Avatar: The Last Airbender - Untitled (Kuzon Reincarnation), Chapter 1
This is one of those rare stories whose idea I'm still enamored with, but which I'm not going to continue because I have too many other projects that take priority. The style could do with a bit of tightening up, but oh well.
Title: Untitled (Kuzon Reincarnation)
Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Summary: Some friendships transcend even lifetimes.
Characters: Zuko, Aang, Jin, Katara, Sokka, Toph, Iroh
Genre: Adventure, Drama
Warnings: Reincarnation, Amnesia
Links:
LiveJournal: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
WordPress: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Chapter 1
Aang sat on the veranda, furiously blinking back tears as he stared at the perfectly pruned gardens. Katara, Sokka and Toph were inside, chatting idly, having fun, while he sat outside, a dull ache eating away at his heart. He wanted Appa. He wanted Appa next to him, right now, comforting him with his familiar presence. Because even though he considered his new companions his friends, they did not know him as long and as well as Appa. Very few people did any more.
He hugged his knees closer to him. Only two of his friends were still alive. One was old and rickety, and had duties to his city now, and the other was kidnapped by sand-benders. Everyone else was gone. Separated by one hundred years of war. By death.
It seemed like only yesterday that he was laughing with Kuzon as he watched his friend practice fire-bending with clumsy steps. Only yesterday that he had promised him he would visit again for the Summer Solstice Festival. And to him, it had been less than a year since he and Monk Gyatso had flung pies at the other monks. But it wasn't yesterday. It wasn't even last month or last year.
One hundred years.
With the exception of Bumi, and hopefully Appa, his friends had all passed on to the Spirit World. And he never even had a chance to say good-bye. He never had a chance to attend their funerals, to thank Gyatso for his kindness and to apologize for running away.
He buried his head in his arms, his whole frame shaking. If they never found Appa, if Appa died... His last link, last friend of his childhood would disappear. Oh, Bumi was still his crazy self, but one hundred years of war and responsibility had changed him. He was and was not the Bumi that he knew.
When Appa was still by his side, he was able to ignore it. He was able to pretend that his friends weren't dead, that he wasn't one hundred years in a terrible future. He could pretend that Kuzon was just one flight over in the Fire Nation, and that he could return to Gyatso whenever he pleased, and that he could sail the skies and just be free of everything that tied him down now.
But Appa was gone. And his absence awakened a terrible ache in him. For the first time, he realized that Kuzon wasn't just one flight over. Kuzon wouldn't be waiting for him when he flew to his house. Neither would Gyatso. He had seen that first hand. He was alone, cut off from the support of the people that he had grown up with, and while he knew that his new friends would risk life and limb for him, he couldn't help but curl in regret, fear and pain when he thought of everything that he had lost.
He only hoped that the fliers he had distributed would bring news of Appa. Because he didn't know what he would do if he never found him again.
----
Iroh was worried about his nephew. Though he had told him that his illness was a natural consequence of his conflicting choices, he was beginning to think that it may be something more. Zuko had yet to awaken again after his fever-confused questions, and while he was no longer burning up, his nephew wasn't showing signs of awakening either. Iroh had intended to stay by his side until he woke up, but he found himself unable to do so for economic reasons. They were running out of money, and the proprietors were wondering when Iroh intended on opening his tea shop.
He forced himself to look genial when he welcomed his first customers in, trying to let the calming process of brewing tea quell his worries. It worked only marginally. Whenever he had a break, he found his mind wandering upstairs, wondering if Zuko had awakened yet, or if his condition had worsened. It was mid-afternoon a few days later when luck finally seemed to favor him.
Jin entered his tea shop with trepidation, wearing finer clothes than usual, but still looking scruffy and out of place compared to the other patrons. Iroh had to admire that girl for her courage and tenacity. After the way Zuko had left their date, he had thought that the girl would never show up again, much less accept his offer of free tea at his shop in the upper ring. He intercepted her before either his customers or the hired help could say anything.
"Hello, my dear," Iroh greeted warmly, shaking her hand. "I'm so glad you could make it."
"Well, you make such fine tea," she replied nervously, trying to ignore the looks of curiosity and mild disdain directed at her, "and I just had to see your new shop."
"Thank you for your kind words." He personally directed her to a seat close to the counter, his actions quieting whatever contemptuous comments that were about to be uttered. "What would you like?"
"The usual," she smiled warmly, before remembering where she was and flushing in embarrassment and partial shame. "I mean, if you still serve it."
Iroh patted her shoulder kindly. "Of course we serve it. It is one of my finest blends, if I do say so myself." He gave a slight chuckle. "I'll give you a cup shortly."
"Thank you," she mumbled, looking down and blushing. Iroh moved away deliberately slowly. "Oh, um, do you know where Lee is?" He was hard pressed not to reveal his knowing smile.
"I'm afraid he's feeling a little under the weather recently," he said, turning to face the girl once more. He didn't miss her look of disappointment.
"Oh. Is--is he all right?"
Iroh gave a dramatic sigh. "I haven't been able to find a time to check on him, what with the shop keeping me so busy. And I've already delayed the opening so long waiting for him to get better." He gave another sigh, laying it on thick. "I'm just so terribly worried. If only... But we've no one left but each other..."
Jin looked down once more, biting her lip. Iroh waited patiently for the inevitable conclusion, and he was not disappointed.
"Well, I can look after him for a while. Until you're not busy," she added quickly, as if afraid of him doubting her noble intentions.
"Would you?" Iroh asked, looking extremely pleased and relieved. Then he frowned just a little. "Ah, but I'm sure you're quite busy..."
"Oh, I'm not busy! Not busy at all," she said, getting up from her seat. "Lee is my...friend. I should help him when I can." Iroh gave her a smile of genuine appreciation.
"Thank you, Miss Jin." He gestured to the stairs in the back of the shop. "Just go up and take a right. He shouldn't be hard to miss." Jin gave a slight bow and quickly made her way upstairs, while a smile made its way onto Iroh's face. Ah, young love. Perhaps what his nephew needed was a woman's touch to wake him up.
----
She was ashamed to say that what initially attracted her to the boy in the dingy tea shop was his scar. It marred half his face, giving him a permanent scowl on his left side, but making his rather handsome features on the other side all the more remarkable. It was a testament to his trials in the war, a war that was not permitted to exist within the walls of Ba Sing Se, but which was obvious by the number of increasing refugees in the lower ring.
