Jin made her way up to the palace carefully, hoping she could get to where she was trying to go with the minimum of fuss. Given the mess the palace was in as the last of the Dai Li's corrupted influence was purged and the Generals were located, she didn't expect to be confronted by too many guards, and those that did confront her she hoped she could bluff. Given the way Zuko had talked about certain things - both as Zuko and before, as Lee - Jin was pretty certain she had one claim she could lay down that would get her where she needed to go, as long as she was careful about who she said it to.
Unfortunately for her, however, the shambles the palace was in worked against her as well. She'd never been inside before, and thus had no idea where to go. On top of that, the paranoia of a past King of Ba Sing Se - presumably before the Dai Li started controlling everything - had resulted in remodeling the interior of the palace into a maze. If you didn't live inside and didn't have a guide, you could get permanently lost in the halls short of Earth Bending your way out...and for all of Jin's confidence, compassion, and other sterling qualities, she wasn't an Earth Bender.
"Jin!" a familiar voice called out to her. Turning, she saw the one problem she hadn't anticipated approaching her, one of Zuko's party who knew her personally. "What are you doing here?"
Jin looked up at the one she'd pegged as one of 'Lee's secret bodyguards, this being the one without the bow and arrows. "Mr. Black, right?" she asked pleasantly.
"Jong, actually," he corrected. "We were all operating under aliases. But what are you doing here?"
Jin hoped against hope that her plan would work on Jong, and was glad her hearing was as good as it always had been. "Cadence said it would be a good idea if I talked to Mai," she offered hopefully. "Can you help me find her?"
She had been expecting a lot of reactions. Jong calling her bluff, shrugging her off, maybe giving her directions. She certainly hadn't expected him to burst into laughter. "Oh she is wicked!" he gasped out. "She's this way. Just be glad we took all her knives away from her before locking her up. Or more specifically, Cadence and Toph took her knives away." He shuddered a bit as he turned to lead the way. "Some of the places she hid knives and the like...well, no gentleman would have found them."
"Except Zuko, maybe?" Jin offered slyly, startling even more laughter from Jong.
Eventually, Jong led Jin to a cell deep inside the palace. "You can talk to them through the bars," Jong instructed, stepping back. "I'll stand over here so you can have some privacy. I'll still be in sight, though. Also, don't get too close to the bars. The other girl with her - Ty Lee - is still incredibly dangerous even unarmed and behind bars."
"I'll be careful," Jin promised as Jong stepped back. She then turned to see the pair of girls inside, still dressed in their disguises minus the makeup. "Hello," she greeted. "Remember me, Mai?"
"A little too well," Mai replied, looking bored. "What do you want?"
"Who's that?" Ty Lee asked eagerly. "Friend of yours, Mai?"
"A friend of Zuko's," Mai explained bluntly, her tone just a little too cold.
"Ohhh..." Ty Lee murmured in understanding.
Jin sat in front of the gate. "In answer to your question, Mai...I want to talk. About Zuko."
"Spare me the details," Mai groaned. "The last thing I want to hear about right now is whatever you get up to with Zuko."
"Even if it has to do with the end of the war?" Jin asked carefully.
Mai raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" she asked cautiously.
"Zuko's going to confront his father," Jin explained. "He's asked me to go with him when he does."
Mai let out a quiet sigh. "Good for you," she grumbled. "Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I haven't said yes yet," Jin explained. "And he said the only reason he hadn't asked you is because he thinks you want to kill him."
Mai raised an eyebrow. "Really?" she asked, a slight hint of interest in her tone. "Well, you can tell him I'm not planning on killing him any time soon. Cadence talked me out of it."
"How'd she manage that?" Ty Lee asked eagerly. "Heartfelt discussion? An appeal to your better nature? A reminder of your true feelings for Zuko?"
"Or did she sick Mr. Green on you?" Jin jokes.
"...Mr. Green?" Mai asked, the tilt of her head the only sign of her confusion.
"Zuko's archer bodyguard," Jin explained.
"Oh, Zhin," Mai corrected. "And you're both right."
