Heavey TW for this chapter, for abuse. Specifically, parental abuse. If this is something you can't read, skip the second part of the flashback.

"Jump?" Besu demanded, "Are? You? Insane?"

"You'll die otherwise!" the ship captain said, looking at Lu Ten. "Go, now!"

"Grab those packs," Lu Ten said, slipping seamlessly into the role of a leader, "And release the parachutes. As soon as you hit the ground...run."

"To the fight, right?" Cillia asked, buckling her parachute pack to her chest, already helping others.

"Do you wish to die?" Lu Ten asked in a strangled voice. "We should not be here. Don't worry about anything; I'll take the blame for telling you to hide. Just...run," he said, "And find the blimp when it goes down and wait there." He grabbed the closest girl to him - Suki - and pulled her to the exit door of the blimp. "Now!"

Suki halfway jumped and halfway allowed herself to be pushed by Lu Ten, and like a flower petal catching the wind, she was gone.

"Oh, spirits..." Ratana held her mouth to keep from barfing.

Lu Ten shoved everyone out in quick succession, yelling instructions to deploy the parachutes as they went. Katara did not let him shove her, but held up a hand and jumped.

The air whooshed around her and she tugged her parachute, her fingers clammy and shaking. She managed to grasp the handle and pulled hard, a popping sound echoing in her ears as the large canvas ballooned over her, jolting her quick decline into an uneven and teeter-tottering float to the ground.

As she looked up, she saw Lu Ten jump along with the rest of the crew. The blimp was losing air fast and it creaked and groaned in the sky, falling to the south. As Katara looked down, she saw the tiny town ablaze in flames that licked the darkness of the sky.

She heard arrows. She panicked, knowing there was little she could do, but her parachute was not the target. Above her, she heard Lu Ten yelp as an arrow ripped a large hole through his safety landing gear. He began to fall, hard, and Katara knew he would die if he hit the ground at that speed. As he came past, Katara reached her arms out and caught Lu Ten by his leg. The sudden weight of a whole human nearly ripped her arms from the sockets and it wasn't easy to find purchase, but she dug her fingers into his pants and let him pull her down from the sky.

They both hit the ground with a hard 'thump', faster than they probably would have liked, but it saved Lu Ten's life.

Katara's arms screamed as she let go of his leg, her limbs slumping by her side as they whimpered in agony, a white-hot fire burning up her veins.

"Katara, we have to hide," Lu Ten grabbed a knife from his vest and began cutting his parachute and Katara's away. "We need to take cover. Can you walk?"

"It's not my legs that really hurt," Katara agreed. "Aren't we going to fight? Aren't you?"

Above her, a cannon sounded that rang in her ears. She heard screaming and crying and dirt flew into her mouth.

"There's too many. Hide!" Lu Ten commanded, blasting an Equalist away that approached. "There!" He pointed to a half-sunken and nearly hidden basement door covered in rubble and debris. "Help me clear this off, quickly, before they find us," he said.

Two Equalists approached. Lu Ten grabbed the back of Katara's shirt, dragging her down into the mud. She pressed her face into the dirt, so she didn't make noise.

"This loot is killer!" one of the men said, arms full, "I think I'll be able to pay off what I owe once I pawn this."

"No shit, dude! Jackpot!" the other one said, high-fiving his friend.

Katara didn't have the time to realize that she hadn't seen any weapons on them, nor that they really seemed like they were fighting a war. It seemed like they were just causing chaos, but heck, she wasn't going to tempt those odds, because the world was still a caterwaul of other people's misery.

"Katara!" Lu Ten hissed, eyes fearful, "Kat!" He was motioning to the rubble, asking for her help to clear it. Katara bit her lip to keep from crying as she picked up rocks, her arms nearly refusing to work, until they could wriggle inside. Lu Ten pulled a piece of a door over their hiding place, masking their location unless someone really looked and saw a few footprints in the sand.

"Farther back, go," Lu Ten commanded, and Katara crawled in the dirt until she hit the back of the shelter. It was absolutely pitch black. Lu Ten made a small fire on a tiny torch and sank it into the dirt between them, the flicker of the light dancing on their faces. And as she stared at Lu Ten, a feeling she'd never experienced during a battle rose up inside of her. It was not that he was showing emotion, it was that he was showing none.

And Katara knew what this meant.

Fear. Katara felt fear. She felt the feeling of death looming like never before, just outside their hiding spot. She usually ran into fights, in a blaze of foolheartedly foolishness, but sitting here made an emotion creep upon her, cold as the colorless faces of the dead.