Jin didn't like to think that she was shallow, but the truth was, the scar intrigued her. It made the boy, whose name she found out was Lee, all the more mysterious. That, and his attitude. He walked with a certain grace, and while he was unerringly polite to his customers, she couldn't help but think that he felt as if he were out of place. Not that that was all that surprising. He was a refugee, after all. Of course he would feel out of place.
But Jin let her imagination run wild. Maybe he was a soldier, sick of war, and who quit, or maybe even deserted the army to take care of his last remaining family, for no matter how gruff he acted towards his uncle, Jin and every other customer of Pao's tea shop knew that he cared for the older man deeply. Or maybe he didn't fight in the war, and was a simple farmer who was caught in a devastating Fire Nation attack, and was forced to flee to Ba Sing Se after losing everything. Or maybe he was a banished prince, who lost his kingdom to the Fire Lord.
Jin decided that her imagination was getting a bit over-active there, so started to sit in the tea shop regularly, hoping to glean what facts she could find. And while she never found anything about his background, curiosity turned to admiration, and admiration to something akin to affection. He never once made a mistake in his orders, he delivered tea swiftly and efficiently, and he worked with a dedication to his task that was frankly missing from most of the other boys in the lower ring. He was serious, almost to a fault, and she found it endearing.
So she started sitting in the tea shop not to snoop more information about him and his mysterious scar, but because she liked watching him work. She liked watching the way his face lifted with annoyed amusement or exasperation, and the way he frowned or glared at annoying customers. And without saying a word to him, she found out that he had a rather short temper, could be stubborn or pliant depending on the occasion, cared with deep affection, and rarely, rarely smiled.
She wanted to see him smile at least once.
She had gotten her wish during their date, but the whole thing didn't turn out the way she expected. First off, Lee was incredibly awkward with words, and was a terrible liar. It had been funny, but she didn't want him to be offended, so buried it deep within herself to be enjoyed later. It was pretty obvious that he wasn't from the circus, and couldn't juggle if his life depended on it, but whatever he was seeking refuge from must be serious if it forced him to lie about it. "Lee" probably wasn't even his real name.
She had been slightly hurt when she realized that, even though she knew it was unreasonable of her to expect him to trust her with any secrets. But even though most of what he said was probably lies, she had still found herself attracted to him. It was just the little things: how he tried to compliment her, even if it turned out a little insulting, how he tried to answer her questions as truthfully as he could, his nervous twiddling of thumbs, and how he insisted on paying for the entire meal, even though she ate more than him. He was just really...cute.
And it was really sweet of him, too, the way he lit up all the lamps in the square for her. She had no idea how he had done it, and the over-active part of her mind wanted to imagine that he had done it with fire-bending, no matter how ludicrous that sounded. But the important thing was that he was willing to do all that to please her, even if he didn't quite know anything about her. She was willing to give him her heart right then and there.
Only he aborted his return kiss, mumbled a vague, "it's complicated," and ran off into the night before she could demand a better explanation. If it had been any other guy, she would have simply gone home dejected, and maybe slapped him if she ever saw him again in the streets.
But because it was Lee, she found herself wearing the best robe she owned and marching up to the top tier with his uncle's invitation, even when she knew that she would only be scorned. She knew that it wasn't her place here; she belonged with the rest of the dung in the bottom tier, but she simply couldn't let him go. She needed to know what he meant, if he was just a cruel man toying with her and throwing her away, or if he had a real, genuine reason for simply abandoning her on their date. She didn't want her last memory of him to be one of him being a jerk.
So she took a deep breath, entered the shop, and somehow or other ended up upstairs taking care of a guy she barely knew. If her parents knew what she was doing, or even her little brother... Still, it was nice to take care of someone, even if that someone may or may not like you. It made her feel as if she really were his girlfriend.
The only problem was that Lee was still, incredibly still. She had seen her share of sick people before, and they either shuddered with fever, or tossed and turned with discomfort. But Lee barely moved, except maybe to breathe, and Jin knew that that was not normal. Still, there was nothing she could do about it, so she simply sat and watched over him.
Until blood started to welt on his skin.
----
The darkness had swallowed him. He wanted to claw his way out into the light, but something kept pulling him back, dragging him down until he had no strength left to fight. He had to leave. He knew he had to leave.
Sleep.
The darkness thickened around him in a suffocating blanket. His limbs were heavy, his mind drifting. Suddenly, there was a flash of fire, and a dragon roared, chasing away the darkness.
"Leave him," the red dragon growled, baring its fangs at a blue dragon. The blue dragon sneered, a low chuckle reverberating in its throat. The dark encroached the small space Zuko occupied once more, only to be chased away by another breath of fire from the red dragon. The red dragon curled around him protectively.
"Stop interfering," the red dragon hissed, steam blowing out of its nostrils in anger. The blue dragon encircled them, constantly moving. It was all Zuko could do to keep himself from turning around like a fool to keep the dragon in his sights.
"You're the one interfering, Fang," the blue dragon said with a false pleasantry that made Zuko's skin crawl. "He has already chosen."
"No. You have chosen for him," the red dragon growled, curling slightly tighter. The blue dragon grinned, a terrible sight to behold. Zuko suddenly felt the presence of more spirits gathered around him, shrouded in shadow. He wanted to take a step back, but there was no where to move.
"Do not fear. Find the path that you have set on," the red dragon comforted, glancing at Zuko briefly before turning its attention to the encroaching shadow. Its eyes narrowed.
"Surprised, Fang?" the blue dragon laughed, scales rustling. "Not all spirits can be quelled by the voice of a dead Avatar."
"What have you done?" the red dragon said in a dangerous tone, claws flexing.
"Just as you still serve your master, so do I," the blue dragon smirked, sliding over and around his own body like some intricate dance. "Now, let's see you defend him from this!" The blue dragon rushed towards him, mouth gaped to swallow him. The red dragon roared and bit the blue dragon on the neck, directing its head away from Zuko. The darkness rose like a wave, and Zuko could feel the spirits threaten to drown him in a deluge of attacks. He tried to find his swords, or fire-bend, but he could do nothing.
The red dragon suddenly curled around him once more, protecting him with a cocoon of its own body. Zuko could feel the dragon shudder as the attacks pounded against it. The red dragon let out a roar of defiance, but Zuko could feel that the dragon was in pain.