Jin frowned. "Huh. Didn't expect that from Cadence. She seemed so...nice."
"She was raised in the Fire Nation royal family," Mai counters. "Iron fist in a velvet glove is how the whole family works. Even Zuko has his own steel inside of him when he needs it."
"Huh," Ty Lee replied with a tilt of her head. "Hadn't really thought about it that way. Then again, wasn't she rather fond of Fire Lord Ozai when she was in the capitol, too?"
"Did you want anything else?" Mai demanded of Jin, laying back.
"Just this," Jin replied firmly, getting to the point. "If Zuko did ask you to go with him when he confronted his father, would you say yes?"
Mai thought about that for a time, unsure what to say.
"I would!" Ty Lee offered eagerly.
"Really?" Mai asked in surprise. Jin was rather shocked as well.
"What's to think about?" Ty Lee countered. "Azula's no longer a factor, so it's a choice between Ozai and Zuko. Zuko'd be getting the throne now eventually anyway...so why not help him get it if he's going for it now?" She proceeded to walk around the cell on her hands for no apparent reason. "It's a choice between the Fire Nation, or the Fire Nation and our friend. What's to choose? After all, Zuko's already got Cadence and the Avatar on his side. It's not like he'll lose."
Jin suppressed a chuckle. "I guess I see your point." She turned back to Mai. "What about you?"
Mai leaned back in thought for a time, thinking everything over. "...if Zuko asks me himself, I'll go," she said finally.
Jin smiled widely. "I can get him here to do that," she confirmed. "Now...what about the rest of it? You going to...stay the course?"
Mai looked at Jin for a time...only to smirk. "Zuko's going to have his hands full keeping the world in one piece. He could use all the help he can get for the long run. Last thing he needs is being fought over."
Jin grinned back. "I couldn't agree more," she agreed. "But while I'm here...Ty Lee, could you teach me a few of your acrobatic tricks?"
Ty Lee blinked, surprised. "Sure, but why?"
"Well, just because we've agreed not to fight over him doesn't mean we aren't going to be competing a bit," Jin replied with a wicked smirk. "And if I don't want to get stuck being the co-wife...I need to be a bit more...flexible." She quirked her eyebrows suggestively as she brought that up.
Both Mai and Ty Lee's eyes went wide as she said that. "Wow," Ty Lee finally replied. "Only the people at the circus ever talked like that to me before."
Jin shrugged. "Guess that's what comes from having a much more down to earth upbringing," she joked.
Mai groaned as Ty Lee giggled. "Really?" she demanded, plainly annoyed. "You're really going to be throwing jokes like that around?"
"What?" Jin teased. "You didn't really think you'd get away without facing any punishment, did you?"
"I've changed my mind," Mai groaned as Ty Lee laughed. "Keep him."
Jin laughed along with Ty Lee, knowing Mai didn't really mean it.
I just realized Ty Lee's personality is a lot like Pinkie Pie's.
Three way?
Ooh...
You are despicable.
Me like this train.
Can't stop laughing! Too Funny!
... *Mind has been blown, remade, then blown again from the pure awesome sauce-ness that is Tatsurou*
6883312 Maybe Ty Lee is Pinkie Pie in another life?
6883319 So do I, now Zuko's really going to have a lot to reveal to his father when he faces him. I wonder if Fire Nation policy frowns upon multiple romantic partners?
Wow, Zuko getting a harem.
All I will say is Bow Chicka Wow Wow!
...*waiting for Referee to see the puns inside the chapter*
Also...can Ty Lee please reveal that she has a crush on Azula, while Zuko and Iroh are drinking tea?
Oh dear, the puns. Looking forward to more.
Keep up the good work. Deus tecum.
Those puns tho.
Dammit, Barbara!
*Zuko finds out what just happened. Doesn't respond for a good few minutes.*
Jin: ... I think we broke him.
Zuko: ... Ok, I'm hallucinating.
Mai: What makes you say that?
Zuko: Because although I've had some pretty good things fall into my lap recently, there's no way I could be this lucky.
*siigh*... Let's get this over with.
