Chapter Text
All it takes is a second. One moment the pair are reunited; then Tui is dead while La flounders fading next to them from the burns, their mortal bodies fragile and with Tui already gone the water bender was powerless.
Tui had been prepared for this, La hadn’t. So Agni acts, his sibling’s deaths would destroy any chance the world had to survive, leaving his plans and hopes for his own humans pointless.
He gives up his chosen mortal. Raava’s blood tie as well as his own long distance one makes the boy better suited than any of the others. So he whispers to the boy, pulls the child from his desired chase and lures him to the pool.
The future he had planned crashes, the boy’s destiny torn to shreds.
(Agni’s plans for his humans recovery, their new era of peace crumble but aren’t lost completely lost yet. An uncle or niece could still be swayed, maybe the loss of this human could be useful. It doesn’t remove the bitterness.)
Tui’s blessed one understands at least as she sees the glazed look in the boy’s eyes and takes his hand and leads him the last few steps to La’s injured body. She lets go a moment later, to lay her own hand on Tui’s still mortal form.
The boy’s uncle is able to do anything with his hands holding Tui body, but his eyes widened as he see his nephew lean forward, eyes locked of the black Koi, Agni feels his inner flame freeze at the slow acknowledgment.
The Princess of Ice pushes her life back to the one that gave it to her and dies with a sigh.
The Prince of Fire is pulled from life with a cry.
*
Zuko had slipped off the Avatar bison just in time to see Zhao flee and was about to chase after him when he was distracted.
It’s a buzzing in in his head that makes him stop, he thinks to blame it on the cold and no doubt extra head trauma from fighting the water bender. He had known he had no chance but surrendering had never worked out any better in the past with his family, his own people, why would it with his enemy.
His body aches as it has been since he dragged himself from the water after his ship blew up and the want to lay down and sleep, even if he just woke up, reinserts itself but he can’t- yet, he just needs- he was going t- the buzzing grows until he realises it’s just words he can’t make out.
He needs to take a breath then he can go after Zhao, he finds himself walking closer to the group, it makes sense Uncle’s there, they aren’t enemies at the moment, Zhao’s their shared- wait he, Zhao’s got to be getting away-
He loses the thought as a hand suddenly holds his, he can’t help but note the lack of gloves lending him heat and the softness meaning their untrained, not a threat. He finds himself relaxing into the touch.
Zuko doesn’t know the gentle hand in leading him to his death until it leads him to the Oasis and his eyes catch sight of the dying black koi, he finds himself reaching for it, wants to help but the moment he touches the water and Agni’s whispers fade, their meaning becomes clear.
Sorry it says and Zuko realises what for. Another voice replaces it
Mine now.
He twist, unable to pull himself from the water, looking at the others, any of them for help.
“Uncle!” he meets uncle’s eyes, Uncle looks horrified and Zuko is relived for a moment ‘Uncle knows, he can help’ he thinks.
The white hair princess seems to glow as she touches the white Koi and the water tribe boy is looking at her, the waterbender is close enough she could reach him but she doesn’t. She and the Avatar just look confused at him.
“Plea-“ the rest to choked off by water as he is pulled down into the Oasis.
(Later he will seethe that his last word was a plea when he knows-knew, that never worked)
Water replaces his world.
It’s cold, and get colder as he feels his inner flame pulled out, from the sudden emptiness numbness spreads though him, making the polar waters feel warm.
*
Katara hadn’t noticed him until he stood next to her, too focused to try to heal the ocean spirit as it struggled. She had tuned out the conversation behind her and had forgotten the Prince they had left in Appa’s saddle.
She turned and had been about to threaten him when she felt him behind her, after all hadn’t his kind done enough, but her words had frozen in her throat when she notice his eyes, glazed over and fixed on the Ocean Spirit, she hadn’t be able to move even as Yue had reached over her to pull the prince towards the oasis with her hand.
Mine now
She heard it as the prince’s hand touches the water, as he snapped out of the trance. The voice was as familiar as the waves she had grown up with, her element speaking to her and as the prince of its opposite looks at her she knew he heard it too.
But she doesn’t understand why.
(Yet)
He looks at them all free of the trance, his eyes wide with fear, flickering between each of them, he looks at them for help, even as the injured-dying Koi brushes against his hand and they start to glow.
She thinks there may be many things that haunt her from that night for the rest of his life. But other than he big brother shaking as cried in her arms; it’s not Yue's sad smile as she says goodbye or the fire nation general’s scream as Zuko vanishes into the water, that haunt her nightmares.
“Uncle!“
Its Zuko cry, just before he vanishes into the water and out of their sight, the almost hope in it. More child than man. She had the sudden realization that Zuko wasn’t much older than them, he wasn’t the man that took her mum from her, he was just another kid caught up in the war of their grandparents.
It's was the pitch of a scared child calling for help.
It’s also the understanding in his eyes, like he knew what was about to happening before any of them.
“Plea-“ his cry was cut off as he was pulled down vanishing into the depths as they stood and watched.
(Later when she learns of how he got the scar, she wonders if that all people ever did for Zuko. Why had no one tried to help him)
Everything moves too fast after that; Yue falls into Sokka’s arms, then she fades away and the moon spirit glows. The spirit is put back in the pool back and she sighs in relief when it starts to swim next to the suddenly healing ocean.
Aang startles her when he leaps over the pool to tackle the old man and for a second she thinks he’s about to attack them, until she sees the way he reaches for the pool and look on his face. Like his whole world is gone and she remembers that feeling with mum, in Aang’s hold he drops to the ground.
Yue appears above the pool to say goodbye to Sokka and once she leaves again, Katara feels the moon return, the same way she felt the Ocean gaining their strength back. She moves to sit beside Sokka and focuses of holding him as he cries.
She tries to ignore the grieving man as he begs the spirits to give his son back and take him instead.
She can’t see them as enemies anymore.