"Stop," Zuko whispered. The dragon was hurting. The dragon was hurting because of him. "Stop! What is it that you want of me? Stop!" He could hear muffled laughter from the blue dragon, joined by whispering voices.
"See how weak he is?" The voice had a triumphant lilt to it that infuriated and frustrated Zuko. "Just like the rest of the world." There was a mighty roar and the small space Zuko was entombed in suddenly became even smaller. He could hear the red dragon groaning against the strain. Another roar, and Zuko was crushed against the hard scales, barely able to breathe.
"Sleep, child. Let the darkness take you," a serpentine voice said. The scales tightened against him once more, and Zuko let out an involuntary gasp of pain. He felt light-headed and sleepy, and surprisingly tired even against the pain that should have kept him awake.
"No!" the red dragon grunted, the effort costing it what ground it held, and the circle became even tighter. Zuko could feel the hard scales cutting into him, but was beginning to feel strangely detached. "No!"
Remember who you are.
An old man was bouncing him on his knee. Someone teaching him how to fire-bend. Volcano. Ashes. A red dragon.
Then, grandfather Azulon behind a veil of fire. Father next to the turtle-duck pond. Mother in the dark whispering half remembered phrases.
"It is our destiny to spread our prosperity..."
"Find the Avatar..."
"...be back for the Summer Solstice!"
"Dad's gonna kill you."
Zuko wrenched himself from the heavy desire to sleep, grunting against the pain, welcoming it.
"Never give up..." the dragon rumbled. Zuko could barely move against the tight coils, but he raised a hand slightly to rest against the trembling scales.
"...without a fight," Zuko rasped. He heard a growl of approval, and the scales suddenly crushed into him, and there was a searing flash of white pain, and he would have screamed if he had air, but it was white, and white was not dark, and he was finally freed.
----
Katara was starting to wonder if everything she did had to turn out into some sort of mini-adventure or disaster. She had entered a tea shop in the upper ring just for a cup of relaxing tea, only to encounter Zuko's uncle who had then pleaded and dragged her upstairs to heal his nephew. Before her mind could even comprehend the fact that Zuko and his uncle were in Ba Sing Se, and were actually in the upper ring working in a tea shop, she was ordering buckets of water to be brought to her as she tried to heal the bloody cuts that kept on randomly appearing all over the banished prince. It didn't help her sense of normalcy when he tried to writhe from the pain, only to remain still, as if bound there by some unseen force. As if that were not enough, the moment the cuts stopped appearing and she finished healing him, the tea shop was attacked by a group of Dai Li, and she wondered what on earth she had done to deserve all this.
The only good (or perhaps bad--she hadn't decided yet) thing that came from this was witnessing Zuko's uncle's incredible battle prowess. She was glad that the old man had simply opted to stand by and do nothing in all their previous encounters, because she didn't think she and everyone else she knew combined could take him. When he finished repelling the Dai Li entirely without her help, he rushed upstairs, picked up his nephew, barked an order for her and the other girl, Jin, to follow him, and led them to the lower ring.
It was a small, dingy apartment that was surprisingly free of dust. Katara suspected that Zuko and his uncle had lived here before, what with the familiarity the old man showed in moving around the rooms. He placed his nephew gently on the floor before turning to address Jin.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into this, Miss Jin, but if you could do me one last favor?" He sounded old and tired, and if Jin wouldn't help, then Katara definitely would, even if he was from the Fire Nation and had chased her all over the entire world. Jin looked frightened, and Katara couldn't blame her. It wasn't every day that one got chased by the Dai Li, rescued by a fire-bender, and barely escaped with one's life. Jin glanced at Zuko, then at Katara, and back at the old man, before her posture straightened and a determined look entered her eyes.
"What can I do to help?"
Zuko's uncle let out a sigh of relief. He handed her a few coins.
"We need disguises." He gave Katara a questioning look. "Buy something for the young lady as well. A few cloaks would not be remiss. Be quick." Jin nodded, then dashed out of the apartment. Zuko's uncle then turned to face her. "I am going to lead the Dai Li away from this place. If the Dai Li should find you, do not hesitate to save yourself above anything else." His words left a chill in Katara, but she nodded silently. He gave her a reassuring smile. "Do not worry. I am sure everything will work out all right." Then he, too, left.
Jin returned shortly with a few long cloaks, a pair of scissors, something that looked like hair, and a sticky pot of glue-like substance. They were good materials to make a disguise, but Katara had no clue what to do with them.
"Let's wait for Mushi to get back," Jin suggested, and Katara agreed numbly. They waited until the sun sank into the west, leaving them breathing uneasily in the darkness. Several times Katara wanted to go to the upper ring to warn Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors that the Dai Li had betrayed them, but Jin convinced her to stay put. She had reasoned that if the Dai Li were confident enough to defy the king's orders, then it was likely that the Kyoshi warriors had already fallen, and Katara was forced to agree.
Finally, Katara couldn't stand waiting around anymore and got up to leave. She felt a little bad for leaving Jin defenseless with someone like Zuko, but if the Dai Li had really rebelled, then she needed to warn Aang and the others from returning.
"Wait," Jin said, getting up as well. The street lamps were lit, but the light barely filtered into the apartment, making the other girl seem like a shadowy wraith. "Where are you going? Are you leaving?"
Katara bit her lip before answering, "Yeah."
"Oh."
Katara fidgeted uncomfortably. "Listen, you don't have to stay here," she said, reaching for the other girl, but Jin pulled away. "You're not involved, so if you just go home, I'm sure everything will be okay." Jin rubbed her arms as if cold.
"I'm pretty sure the Dai Li saw my face," she said in a quiet voice. "And I kind of sealed my fate when I ran with you guys. If I go home, I'm afraid they might hurt my family."
An awkward silence fell between them before Katara broke it. "What are you going to do then?"
Jin glanced at Zuko. "I can come back if--when things cool down. The Dai Li don't really care about people like me." Katara wanted to protest that, but Jin continued on. "The important thing right now is to get Lee out of here."
"Lee?" Katara asked incredulously, wondering what possessed Zuko to choose such a common name. She supposed "Mushi" wasn't really his uncle's name, either.
"It's obvious that the Dai Li were trying to capture Mushi, and by extension Lee." Jin swallowed, giving Katara a hesitant look. "A-And they were even after you, the Avatar's water-bender."
