Not Too Far from the Yew Tree (an ATLA fanfiction)

Secure in Museum Diamond for the Stare

A/n: Uncanonic enhancements have been made.

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"Amazing. It's all as Zhao described." Zuko circled the tower then said, "There's a window about fifteen feet up, but we have no way to get the chickens up there," referring to the ostrich-horses, who had bitten him three times so far into the trip, which he wasn't on friendly terms with. "They'll roast alive or be eaten by a sand-shark if we leave them out here."

Katara kicked at the sand around the base. "Look at the architecture. If there is a window up there, where will the next one be?" She peered down at the sand.

Zuko produced a small shovel, used for making camp to weight down the screens, and they took turns. A few feet below the sand they found the next one and began excavating. The heat of day increased from early to mid morning, burning the backs of their necks, and they were on a time limit before the intense exercise in that heat would sicken them. However, the sand was easy to shovel out and before long they had a workable tunnel and broke through. Zuko crawled down to inspect it, then reported back to her, swiping sand from his knees. "It's weird, but just like Zhao said—the windows have some type of invisible barrier. It keeps the sand out, but I was able to stick an arm through it. Let's bring the chickens down."

Upon that cue a swear-laden bitter fight broke out as Zuko tried to wrangle the animals down for their own safety and they resisted with every muscle and feather and nipping beak they could wield against him. With enough shoving, pulling, and shouting, they managed to bring them inside, then followed in, sliding down the sandy slope and landing a few feet below to the ground. The ostrich horses flapped their stunted wings, cackled, and clacked their talons in outrage to the brutality. He stood up and brushed the sand off his clothing with a deep frown of disdain. "Next time I'll leave you damned feather-brains out there to turn into roast chicken-horse."

"Zuko, look," she said, peering over the stone railing at the abyss below. They were in a massive atrium staring down into a drop of more than a dozen floors. At the lowest level an indoor garden expanded green and fresh against the stone and she could hear and sense the flowing water keeping it irrigated. The upper levels were stacked in bookshelves floor-to-ceiling. The air above was scented aged-paper and binding-leather, and below exotic flowers and herbs like a jungle. The interior structure was flawless, kept clean and swept like it wasn't at all abandoned, and the stonework shone with craftsman's detail and polish. "It's beautiful."

Staircases wrapped around the external walls bordering the atrium and led level to level with cool marble of white and light-grey traced with veins of copper. Every inch was ornate with an architectural style she'd never encountered, more opulent than even the palaces of the world's national leaders. It was large enough to be a city in itself. Waterfalls fell in a narrow band through the empty space, cascading down to collection pools at the lower level. She looked up but couldn't understand the water's origin.

The space was cool and the sound of the trickling water echoed up and down through the central atrium shaft. The interior space was completely discontiguous from the desert scorching outside—it truly belonged to another world.

"Hello?" called a soft voice somewhat apprehensive. A young woman approached the atrium from behind a bookshelf. Her black hair was pinned up and she wore a white linen jeogori with a flowing dusk-pink chima. She looked frightened and clutched her hands in front of her chest.

Katara replied, "Sorry, we didn't mean to startle you. The animals won't hurt you, they're just in a bad mood. My name is Katara, and this is Zuko. We were here to visit the library. Who are you?"

"You should leave quickly." She crossed the narrow stone bridge across the atrium and climbed up to the excavated windowsill, but when she tried to reach a hand through she was repelled like pressing against solid glass. Katara moved beside her and tried, but the same happened to her. The woman said, "No, it's already too late. There's a protective barrier around this library that keeps the sand out but also keeps visitors in."