"We're all going to die, just like that," Katara whimpered, feeling so small and childish. She curled into a ball the best she could, her arms looped tightly around her legs.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry..." Lu Ten murmured, his expression so tightly guarded and never cracking, "Ozai's won." How was Lu Ten being so calm, Katara wondered? How was he not breaking right now? How did you take this fear that she had to be sure he was feeling too and just throw it away, leaving nothing behind?

"So, you think he's the leader of the Equalists too, huh?" Katara said dryly, unsure how to react right now.

"It's obvious, isn't it? He's gloating," Lu Ten spat.

"Why? Why this? Do you think he's going to...kill Zuko?" Katara asked, the fear growing in her mind. She tried to shift and winced hard. Lu Ten looked at her arms, red and raw.

"Can I help?" he offered.

"Are you a waterbender?" Katara asked sarcastically, raising an eyebrow. She wasn't going to be able to lift her arms right now to heal herself.

"No, but I'm medic-trained." He unbuttoned his vest and started tearing strips off his undershirt to set her arms, using some debris as firm sticks to hold her arms straight. "May I?"

Katara nodded numbly, watching him work. He clenched his jaw, methodically wrapping her arms to prevent further damage. There was silence in the hidden basement, juxtaposed with the horrors of screaming just outside. When Lu Ten did speak, it nearly jolted her in terror.

"My uncle will do anything to win," Lu Ten finally said, "To answer your question. If that's what he deems necessary, that's what he'll do."

"Okay, sure, Ozai doesn't like to lose," Katara agreed, unsure how this was new information.

"No, Katara," Lu Ten looked almost half-deranged, cycling between laughs and sobs. "I don't think you get it. He'd do anything, undermine anyone, ruin anyone's life..." He looked her straight in the eye. "How did Zuko get his scar? And do you know why Zuko does not wear his hair long, as is traditional? "

"I...uhm.." Katara blinked at the sudden change of focus. "We were told he won in the match that chose him over you for the heir apparent. It was a sign of his true power." Katara shook her head. "I don't buy it, but I mean, that's what I know. As for his hair, he said he lost it in a spar with Azula, and she burned it away..." From Lu Ten's face, she knew that this had been a lie on Zuko's part, though she could not guess why he'd forgo tradition like this when often, tradition meant so much to him. And, logically, it had been enough time to grow it back, and yet...Zuko kept it just below his ears.

"Then you don't understand," Lu Ten said with almost a pitying smile, "How far Ozai would go, the lengths he'd go..."

"How am I supposed to know if-"

"You don't know," Lu Ten settled back, his voice not unkind but rather apologetic, "Yet. Let me explain."

And, by the light of their tiny fire, Lu Ten opened his mouth to speak.

XXX

Aang awoke to a milky, thin light passing through slates in a carriage. Though somewhere, he had a feeling that 'awoke' was generous. Moreso, his eyes opened as the world above him swam, like he was leagues under the ocean, watching everything play out far, far above him, muffled and distorted. His body was fighting, everything was off, and Aang was exhausted.

The only comfort was Ty Lee, squeezing his hand in relief.

"There you are, son. Welcome back to the land of the living."

Aang squinted. "Iroh? That you?" His voice came out rough like he'd swallowed a whole bag of rocks and cut his voice all the way down. He was on his stomach and couldn't flip. He wasn't even sure he'd just spoken actual words, or if it was a jumble of sounds.

"Water, now." Shen tipped a cup to his lips. "Oh, thank the spirits..."

"What happened to me? I hurt...everywhere..." Aang whimpered. "And I'm...I'm..." he murmured.

"I know, I know," Ty Lee whispered. "You gotta stay awake, though. Aang, stay with me, please."

Aang tried to look at her to tell her that he wanted to, of course, but his limbs would not obey him.

"You nearly died, Avatar," Shen said. "Please. Don't sit up." Though he tried to brush it off, Aang could sense a deep, anguished sorrow deep within him, something that made his blood run cold.

"What... exactly... happened?" he demanded, his last word eeking out like the last creak of a wheel before it stopped moving, and there was a gentle squeeze to his hand. It took so much effort to speak, and it hurt everywhere. He wanted to stop that hurt, please.