Katara gaped at the other girl, speechless.
"I thought the war didn't exist within these walls," she said quietly. Jin gave a strained half-chuckle.
"Well, with all these refugees coming in, it's become a little difficult to ignore."
"I guess so," Katara laughed weakly.
"The main problem right now is getting Lee out," Jin continued, poking at the materials she brought half-heartedly. "The scar makes him too recognizable."
"Yeah," Katara sighed, settling down next to Jin. Jin gave her a furtive look.
"Can't you, I don't know, heal it?" she asked hesitantly. "I mean, you healed everything else with your glowing hands. I can bring more water if you want." Katara looked at Zuko's scar, for the first time realizing that once upon a time, this enemy of hers had looked normal. For a long time now, whenever she thought of the Fire Nation, she saw his scarred face looming from the darkness, wreathed in flames. But no one was born hating other nations, and she could bet that Zuko had once been innocent and happy. The thought made her skin crawl. She refrained from gagging for Jin's sake.
"I don't know if I can. The scar is pretty old," she said, touching the skin lightly. "But I can try." Jin nodded.
"I'll go get some water." She disappeared into another room and appeared shortly with a bucket of water. "Enough?"
"Yeah. Thanks," Katara said, wrapping her hands in the cool liquid, then laying the gloved hands above Zuko's scar. As she suspected, nothing happened. The glass of Spirit Oasis water weighed heavily against her chest, and she wondered if she should use it.
The room was suddenly filled with light, and Katara barely suppressed her scream. Jin smiled apologetically at her, holding the lamp that she just lit.
"Is it working?"
"No," Katara sighed, letting the water fall back into the bucket. Zuko hadn't stirred once since leaving the upper ring, and Katara was beginning to worry if he was all right. Maybe the Spirit Oasis water would heal that, too?
"Uh... Could you get ready to heal something?" Jin asked nervously.
"Okay," Katara said, wondering what the other girl was thinking. Jin took the pair of scissors she had brought and placed the blades above the fire. Katara had a bad feeling about this. Jin then placed the burning blade against the skin of Zuko's scar, and the room was filled with the terrible scent of burning flesh.
"What are you doing?" Katara nearly screeched, slapping the girl's hand away. She summoned water to her hand and quickly healed the burn. Surprisingly, the skin left behind was whole and unblemished. Katara looked at the strange un-scar in wonder.
"You said it was too old to heal, so I wondered what would happen if it wasn't old," Jin said, her voice filled with relief. "I mean, the worst that could happen was that he would get another scar on top of his scar." Katara wanted to laugh at the girl's ingenuity, but settled for shaking her head in admiration.
"I'm going to borrow a kettle from the neighbors," Jin said, getting up. "I think burning his face with hot water might be a bit more safe and precise, especially since you're a water-bender." Katara nodded.
"I'll go and start the stove."
"Thanks." Jin left the apartment for the second time that day, and returned after a few minutes with the promised kettle. Katara quickly filled the kettle with water from the bucket and started boiling it. Jin went outside to fill the bucket again. When everything was ready, Katara took a deep breath.
"Try with just a little bit of boiling water, to see if it really works," Jin whispered, afraid to break Katara's concentration. Katara nodded, letting a small bead of boiling water rest again Zuko's cheek until she could see the skin reddening and swelling. She then summoned the water around her hand, healing the burn. To her relief, it worked.
"That's great." Jin blew out air, trying to release her pent up tension. "I wasn't looking forward to smelling burnt skin."
"Me neither," Katara said, feeling giddy. She took another deep breath. She would have to be careful around his eye. She didn't want to leave him blind, though she was surprised that his eye had survived the fiery attack that scarred him. Summoning the boiling water to her, she shaped the water to roughly fit the shape of his scar. Then she pressed the boiling liquid onto his face. He didn't even twitch.
The process was slower than the individual patches that she and Jin had attempted earlier, but slowly and surely, the reddened scar receded, and the pale skin particular to the people of the Fire Nation began to show up. It was strange and exhilarating to watch the terrible scar being un-done, and not for the first time, Katara was glad that her element allowed her to perform such miraculous healing. Soon, nothing was left of the disfiguring scar, and a strangely handsome face lay before her.
"You're amazing," Jin breathed, her hand hovering above the area where the scar used to be. She gave Katara a reverent look. "If the Avatar is half as skilled as you are, then maybe there is hope for the world, after all." Katara smiled gratefully, a mixture of pride and embarrassment leaving her cheeks glowing.
"Guess he won't be needing that fake hair stuff, huh?"
"Yeah," Jin said, still awe-struck. "I mean, no one will be able to guess that a scar like that can just disappear."
"I bet even his uncle won't recognize him," Katara laughed.
"Yeah." Jin still sounded dazed. There was a bang downstairs, and both girls jumped. Katara quickly moved to the window, and swallowed a curse as she saw the familiar Dai Li hats surrounding the building.
"We're in trouble," she said, looking at her meager supply of water with worry. She would have to fight. But even if she didn't have to, how was she and Jin supposed to move an unconscious person out the door? She wondered where Zuko's uncle was. Surely he hadn't abandoned them? He didn't seem like that type of person, but who knew with the Fire Nation?
"Hide," Katara commanded the girl. She spotted the wardrobe in the bedroom, and gestured for Jin to help her carry Zuko. She placed Zuko in the empty wardrobe, for once wishing that he would get up and start attacking. She then pushed Jin into it as well.
"What are you going to do?" Jin asked, fear once gain showing in her eyes.
"Stay here and don't make a sound. I'm going to lead them away, then I'll come back," Katara said, quickly shutting the wardrobe before Jin could protest. She ran to the other room, summoning both the cool and boiling water, then jumped out the window, using the cool water to make a slide.
"She's getting away!"
"Get her!"
Katara started running through the streets, summoning what water she could find, and using it to whip at the incoming Dai Li. There were too many. She would never be able to escape from them. She used her water as leverage to leap over the wall, hoping that the wall would impede the Dai Li. She forgot that everything in that cursed city was made of stone.
She nearly tripped over the Dai Li that suddenly appeared from the ground. The blunder cost her precious seconds, and before she knew it, stone shackles had her cuffed and she fell onto the ground with an unelegant thud. The Dai Li descended on her like a pack of wolves, and they pulled her underground. Katara could only pray that they didn't find Jin and Zuko.
