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Fanfic: Head Games
Title: Head Games
Author: Dark Puck
Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Pairing/character: Xin Wan (OC); Ichiro, Yui, and Kouji (OCs); Liu (OC)
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Mindbending of children, creeptastic
Notes: Xin Wan, Liu, and most other Dai Li OCs belong to Bex and is used with her permission and assistance.
Summary: A refugee child in Ba Sing Se is found somewhere she shouldn't be by a Dai Li agent. This proves disastrous for her and her brothers, as they have a secret: they're all from the Fire Nation...
Cutting the Strings
"You don't own me
Don't try to change me in any way
You don't own me
Don't tie me down, cause I'll never stay!"
Xin Wan, in his delight with his new toys, his children to love and care for, forgot one detail about his little doll: Yui had made unlocking things a habit. And he didn't know that the things she unlocked weren't always physical.
For the girl herself, it was as though a switch had been flipped: when she had gone to bed, she had been Lei. When her eyes snapped open in the middle of the night, she was Yui. She almost, almost screamed, but only barely stopped herself by shoving her fist in her mouth and biting down. If she woke Kouji — no, he was still Xi Zu — Xin Wan would change her again.
Taking several deep breaths, Yui closed her eyes and sorted through her memories of the last couple weeks. She scowled as she remembered the shame of herself and her body that she had carried as Lei, and then frowned as she realised that there were a number of blank points in her memory.
I can't stay here.
She didn't know how long Xin Wan had been changing people, but he had turned her into somebody else — taken away or altered Yui's memories, and given Lei entirely new ones. She also rather suspected that if she tried to pretend she was still Lei, he would see through it.
She had to leave.
With as little noise as possible, she slipped from the bed and padded to the closet she shared with Kou— with Xi Zu and started taking her things. She could find no trace of the clothes she'd worn when Xin Wan first caught her, but she hadn't really expected to: those clothes didn't fit in with the history he'd provided her.
Instead, she dressed in the most hardy of the clothes he'd bought for her, already making plans. These she had now could be sold easily, perhaps in the Middle Ring where she could have some amount of anonymity. Unfortunately the garments weren't suited for the Lower Ring, or she'd sell them there.
With that purpose in mind, she packed them all, then picked up the music box Xin Wan had made her. She stared at it for a long moment.
In his own twisted way… he really does love me and Kouji.
Then she shook her head. Xin Wan loved Lei and Xi Zu.
This didn't stop her from packing the music box anyway.
Zuko, formerly a prince of the Fire Nation and now humiliatingly a refugee, was still unnerved by the events of the previous night. It wasn't so much that crazy idiot Jet bursting in to announce to the world that they were firebenders as it was that nobody had seemed to be bothered by the pronouncement— not to mention the earthbenders in dark green robes that had taken Jet away during the fight.
Uncle, irritatingly enough, didn't seem very bothered at all, instead keeping up a steady stream of chatter at his nephew about nothing in particular. Sighing, Zuko let his mind wander—
—and his ears picked up a song that certainly didn't belong in this city.
"Oh, the moon is rising high in the depths of night,
Silent is the ruined site lying on the ground,
Ivies creep o'er the gate in the cold moonlight,
Rustling are the pine trees through the windy night."
Zuko knew that song. It was a Fire Nation song.
Uncle had recognised it too; before Zuko quite realised it, he was being hauled in the direction of the singer. She didn't take long to find; like with most buskers of any decent skill, there was a crowd gathered 'round her. The crowd itself wasn't large, due to the early hour, so Zuko and Uncle were able to catch sight of the girl— and she was a girl, Zuko realised.
She had the height of a prepubescent child but her body was already starting to flare in the proper places, making her age difficult to determine, but Zuko didn't notice that so much as her raven hair, amber eyes, and pale skin.
A Fire Nation girl, singing a Fire Nation song, in an Earth Kingdom city that hid away a century-long war.
And then he noticed the bowl at her feet. Not just singing for her own amusement — she was a street performer.