There it is again... but I'm not sure why I should bother. I mean, it's not like it was Stalin's fault that his rule was so corrupt, it was clearly the KGB. It wasn't Hitler who started the Hlocaust, it was the Gestapo. It wasn't Bowser's plan to steal the princess, it was obviously the goombas'.
You mean the one who didn't agree to almost kill a person in broad daylight where everyone could see? In that case, this one is now my favorite of the two. Congratulations, Jong, you earned it.
Wait... you mean... she wasn't being facetious?... She was actually going to KILL Zuko just for choosing what he felt was right instead of her?... You mean Cadence was actually JUSTIFIED in trying to kill her, even if it was in the middle of the day??!!!?...
Excuse me, but... I think I'm going to have to do some... heavy thinking. What I consider to be sane, what other consider to be sane, and how things are actually sane need to get some serious readjustments. Because I think you might be one of those people who SEEM like they're sane, but they're really just some weirdo with a mental disorder who'd decapitate someone for saying the "Lady in the Water" and then proceed to use it as a coffee mug. Yeah. I was totally right about you, even when I was joking half the time. This IS a darker version of the original Avatar, or even its infamous sequel. Because honestly... it has a lot of poorly, POORLY executed moves in it, and I'd rather not have to deal with them now or any time hereafter. So I hope that you won't flip a lid when I say the following, but I feel as though it has to be said for your personal development.
M. Night Shyamalan's version is more faithful to the original than this is.
Sorry if that seemed harsh, it's just... ugh. I had SO much hope for this story, but... this just isn't for me. A part of me actually sympathizes with I Hate Everything and how he just absolutely HATES MLP. It's like it was specifically designed for me to hate it. Every grievance, every error, every single aspect of this fanfiction is just... just... AERYHERGAERY^RSTY^E^U%QTYUW%^UY%REGHRYJKUYJHRHTYUW%^TYHEY%%$U$^YJURHKY$E%HY&I^E#%YI&TJQ$%YI^Q%$Y$^JJYJYpie. That's the best way I can put it.
6883350 Probably not as the fire nation was based on Asian culture.
Sans, have you been influencing Jin?
great, i already have a friend who makes those lines at school and i now deal with even more punning people in what i read. what EVER will i do
Of course "Yes" would translate to "Porque no los dos"
You've made Jin such an interesting character
6883357 Dammit Tucker!!!
6883441
You do realize Mai was being sarcastic there, right? She wasn't ever going to literally kill Zuko. She might have done extreme violence to his person, but actually killing him? No.
6883355 Seems to be a common theme with some of Tat's stories.
6883441
6883651
Mai was serious about trying to kill Zuko.
6883651 Eh, I'll be honest... I went off the deep end. You know, like some of those people who seem normal, but once someone says the word "Village", they decide to take out someone's intestines and skip rope with it? Yeah, that's pretty much what happened to me. You said words that rhymed with "Village" a whole bunch of times, and I became the jump rope champion of the world.
Guess it's just a bit of compounding stuff, I guess. I mean, you're a fairly decent writer, you can write good stories. You can make funny content, you can build up suspense, you can make dramatic moments... but sometimes, things are a bit hard to follow. For example, some time during the conversation, Mai said that she wasn't surprised that Cadence did what she did because the Fire Lord's family is a bit... I dunno, coarse? And she used Ozai and Zuko as examples, but... wasn't she raised by Iroh? If she was raised by a single person all her life (a relatively short one), and that person was in full possession of his faculties, then what would it matter if the family follows trends if she merely visits her secondary family members?
And besides that? It didn't sound like sarcasm. Because let's face it, it's hard to tell when you're trying to be serious and when you're trying to be funny. An old man believes he can change the world by taking it over? We're supposed to take that seriously. A mastermind is encountered in a do or die situation? Complete and total joke. A little girl says she's planning out someone's death in broad daylight? Serious. People reacting to that knowledge as though it isn't a big deal when it would be a legitimate concern in any other universe (except for the ones that are badly constructed)? A joke (Come now, how is that NOT taken seriously?). A girl solving problems by stating exactly what the contrary leads to instead of working through it like a character would? A bit of both. So tell me... how am I supposed to take someone who said she was going to kill a person in a letter, two "rational" people who were in agreement that the person would die in broad daylight (because really, REALLY bad people are typically killed in broad daylight in some places), an ex-boyfriend who said she'd kill him, and the person saying she was convinced not to kill him as a JOKE... in a world where that person and some other girl basically agreed to being a harem for some indecisive guy SERIOUSLY?...