----
Chapter 2
Title: Untitled (Kuzon Reincarnation)
Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Summary: Some friendships transcend even lifetimes.
Characters: Zuko, Aang, Jin, Katara, Sokka, Toph, Iroh
Genre: Adventure, Drama
Warnings: Reincarnation, Amnesia
Links:
LiveJournal: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
WordPress: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Chapter 1
Aang sat on the veranda, furiously blinking back tears as he stared at the perfectly pruned gardens. Katara, Sokka and Toph were inside, chatting idly, having fun, while he sat outside, a dull ache eating away at his heart. He wanted Appa. He wanted Appa next to him, right now, comforting him with his familiar presence. Because even though he considered his new companions his friends, they did not know him as long and as well as Appa. Very few people did any more.
He hugged his knees closer to him. Only two of his friends were still alive. One was old and rickety, and had duties to his city now, and the other was kidnapped by sand-benders. Everyone else was gone. Separated by one hundred years of war. By death.
It seemed like only yesterday that he was laughing with Kuzon as he watched his friend practice fire-bending with clumsy steps. Only yesterday that he had promised him he would visit again for the Summer Solstice Festival. And to him, it had been less than a year since he and Monk Gyatso had flung pies at the other monks. But it wasn't yesterday. It wasn't even last month or last year.
One hundred years.
With the exception of Bumi, and hopefully Appa, his friends had all passed on to the Spirit World. And he never even had a chance to say good-bye. He never had a chance to attend their funerals, to thank Gyatso for his kindness and to apologize for running away.
He buried his head in his arms, his whole frame shaking. If they never found Appa, if Appa died... His last link, last friend of his childhood would disappear. Oh, Bumi was still his crazy self, but one hundred years of war and responsibility had changed him. He was and was not the Bumi that he knew.
When Appa was still by his side, he was able to ignore it. He was able to pretend that his friends weren't dead, that he wasn't one hundred years in a terrible future. He could pretend that Kuzon was just one flight over in the Fire Nation, and that he could return to Gyatso whenever he pleased, and that he could sail the skies and just be free of everything that tied him down now.
But Appa was gone. And his absence awakened a terrible ache in him. For the first time, he realized that Kuzon wasn't just one flight over. Kuzon wouldn't be waiting for him when he flew to his house. Neither would Gyatso. He had seen that first hand. He was alone, cut off from the support of the people that he had grown up with, and while he knew that his new friends would risk life and limb for him, he couldn't help but curl in regret, fear and pain when he thought of everything that he had lost.
He only hoped that the fliers he had distributed would bring news of Appa. Because he didn't know what he would do if he never found him again.
----
Iroh was worried about his nephew. Though he had told him that his illness was a natural consequence of his conflicting choices, he was beginning to think that it may be something more. Zuko had yet to awaken again after his fever-confused questions, and while he was no longer burning up, his nephew wasn't showing signs of awakening either. Iroh had intended to stay by his side until he woke up, but he found himself unable to do so for economic reasons. They were running out of money, and the proprietors were wondering when Iroh intended on opening his tea shop.
He forced himself to look genial when he welcomed his first customers in, trying to let the calming process of brewing tea quell his worries. It worked only marginally. Whenever he had a break, he found his mind wandering upstairs, wondering if Zuko had awakened yet, or if his condition had worsened. It was mid-afternoon a few days later when luck finally seemed to favor him.
Jin entered his tea shop with trepidation, wearing finer clothes than usual, but still looking scruffy and out of place compared to the other patrons. Iroh had to admire that girl for her courage and tenacity. After the way Zuko had left their date, he had thought that the girl would never show up again, much less accept his offer of free tea at his shop in the upper ring. He intercepted her before either his customers or the hired help could say anything.
"Hello, my dear," Iroh greeted warmly, shaking her hand. "I'm so glad you could make it."
"Well, you make such fine tea," she replied nervously, trying to ignore the looks of curiosity and mild disdain directed at her, "and I just had to see your new shop."
"Thank you for your kind words." He personally directed her to a seat close to the counter, his actions quieting whatever contemptuous comments that were about to be uttered. "What would you like?"
"The usual," she smiled warmly, before remembering where she was and flushing in embarrassment and partial shame. "I mean, if you still serve it."
Iroh patted her shoulder kindly. "Of course we serve it. It is one of my finest blends, if I do say so myself." He gave a slight chuckle. "I'll give you a cup shortly."
"Thank you," she mumbled, looking down and blushing. Iroh moved away deliberately slowly. "Oh, um, do you know where Lee is?" He was hard pressed not to reveal his knowing smile.
"I'm afraid he's feeling a little under the weather recently," he said, turning to face the girl once more. He didn't miss her look of disappointment.
"Oh. Is--is he all right?"
Iroh gave a dramatic sigh. "I haven't been able to find a time to check on him, what with the shop keeping me so busy. And I've already delayed the opening so long waiting for him to get better." He gave another sigh, laying it on thick. "I'm just so terribly worried. If only... But we've no one left but each other..."
Jin looked down once more, biting her lip. Iroh waited patiently for the inevitable conclusion, and he was not disappointed.
"Well, I can look after him for a while. Until you're not busy," she added quickly, as if afraid of him doubting her noble intentions.
"Would you?" Iroh asked, looking extremely pleased and relieved. Then he frowned just a little. "Ah, but I'm sure you're quite busy..."
"Oh, I'm not busy! Not busy at all," she said, getting up from her seat. "Lee is my...friend. I should help him when I can." Iroh gave her a smile of genuine appreciation.
"Thank you, Miss Jin." He gestured to the stairs in the back of the shop. "Just go up and take a right. He shouldn't be hard to miss." Jin gave a slight bow and quickly made her way upstairs, while a smile made its way onto Iroh's face. Ah, young love. Perhaps what his nephew needed was a woman's touch to wake him up.
----
She was ashamed to say that what initially attracted her to the boy in the dingy tea shop was his scar. It marred half his face, giving him a permanent scowl on his left side, but making his rather handsome features on the other side all the more remarkable. It was a testament to his trials in the war, a war that was not permitted to exist within the walls of Ba Sing Se, but which was obvious by the number of increasing refugees in the lower ring.
