had ever purposely killed anyone in his life, and she didn’t want him to have to face that path now.

She had noticed how his fury had been growing through the months they had traveled together, and sometimes it genuinely frightened her. Nizhoni had never believed he would ever turn on her, for she wasn’t afraid for herself. She was afraid for their enemies. It wasn’t that she held much compassion for the Black Lotus members, but a life was a life. Before the Black Lotus was around, these people had probably been normal men and women who had simply become corrupt. Surely, not all of them were even truly corrupt. The propaganda that Zuko was a killer and a terrorist had to have made at least some believe hunting Zuko and destroying him was the right path just as surely as Nizhoni and Wing believed that joining the former Fire Lord’s side was the right way to go. Hopefully by showing at least some semblance of mercy, some may believe that it wasn’t true that he was as terrible a person as they had been led to believe.

Nizhoni didn’t remove her hand from his shoulder, despite the look he gave her and that fact that his fire whip blazed upon the blackening ground. She spoke, and she needed to get through to him. Even as he looked at her with hatred as if she was a traitor to him, she wouldn’t give up. If she had given up when she had first met him, he would still be alone. She wouldn’t be here now. The healer would have probably returned to the Northern Water Tribe, to her people. However, she was not one to give up so easily.

Then he spoke, and her breath caught in her throat. Was he really going to try to justify killing this man? His words ceased as Wing’s voice was heard through the trees. Nizhoni had forgotten the girl in the heat of the moment, but she remembered her now, and she noticed Zuko’s eyes soften as he looked over the waterbender’s shoulder at the airbender. Good. If Nizhoni couldn’t get through to him, perhaps Wing could.

She knocked the man unconscious before Zuko made another move, and the firebender responded to her with a growl and cold gesture that was a deep contrast to the heat radiating from him. Her hand dropped uselessly to her side.

When he finally admitted she was right, his words had softened, but she knew he was still furious with her. Right or wrong, she had attacked him, and that was all he saw. She wasn’t sure that explaining her reasoning would have done any good, so she remained quiet.

After that, he didn’t say a word to her. He made his request to Wing who would need no help at all in doing those simple things- airbending made them a far quicker job than normal. When he made his way back to the man, she took a step toward him, her lips parting as if to speak, but the glare he tossed her way closed her mouth, and she turned from him to head back to the camp. She trusted he would do what he felt was right, and that was all that mattered.

She gave Wing a small smile, but she didn’t really feel like talking. The look Zuko had given her had been like a stab with a knife, and it the effect of it continued to linger over her. Instead, she packed her bag and attached her sleeping bag to it with leather thongs. She also hung one third of their food stores from it with other thongs, and she strapped her sheathed katana about her hips, so the sword hung on her left. The leather of the strapped pressed comfortingly against her skin just above the skirt that overlapped her pants. Her water skins were strapped to either side of her wais; the one on her left was smaller than the one on her right to keep her balanced. As she was ambidextrous, this worked perfectly for her.

Her stomach was bare, as her shirt only ended about four or five inches beneath her breasts. It was still warm, as summer was only now coming to a close, so lighter clothing was a must. In the Water Tribes she had never worn anything this light. Layers were an absolute must as well as long sleeves and thicker fabrics if one was to survive the freezing climates. Even in the peak of summer one needed such apparel. Five years away from home had provided her with plenty of time to sew new outfits for herself that better fit both the terrain and the weather, but she always stayed true the clothing designs and décorof her people. She had pride in where she was born and raised, so her clothing was often made in shades of blue with light fur around the top of her shirts and the bottom of her skirts.

Her Water Tribe apparel wasn’t such a dead giveaway that she was traveling with Zuko, either. It was known that she was Water Tribe, but since the surface of world politics had been smoothed, people from the Water Tribes had begun to travel the world again. In fact, a lot more now traveled all over- even within the Fire Nation- than they had when Zuko had reigned. Many people truly believe the only real threat to peace now was Zuko and his Outcasts.

By the time Zuko returned, the campsite looked as if no one had ever disturbed it with the exception of their packs. Wing had done a fabulous job of erasing their campfire and their prints. Nizhoni hoisted her pack onto her shoulders. It was heavy, but she had grown a lot stronger over the course of her travels, and it was actually significantly lighter than when she had first begun her journeys with Zuko.

Silver-blue eyes gazed at Zuko curiously as he told them to where they should journey next. The Northern Air Temple… Nizhoni had never been to any of the Temples of the airbenders, and the thought of finally seeing one filled her with a bit of excitement. She had no idea how they would possibly make it, but if the Fire Nation soldiers of a century ago could manage to do so on foot for war, there would have to be a way there on foot for the Blue Spirit Clan.

She turned her attention to Wing and gave her a small half-smile. The waterbender figured the other would feel even more excited than Nizhoni to travel there. There could be all sorts of things to learn about airbenders in that place. It would take a while to get there on foot, but she hoped the travel would be well worth the time. They still had some rope that would help them climb the mountain, and Wing could use her glider to fly, so they were fairly well covered.

As they trekked along, Nizhoni, too, kept her eyes and heart alert. It was difficult to be certain if the twisted feeling in her gut was still the cause of Zuko’s earlier anger toward her, the fact that one scout had found them, or if they were still in danger, but she was still uneasy. The waterbender stopped trying to discover the reason. All she could do now was remain alert, and keep her eyes wandering for any signs of other people.

The air was heavier than usual, and it was clear why. The dark-haired Wing stared from Zuko, to the man he had on the ground, to Nizhoni, then back to Zuko. Wing had never killed anyone in her life, though she had been surrounded by death since she was born, having had grown up during the war. Death and bloodshed was a part of war, and she knew that her own father would not have hesitated to take out the enemy when he had gone off to battle. She wasn't sure what to think about it. All she knew, was that it made her feel uneasy. She could justify killing this man now, for he would have only alerted his fellow Black Lotus agents, who would have no doubt locked them all up or even perhaps killed them themselves. On the other hand, she never supported taking others' lives, even if it meant victory. She knew from her grandmother that the Air Nomads were peaceful people who refused to even battle. Wing, however, was raised in the Earth Kingdom, which now left her feeling conflicted -- torn.