Other than that, I have to remember; you're the guy who said that Azula was asexual despite being interested in that one guy from The Beach... who's to say that you just so happened to make other characters different from their canonical appearances? Who's to say that you didn't make your version of Mai so emotionally repressed that she would go off the deep end with enough plot-convenient incentive?
Yeah, sure, my behavior was totally inexcusable and my insults went a bit too far (I mean, this is the SECOND time I've compared this to Shyamalan)... but is it really so strange that I'd misinterpret your meaning when there was no indication of whether that was serious or a joke? Your stories are all ABOUT shifting from validity to validity without prior warning. So I'm sorry that I insulted you and stuff, because that was pretty rude, and I hope that we can continue to be... whatever we are. I will say one thing, though... it's getting awful annoying having to rely on the word of god in order to understand a basic part of a story.
{Myself: Or maybe I just need to be smart for once!
Random people: OOOOOOOHHHH}
I guess I should.
6883771
You misunderstand what she said about the Royal Family.
"Iron Fist in a Velvet Glove". What she meant was that for the most part they can be nice, gentle, and kind...but when a situation calls for ruthlessness, they have it in spades.
Examples for all four members, using both canon and this story.
Ozai: His interactions with each of his family members as I've written him is the Velvet Glove, showing his compassion and care as a Family Head. But when he felt Zuko humiliated both himself and the family, he did what he felt was required by both the situation and his own anger and gave him the scar.
Iroh: I don't need to explain the Velvet Glove, as that's his entire life as he's written. As for the Iron Fist, think back to when the Earth Bending soldier threatened Cadence. Literally the only thing that kept him from killing that guy was that Zuko was there and got to him first. As for in the show itself, retaking Ba Sing Se.
Azula: Here, I don't need to explain the Iron Fist. All her interactions with Zuko pre-Crossroads and her interactions with Aang's group show that. As for the Velvet Glove, her interactions with Ty Lee in "The Beach".
Zuko: His entire story is the dichotomy of finding the balance between the Iron Fist and the Velvet Glove, the ruthlessness of the Fire Nation side of his blood and the balance of the side that comes from Roku.
Basically, Cadence is sweet and kind and gentle...but if someone is a perceived threat to her family, she can be as ruthless as any other member of her family in dealing with said threat. That's what the whole thing with Mai was with Cadence.
As for the rest of what you said, part of the reason it might be difficult to read Mai is because, due to her usual monotone and bland expressions, it's nearly impossible to read her in the show, too. And here, you can't even see her face.
Which is?
I dunno if it's such a good idea.
I see.
OK, that's funny.
I'd say she's more dangerous unarmed than armed.
Fair enough.
Whu?
Point taken. Easy to forgot as silly as Ty Lee is, she's not an idiot.
I see.
Common sense: the TRUE hero of any story.
... Take it away, Takei!
*groan* That was bad!
And this point you're doing referee's job for him.
Well... that went better than I expected. I can can totally see Zuko's head tilting to the side if he catches Jin doing some stretches under Ty Lee's guidance.
6883381 I can see Zuko spraying the tea across the table, but Iroh probably already figured it out and would never waste good tea.
Tatsurou...
You...
You magnificent bastard! Every time I think I have you pegged, you go and flip my theories on their ear! I have never felt this mixture of burning frustration and absolute admiration before...
I will correctly predict you one day. It may be at the tail end of PWNY-verse story itself... but I WILL!!! Until then, I will content myself with incorrectly guessed scenes that are still great.
to
Oh wow, where are you Ref? Tatsurou stole you shtick! Quick, get it back!
...I feel like a terrible person for saying that...
Wait, are Jin and Mai going to.....form a herd with Zuko?