Jin didn't like to think that she was shallow, but the truth was, the scar intrigued her. It made the boy, whose name she found out was Lee, all the more mysterious. That, and his attitude. He walked with a certain grace, and while he was unerringly polite to his customers, she couldn't help but think that he felt as if he were out of place. Not that that was all that surprising. He was a refugee, after all. Of course he would feel out of place.
But Jin let her imagination run wild. Maybe he was a soldier, sick of war, and who quit, or maybe even deserted the army to take care of his last remaining family, for no matter how gruff he acted towards his uncle, Jin and every other customer of Pao's tea shop knew that he cared for the older man deeply. Or maybe he didn't fight in the war, and was a simple farmer who was caught in a devastating Fire Nation attack, and was forced to flee to Ba Sing Se after losing everything. Or maybe he was a banished prince, who lost his kingdom to the Fire Lord.
Jin decided that her imagination was getting a bit over-active there, so started to sit in the tea shop regularly, hoping to glean what facts she could find. And while she never found anything about his background, curiosity turned to admiration, and admiration to something akin to affection. He never once made a mistake in his orders, he delivered tea swiftly and efficiently, and he worked with a dedication to his task that was frankly missing from most of the other boys in the lower ring. He was serious, almost to a fault, and she found it endearing.
So she started sitting in the tea shop not to snoop more information about him and his mysterious scar, but because she liked watching him work. She liked watching the way his face lifted with annoyed amusement or exasperation, and the way he frowned or glared at annoying customers. And without saying a word to him, she found out that he had a rather short temper, could be stubborn or pliant depending on the occasion, cared with deep affection, and rarely, rarely smiled.
She wanted to see him smile at least once.
She had gotten her wish during their date, but the whole thing didn't turn out the way she expected. First off, Lee was incredibly awkward with words, and was a terrible liar. It had been funny, but she didn't want him to be offended, so buried it deep within herself to be enjoyed later. It was pretty obvious that he wasn't from the circus, and couldn't juggle if his life depended on it, but whatever he was seeking refuge from must be serious if it forced him to lie about it. "Lee" probably wasn't even his real name.
She had been slightly hurt when she realized that, even though she knew it was unreasonable of her to expect him to trust her with any secrets. But even though most of what he said was probably lies, she had still found herself attracted to him. It was just the little things: how he tried to compliment her, even if it turned out a little insulting, how he tried to answer her questions as truthfully as he could, his nervous twiddling of thumbs, and how he insisted on paying for the entire meal, even though she ate more than him. He was just really...cute.
And it was really sweet of him, too, the way he lit up all the lamps in the square for her. She had no idea how he had done it, and the over-active part of her mind wanted to imagine that he had done it with fire-bending, no matter how ludicrous that sounded. But the important thing was that he was willing to do all that to please her, even if he didn't quite know anything about her. She was willing to give him her heart right then and there.
Only he aborted his return kiss, mumbled a vague, "it's complicated," and ran off into the night before she could demand a better explanation. If it had been any other guy, she would have simply gone home dejected, and maybe slapped him if she ever saw him again in the streets.
But because it was Lee, she found herself wearing the best robe she owned and marching up to the top tier with his uncle's invitation, even when she knew that she would only be scorned. She knew that it wasn't her place here; she belonged with the rest of the dung in the bottom tier, but she simply couldn't let him go. She needed to know what he meant, if he was just a cruel man toying with her and throwing her away, or if he had a real, genuine reason for simply abandoning her on their date. She didn't want her last memory of him to be one of him being a jerk.
So she took a deep breath, entered the shop, and somehow or other ended up upstairs taking care of a guy she barely knew. If her parents knew what she was doing, or even her little brother... Still, it was nice to take care of someone, even if that someone may or may not like you. It made her feel as if she really were his girlfriend.
The only problem was that Lee was still, incredibly still. She had seen her share of sick people before, and they either shuddered with fever, or tossed and turned with discomfort. But Lee barely moved, except maybe to breathe, and Jin knew that that was not normal. Still, there was nothing she could do about it, so she simply sat and watched over him.
Until blood started to welt on his skin.
----
The darkness had swallowed him. He wanted to claw his way out into the light, but something kept pulling him back, dragging him down until he had no strength left to fight. He had to leave. He knew he had to leave.
Sleep.
The darkness thickened around him in a suffocating blanket. His limbs were heavy, his mind drifting. Suddenly, there was a flash of fire, and a dragon roared, chasing away the darkness.
"Leave him," the red dragon growled, baring its fangs at a blue dragon. The blue dragon sneered, a low chuckle reverberating in its throat. The dark encroached the small space Zuko occupied once more, only to be chased away by another breath of fire from the red dragon. The red dragon curled around him protectively.
"Stop interfering," the red dragon hissed, steam blowing out of its nostrils in anger. The blue dragon encircled them, constantly moving. It was all Zuko could do to keep himself from turning around like a fool to keep the dragon in his sights.
"You're the one interfering, Fang," the blue dragon said with a false pleasantry that made Zuko's skin crawl. "He has already chosen."
"No. You have chosen for him," the red dragon growled, curling slightly tighter. The blue dragon grinned, a terrible sight to behold. Zuko suddenly felt the presence of more spirits gathered around him, shrouded in shadow. He wanted to take a step back, but there was no where to move.
"Do not fear. Find the path that you have set on," the red dragon comforted, glancing at Zuko briefly before turning its attention to the encroaching shadow. Its eyes narrowed.
"Surprised, Fang?" the blue dragon laughed, scales rustling. "Not all spirits can be quelled by the voice of a dead Avatar."
"What have you done?" the red dragon said in a dangerous tone, claws flexing.
"Just as you still serve your master, so do I," the blue dragon smirked, sliding over and around his own body like some intricate dance. "Now, let's see you defend him from this!" The blue dragon rushed towards him, mouth gaped to swallow him. The red dragon roared and bit the blue dragon on the neck, directing its head away from Zuko. The darkness rose like a wave, and Zuko could feel the spirits threaten to drown him in a deluge of attacks. He tried to find his swords, or fire-bend, but he could do nothing.
The red dragon suddenly curled around him once more, protecting him with a cocoon of its own body. Zuko could feel the dragon shudder as the attacks pounded against it. The red dragon let out a roar of defiance, but Zuko could feel that the dragon was in pain.