Zuko opened his mouth, his eyes narrowed, as if to speak or protest against Nizhoni, but Wing's voice seemed to stop him. When his gaze fell on her, she expected it to be just as harsh and intense as it was when he had been glaring at the Waterbender. It was not warm or all that friendly, but it wasn't frightening either. The fire in his eyes seemed almost to flicker down a little when he took his eyes off Nizhoni for a moment. Wing's own eyes studied him, imploringly.

"You're right," he then said, much to their relief. It felt, for a brief moment, as if a weight had been lifted from Wing's shoulders. "We do need to pack up camp, and get out of here shortly," he added domineeringly.

Wing agreed. If this man from the Black Lotus had found them, despite Zuko having stopped him before firing off a signal flare, more would be around them shortly. Fear set in, as she watched Zuko grab some rope and begin to bind the man who looked badly injured already. She almost pitied him for a second, but the alarm of what had just happened and what still could happen if they were to linger much longer was more pressing in her mind.

"Wing," started Zuko, and she looked up at him curiously, "can you scatter the ashes from the camp fire and try to dust over any footprints that we may have left around camp?" Zuko even offered a slight smile, although it did seemed strained. Nevertheless, she appreciated it.

"Of course," Wing responded, turning to eye Nizhoni to make sure she was all right, smiling softly back at her.

Then, Zuko was off, carrying the man away with him. Neither Wing or Nizhoni spoke when he left, but the atmosphere between them was inquisitive, as they clearly were both wondering what Zuko's plans were with the man. Wing did not believe he would go against what he had just said minutes ago. She didn't think that he would possibly consider killing the man after Nizhoni had already put forth the effort to stop him, to save him. Still, the thought lingered in her mind tauntingly.

Wing quickly packed her bag, which was rather small, and fastened her twin daggers into their sheaths on the straps around her upper thighs. She felt much more like herself now, more so especially than when she was first waken, torn from her dreams into the harsh reality. It was still an adjustment for her, living away from home. At times, it was the greatest thing for her. She loved he freedom and being able to travel and see the world, all the while while trying to do some good in it, to put an end to the Black Lotus. Other times, she felt frightened and alone, fearful for what could happen to her, Nizhoni, Zuko, and others like them -- outcasts.

After Wing had completed fastening her sleeping bag to her knapsack, she made sure that Nizhoni was finished as well and was out of the way for her to start bending. The feeling of the air rushing between her fingers was invigorating and helped to wake the young woman up. She surveyed their campsite, looking for all the evidence of their presence there. Then, she began to concentrate, breathing in deeply. With her wooden staff in hand, she sliced through the air, sending a large gust to blow right over all the soot from the fire they had had. Another strike with her staff and air shot out down the path they had traveled, causing dirt, dust, and leaves to fly up into a cloud and then settle, covering up all their footprints. Wing made sure to create a large enough whirlwind, that the entire area seemed to have the same look to it as their campsite did. The earth appeared untouched when she was finished, clean and vacant.

When Zuko returned, he was bearing gifts, or rather items and money he had stolen from the Black Lotus agent whom he had taken into the woods. Wing appeared to see no problem in this and looked inquisitively at the parchment Zuko was carrying, no doubt a letter. They put all of it away safely and began to head out. Wing was listening extra carefully, making sure that there were no more people from the Black Lotus around them, hiding in the brush.

"Let's head North, to the Northern Air Temple," Zuko said in a low voice as they left their campsite behind.

"What?" Wing couldn't help but ask abruptly, her eyes clearly lighting up. "I mean...yes! Let's go!"

Wing never had the privilege of going to any of the Air Temples before, so she felt especially excited now that they would be traveling to the place where her own great grandfather was from. Her family heritage awaited her there, even if it were only in the form of vacant architecture and statues. She really didn't know what to expect from it. She knew that there were no AIrbenders living there since they were wiped out over a hundred years ago, but she wondered if anyone else would be calling it home these days. She wondered what she could learn from visiting it.

Smiling back at Nizhoni, Wing was beginning to feel a lot better already. Using her wooden rod as a walking stick, she walked lightly, bending air beneath her feet. Still, like a pinprick in her mind, she couldn't help but worry for Zuko and Nizhoni, wondering if things were okay between them, while also concerning herself with Zuko's well being. He was growing more distant and almost darker, it seemed. Wing's own enthusiasm boiling up inside her though thrust these worries from her mind. She might as well have been sleeping on that pink, fluffy cloud she had been on in her dreams.

If one were to look out at the horizon on the outskirts of town, they would see the forest. To do so isn't hard, it's within range of an average person's eyesight. If one were to peer into the forest they would see foliage, as expected of a place filled with flora. Now, if one were to walk around for hours on end, keeping their eyes pealed they might catch a glimpse of a home inside the forest. This isn't guaranteed, but it is within the range of possibility. The hut was, or rather is, a quaint little home built beneath the root of a rather large tree.

Inside said hut lay Jianyu. His long curtain of black hair was spread across the width of his desk, some even hanging off the of the wooded structure. Jianyu didn't exactly have a set sleeping pattern. Usually, he would work till he rendered himself unconscious and then wake up to eat and quickly get straight back to his research. For someone who used to study medicine, and still did, his lifestyle was rather unhealthy. Still, he cared more for his science than he did for his body.

It wasn't as if Jianyu had anything better to do. A life of seclusion proved to bore Jianyu when he wasn't working. What was he to do aside from read and mix chemicals? Count the spiders the shared his home with him? He would have the right mind to think not. Granted, he did speak to the creatures that resided with him. This action simply went to show that even the most antisocial of humans needed some sort of companion.

"Hurm..." He scowled as he raised his head from the desk. While his hair covered it, the prolonged head to desk action had made his forehead turn a tender red shade. He squinted his eyes, still blurry from sleep, and let out a yawn. Habitually, he reached over to the topmost drawer on his left side. Within the confines of the drawer sat a brush, carved from ivory. His mother was the one who gave it to him, for her father had given it to her. Jianyu had never met the man, he often wondered if that was for the better.

