Adult-FanFiction.org : Cartoons

Memories from Western Airtemple	By : DarthAnimus Category: Avatar - The Last Airbender > AU/AR - Alternate Universe/Alternate Reality > Slash - Male/Male Views: 16187 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own "Avatar: the Last Airbender" or the characters. I don't make any profit out of writing this.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
- 11
Memories from Western Air Temple
Chapter 10
Good and Evil

The fur on Appa’s back made for a nice surface to lie on; Aang knew this better than anyone. And now he was sharing the experience with his firebending teacher while the sky bison under them floated on the river, releasing a content groan every now and then.

It had taken quite the bit of convincing to get Zuko to agree to cut their bending lesson short and come relax down in the river. From time to time the older male took his duty too seriously as he worked Aang, and even himself, to the point where they would collapse from exhaustion.

That moment lying down with the air temple spreading out above them was nothing like the heated training sessions of the previous days. This was a lot more pleasant and Aang found himself feeling at peace when he listened to Zuko breathe beside him.

“Aang”, Zuko spoke out suddenly and the Avatar turned his head to look at the teen, who was frowning at the sky above. Worried about the other’s inability to relax Aang questioned: “What’s up, Zuko?”

Zuko turned his head and the golden eyes passed across Aang’s face momentarily before the raven-haired teen turned his head back to its previous position. Aang wondered about this behaviour and immediately afterwards Zuko spoke: “What do you think about the concept of good and evil?”

“Ah”, Aang breathed out, turning his gaze to the air temple as he thought about a good response. There were times, even though few in between, when Zuko would show interest in deep conversation. Aang was not really one for those. He did not like to think about the world too much, since it always caused the bright colours of Aang’s thoughts fade away into grey. And yet, as far as Aang knew, Zuko only opened up to such conversations with him.

“I don’t think any one person can be completely evil or good”, Aang answered finally, the words coming surprisingly easily off his tongue. “Everyone, no matter how bad, has their good moments and even the good have their dark times.” Aang closed his eyes briefly as he recalled memories of anger and hatred, but opened them again when he finished: “Everyone has potential for both.”

There was a hum from Zuko and Aang turned his head to see the prince still frowning at nothing. Smiling in a friendly manner, even though Zuko did not see it, the airbender asked: “What about you, Zuko? What do you think?”

Silence followed then and Aang was starting to suspect that Zuko was not going to give him an answer. Just when he was about to prompt the other to speak out Zuko’s voice came to his ears: “Do you know how the war started, Aang? Do you know what happened to Avatar Roku?”

Blinking in surprise at the unexpected question Aang nodded his head and replied: “Fire Lord Sozin thought that he could bring about prosperity to the world by spreading Fire Nation’s rule over it. Avatar Roku did not agree with him so Sozin betrayed him and left him to die when a volcano erupted on Roku’s home island.” As Aang spoke he watched Zuko nod his head slowly, clearly knowing this story himself. Not understanding what was the point about asking it in that case, the younger male questioned: “Why are you asking me this?”

Shifting his position, Zuko brought his hands under his head. He still did not turn his face to Aang even as he answered: “The conflict between Sozin and Roku brought an end to their lifelong friendship and was never truly resolved.” Zuko shifted again, like uncomfortable with staying in one position for long, and brought a hand to his chest, over his heart. “That conflict continues inside me.”

“What?” Aang asked breathlessly, rolling onto his side to look at Zuko properly. The frown on the firebender’s face had gained a troubled tinge to it and Aang pressed: “Explain.”

Zuko’s lips turned upwards humourlessly before the prince’s expression turned serious again and he started speaking: “As you know, I’m a direct descendant of Fire Lord Sozin from my father’s side.” The golden eyes finally turned to regard Aang with an even look. “From my mother’s side, however, I descend directly from Avatar Roku.”

“Bwuh?” was all that came from Aang’s mouth as his chin slackened at the revelation. “You mean you’re related to both Sozin and Roku?”

“Isn’t that what I just said?” Zuko questioned with a displeased frown. The older teen sighed as he turned his eyes to the sky once more, his tone quiet as he muttered: “They’re struggling within me, Roku’s good and Sozin’s evil. They are both fighting to control me.”

“Are you serious?” Aang questioned carefully, his voice nothing more than a whisper. A curt nod came from Zuko and the prince was then talking again: “When I’ve been at my most vulnerable, during my most confused times, the evil has been able to take a hold of me.” As Zuko said this, Aang remembered; he remembered how Zuko had betrayed his own uncle and he remember Combustion Man. Those were the things Zuko regretted above everything else. They were acts that the older teen thought he could never apologise enough for.

“And are you confused now?” Aang asked, intending to lighten the mood with the question, to show Zuko that everything was fine now. But when the golden eyes locked with his own for a passing moment, Aang saw the gaze waver. Zuko looked to the general direction of Aang’s left ear as he answered rather weakly: “No.”

Honestly, who did the prince think he was fooling with that display? Aang did not know if he had ever seen someone who was worse at lying than Zuko was and he started: “Why are you –“

Aang did not get a chance to finish his question when Zuko’s eyes met his own head on. The intense gaze from the other boy’s eyes was enough to silence the airbender completely and Aang was suddenly very aware of the fact that Zuko knew that he was not fooling anyone. And the silent request in those eyes was enough for Aang to close his eyes and lie down on Appa’s fur again.

So much for a pleasant afternoon, the Avatar thought bitterly before closing his eyes. Unable to see Zuko’s mouth move Aang was not certain if he was imagining things when Zuko’s voice whispered ever-so-silently: “I’m sorry.”

To be continued...
- 9
- 10
- 11
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Adult-FanFiction.Org is not in any way associated with or related to FanFiction.Net

Adult-FanFiction.org (AFF, the site), its owners, agents, and any other entities related to Adult-FanFiction.org or the AFF forum take no responsibility for the works posted to the Adult-FanFiction.org by its members.

While AFF and its agents attempt to remove all illegal works from the site as quickly and thoroughly as possible, there is always the possibility that some submissions may be overlooked or dismissed in error. The AFF system includes a rigorous and complex abuse control system in order to prevent improper use of the AFF service, and we hope that its deployment indicates a good-faith effort to eliminate any illegal material on the site in a fair and unbiased manner. This abuse control system is run in accordance with the strict guidelines specified above.

All works displayed here, whether pictorial or literary, are the property of their owners and not Adult-FanFiction.org. Opinions stated in profiles of users may not reflect the opinions or views of Adult-FanFiction.org or any of its owners, agents, or related entities.

Website Domain ©2002-2017 by Apollo. PHP scripting, CSS style sheets, Database layout & Original artwork ©2005-2017 C. Kennington. Restructured Database & Forum skins ©2007-2017 J. Salva. Images, coding, and any other potentially liftable content may not be used without express written permission from their respective creator(s). Thank you for visiting!

Powered by Fiction Portal 2.0
Modifications © Manta2g, DemonGoddess
Site Owner - Apollo

Memories from Western Airtemple