"Stop," Zuko whispered. The dragon was hurting. The dragon was hurting because of him. "Stop! What is it that you want of me? Stop!" He could hear muffled laughter from the blue dragon, joined by whispering voices.
"See how weak he is?" The voice had a triumphant lilt to it that infuriated and frustrated Zuko. "Just like the rest of the world." There was a mighty roar and the small space Zuko was entombed in suddenly became even smaller. He could hear the red dragon groaning against the strain. Another roar, and Zuko was crushed against the hard scales, barely able to breathe.
"Sleep, child. Let the darkness take you," a serpentine voice said. The scales tightened against him once more, and Zuko let out an involuntary gasp of pain. He felt light-headed and sleepy, and surprisingly tired even against the pain that should have kept him awake.
"No!" the red dragon grunted, the effort costing it what ground it held, and the circle became even tighter. Zuko could feel the hard scales cutting into him, but was beginning to feel strangely detached. "No!"
Remember who you are.
An old man was bouncing him on his knee. Someone teaching him how to fire-bend. Volcano. Ashes. A red dragon.
Then, grandfather Azulon behind a veil of fire. Father next to the turtle-duck pond. Mother in the dark whispering half remembered phrases.
"It is our destiny to spread our prosperity..."
"Find the Avatar..."
"...be back for the Summer Solstice!"
"Dad's gonna kill you."
Zuko wrenched himself from the heavy desire to sleep, grunting against the pain, welcoming it.
"Never give up..." the dragon rumbled. Zuko could barely move against the tight coils, but he raised a hand slightly to rest against the trembling scales.
"...without a fight," Zuko rasped. He heard a growl of approval, and the scales suddenly crushed into him, and there was a searing flash of white pain, and he would have screamed if he had air, but it was white, and white was not dark, and he was finally freed.
----
Katara was starting to wonder if everything she did had to turn out into some sort of mini-adventure or disaster. She had entered a tea shop in the upper ring just for a cup of relaxing tea, only to encounter Zuko's uncle who had then pleaded and dragged her upstairs to heal his nephew. Before her mind could even comprehend the fact that Zuko and his uncle were in Ba Sing Se, and were actually in the upper ring working in a tea shop, she was ordering buckets of water to be brought to her as she tried to heal the bloody cuts that kept on randomly appearing all over the banished prince. It didn't help her sense of normalcy when he tried to writhe from the pain, only to remain still, as if bound there by some unseen force. As if that were not enough, the moment the cuts stopped appearing and she finished healing him, the tea shop was attacked by a group of Dai Li, and she wondered what on earth she had done to deserve all this.
The only good (or perhaps bad--she hadn't decided yet) thing that came from this was witnessing Zuko's uncle's incredible battle prowess. She was glad that the old man had simply opted to stand by and do nothing in all their previous encounters, because she didn't think she and everyone else she knew combined could take him. When he finished repelling the Dai Li entirely without her help, he rushed upstairs, picked up his nephew, barked an order for her and the other girl, Jin, to follow him, and led them to the lower ring.
It was a small, dingy apartment that was surprisingly free of dust. Katara suspected that Zuko and his uncle had lived here before, what with the familiarity the old man showed in moving around the rooms. He placed his nephew gently on the floor before turning to address Jin.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into this, Miss Jin, but if you could do me one last favor?" He sounded old and tired, and if Jin wouldn't help, then Katara definitely would, even if he was from the Fire Nation and had chased her all over the entire world. Jin looked frightened, and Katara couldn't blame her. It wasn't every day that one got chased by the Dai Li, rescued by a fire-bender, and barely escaped with one's life. Jin glanced at Zuko, then at Katara, and back at the old man, before her posture straightened and a determined look entered her eyes.
"What can I do to help?"
Zuko's uncle let out a sigh of relief. He handed her a few coins.
"We need disguises." He gave Katara a questioning look. "Buy something for the young lady as well. A few cloaks would not be remiss. Be quick." Jin nodded, then dashed out of the apartment. Zuko's uncle then turned to face her. "I am going to lead the Dai Li away from this place. If the Dai Li should find you, do not hesitate to save yourself above anything else." His words left a chill in Katara, but she nodded silently. He gave her a reassuring smile. "Do not worry. I am sure everything will work out all right." Then he, too, left.
Jin returned shortly with a few long cloaks, a pair of scissors, something that looked like hair, and a sticky pot of glue-like substance. They were good materials to make a disguise, but Katara had no clue what to do with them.
"Let's wait for Mushi to get back," Jin suggested, and Katara agreed numbly. They waited until the sun sank into the west, leaving them breathing uneasily in the darkness. Several times Katara wanted to go to the upper ring to warn Suki and the other Kyoshi warriors that the Dai Li had betrayed them, but Jin convinced her to stay put. She had reasoned that if the Dai Li were confident enough to defy the king's orders, then it was likely that the Kyoshi warriors had already fallen, and Katara was forced to agree.
Finally, Katara couldn't stand waiting around anymore and got up to leave. She felt a little bad for leaving Jin defenseless with someone like Zuko, but if the Dai Li had really rebelled, then she needed to warn Aang and the others from returning.
"Wait," Jin said, getting up as well. The street lamps were lit, but the light barely filtered into the apartment, making the other girl seem like a shadowy wraith. "Where are you going? Are you leaving?"
Katara bit her lip before answering, "Yeah."
"Oh."
Katara fidgeted uncomfortably. "Listen, you don't have to stay here," she said, reaching for the other girl, but Jin pulled away. "You're not involved, so if you just go home, I'm sure everything will be okay." Jin rubbed her arms as if cold.
"I'm pretty sure the Dai Li saw my face," she said in a quiet voice. "And I kind of sealed my fate when I ran with you guys. If I go home, I'm afraid they might hurt my family."
An awkward silence fell between them before Katara broke it. "What are you going to do then?"
Jin glanced at Zuko. "I can come back if--when things cool down. The Dai Li don't really care about people like me." Katara wanted to protest that, but Jin continued on. "The important thing right now is to get Lee out of here."
"Lee?" Katara asked incredulously, wondering what possessed Zuko to choose such a common name. She supposed "Mushi" wasn't really his uncle's name, either.
"It's obvious that the Dai Li were trying to capture Mushi, and by extension Lee." Jin swallowed, giving Katara a hesitant look. "A-And they were even after you, the Avatar's water-bender."
Katara gaped at the other girl, speechless.