Combing out his hair with probably one of the most expensive items in his run down little home. Luckily, the long locks of hair had remained almost perfect from lack of movement during sleep. This morning it only took him a quick three minutes to brush out the black mass. Once he finished this daily(or on occasion nightly, varying on when he woke up) routine, he gingerly placed the ornate brush back into its drawer.

Jianyu took a minute to sit at his desk and collect his thoughts. He had passed out midway through a rather complex equation. He could imagine that at the time he was well aware of just what he was doing. However, now that he'd taken hours away from the subject he'd lost his place and the numbers almost seemed to be a foreign language. Soon enough, his mulling over of his night's work was interrupted by a rather loud rumble in the pit of his stomach. The neglected organ was letting out a desperate plea for food.

Getting up from his seat Jianyu's full height exposed itself for but a moment as he arched his back and let out a small groan. However, this sudden change to good posture was replaced by his usual hunched over physique. Jianyu quite liked slouching, for it made him feel less like a giant and more like a normal person. Not to mention that he could see the detail of the ground much more clearly when he was hunched. Granted, he was still in the six foot range. He then lumbered over to his fishing pole in a tired manner.

Due to the fact that Jianyu had no means of keeping his food fresh, even if he did he would probably forget about it, so he caught fresh fish whenever he became hungry. While fish wasn't his only source of nutrition it was the easiest food to obtain and helped him clear his mind. Stepping out side Jianyu squinted and shielded his eyes. While it wasn't particularly sunny in the rather dense forest his eyes were accustom to such bright light. Jianyu lived in the forest long enough to know how to find the river where he could fish. However, he hadn't yet discovered how to get out of the forest. In a way, Jianyu was somewhat trapped in the wooded area.

The fallen twigs and leaves crunched over his feet as he walked, taking care to duck under low hanging branches. Once or twice his hair would get caught in a branch and he would have to stop to untangle it. Eventually, Jianyu had reached a distance from the river where he could here it splash about. Surely he was close, the man was so engrossed in what he was currently doing, that he didn't notice that there was defiantly a different(and almost tangible) air about the forest.

Zuko could feel the apprehension in the air as he returned to the campsite, and he knew the question that was on both of the girl's minds about what had happened. They didn't voice their questions to him, however, so the firebender didn't really see a reason to speak on it. If they thought that he'd killed the man, really it was for the best. Despite Nizhoni's objections, sooner or later blood was going to need to be shed, and she would just have to get used to the idea, or find someone else to travel with. Keeping from killing someone was naive at best, and dangerous for all of them at the very worst. It was true that he'd never directly killed someone in cold blood, but he had also come to terms with the fact that his actions had likely caused more than a few shares of deaths over the month's he'd been chasing the Avatar instead of helping him.

Besides, when it came down to it, Zuko wasn't going to make the same mistake that Aang had. The next time he crossed paths with Azula or Ozai, someone was going to die. Not even an entire village of water benders would be able to stop him from doing that.

As he returned with the items he looked over the camp with the eyes of one who'd done more than his fair share of tracking someone across the countryside. That was perhaps what had kept him from being caught for so long, was the fact that he knew exactly what it was to look for. Standing up then, he walked towards the south side of camp, purposefully making a few heavy tracks in the dirt and snapping a few branches that way as if the party had headed off in another direction. That would likely follow the Lotus member off of their trail if he managed to regain consciousness and wriggle his way out of his bonds at some point during the day. Secretly, Zuko hoped that a Sabre-Toothed Moose Lion would come and skewer him, or something along those lines.

Putting the items he'd confiscated from the man in his satchel, he felt the eyes of Wing upon him, especially when it came to the scroll that he was carrying. "Another coded scroll..." he said to her as he tucked it away amongst his things. "I don't know if I'll really be able to figure out what they're saying in them, but it's at least worth holding on to, either way." he offered, and then stood up, putting his hand on her shoulder and giving it a little bit of a squeeze as he looked around, forcing himself to smile though it didn't really meet his cold golden eyes.

"Good job on covering our tracks..." he said, trying to offer the air bender some encouragement. He remembered when he'd first started teaching Aang fire bending, Katara had sort of harped on that point, that he needed encouragement when it came to learning new things. Zuko wasn't sure that it'd be the same with Wing, but learning a new ability was hard, and there were no more master Airbenders alive to tell her if she was doing something wrong. It was pretty much trial and error, which was where someone could learn the most, if they had the potential to be a great master, but it was also a long, lonely, frustrating road, one that he himself had traveled on for a long time. But even he'd had help from his uncle when he'd been humble enough to take it.

As he donned his hood, he took up the lead position, his movements at a decent pace, but also calm, calculated, smooth. Zuko made almost no sound when he was stalking, even at a brisk pace, one of the things he'd learned in his time as the Blue Spirit, and something he'd had to all but perfect during his run from the Black Lotus out of town. He was just thankful that he'd had the foresight after he'd buried Katara to return to his room inside of the royal palace and set it ablaze, so that they wouldn't have anything to track him with, provided they could manage to get ahold of June and her odd little smelling beast. What had she called it? A Shirshu. He didn't think that she was the type to betray him, but then, for the right price, he could see it, better safe than sorry.

Zuko was glad to be hidden beneath the folds of his hood as he walked along, for neither of his companions would be able to see the the cold scowl on his face, or the darkness in his eyes. The words spoken by the Black Lotus scout still burned within his ears, and made his blood boil to the point that he was surprised he wasn't burning the tree bark as he passed it. Aang had always believed that peace was the answer... Katara had believed it too. But then, Aang had been able to energy bend as well, and even with it, Ozai had still managed to come out the victor. What hope did he really have without getting his hands dirty? At least if he picked them off one by one, then each time there'd be less of their blasted clan...