Well, that made sense; performing troupes tended to be mixed nationality anyway…
"Hnh," Uncle said unexpectedly. "Do you see anyone keeping an eye on her, nephew?"
Zuko blinked and looked around automatically; his good eye narrowed as he realised he did not. "She's on her own?"
Uncle gave him one of those Looks; Zuko shifted uncomfortably in response and turned back to the girl to get away from it. She was a good performer, he had to admit; not breathy or shrill like most child singers, and she scanned the audience, meeting the eyes of the people she sang for.
He was more than ready for the startled expression she got when spying him — his scar often had that effect on people — but not for that startlement changing to fear. Why would she be so afraid?
Beside him, Uncle made a concerned sound, but the girl had collected herself and her eyes were moving again. She finished her song, bowed in reply to the applause, and then launched into an Earth Kingdom ditty about the spring that reminded Zuko of a similar song he'd known as a child.
Apparently the girl knew that one too; she modulated the Earth Kingdom song into the one he remembered, now singing about the summer. And then came the ultimate shocker — the summer song turned into an operatic-sounding piece, adapted for a child's voice and sung in Old Fire.
"And so Princess Akiko begged the aid of the old deserter," said Uncle quietly, "that she might not fall into the hands of the cruel men of Guoyin while she wandered lost in the Earth Kingdom, searching for her betrothed lost so many years ago."
Zuko looked over at him. "…what?" he asked eloquently.
"She's asking for help, nephew," Uncle translated.
The fallen prince blinked several times. "How do you figure?"
"I've seen that opera," he explained as the girl finished her song to applause. "Interestingly, the villain of the piece is named Hazumi."
"Spring," murmured Zuko, catching on. "Earth." He glanced back at the girl, who was now scooping the coins from her bowl.
"Go talk to her. Try not to look like you're picking her up."
Zuko gave his uncle a scandalised look. "What?"
Uncle answered by giving Zuko a gentle shove in the girl's direction. She looked up as the former prince stumbled forward; he could see her tense. If she's so scared, why is she asking for help? he wondered. "Uh. Hi?" he tried.
"Hi," she replied, and bowed slightly.
Clumsily he followed suit, and noticed that she'd briefly positioned her hands in the Fire style.
She's going out of her way to prove her heritage… what if it's a trap?
She smiled at him. "We can't speak in public," she told him softly. "The Dai Li have eyes everywhere."
His good eye narrowed. Dai Li. It had been Dai Li who had taken Jet away.
—how had she come to their attention?
—oh, right. Fire.
—then why had they ignored him and Uncle last night?
"Do you know of a safe place to meet?" The question was asked of him, but she was looking past him, at Uncle, and it was Uncle who answered.
"There is a restaurant two blocks from here," he said, and eyed the girl's bowl. "Three Chrysanthemums. We will buy you lunch."
She gave them a brilliant smile, bowed once more, and then melted into the crowd.
At noon, Yui was at the Three Chrysanthemums. Kou— Xi Zu was still in the Upper Ring, so she was safe enough for the moment.
The spirits are being kind to me, she thought. Running into the Dragon of the West had been a stroke of luck so good she didn't even stop to think about why he was even in Ba Sing Se. Yes, she knew that the Fire Nation could be trusted no more than the Earth Kingdom, but as long as she never actually mentioned her twin could earthbend…
She spotted the old man's companion quickly — which did make her wonder; the boy had so obviously been attacked by a Firebender. Was he an earthbender too? Maybe Kouji wasn't a freak! — and squirmed her way over to him. "Hi," she said, and was rewarded by seeing him jump.
The Dragon of the West looked amused, and invited her to have a seat.
"Thank you," she said, sliding into one. The scarred boy sat next to her, clearly sulking.
"You have a lovely voice," the old man complimented her. "I haven't heard that opera in decades, but you did a fine job as Princess Akiko."
She thanked him again, a little more shyly this time. He was the second person she'd met who had heard the opera — and the first one had taught her the song to begin with. Thank you, Agni. You and the other spirits really are looking out for me now. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Where to begin?
