peacekeeping- zuko

The Western Air Temple

We failed. We fricking failed. Again. I just want one time, one t i m e, that things go our way. I felt like a piece of crap both literally and figuratively. But, well, I can't do much about it so. The Western Air Temple was quite pretty. Least from my view. I had to stay in bed for a day before anyone let me walk around. I had stepped out of bed this one time to get water and - "Y/N, what are you doing here? You should be resting." I had to go back to bed. But, now I can walk around without being dragged by to bed by a passerby in the halls. They finally let me outside into the main hall, where the pretty scenery and fountain was. I was sitting with Appa, his enormous head in my lap, tracing patterns and drawings in his fur.

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"Hello, Zuko here. But, I guess you probably already know me, sort of. Uhhh....so the thing is, I have a lot of firebending experience and I'm considered to be pretty good at it. Well, you've seen me. Y'know when I was attacking you. Uhhh...yeah, I guess I should apologize for that. Well, anyways I'm good now. I mean, I thought I was good before but now I realize I was bad. Buuut anyway, I thought it's time I joined your group and thought the Avatar firebending." Prince Zuko awkwardly struggled. "Well..what's you answer!?" He yelled angrily at the badger frog in front of him. It hopped away, croaking. "Yeah, that's what I would say, too. How am I supposed to convince these people I'm on their side? What would Uncle say?"

The Prince paced the small clearing, "'Zuko, you have to look within yourself to save yourself from your other self. Only then, will your true self reveal itself.' Even when i'm talking for him I can't figure out what he means. What would Y/N do? 'Hey! I wanted to join your group so I can teach Aang firebending. But if you hurt my friends I'll push you off a cliff.'" The prince sighed. "What would Azula do? 'Look, Avatar, I can join your group, or I can do something unspeakably horrible to you and your friends. Your choice." Zuko sighed, sitting down. "Guess i'm not that good at impressions."

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I had drawn a total of eighty-two drawings, ranging from big to small in the past hour. I couldn't do anything else since every time I tried to get up, Sokka would tell me to sit back down. I rested my head on Appa's, who was more then happy to cuddle all day. The others were exploring the temple, well, Aang was, the others were just following him, trying to get him to think about his fire bending lessons. He didn't have a teacher since mine was still weak. I sneezed, blowing up some of Appa's fur. Appa grumbled. "Okay, okay, Mr. Pretty boy. I won't ruin your hair." I giggled, patting his fur back down.

"Aang, can we learn about you learning firebending now?" Katara tried. Aang ignored her. "Aang, I think we should be making plans about our future!" Sokka said. I nodded. "Yeah. You should really get started with your fire bending. I can't teach you but I can locate that Jeong Jeong guy's energy." I offered. Sokka turned to me. "What! No way! You have-" "Rest. I know." I sighed. "Okay, we can do that while I show you the giant Pai Sho table! Oh, you're gonna love the all-day echo chamber." Aang cheered. I sighed, setting my head down on Appa again. Something shifted in the energy around the place but I couldn't tell what it was. I think someone was here. I don't know. I joined my fists. "Y/N, what are you doing?" Sokka skeptically asked.

"Something shifted in the energy around here. I think someones here. I'm trying to find out who it is." I replied, eyes still closed. Sokka removed my fists from each other. "No doing that! There's no one here besides us." Toph shook her head, placing a hand on the ground, "No, she's right. In fact-" Appa lifted his head from my lap, revealing Zuko. "Hello, Zuko here." Zuko waved, smiling, as if he hadn't tried to hurt them like twenty million times. Everyone got into their fighting stances, besides for me, who was still sitting in my original spot. "Hey, I thought I heard you guys flying down there, so, I thought I'd wait for you here." Appa licked Zuko, before returning to my lap. "I know you must be surprised to see me here."

"Not really, since you've followed us all over the world." Sokka shot, voice filled with shade. "Right. Well uhhh..anyway.. what I wanted to tell you about was, I've changed." I scoffed, turning back to Appa's big, brown, eyes, and feeling Zuko's on me. 'I've changed'. We've been here before and it didn't stay the same way for long. Zuko's eyes turned back to the group, catching Sokka's glare. "And I, uhhh, I'm good now, and I think I should join your group, oh, and I can teach firebending. To you. And Y/N." H-hold up, what'd he just say? "You want to what now?" I looked away from Appa's brown eyes to meet Zuko's golden ones. Zuko looked..guilty. Why? Oh. Oh. I was hurt. Everytime I would get hurt, Zuko would blame it on himself. Sounds stupid, and it is stupid.

"You can't possibly think any of us would trust you, can you? I mean, how stupid do you think we are?" Katara shot. "Yeah, all you've ever done is try to hunt us down and try to capture Aang." Sokka added. "I've don't some good things. Ask Y/N. I mean, I could've stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That's something!" Zuko tried. He did do that. "Appa..does seem to like him." Toph hesitated. "You probably just covered himself in honey or something so that Appa would lick him. I'm not buying it." Sokka excused.

I set my head on Appa's feeling a bit tired. "I can understand why you wouldn't trust me, and I know I've made some mistakes in the past." Zuko tried. Sokka scoffed, "Like when you attacked our village?" "Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?" Katara added. Wait what? When did that happen. Probably when I was on the run by myself, with no one for comfort, no one to turn too, no spiritual powers, since I didn't know Sorla, and what not. Dang, my life was kinda sad. Anyways, I ended up passing out.

I woke up like two minutes later. I probably just needed to recharge my energy or something, I don't know. What I do know, is that I'm gonna pass out again soon. Apparently, Zuko had Combustion man after us. Didn't know that. "There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done. We'll never let you join us." Aang decided, taking a look at all of our faces. I'm pretty sure a part of him wanted to let Zuko join, and honestly, a part of me did too. Probably Sorla. I don't know. "You need to get out of here. Now." Katara said, strictly. "I'm trying to explain that I'm not that person anymore!" Zuko exclaimed, getting a bit irritated.

"Either you leave, or we attack." Sokka threatened. I don't know what I should do. Should I defend him or no? I felt like I was gonna collapse any second. "If you won't take me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner." Zuko kneeled on the ground, arms up in surrender. "No, we won't!" Katara yelled, blasting him with water. Something shot up inside me. I don't know what, but I suddenly had the urge and energy to do something. "Get out of here and don't come back. If we ever see you again..we'll, we better not see you again." Katara scolded, blasting him with water again. Zuko tumbled over, almost falling over the edge. That was the trigger.

Wind blew, water droplets from the fountain circled us, and small flames lined the halls. The Protecter State. Appa got up from my lap, stepping back. I turned throwing Katara back with air. Frick. What am I doing? Sorla, stop. Katara collapsed, Aang rushing to help her. He turned to me, his hands and eyes glowing. You have got to be kidding me. There's one. The Protecter State, or the Avatar State. We cannot, and I repeat, can not, handle both at the same time.