Wing's comment about the air temple made him smile a little as he mentioned it, but that was hidden from view, as well, and he forced his voice to become stern once again, trying to do his best to prepare her for the worst. "We have to be careful. Remember they still don't know that you can bend air, and if they caught hint of it, then you'd be a higher priority target for them than even I am..." Zuko said softly. "Besides, the head of the Northern air temple used to sell weapons to the Fire nation during the war with the earth kingdom. He helped us during the last raids to stop my father's reign, but once someone turns on you, you can't really ever trust them again..." his hood turned towards Nizhoni as he bitterly uttered the words. Clearly it was a barb meant for her.

He sensed the fact that someone was moving in front of them before he saw it, but when he did, he held up his arm at a right angle with his fist clenched, a sign to both of the people traveling with him that he meant for them to stop without him needing to say anything. His golden eyes narrowed lightly as he caught sight of the lumbering form of something. It could easily be a villager, or someone who lived out in the woods. Then again, any sort of creepy person who lived all alone in a shack in the woods was more than likely the sort of person Zuko didn't really want to meet. Still, there was another possibility, and one that was probably just as likely.

The man was Black Lotus.

Zuko made a motion for either side for the pair of them to keep going ahead in an attempt to move around the man. It was best, all in all, if they didn't confront him at all. But if he was a member of the Black Lotus, then leaving him alive was a dangerous move. He could try to follow them, or worse signal his friends in an attempt to ambush them. If this morning was any indication, their numbers were getting more desperate in their attempts to find him, which meant they were going to start throwing men at him if he wasn't careful. That, coupled with Nizhoni's sudden position on the value of life meant that it was a decent strategy if the Lotus just meant to wear him down slowly over time.

Wonderful.

Without so much as a rustle, Zuko leapt up into one of the colorful trees above them, his green and brown traveling garb barely visible amongst the leaves if either of them looked. As the wind started to rustle the trees he nimbly switched from one to the next, getting closer to the man, his golden eyes staring down at him suspiciously.

Yeah, this guy definately wasn't normal.

For one thing, he walked hunched to hide the fact that he was enormous. That, combined with his hair and overall facial appearance, gave off the sense that he was definitely some sort of mass murderer. If he wasn't working for the Lotus, then he was probably just some sociopath living in the woods. Either way, it'd be better for them to get around him as quickly as possible without being noticed. He had faith that the pair of girls could easily do it, but if they got noticed, Zuko was hidden in the trees, ready to back the pair of them up.

The waterbender watched as Zuko trampled the ground in another direction. She knew the purpose of the action, so she said nothing. In fact, she helped him a little to make it looks as if there was more than one person traveling in the false direction. Her feet were smaller than his, and her boots made a different design of prints than his, so it was better this way.

The young woman wasn’t as stealthy as Zuko, but her movements were graceful enough that she walked lightly- though not so lightly as the airbender among them. She had also paid close attention to him in the beginning whenever stealth was required, so she could learn something from him. She had learned much, and she continued to learn. She wasn’t certain she would ever truly reach Zuko’s level of stealth in movement, but she would do her best to match him.

Even with Zuko’s hood covering his face, it wasn’t difficult to discern his mood. His body language told her much. The tension that gripped his muscles was almost palpable in the air. Nizhoni liked to think that after four months, she knew the firebender fairly well. She didn’t know his nearly as well as she would like, but she knew many things just by having studied him when he didn’t realize her eyes were turned toward him.

Nizhoni could see Wing’s spirits had been considerably lifted by the news of their new destination. Though she was happy for the airbender, she still felt a weight upon her that left her uncomfortable. Her mind wouldn’t stop picturing that terrible look in Zuko’s eyes just as he was about to kill that scout. Even more than that, she continued to recall the terrible look upon his face as he looked at her as if she was slimiest, most foul creature she had ever met, as if she was a traitor.

The healer’s silvery-sapphire eyes widened as Zuko told her the head of the Temple sold weapons to the Fire Nation. Not only had she not known anyone inhabited any of the Air Temples, she was shocked that anyone would have complied with the Fire Nation during that terrible century of war. They had apparently redeemed themselves later. She didn’t ask who lived in the Northern Air Temple, as she would discover the answer with her own senses as soon as they managed to arrive.

Nizhoni looked away sadly as Zuko said his last words. She knew he was taking a verbal hit at her, and she hated that he implied he couldn’t trust her. Suddenly, a burst of anger lit inside her. Who was he to say such a thing to her? He had spent almost an entire winter trying to capture the Avatar. He had even infiltrated the Northern Water Tribe and the Spirit Oasis there to achieve his goal. It was also well known what he had done in Ba Sing Se during the spring that followed. If the four people he had most betrayed could find it in their hearts to forgive him and to trust him again, there was no reason why he couldn’t find it in his to forgive her. The healer said nothing in that moment. If she gained the opportunity later, she would discuss this subject with him. Right now was not the time. Now was the time for fleeing. She would not forget to say something to him when she could speak with him privately.

The thought momentarily moved away from the bitter subject when Zuko signaled for them to stop. Nizhoni’s feet stilled, and she remained unmoving save for the soft rise and fall of her chest and the flickering of her eyes as she looked around the area for someone. She spotted something moving ahead of the trio. It had to be human from its gait. Her gaze moved to Zuko once more as he motioned for them to continue walking.

Nizhoni looked at Wing once and nodded before she began to move. Her legs were bent as she walked slowly to keep her closer to the ground. Slower movements would ensure she could not only keep a better eye on where she stepped, but it would be less noticeable than something moving quickly through the trees. She gave the moving figure wide birth as she moved with Wing. She didn’t look back to Zuko as he took a different path. She knew it was important to discern the level of the threat of the person they had seen. She could still see that same figure moving, but she used trees as cover if she thought she saw that person looking near them. She was too far to discern anything about them really, but she tried to allow her instincts and her common sense to guide her.