6883369
6883390
6883394
Let's all be honest, Jin asking Ty Lee for help wasn't really... A stretch.
What do they call debris in a palace? Rubble Royale.
If I didn't know any better, Jin was just amazed that her plan worked.
You guys also know that Ty Lee won that argument hands down?
At least Jin didn't need to think of those puns from the ground up.
Who knew prison visits would have such a good Cell Reception?
I do agree that Ty Lee can take down just about anyone. Bar none of course.
Ps. More puns here cause I lacked it last chapter.
Zuko, you poor, poor lucky bastard..... Wonder what his reaction is going to be? Or what other surprises Jin will have for him?
6884066 I'm tempted to smack you silly, but I don't think it would do anything.
Well I just binge read 12 or so chapters....... and i want MOAR!!!!! lol
6883844 Well, sure, but... still seems like something that she'd have to get worked out of her system, you know? It just doesn't seem like something that should be written off as simply "Haha, what a silly filly, trying to kill a threat in broad daylight". I get that there are some fanfiction where the main character doesn't have to develop at all and simply gets cool stuff (like Diaries of a Madman), and no one gives a crap about the stupid things they do, but this seems like a moment where should learn from this event, while other characters are aware that what she did was wrong and DO something about it. Like I said earlier, mental trauma is no excuse for acting out destructive behaviors, that's what interventions and therapy is for. How is this destructive? Well, let's review. She takes what a person who she's known ever since she was... younger says seriously when she should know that was just typical romcom anime crap. Then she decides that what she did was wrong and decides that person's behavior needs to be "corrected" if she doesn't "behave". That's about a couple steps behind what Michael Myers did when he was a kid... except, you know, he actually went through with it. What befuddles me even more was that a grown man agrees with Cadence and takes her seriously as well. Wouldn't it make more sense for Zhin to placate Cadence so she doesn't do anything rash and do this in a smarter way? Seems like something he'd do considering how he and Jong have had to make sure Zuko doesn't do anything stupid. Why is Cadence a special case? Why doesn't she evolve as a character? Why is everyone fine with this utter ludicrousness?... And that is why I ragequited earlier. Wily's Wittle Wub is as far as I go when utter ludicrousness is concerned, and I am not going to sit through reading another story that blows it out of the water in accordance with those same terms... except I probably will since I know me.
6883350 Um, Zuko's gonna be king, if there's a law against it he can change it.
6884066 yeeeesssssssss ppppuuuunnnsssssss
Another enjoyable chapter. Good job.
6884639
Who said anything about mental trauma?
The reason Cadence behaved that way with Mai is because, once Azula made Zuko and co traitors, Cadence's priority became survival for the group, and Mai became a threat to that survival when she started coming after Zuko. In terms of the story and situation, Cadence would have been fully justified in sending Zhin to simply eliminate Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula...but she considered Mai a friend, and instead chose to confront her, while making it plain she was willing to do what was necessary.
6885099 Oh, so what you're saying is, a little girl no older than 10 who was almost... hurt really badly by Earth Kingdom guards, and felt as though she were responsible for many pointless deaths, is in full possession of her faculties? And both of those events were completely pointless and had no overall impact to her character OR the story?... I'm not going to question it, because here's no way I can do so without comparing you to Shyamalan again.
Well, it's pretty simple, really. Let's say there's a beehive hanging from a tree on your front lawn. These bees are a bit of a problem if you go near them, but they're harmless otherwise. Now, you have two options. You could call an exterminator and get rid of them forever, or you could just let them live and you'd just have to be careful not to get too close. Now, let's pretend that Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee are bees. They have high offensive capabiliies, they possess a large degree of teamwork, and they're pretty crafty. However, the absolute WORST they can do... is simply sting people. Sure, you could kill them, but it doesn't really effect much of anything. It wouldn't benefit them much if they die (since they weren't a threat to begin with), but the people who actually care, such as Ukano, the governor of New Ozai (Omashu) and the Fire Lord, the leader of the enemy they're fighting against, would most likely retaliate in full. Now, imagine if any of them were executed. If Mai died, they'd have the full brunt of the Fire Nation occupying the Earth Kingdom breathing down your neck, and they'd be branded as cold-hearted marauders who'd kill childhood friends without a second thought. If Azula died, Ozai wouldn't take that very lightly, and he'd be highly reticent to hear what anyone would have to say to the contrary. Then there'd be a boring-ass fight scene between Cadence and Aang one-shotting him thanks to lion-turtle power or whatever.
