Blood Ties (Zuka)

[Zula]

The political world was exhausting, to say the least. Zula had days where she loved it, and days where she dreaded entering a meeting. Today had been one of the latter. Zula had worn her noble clothes, though there was more of a Republic City feel to them now that she was officially stationed in the city. She tried to combine both cultures, and still maintained her status and the profile she wished. At this point, she’d eased herself back into her day job quite well, and it was just like old times.

Painfully like old times, in fact. She’d listened that morning to bickering among politicians, which in the end had accomplished nothing. What it had done, however, was irritated Zula. While she had been able to make suggestions on her end that had quelled some of the arguing, she’d caught wind of plenty of other policies that a group of politicians wanted to put into place. Much of it targeted the homeless of the city, and poor families that were struggling. Zula hadn’t been able to open her mouth about that one, but it had angered her that they could be so careless to people who weren’t as rich as them. It only gave her more of a reason to put on her mask and convince them otherwise.

When the meeting ended Zula felt the need to vent about the meeting, and instead of returning home she ventured to the Blue Dragon. She didn’t often enter the club, as the pain of the past often reared up worse here, but it did provide her some good memories to dwell on. Plus, it was where she could find Neva, knowing her friend wouldn’t be finished for a long time, and Zula didn’t want to wait for her shift to be over. When she arrived she found Neva at the bar and took a seat, declining a drink and poured out her frustrations to her friend.

Neva listened, agreeing with her on some points and questioning others. Zula was thankful that the club wasn’t full and there wasn’t anyone of importance around, and that she could get everything off her chest. All the while the waterbender gave her opinion here and there, and let Zula come to conclusions on her own. That was what Zula could always count on Neva for; letting her sort things out and helping when she couldn’t.

There was something different about her today, however. It only came in glimpses, and Zula really had to pay attention to catch them. It almost seemed like Neva was nervous about something; her smile would falter slightly, she’d start fiddling with glasses behind the bar, rearranging them when they were perfectly fine. Neva never did sit still that long when she was working, but there was something jittery about her today.

“Is everything alright?” Zula raised an eyebrow, moving her hands to rest on the bar top and sitting straighter. “You seem on edge. Has something gone wrong today?”

“Hm? Oh, no, everything's fine,” Neva said, the smile coming back onto her face. The waterbender laughed a little, and it overall sounded normal, other than the tinge of nervousness in it. “It was just really busy right before you came in, and I’m still in that headspace. I never do lose my focus that easily.”

Zula didn’t want to question her reasoning, but she couldn’t help it. Growing up she had always searched voices for indicators of situations; she became an expert in figuring out Feena and the undertones of her voice for when she was stressed, frustrated, or amused. Zula found it to be a great help in navigating the snobbiness of the upper class back home, and it was something that stuck with her. Since she’d noticed Neva’s odd behavior she’d found herself paying more and more attention to the voice, and while most of it was normal there was anxiety in it. Maybe not even that, but some sort of worry.

“I apologize if I’m being a distraction,” Zula said. She had no idea what could have Neva on edge. Perhaps it was her family, or maybe the crowd before had really gotten to her today. But Neva wasn’t one to let crowds and a busy workload get to her.

“You’re not, I promise,” Neva assured, and looked towards the door. A large group was entering, sitting themselves at one of the longer tables. Zula recognized one of the men from the meeting earlier, and forced herself not to stare. If she was to put on a mask later, she didn’t need to draw more attention to herself.

Thinking she should tell Neva that idea, she said quietly, “I think I will be going out tonight. There are a few people I want to see.”

That caused a flicker in Neva’s eyes that really got her attention. It happened so fast that it was hard for Zula to tell just what it was, and that unsettled her this time. But Neva nodded and acted like it was nothing, wiping down the bar top in her usual manner. “Of course. I have that outfit fixed for you at my house if you’d like to pick it up on your way home.”

Her suit, of course. Neva had said that she’d have someone make some adjustments for her after her last run. Zula nodded and rose from her seat, “Thank you, I’ll go and see to it. I’ll see you soon, alright?”

Soon as in probably later tonight if she was injured enough. Neva gave a nod and Zula left, holding her head high as she exited the Blue Dragon. Outside the gray clouds and sky that had been present in the early morning had dispersed, and it was now sunny and bright. A good day, Zula surmised as she made her way to Neva’s home. With such a clear sky, it hopefully would mean a clear night for her as well. It seemed like a good omen to her, at least.

When she arrived at Neva’s house she unlocked the door; Neva had given her a key a while ago and it came in handy quite often. She stepped inside, shutting the door behind her, and made her way in, glancing to her desk as she did so. Her suit would be in the hidden compartment in the spare room closet, as it always was when Neva took it to be repaired. As she did so she paused; something about the house felt off in a way that she couldn’t explain, like someone was there.

She stopped, tipping her head slightly as she swore she heard a creak of a floorboard. That would be odd, considering Neva’s door had been locked and as far as Zula knew, no one else would be here. Then came the creak again and all of Zula’s instincts took over and she spun around, arms raising and ready to strike.

[Zuka]

Being here felt wrong. It wasn’t too long ago when she would have done anything to stay in this city but being back in Republic City after everything that had happened felt strange. Maybe it was because of what they had done, the explosion they had set off hadn’t been a small one and she was sure it had rocked the city. Or maybe it was because she wasn’t supposed to be here since everyone thought she was dead…It was dangerous she knew, it was stupid she knew that too but Zuka just couldn’t let her sister make the same mistakes she had made. It had been wrong to leave Zula in the dark like she was but Zuka had done so for her own good, so she could stay out of this mess and live her life. Zuka knew it would take some time but eventually she would have found her way and moved on and would have been happy…never did she expect Zula to move on like she had.