Wing had been grateful to Zuko earlier for his bit of praise. She wasn't expecting it, but it was nice to hear. Creating an uncontrolled gust of wind that simply made a mess of everything in its path wasn't a horribly difficult thing to accomplish as an Airbender (especially one that had already been practicing proper bending techniques), but learning to control the path and intensity of the air was quite a bit more complicated. It required perseverance and an understanding of how bending air worked, in addition to how the air reacted. It had taken Wing awhile of practicing and countless failed attempts before she had gotten a feel for it entirely and was able to fully control it for any given purpose. She much better now at aiming, too, than she had been all those years ago, when she first learned that she was an Airbender.

Before the threesome set off, Wing watched as Zuko and Nizhoni created two sets of intentionally-placed footprints leading off in a wrong direction. It was ingenious, really, and Wing smiled at the thought of the Black Lotus coming upon them, thinking they were really on to Zuko and his companions. When it came time to go and move on, Wing was feeling a mixture of both anxiousness and apprehension for whatever may come next. The young woman, though already having learned and mastered numerous Airbending techniques, was not exactly the warrior that Zuko was. Zuko was not only a fantastic Firebender, but also very skilled in combat. He could actually apply his Firebending discipline into the field of battle. Nizhoni, on the other hand, not only seemed to be great at Waterbending, but also had precious healing abilities. She was a huge asset to their team. Wing, on the other hand, could float around a bit, fly in her glider, and move some air around. How useful or productive was that? Though she had not shared these feelings with anyone other than her brother before, the Airbender felt nervous about fighting for real for her life against the Black Lotus Clan (or anyone else they had influence over).

As they were walking, Zuko reminded Wing of how careful she needed to be with her secret that she was an Airbender. It was true that everyone thought that Avatar Aang was the last of his people, and his death marked the true end of the Air Nomads, so if anyone outside her family or the Blue Spirit Clan were to discover this about her, who knows what would happen. Zuko went on though to mention the head of the Northern Air Temple having sold weapons to his nation during the war, despite having turned against them afterward. This caught Wing's attention, her mouth slightly opening in surprise. She glanced Nizhoni's way, seeing too that the Waterbender looked equally taken aback by this.

"There are people living there?" Wing questioned. "I assumed that it was abandoned..."

Despite the news of the leader there being somewhat questionable, Wing couldn't conceal the upward tugging on the sides of her rosy lips. They were traveling to the Air Temple where her grandfather was from -- which now had people inhabiting it... It was a lot to take in at once. She did not stop thinking about it and the people, such as what they were like and where they were originally from, until Zuko suddenly held up a fist into the air.

Zuko already appeared to have noticed the figure in the distance up ahead before he spotted him, as his paced slowed down ever so slightly, and his eyes became focused. Wing studied him for a moment before stopping and staring out ahead of them through all the trees. At first, Wing couldn't spot what Zuko had sensed. Then, she saw him -- a shadow amongst the brush. It appeared to be a man, and upon first impression, Wing assumed him to be quite elderly, as he was walking hunched over. As he grew nearer and the atmosphere grew less and less hazy from his steady approach, she could tell that he was not that old at all, but was simply very tall, even hunched as he was.

Frowning, startled, Wing turned to Zuko for guidance. He motioned for the two of them to keep moving, out of sight. He was going to take his own path up in the trees. Wing quickly turned around to the other female and nodded back at her before setting off quietly. Concentrating, Wing was able to produce lift below her feet as she walked, which greatly lessened the sound of her footsteps among the crunchy dead leaves and twigs that littered the forest. Nizhoni appeared to be doing a much better job at maneuvering through the brush and trees than Wing thought she could do without her Airbending. She took a moment to admire that about the girl, before turning her gaze back to the shady figure drawing nearer.

As they pressed on ever-so-slowly and carefully, Wing felt a tickle behind her neck and under her long hair, which gave her goosebumps. She tilted her head from side to side, trying to rid herself of the peculiar feeling as she concentrated harder on the air beneath her feet. Something continued to tickle her, but in a very creepy sense. Wing shut her slate-colored eyes for a moment, her eyebrows raised in a desperate begging sort of way. With a hand, she reached back behind her head and felt around her neck. Just as she had assumed and to her horror, her fingers touched the skeletal legs of something alive. A look of sheer panic spread across her face as she fell farther behind the Waterbender, now lifting the critter off her neck and bringing it in front of her face so she could see what it was.

Without being able to think, Wing's immediate reaction was what cost them their cover. She screamed. She screamed so loud, in fact, that the birds that had been nesting nearby, all took flight in surprise. What she was holding in her hand was a large, brown wolf spider. She threw it with all her might, fueled by her Airbending, as far away from her as she could, and then fell from her near-floating position above the earth to the ground, her feat crunching loudly on the leaves she had been trying to avoid below, not that it truly mattered all that much now.

As soon as the series of alarming events had passed in just moments, Wing realized what she had done. She stared into Nizhoni's disappointed and now fearful eyes, and she quickly turned to look for the man that had been headed their way. There was no point in hiding now, as she had given her and Nizhoni's positions away with her scream, but nonetheless, WIng foolishly tried to conceal her body behind the trunk of a tall tree, holding her breath as her heart still raced rapidly, beating in her ears.

Jianyu grumbled something inaudible under his breath as both his hair and fishing line got caught by tree branches. He turned around, and clawed furiously at the branches with his thin fingers. With a few tugs here and a few pulls there the man was free. Such problems almost made him want to cut his hair. Almost, but not quite. In fact, Jianyu would sooner loose his calves than his hair. Jianyu shook out the black follicles, so that they fell before his face once more.

It was at that moment when he heard the wind rustle in the trees. Jianyu's body froze. He closed his eyes and waited for a breeze, but there was none. Jianyu opened his eyes and furrowed his brow. Perhaps it was simply an animal. He was almost inclined to believe that, when he heard the trees rustle several more times. He turned his head, and yet again there was nothing. Surely, he was just being paranoid.

It wouldn't be the first time an animal had startled him before. Jianyu was so used to solitude that the walking out into the forest bothered him. Or, at least the sounds during the day. Night was a different story. Jianyu didn't mind noises in the night, they were expected. Besides, Jianyu spent just as much time working at night as he did during the sunny hours. Unlike some people who saw some great contrast in day and night, Jianyu only saw it for it's change in lighting.