You see, killing a golden goose has no worth because it can't lay eggs anymore. If you keep it and wait for it to lay, then you'll get all eggs you want. For example, let's say Mai's held hostage and all her knives are taken away. Ukano would cave in seconds and Omashu would be liberated effective immediately. Let's say Azula's taken hostage and she can't use her fire bending (either because her chakras are shot or she's trapped in a metal cage). Ozai would see that Zuko isn't as crazy as Azula would lead him to believe and they could talk things through like adults. But the only thing killing them would accomplish is an angry governor, an angry Fire Lord, and an angry group of
juggaloscircus fans. See, it's not that I don't think that they're a threat... it's that their deaths have more consequences than they do benefits. And the very fact that Cadence didn't consult someone who actually knows what they're doing (Like, oh, I dunno, maybe the guy who was voiced by Mako and is also her father?) before deciding that, if nothing else, she would kill the ex-girlfriend of one of her teammates (the ex- status not even lasting a full day) in the middle of the day is completely, utterly, irrevocably retarded... is what I would say, but that would be an insult to people with mental deficiencies. Instead, I'd say it's more akin to just being a fanfiction that wasn't planned out all that well.6885233
I didn't say there wasn't mental trauma. Just that I wasn't using it as an excuse here. The problem is you're trying to read too deep into the story, when I'm not trying to make those parts that deep.
6885286 Hmm, OK... but if some parts aren't as deep as they need to be, couldn't it seem rather... shallow?
6885312
The depth will come later. I am breaching into the original content now, after all.
6885405 So then, you're saying that people will only ever act like normal human beings when the time calls for it? Doesn't that seem a bit inconsistent?
6885412
No, I'm saying that people behave the way they do based on experience, situation, and innumerable other factors that aren't always readily visible, and making assumptions about why someone's behaving a certain way is inherently mistaken.
6885451 Well yeah, that's my point. If Cadence was raised by Iroh all her life, then why would she do something so... heavy-handed with such little thought put into it?
6885479
Because there were also several years in the Fire Nation where she received the benefit of Ozai's tutelage.
6885479
Because there were also several years in the Fire Nation where she received the benefit of Ozai's tutelage.
6885525 You know, that would be very useful information to know beforehand.
{Myself: You did, it's just been such a long time since you first read this and when you gave up, you probably forgot about it.}
Hmm, good point. But you know, I think I should say something I should've said a while ago. Earlier, you said that Ozai was a good person because, when Azulon said that he had to kill his son for *daring* to question Iroh's position as the heir apparent, he had Azulon assassinated in order to keep Zuko from dying... well you'd be wrong.
OK, that should be long enough. See, initially, Ozai would've let the boy die if it was up to him. He had no attachments to him, and he was a disappointment all his life, so there wasn't anything really stopping him from doing it.... except for one thing. Ursa made a deal with him, saying that if Ozai promised to spare Zuko, then she would make him a poison that was tasteless and odorless, designed to make the victim look as though he passed in his sleep. With it, Ozai would become the Fire Lord, no questions asked. The condition was that she was never to return to the capital, lest the new Fire Lord pass in a similar manner.
Well, that's the story in a nutshell.
6885619
And as I also told you before, only material presented in the show itself is considered absolute canon for this story. So that material is invalid.
6885768 ... What would you say if I told you that Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko (The creators of The Last Airbender and Korra) were two of the co-writers of The Search (the other being a comic artist named Gene Yang)? Oh, and there's also this.
So yeah, once again, it's Nickelodeon's fault. Sure, I guess you could say that you're unsatisfied with what occurred and you can make up your own ending (You know, like in that other conversation we had), but it doesn't make what happened in the trilogy itself to be any less true.