Fire and Aether

Chapter 29: The Headband

    Zuko awoke from a terrible nightmare. He bolted upright in bed and felt beside him. At first, he panicked at not feeling Rose next to him. 
    Then he remembered. 
    He sighed and laid back down, rolling over to fall back asleep, but no matter how hard he tried, sleep evaded him.
    He threw the blanket off himself with a frustrated groan and stood.
    He needed to talk to someone. And he knew exactly who.
    Quickly, Zuko dressed in a hooded cloak and headed to the prison cells. When the guard tried to stop him, he slammed him against the wall with a warning. "I'm going in for a visit. You're gonna stand guard right here and no one is gonna know about this."
    Zuko stopped at Iroh's cell and removed his hood. "Uncle, it's me." Iroh turned away from his nephew. "You brought this on yourself, y'know? We could've returned together. You could've been a hero." Zuko grew frustrated as Iroh continued to give him the cold shoulder. "You have no right to judge me, uncle. I did what I had to do in Ba Sing Se." He lost his temper then, shouting that it was only because of him that his uncle was alive before rushing out the door in anger.
                         * * * * *
    Team Avatar spent the first day or so inside a cave, Sokka being way too cautious. After that, they collectively agreed to change into Fire Nation clothes and blend in.
    While most of Team Avatar stole their clothes, Rose pulled an outfit from the Aether. Once they were dressed, they convened. 
    Aang dressed in a black, tan, and red uniform with a bright red headband. Sokka wore a sleeveless black and red tunic, brown pants, sandals, and armbands. Toph dressed in a dark brown, red, and gold one-piece outfit, fingerless gloves, and a pair of shoes she took the bottoms out of. 
    Katara arrived, wearing a red one shoulder top, red pants, her hair half up and half down, and arm bracelets. "How do I look?" Katara asked.
    Aang blushed. Then he noticed. "Your necklace."
    Katara took it off. "I guess it is obviously Water Tribe." 
    That's when Rose appeared. "Do I look ok?"
    She was dressed in a red gypsy top with gold trim, a long matching skirt with a large slit on her right side, gold arm bracelets, a gold choker with a round red jewel, large dangly gold earrings, a long red veil covering her hair which was twisted into a braid behind her, and a small red veil trimmed in gold covering the bottom of her face.
   Everyone's jaws dropped. Aang was the first to recover, stating, "You look great, sis!"
   Team Avatar dropped by a vendor next to grab a few accessories for their outfits, Aang and Rose hiding Momo and Crystal respectively. The group walked through the streets, grabbing food. 
    Aang greeted everyone with enthusiasm. At one point, a large man walked over to him with a frown. Aang got worried when he thought the man recognized him as Rose's Guardian and prepared to protect her. Instead, the man said, "The next time you decide to play hooky, change out of your uniform."
   Aang sighed in relief. The large man, along with a woman, lead Aang to the school. He managed to get himself out of trouble by making up the excuse that he came from the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom and his name was Kuzon. The teacher bought it, aside from scolding him for having bad manners.
    The day passed by quickly and Aang ended up having a good time, better than he expected. As he left the school, he whispered to Momo about how his day was going. 
    "Don't let the headmaster catch you with that monkey." A sudden voice piped up.
    Aang turned around quickly to see the girl from his class that was nice to him. "What monkey?" He asked, hiding Momo from view.
    "Oh don't worry. I'm not a tattletale." she said. "My name's On Ji." She slowly approached him. "I like your headband by the way."
    Aang was pushed aside by a buff guy. "On Ji, you don't have to babysit the new kid."
    Aang bowed respectfully. "You must be one of those popular kids I've been hearing about!"
    The buff kid smirked. "That's right. Now listen, friend. I know you're from the colonies, so I'll say this slowly. On Ji is my girlfriend. Don't forget it." He poked Aang's chest with those last words.
    With a motion of watching Aang, he slung his arm around On Ji and walked off. 
    "It was nice meeting you!" Aang said with a wave.
    One of the kids from Aang's class invited him to play a game and he ran off to join his newfound friends. When he returned to the others that night, he explained how he had enrolled in a Fire Nation school. While most of Team Avatar was reluctant at first, Rose took Aang's side, telling the others how much this could help them find the Fire Lord.
    Aang also came up with a plan to win over the kids with a secret dance party. That night, Team Avatar prepared for the party. The guests arrived and music played, yet no one wanted to dance. "What do we do now?" one of the kids asked.
    "You dance."
    "I don't think my parents want me dancing in a cave." 
    "Yea what if someone finds out?"
    Rose piped up. "Who cares?" she told the children. "This is your life. Live it how you want."
    "Besides, dancing is a form of self-expression that no one can ever take away from you."
    With that, Aang began showing off his moves and Rose started pulling the kids in for dances until everyone was swaying to the music. 
     Unfortunately, the headmaster showed up to break up the party and started chasing Aang. With some misdirection, Team Avatar managed to escape out the back. The headmaster grumbled, shouting at his subordinates to stop dancing to the music.
    As Team Avatar escaped on Appa and Crystal, Rose turned her attention to her friends. "One day when this is all over, I want to help those kids again."
    Aang smiled.
    Together, they escaped into the night.
                       * * * * *
    After talking with his sister, Zuko stalked back to his room to find a letter sitting at his desk. Picking it up, he found four words that confirmed what he already knew:
                                                      
            You know the answer.
 
    There was no signature, but he didn't need one. He knew it was her. Quickly, he flipped the letter over. Nothing but those four words but that was all he needed.
     A few minutes later, Zuko knelt next to his uncle's prison cell. "I brought you some komodo-chicken. I know you don't care for it, but I figure it beats prison food."
    There was a small pause as he wrestled with his thoughts. "I'll admit it. I finally have everything I always wanted but it's not at all how I thought it would be. The truth is I need your advice. Something's missing and I think I know what it is. I still love her, and I know she's alive. What do I do?" He shook his head. "I'm so confused."
    Iroh simply shook his head, his only reaction to his nephew's words. 
    Zuko lost his temper then. "Fine! I'll figure this out myself! You can just rot here for all I care!"
    As he raced out the prison, he didn't realize someone was watching him.
                        * * * * *
    Zuko stepped into the remains of a burnt village, a place that reeked of his father's past sins. Seconds later, the sound of the gate squeaking open permeated the air, quickly followed by the sound of a big man approaching.
    "Were you followed?" The big man shook his head. "I've heard about you. They say you're good at what you do and even better at keeping secrets. The Avatar's alive. I want you to find her for me."
    "Do you want me to kill her?" the man asked in a deep, rumbling tone.
    "No. I want you to bring her to me."
    He nodded to show he understood the command. Zuko left, not realizing that a familiar figure was blending into the shadows. As soon as Zuko was far enough away, the king's consort stepped out of the shadows. 
    "You know what you must do, correct?" she asked the big man. He nodded.
    A second figure stepped out of the shadows, this one little more than a teenager with long, golden blond hair that had a few streaks of pink, purple, blue, and green and big green eyes. "I don't understand the point of killing her now, Malvina. Isn't the point to convince the Fire Lord that his children have betrayed him?"
    "Hush now, Ambrosia." Malvina whispered. "One thing at a time. First, we get rid of the world's only chance to stop us. Then, we slowly but surely conquer the Fire Nation. Then, the world. And, then, dear sister, we will finally have our revenge." She watched with red eyes glowing in the darkness. "Patience. All good things to those who wait...."