Still, the man thought it be best to carry on. There was no need to sit in the forest and wait for a person or creature to pop up. He continued down in the direction he'd been walking in. Except this time around he minded the tree branches around him and took care not to get tangled up in them again. Yet, even as he grew closer to the river, he couldn't help but shake the feeling he was being followed.

It was mid way between Jianyu's paranoid turn to see what may or may not have been following that a girl's scream erupted from the trees. The scream sent an electric shiver down his spine as he jumped up. The sudden change in height caused the top of his head to slam into a tree and he quickly recoiled back down. Rubbing the now sore spot at his head Jianyu stared at the area where the scream had originated. There he saw to females, one who certainly hailed from the water tribe and another with raven colored hair.

"Hello?" He called out, starting over to where the pair stood. The two might have been there for his services, in which case he'd have had a heavy conscious if he left them there.

Zuko noted the surprise in both Nizhoni and Wing as he spoke of the Northern Air temple, and, as expected, Nizhoni didn't really say anything to his comment about traitors in their midst. It was true enough though, he'd been burned, nearly literally, by people he could have sworn were doing their best to serve him, to make certain that his country was strong, that it was going to last, and then with the Avatar's help bring peace to the world. Now all that was left was a mockery of the country that had once been. He dared not go back, but he had heard stories that the old ways had all but died when the Empire had risen. Ozai had been more than willing to sell out the old traditions for another bit of power...

Wing's question distracted him from the anger that he felt bubbling up inside of him, and if she looked she might see the faintest hint of a smile coming from the shadow of his hood. Still, he knew she would likely be unsatisfied with his answer, as there wasn't a lot to tell. Though he'd chased Aang around the globe back then, Aang's group had mentioned that they'd traveled to the Northern Air temple right after the unfortunate first incident with the Shirshu. Zuko tried not to shudder a little as he recalled exactly how long it'd taken for the poison from the beast to wear off. Though, it had been rather amusing to watch Uncle Iroh get slapped by June after the poison had finally worked it's way through her system.

Indeed that was just about the time that Zhao had tried to have him killed, and he'd had his little dual with Katara at the North Pole. The memory of that caused the smile on his face to rapidly drop off as he felt an all too familiar stinging in his chest, thinking of the things that had never really been said to her while she was alive, words that weren't the same when spoken to the empty night air or to a lifeless ink painting of her. His head bowed a little as he desperately tried to get his mind back on the tracks it'd been on before it'd been so violently derailed by the past.

"I wasn't with the Avatar when they went there..." he said solemnly, somberly, clearly bringing to mind memories that he regretted. "So I only heard it second hand, but I guess they were refugees from an Earth Kingdom disaster who sort of squatted on the territory when no one else was there. Aang said at one point they were tearing apart pieces of the temple to expand..." He knew those words would likely hurt Wing, so he tried to be as gentle with them as was possible. He himself didn't have a lot of heritage, but it'd been hard to watch his room burning, to look on the Fire Nation capitol and know for certain that he would never be able to return to that place again. It wasn't like the exile before, this time... this time there was nothing to go back on.

"But apparently the inventor who lived there was the one who developed the technology that the Fire Nation later used to create their great Air Force..." he said somewhat ruefully. The ability to use a balloon to travel had saved him more than a time or two, and it had been useful when they'd gone on a mission to rescue Sokka's father. But the lives it had cost, the true horror of what doors it had opened up for the Fire Nation was staggering. In a way, it had undone some of the balance that was in place, by allowing the Fire Nation to attack from the skies the way only Air benders used to be able to.

But even as he let his mind wander there, the stranger had appeared, and he'd gone on high alert. As expected, the pair had looked to him for some sort of leadership, and he'd given it as best that he could. He could easily catch up with them later or meet them at the Air Temple if need be, and stay behind long enough to make sure that the fool that had stumbled upon their path wasn't toing to attempt to track them down, or sell them out to the Black Lotus, if he wasn't already a member himself. Still, As Zuko's eyes swept across the man's figure, he didn't notice any of the teltale markings that betrayed a Black Lotus member for what they were. That wasn't to say they hadn't changed their tactics, however.

Taking to the trees he went for a better look, noticing the way that the man looked up every now and again towards where he was. Zuko kept his rustling to a minimum, but the lack of wind was annoying. Next time, he'd have to tell Wing to air bend a light breeze to cover his tracks better. Though, even without one, sometimes the trees caught a breeze that was sheltered from the people below. Perhaps the man below would dismiss it as something simple like that. Even if he didn't, Zuko was fairly confident that he could take the stranger in a one on one fight. Azula was his only firebending match now, and Ozai kept her on a short leash, using her more like an attack dog than a war leader as she once had been.

Outside of her, the Lotus worked best in packs, often ambushing in groups rather than one on one fights. And while Zuko could take out scores of standard soldiers, fighting against dozens of benders was something that he was not capable of, especially if they were the elite forces of the Black Lotus. He hoped that his ambush of their scout hadn't given Wing or Nizhoni a false sense of his abilities, Zuko knew well enough to know that when it came time to strike back at the Lotus, they'd be facing much more dire odds than simply a group as incompetant as the man he'd faced today had been.

Still, the way the man was holding himself seemed awkward, but still betrayed the fact that the man could handle himself in a fight. When you got to be good enough at a particular martial art it was hard to not notice things about an opponents body, where they were built the most, how they held themselves. It would say a lot about their nature, and would also reveal if a person on the street that you accidentally bumped into was simply a pushover, or was the sort of person who'd seen enough combat to easily mop the floor with you and five of your friends at the same time.