It didn't help matters any that the man across from her was the Dragon of the West, Prince Iroh, once the Firelord's heir and one of the most dangerous men in existence. To make things worse, she was just a peasant. A colonist peasant. Possibly a traitor as well; Yui wasn't entirely certain about that.
She took another deep breath, fighting with her crashing nerves.
"Is there a Natsumaru to your Akiko?" he asked gently.
She gave him a grateful look. "After a fashion — my brothers."
"Ah?"
Yui licked her lips, checking her story mentally to make sure she wouldn't give away the wrong thing, then said carefully, "My little brother and I were… taken by the Dai Li just over a fortnight ago, near as I can figure. And my big brother isn't at home. I don't know what happened to him."
The scarred boy blinked and asked, "Do you know Jet?"
"No!" she said hotly. "That terrorist? Hell no."
He looked hurt at the curtness of her reply, but Yui had no room in her for guilt at the moment. The Dragon of the West tapped the table to get Yui's attention again. "Are there any others in your family here?"
Yui shook her head. "It's just me, Ichi-ni, and Kouji."
He looked concerned, but pressed on. "Do you know why the Dai Li took you?"
She fell silent, considering. She couldn't very well tell him the real reason, or that the whole thing was all her fault. But she couldn't think up a plausible lie to protect Kouji and Ichiro, either. Finally, she said quietly, "I can't remember. I— it's just— it's blank. There's nothing…"
The concern only deepened, and— yes, there was the guilt. "I have heard that before," Prince Iroh said slowly. "Will you tell me what you do remember of how you came to be in Ba Sing Se?"
"I…" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "We were looking for somewhere safe." She paused, then added, "From the Fire Nation." The scarred boy's head snapped around to her, looking confused. "Ichi-ni… he's all we've got," Yui explained. Not a lie. "But he's sixteen. Adult. And… I guess he's got good soldier qualities."
"I understand," the prince replied, sounding regretful. He sighed heavily. "What has happened to you here?"
Yui explained their first few weeks in Ba Sing Se, then turned her idiotic adventure in the Earth Palace into a blank spot. "The next thing I remember…" She stopped and shuddered, and her reaction wasn't feigned.
Prince Iroh gave her time to pull herself together, ordering tea for them all.
Finally Yui let out a shaky breath and said, "The next thing I remember is waking up. As somebody else."
The two men gave her blank looks, and Yui shuddered again. "I wasn't me. I was… some half-blood girl named Lei. There were parts of me that were still me, but…" Her hand clenched into a fist. "I was ashamed. Ashamed of my Fire blood. Ashamed of my body."
The boy looked stunned and disgusted; the prince just looked disgusted. "There are rumours…," he said slowly.
Yui shuddered again. "I don't know what they are. I just know what happened to me. What that bastard did to me."
"And they have your brother still."
The girl nodded. "I… I don't even know how I stopped being Lei. I fell asleep as Lei and woke up Yui again."
Bit by bit, the prince drew the rest of the story from her, drawing as much a complete picture as he could while still managing to reassure Yui. The boy, on the other hand, grew more and more agitated as she spoke, until Yui realised that she was hotter on the side closest to him than she was on the other. Startled, she looked over at him to see the air around him was distorted with heat.
Firebender!
Prince Iroh noticed as well, and said warningly, "Nephew."
The young man closed his eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to calm down. Finally the heat petered out, and Yui thought critically that Ichiro could do that much faster. She didn't voice her thought aloud, however; they didn't need to know about the breach of the Firebending Law.
Yui licked her lips and considered what else to tell them. Finally, she just said, "Please… I need to get them out of there. I can't do it alone."
Prince Iroh reached across the table and patted her hand gently. "Don't worry, Yui," he told her. "We'll find your brothers." His face wore a comforting smile, but his eyes were molten with anger.
Next Chapter
Current Location: my bed
Current Mood:  cold
Tags: character: iroh, character: yui, character: zuko, fandom: avatar, story: head games
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