"I thought the war didn't exist within these walls," she said quietly. Jin gave a strained half-chuckle.
"Well, with all these refugees coming in, it's become a little difficult to ignore."
"I guess so," Katara laughed weakly.
"The main problem right now is getting Lee out," Jin continued, poking at the materials she brought half-heartedly. "The scar makes him too recognizable."
"Yeah," Katara sighed, settling down next to Jin. Jin gave her a furtive look.
"Can't you, I don't know, heal it?" she asked hesitantly. "I mean, you healed everything else with your glowing hands. I can bring more water if you want." Katara looked at Zuko's scar, for the first time realizing that once upon a time, this enemy of hers had looked normal. For a long time now, whenever she thought of the Fire Nation, she saw his scarred face looming from the darkness, wreathed in flames. But no one was born hating other nations, and she could bet that Zuko had once been innocent and happy. The thought made her skin crawl. She refrained from gagging for Jin's sake.
"I don't know if I can. The scar is pretty old," she said, touching the skin lightly. "But I can try." Jin nodded.
"I'll go get some water." She disappeared into another room and appeared shortly with a bucket of water. "Enough?"
"Yeah. Thanks," Katara said, wrapping her hands in the cool liquid, then laying the gloved hands above Zuko's scar. As she suspected, nothing happened. The glass of Spirit Oasis water weighed heavily against her chest, and she wondered if she should use it.
The room was suddenly filled with light, and Katara barely suppressed her scream. Jin smiled apologetically at her, holding the lamp that she just lit.
"Is it working?"
"No," Katara sighed, letting the water fall back into the bucket. Zuko hadn't stirred once since leaving the upper ring, and Katara was beginning to worry if he was all right. Maybe the Spirit Oasis water would heal that, too?
"Uh... Could you get ready to heal something?" Jin asked nervously.
"Okay," Katara said, wondering what the other girl was thinking. Jin took the pair of scissors she had brought and placed the blades above the fire. Katara had a bad feeling about this. Jin then placed the burning blade against the skin of Zuko's scar, and the room was filled with the terrible scent of burning flesh.
"What are you doing?" Katara nearly screeched, slapping the girl's hand away. She summoned water to her hand and quickly healed the burn. Surprisingly, the skin left behind was whole and unblemished. Katara looked at the strange un-scar in wonder.
"You said it was too old to heal, so I wondered what would happen if it wasn't old," Jin said, her voice filled with relief. "I mean, the worst that could happen was that he would get another scar on top of his scar." Katara wanted to laugh at the girl's ingenuity, but settled for shaking her head in admiration.
"I'm going to borrow a kettle from the neighbors," Jin said, getting up. "I think burning his face with hot water might be a bit more safe and precise, especially since you're a water-bender." Katara nodded.
"I'll go and start the stove."
"Thanks." Jin left the apartment for the second time that day, and returned after a few minutes with the promised kettle. Katara quickly filled the kettle with water from the bucket and started boiling it. Jin went outside to fill the bucket again. When everything was ready, Katara took a deep breath.
"Try with just a little bit of boiling water, to see if it really works," Jin whispered, afraid to break Katara's concentration. Katara nodded, letting a small bead of boiling water rest again Zuko's cheek until she could see the skin reddening and swelling. She then summoned the water around her hand, healing the burn. To her relief, it worked.
"That's great." Jin blew out air, trying to release her pent up tension. "I wasn't looking forward to smelling burnt skin."
"Me neither," Katara said, feeling giddy. She took another deep breath. She would have to be careful around his eye. She didn't want to leave him blind, though she was surprised that his eye had survived the fiery attack that scarred him. Summoning the boiling water to her, she shaped the water to roughly fit the shape of his scar. Then she pressed the boiling liquid onto his face. He didn't even twitch.
The process was slower than the individual patches that she and Jin had attempted earlier, but slowly and surely, the reddened scar receded, and the pale skin particular to the people of the Fire Nation began to show up. It was strange and exhilarating to watch the terrible scar being un-done, and not for the first time, Katara was glad that her element allowed her to perform such miraculous healing. Soon, nothing was left of the disfiguring scar, and a strangely handsome face lay before her.
"You're amazing," Jin breathed, her hand hovering above the area where the scar used to be. She gave Katara a reverent look. "If the Avatar is half as skilled as you are, then maybe there is hope for the world, after all." Katara smiled gratefully, a mixture of pride and embarrassment leaving her cheeks glowing.
"Guess he won't be needing that fake hair stuff, huh?"
"Yeah," Jin said, still awe-struck. "I mean, no one will be able to guess that a scar like that can just disappear."
"I bet even his uncle won't recognize him," Katara laughed.
"Yeah." Jin still sounded dazed. There was a bang downstairs, and both girls jumped. Katara quickly moved to the window, and swallowed a curse as she saw the familiar Dai Li hats surrounding the building.
"We're in trouble," she said, looking at her meager supply of water with worry. She would have to fight. But even if she didn't have to, how was she and Jin supposed to move an unconscious person out the door? She wondered where Zuko's uncle was. Surely he hadn't abandoned them? He didn't seem like that type of person, but who knew with the Fire Nation?
"Hide," Katara commanded the girl. She spotted the wardrobe in the bedroom, and gestured for Jin to help her carry Zuko. She placed Zuko in the empty wardrobe, for once wishing that he would get up and start attacking. She then pushed Jin into it as well.
"What are you going to do?" Jin asked, fear once gain showing in her eyes.
"Stay here and don't make a sound. I'm going to lead them away, then I'll come back," Katara said, quickly shutting the wardrobe before Jin could protest. She ran to the other room, summoning both the cool and boiling water, then jumped out the window, using the cool water to make a slide.
"She's getting away!"
"Get her!"
Katara started running through the streets, summoning what water she could find, and using it to whip at the incoming Dai Li. There were too many. She would never be able to escape from them. She used her water as leverage to leap over the wall, hoping that the wall would impede the Dai Li. She forgot that everything in that cursed city was made of stone.
She nearly tripped over the Dai Li that suddenly appeared from the ground. The blunder cost her precious seconds, and before she knew it, stone shackles had her cuffed and she fell onto the ground with an unelegant thud. The Dai Li descended on her like a pack of wolves, and they pulled her underground. Katara could only pray that they didn't find Jin and Zuko.
----
Chapter 2