Zuko's eyes looked over at the pair and he started to breathe out a sigh of relief. It seemed like this was going to go as smoothely as one could have hoped for, which was really a rather nice change of pace. A part of him reflected back on his days traveling with the Avatar, and it seemed like when everything looked as if it was going smoothely, there'd always be something that happened just at the last moment as soon as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief that made him grit his teeth and wonder if the forces of the universe weren't somehow out to get him. Thankfully, at least with this new group of people, if nothing else, he seemed to be ridding himself of his completely terrible luc-

Wing's scream tore apart Zuko's train of thought as his teeth clamped down and his eyes clenched shut, one hand moving towards his face as it seemed to take every bit of willpower not to groan out, his hand dragging across his face lightly as he breathed out a slow, soft sigh. Which, of course, was about the time he noticed that she was floating off of the ground. Zuko couldn't help but feel his eye twitch, something that hadn't really been a problem since the last time he'd been chasing the avatar.

Wonderful, now, regardless of what the group wanted, this person was likely going to have to die. Or at least be their prisoner until Zuko figured out what to do. Something told him that Nizhoni would be even more adamant about not killing someone if they were already their prisoner and not mouthing off to him. But if the Lotus caught wind of what Wing was, what would they really do? On one hand it could force them to reveal their hand to the world. They would likely come in force to deal with Zuko, which meant that he might finally be able to out them to the unknowing masses...

But that decision might result in all out war, as well. Wasn't the taking of one life worth preventing a potential global war? Dammit...

Zuko grabbed the branch beneath him as he saw the man looking away from him at the pair of girls, and without a sound, not even a real rustling of the tree branches, he propelled himself from the trees, his hands going back to his blades. He really wished that he knew what to do, but at this point, he needed to act, before things got even more out of control than they already were. Thinking was just going to have to come later, when Wing's life wasn't immediately in danger.

The sound of him landing was a bare rustle against the ground behind the Doctor as he said his soft hello, and before the man could turn around, he would hear the quick soft sound of metal on metal as Zuko's twin Dao broadswords were drawn, one placed on either of the doctor's shoulders. With the slightest of movements, even if the Doctor tried to lunge forward, Zuko could have easily inflicted critical wounds on the man's arteries, if not decapitated him altogether. Perhaps even more troubling to the doctor, however, was the fact that those razor sharp blades were almost flush against the edge of his hair, meaning that a move in the wrong direction could easily take off a more than a few inches of his black mane.

"Hello." Zuko said calmly in reply to the man. "Walk forward towards my friends, slowly, and you won't get hurt." It might very well have been a lie, but Zuko had bigger things to worry about, like, given that scream, if there was another Lotus scout in the area, they were probably on their way here already. "Move." Zuko reiterated in an annoyed tone.

Nizhoni listened with genuine interest as Zuko spoke to Wing. His voice was too somber for his words, and she wondered what sort of thoughts plagued him. She hated to hear his voice like this, but it was a rare moment for her to hear any joy in his speech. She often wondered what sort of things had made him happy in the past, but he wouldn’t often disclose his history with her. The waterbender only knew the things that were either obvious from listening to people talk or because Zuko had decided to disclose the information. Regardless, people couldn't always be trusted to speak the truth, and the former Fire Lord wasn’t extremely open with her, so she knew very little. She was basically on a need-to-know basis with him, and wished she could know more. Perhaps she would as time progressed. It had only been four months, after all.

The second-hand story he told the women was interesting to Nizhoni. Her silver-blue eyes turned toward Nizhoni when Zuko disclosed that they had apparently been remodeling the Temple. The healer hoped that some of the Northern Air Temple’s history remained. “Maybe they found some scrolls before they started tearing things down? We could always asked if they kept anything they found.” The Water Tribe femme suggested softly. There could be scrolls and things of that nature that could be useful to Wing if they had been kept in decent shape. There could be other things, too, but Nizhoni wasn’t sure about any of it. She had never traveled to an Air Temple.

The conversation came to a sudden halt as Zuko noticed the figure in the distance. They separated. Wing was just behind Nizhoni, and the healer tried to keep tabs on where the other bender was, so they wouldn’t be separated. The young waterbender may have gained skill in stealth over the last few month, but she was still new to the art. A few leaves rustled here, but she did her best to avoid crunching any of them beneath her feet. It was inevitable, but she did a wonderful job because her pace was slow.

Her heart pounded in her ears as she strained to listen for any other sounds, even as she attempted to avoid making any herself. Wing was excellent at remaining silent, though the wind beneath her feet did cause a slight stirring of leaves. That was how Nizhoni kept tabs on her location. Every so often she would pause, duck behind a tree, peer at the stranger, and move along. She figured the airbender must be doing the same thing, so she wasn’t worried when the other woman fell behind a short distance.

Before Wing could get too far behind, Nizhoni made a longer pause behind a tree to wait for the other. She didn’t have long to wait until a terrified scream erupted through the trees. Even as the birds began to take flight, the waterbender moved into action. As she spun around, the stopper was popped from the neck of one of her water skins, and water erupted in a stream, but it halted mid air as she turned to find only a dark haired girl. Confusion filled her. There wasn’t a Black Lotus member holding a blade to Wing’s neck. In fact, there was no one around other than the two women. The healer’s eyes had been wide and fearful, but they had also been filled with determination to help Wing. The look melted away into one of concern and worry.

With a swift, fluid move of her arm, the water retreated into it’s container, and she hurried to Wing’s side, no longer being careful about her feet crunching leaves or twigs. It didn’t matter now that the airbender had successfully declared their position. “What’s wrong? What happened?” Nizhoni asked. Even as the other explained about the spider, the waterbender looked around them carefully to make sure no one else was around. Her eyes moved toward the spot where Zuko and the stranger had been, but now she saw that Zuko had taken control of that situation and was moving toward them.

“Don’t worry. I heard wolf spiders aren’t dangerous to humans. Let me look at your neck.” She was a little taller than the other woman- actually, she was taller than most women- so she just leaned over the other a bit and moved the hair aside. There was a slightly swollen, pink circle that ailed the flesh, but there hadn’t been time for the venom to really sink into the skin to make it bigger or worse. With a movement of her hands, a small globe of water surrounded two of Nizhoni’s fingertips. She applied the water to the bite, and a soft glowing aura emitted from the water as the healer worked. She could feel the other’s qi lines as she felt around for the small traces of venom. Once she believed she had most of it contained, she pulled the water away, drawing the poison from Wing’s skin as she moved. The water ceased its faint glow, and dripped away from her fingers. The venom fell away to the ground with it, and she stepped away from her friend.