"Zhao attacked. He nearly won. He tried to cut you open from the top of your spine to the bottom, which is why you must remain like this. The wounds were deep," Iroh said with a deep scowl. "And we were not sure you'd pull through." And though Aang wasn't sure, or perhaps did not want to be, he could have guessed the unspoken addition was 'and you still might not'.

"I told them you were stronger than all that shit, though," Toph broke in, sniffling. "Glad to see you awake, Twinkletoes."

"She was right," Ty Lee murmured, rubbing the back of his hand.

"Zhao-" Aang wheezed, each syllable like a knife down his throat.

"Is dead." Shen said in a staccato tone, "One less evil banished from the world."

"But-?" Aang picked up on the subtext.

"Dhakiya. She's gone," Ty Lee whispered, and it seemed she had no more tears to cry. There was a heaviness in the air, something no one wanted to admit out loud, no one wanted to say. "She saved your life."

The guilt immediately clawed up Aang's throat. He felt ill and shook. Another person dead for him, and for what? Did he even deserve it?

"Where are... we going?" Aang asked, "Traveling?" He wanted to ask 'why are we traveling', but that was as much as he could muster. Luckily, it seemed it was understood.

"The Swamp is compromised. We cannot remain." Shen shook his head. "We are going to the one place not under Ozai's thumb. We'll be switching to boats soon."

"S'wat...tribe." Aang breathed, slurring his words, and somewhere through the haze, a horrible thought hit him. "Put...in danger?" he demanded.

From the serious looks on Iroh and Shen's faces, it was clear they knew that this would put a target on the back of Katara's home tribe, but they were out of options. Aang struggled to get to his knees. "No, no...no..." He began to thrash, just whispering arguments, but Ty Lee and Toph kept him down.

"Aang, please, don't exert yourself like this." Ty Lee's voice was worried, and he tried to say he was fine, but the wave of darkness was already wading through his mind, sloshing against his vision.

The carriage halted. Iroh threw open the back hatch to see what the hold-up was and Aang, out of his limited view, saw Aiga hitting the side of the carriage.

"What is it?" Iroh asked, "What is so serious that we stopped?"

"Sir, I..." Aiga fumbled over her words to get her message out. "I understand now why the Equalists wanted to find me, why they asked for me and not Aang. I understand now. I saw it and I shouldn't have, but I didn't realize it until-"

"Child, calm down." Iroh placed a steady hand on her shoulder. "Now, take a breath for me," he instructed. Aiga gulped in a big breath of air.

"Exhale."

She let it go in one noisy, haggard sigh.

"Aiga, speak now. What is it?"

"I know who the leader of the Equalists is. I was meant to be killed so I couldn't tell anyone. We need to go back to the Royal Palace...now. I also know what the endgame is."

Everyone began talking at once, and he heard Aiga explain in snippets. His mind felt like the hamster-mouse wheel was desperately spinning, but the hamster-mouse had long since died, unable to snap the connection that he knew that he knew too.

Then, understanding exploded in his mind, like the Avatars had shoved down the door and were all yelling the answer to him.

Aang inhaled sharply, suddenly realizing it all at once too - (and fuck, how could he have been so blind? So oblivious?) - but it was too much. And somewhere, he knew Yangchen was warning him that he must keep his energy, be careful, but his own horrified and guilty feelings overrode everything as he pushed his arms away, bringing his body off the ground. For a second, he thought he'd done it, that he'd fought the sickness and weariness of his bones, but then his mind was swirling and he was falling.

"Aang! No! Stay awake!"

He saw everyone reach for him as his body gave out, his limbs turned to sand, and his mind rolled away with the numbness of unconsciousness.

XXX

7 Years Ago...

"How did he find out, dad?" Lu Ten paced the floor. "I've been careful, I've been so careful. I haven't made a spectacle of myself, and I've watched. You know that I am so careful. So how?" He looked at his father. Iroh sat in Lu Ten's bedroom with a heavy, saddened expression.

"You were not careful enough, son," he said.

Lu Ten stopped, staring at him. "Are you disappointed in me, Dad?" he asked. Iroh stood, smiling warmly, engulfing Lu Ten in a comforting hug.

"Never. I know who you are and you've never done anything to make me mournful," he said, pulling back and placing his hands on Lu Ten's cheeks, "But things are going to change, Ten."

"Am I to be executed?" Lu Ten asked with a hint of bitterness.

"I would be shocked if your grandfather reacted with such a severe punishment...but I fear what he does have in store. Come," Iroh placed Lu Ten's Fire Lord pin in his hair, "You are still the Heir Apparent and you will remember that."