“I don’t know if I managed to get all of it, but I got most of it. If I didn’t get all of it, it’ll just itch a little later. It shouldn’t even be as bad as a mosquito bite itches.” She lowered her voice before Zuko approached with the strange person who Nizhoni was certain was a man now that he was nearer. “Get ready.”

The waterbender kept her fingers as the neck of her water skin as they approached. The man at the edge of Zuko’s blades was incredibly odd looking. He was even creepy, but the healer didn’t feel any ill feelings from him. He was probably terrified of them, but she didn’t sense anything bad about him other than an air of strangeness. He seemed essentially harmless, and the waterbender wondered if they had gone about doing the wrong thing by interrupting whatever it was he had been doing. It was apparent that if they had kept moving, he probably wouldn’t have noticed the trio, but in these hard times, the three couldn’t take any chances.

“Who are you?” Nizhoni asked the stranger.

The words themselves were eagerly listened to and processed by the Airbender woman, as if each of them concerning the Northern Air Temple were some form of gold that would disappear if she didn't pay close enough attention, but the tone in which Zuko had been speaking was less than enthusiastic. He went on to explain that they had evidently renovated the Air Temple, and at that, Wing felt her own zeal dwindle, her heart vaguely sinking. Even as he quickly continued to explain that it was the inventor there that helped provide air capabilities to the Fire Nation, Wing could hardly feel her spirits lifting. So much pain and so much loss had resulted from the Fire Nation being able to take to the skies. She remembered the fear in her father's eyes as she overheard him speaking to her mother one night about them. The Fire Nation clearly had an advantage that this inventor had presented them with, whether it was intentional or unintentional.

"We had resorted to defensive tactics as they dropped their explosives, creating rock shields and walls to lessen their blows" her father had explained, sitting rather uncomfortably next to his wife, whose eyes were noticeably glistening. (Wing had been quietly listening from the room across from them.) "We were at the disadvantage. When the bombs fell, those Fire Nation bastards had the high ground and could aim wherever they wanted, able to maneuver their balloons right on top of us, dropping multiples, sometimes dozens at once. We couldn't protect everyone. Even the soldiers we provided cover to in time didn't always make it. The bombs were too powerful, breaking through the haphazard rock we formed or causing pieces of it to break loose and fall right on top of some men, men whose wives' and children's names I had come to remember."

Wing's mother was sobbing, the images she was forming in her mind from her husband's war stories clearly getting to her. It was far too much for their daughter to see just then. She, like her older brother, was not ready yet to hear everything. It was too soon. The thought of so many deaths and so much destruction, along with reliving the notion that their father too could have been one that added to the death toll was just too much to bare. Wing quietly and slowly crept away and out of earshot, her eyes narrowed as they clouded up.

Pushing herself forward now, Wing tried to shake loose the memories of that night, and made a rather unsuccessful endeavor at staying focused on the present. No sooner had she let her mind wander faintly to the thought of any possible scrolls the Northern Air Temple may have left, as Nizhoni has suggested (which, for Wing, meant she might be able to learn proper Airbending techniques), had they all stopped from Zuko's warning.

As Zuko took to the canopy and Nizhoni and Wing went off in a separate direction, stepping lightly, Wing had the rather startling and unexpected encounter with the wolf spider. As humorous as it was on first impression, holding a fear of spiders wasn't all that unwarranted. After all, many spiders were venomous, even able to kill humans with a single bite. Those whose venom wasn't powerful enough to kill an adult still could surely cause a great deal of problems and pain, not to mention a rather unattractive wound where the bite had been. This fear though that Wing possessed was not from anything that she had ever experienced herself. Instead, it was her brother who had a rather nasty time with a huntsman spider. He was only a child, so no one could blame him for his naivety, but he had picked it up just outside their home, thinking it would make a nice pet. Instead, the spider bit him on the hand, and he dropped it, screaming, crying by the time he emerged into the house, holding out his hand for their mother to look at. Wing was only five at the time, but she remembered the ugliness of the bite for years.

Gazing in shock back at Nizhoni as the other female had turned around so abruptly, so prepared, with her water bending out of the pouch she was carrying, Wing suddenly felt very embarrassed. The girl was in front of her now, questioning her about her scream. It wasn't until that moment that Wing began to feel the pain beginning to manifest on the back of her neck where the arachnid had been. Could she just be imaging it? Had the spider bitten her before she had the chance to throw it off? Each passing second that ticked by, the sensation on her neck grew more and more painfully pronounced and more tingly. She realized that she couldn't possibly be creating it in her mind, though she wished now more than anything she was.

"A wolf spider..." Wing started, her horrified gazed shifting between the Waterbender and the man they had been trying to avoid, who was now drawing closer, staring directly at them.

Without hesitating, Nizhoni took action, bending over Wing to heal the bite by removing whatever venom she could. Wing stood still, crouching somewhat so her companion could work easier. As she stood there, facing the earth, Wing was so thankful they had a healer in their small group. She could only imagine what would have happened to her neck from the venom if they hadn't. They'd surely have to travel to the nearest town to find some antidote or at least some medicine to relieve the pain. She didn't want to think about it.

"Thank you," Wing said in a most relieved and grateful voice, bowing before the Waterbender. "I'm so sorry," she apologized in a tiny voice.

She wanted to say more, to give Nizhoni proper gratification, but they were not in a position to be conversing. At that moment, the strange, hunched man had greeted them. His voice sounded friendly, much to Wing's surprise, though rather taken aback too. She hadn't had a chance to get a proper look at him, but as Zuko leapt down from the trees and apprehended the stranger, Wing carefully emerged from the cover of the trees she had been taking shelter behind.

Observing him up close, Wing realized he was not wearing any attire that would mark him as part of the Black Lotus. He did appear quite odd and peculiar though, which she didn't think any, including himself, would deny.

"Who is this guy?" Wing questioned, though she was staring right at him.