They walked in silence to the royal throne room. Azulon sat, wrinkled and wheezing, as they entered. Ozai was sitting there as well, a smirk curled on his face. His young children - Zuko only thirteen and Azula eleven - were beside him. From the way he grinned with glee at Lu Ten, he knew. He tried to lunge at his uncle, but Iroh held him firm.

"Is it true?" Azulon demanded, the fire around him bursting with his fury. "Answer me, child! Are the accusations of you true?"

Lu Ten raised his face up to his grandfather, knowing that the truth was already out there. His entire life, he'd tried to keep it close to his chest, but someone had leaked his secret. This was not a chance for him to lie...he was being given a small, nearly minuscule grace not to stand with pride.

"It is, Grandfather. I love men, not women," he whispered, trying not to collapse. The shudders that rang out around the throne room made him want to cry, to run back into his room and never return. He was painted as unnatural from this moment on, he knew it.

"And to think...we were going to invite all those lovely ladies here in less than a moon for your choice. You would have made a mockery of their heritage lines and spat on the very name of tradition."

"No, grandfather. I would have done my duty. Married a suitress," Lu Ten argued, though the thought of lying with a woman made him ill.

"It is of no consequence. The truth is out there." Azulon waved a lazy finger.

"Father," Ozai stood, "Now that we know about this...foul truth, I think we can all agree that Lu Ten is unfit to become the next Fire Lord. Not only has he laughed in the face of our beliefs and selfishly debased himself to craven desires, but he is also unable to bear children. How do we expect him to produce an heir when he makes such a face at imagining a woman?" Ozai said with a fake-genuine shrug. Lu Ten understood what was happening and nearly stood to punch Ozai. Ozai was trying to steal his birthright from under him!

"And perhaps this entire family line is tainted," Ozai continued. "A branch of the family tree that should be culled to save the rest of it. As we all know, my brother is already a laughing stock for failing his siege in Ba Sing Se."

"The city fell to us, Brother," Iroh said in a terse tone, "We captured the Earth Kingdom."

"But it wasn't you," Ozai mocked. "You cannot claim that, Iroh."

"You...you..." Lu Ten stuttered. "I can do it, Grandfather. I'll marry anyone you say. I'll have a thousand kids, just please, don't listen to him," Lu Ten begged.

"I am your faithful son, Father. I would not disappoint you. I have sat quietly, watching mistake after mistake while giving you two grandchildren. I-" Ozai was cut off.

Azulon raised a hand and silenced everyone in the room.

"The line of succession will go to my grandsons," Azulon said, thinking out loud. "Lu Ten is of age to take the throne anyway, and Zuko, by the time I pass, will nearly be there, if not already of age. It will not be you, Ozai, that takes over," Aulzon said. Lu Ten felt a flicker of relief and smiled at the way Ozai's shoulder rose with steam, his fury at being denied the crown.

"Zuko." Azulon turned to Lu Ten's cousin. "Do you agree with your father? Do you see your cousin as a freak of nature unfit to take the throne? Do you challenge him to a battle for the crown?"

Lu Ten looked at Zuko, so young and oh so terrified. He stared at Lu Ten, his beloved family member, and his eyes said no. But then Ozai placed a firm hand on his shoulder and Zuko's eyes filled with tears.

"I do, grandfather," he croaked out. "I agree," he said, trying to shrink away from Ozai.

"Then it is settled. Lu Ten and Zuko will have an Agni Kai for the right to rule. Whoever wins will take my place. If it is you, Lu Ten, you will marry a woman immediately and produce an heir within the year," Azulon said sharply. "And if it is Zuko, Ozai will hold the crown after I pass, as guardian of the throne, until Zuko is of age and marries. The Sages will assure that Ozai cannot twist my power," Azulon said, more clever than anyone gave him credit for. Ozai was furious but held his tongue and posture.

"An Agni Kai...he's a child!" Iroh stood, throwing his hands out at Zuko. "I'm not saying this because I wish my son to win, I'm saying that this is cruel!"

"Zuko is thirteen, and he is capable of his own choice. He agreed," Azulon said with a half-carless shrug. "We will hold the fight two dawns from now. None of this will leave this room...not the rumors of Lu Ten, not the news...if there is even a peep-" Azulon looked everyone in the room in their eyes, "Your head will be on a spike to serve as a reminder."

OOO

"You will win easily, my prince," Atsushi said, helping Lu Ten bind his hands two days later.