The letters from Neva were far and few between but whenever they did come she would fill them in on the happenings of the city. How the club was, what the triad movement was like, if anyone had been on to them. Any news that they would need to know so when Zuka received a letter telling her about what her sister had been doing Zuka had lost it. The argument with Kenji had been a fierce one, it hadn’t even been a year yet since they had went into hiding and already she was wanting to risk their cover to go back. Zuka knew the danger and she knew the risk it was putting on the both of them but she couldn’t just sit and wait here for the letter that told her Zula had died. No, there was no way. Finally after a very long and drawn out argument Kenji relented on the condition that she was there for only one night. There were other stipulations he had put on her and Zuka was fine with following them to a T if it meant she could stop her sister from committing suicide.

It took some time but eventually Neva and Teo were able to secure her passage to the city. Zuka took a small boat and made the journey to Republic City and landed on a secluded shoreline of Yue Bay where Neva was waiting to take her to her home. It had been early morning when she had arrived and while Neva fussed around and the two of them caught up a little Zuka was left to stay hidden in her house while Neva went to work. Before Neva left she told her that she would send Zula to her somehow and now all Zuka had to do was wait.

The hours ticked by slowly and Zuka paced around the house and waited, she had no idea when her sister would arrive so she couldn’t expect anything but finally it was a little after 6pm when she heard someone put a key into the door. Not knowing if it was Never, Zula or someone else Zuka quickly found a spot to hide that was in clear view of the door.

As it opened she saw her twin walk through and make her way toward the back of the house. Seeing her had made Zukas stomach drop, this wasn’t fair to Zula and she didn’t know what to expect from her finding out that she wasn’t dead but she had come here for a reason and was on a time limit so it was time to get this done. Quietly she come out of her hiding place and began to make her way toward the back of the house as well. Zuka had always been light on her feet but Neva’s floorboards were old and no matter how hard she tired they still creaked slightly as she walked.

Zuka could see the back of her sisters head come up as she stopped to listen to the sounds and her shoulders tensed as she readied herself. Zuka did not feel like getting herself set on fire anytime soon nor did she want to fight in Neva’s house and once Zuka was close Zula spun around and held up her arms to strike but Zuka quickly moved and grabbed her sisters wrist to stop her.

Now here they were, face to face. Zuka wanted to throw her hands around her sister and hug her tightly but she didn’t want to shock her anymore than she had. As far as Zula knew she was dead and now here she was looking her dead sister square in the face. During her time away Zuka had changed her appearance slightly, her brown hair was now black and slightly shorter and the sides were pulled up and fastened into a bun on each side of her head while the rest hanged down. Even if she might look slightly different Zuka could tell by the look in Zulas eyes that she knew the truth.

Zuka didn’t know what to say, what could she say? Nothing that came to mind justified anything so she stood there with her arm around her sisters wrist.

SPOILER: Click to show

Parts of this will probably change down the line in regards to how Kenji reacts to all this but for now Imma leave it.

[Zula]

It had been a long time since Zula was this speechless.

She’d had every intent to blast whoever was attempting to sneak up on her, but now she was absolutely still, staring with wide, uncomprehending eyes. The hair took her aback; it was black now and styled differently, and if she focused on that it was easy to say that this wasn’t who she thought it was. But she knew those eyes, the face that was so like hers. Standing this close, there was no denying who she was looking at.

Zuka? The name was loud in her mind, but failed to come out of her mouth. It was like everything that she needed had frozen the moment her sister had grabbed her wrist. Even thinking that confused her more; her sister was here, with a death grip on her to keep her from attacking, and she was alive. But that was impossible, considering Zuka had died, and had been dead and nonexistent for a very long time now. Zula stood there for what felt to her like eternity, and then slowly stepped back, drawing her wrist with her but keeping it held up, like it was frozen there. Her gaze never left her sister, her mind racing.

“You’re dead,” Zula said, the words falling from her mouth. Once they did and everything started to set in, her emotions started spiraling. Confusion, relief, disbelief, hurt, anger; they all came undone, but she refused to show them. Her gaze flickered over her sister, and the emotion that decided to make itself known in her words was confusion, “You’re dead, how are you here? What are you doing here?”

It didn’t make sense. Zula had mourned her, she’d grieved so harshly and in a way she was still grieving. Zuka had been as dead as dead could be, and now she was standing in front of her, in Neva’s house of all places. Had it all been for nothing? She didn’t know, but she wanted answers. Zula stood rooted to her place, staring at Zuka and waiting for some kind of explanation, as she couldn’t find any reasoning other than something she didn’t want to consider; that it had all been a lie.

[Zuka]

Zuka released Zulas wrist as she pulled it back and dropped her hand to her side, letting Zula work through things at her own pace. It wasn’t long until their silence was broken.

”You’re dead”

Zuka pushed her lips together as she prepared for the worst

” You’re dead, how are you here? What are you doing here?”

”Zula, I am so sorry.” Zuka had gone over this moment a thousand times in her head, had practiced over and over again what she was going to say but nothing she had planned had come out. Instead all she could say was that she was sorry but Zuka knew sorry didn’t even begin to make this better.

[Zula]

The sound of her name was the jolt that Zula needed to hear. It was Zuka’s voice, the undeniable voice of her sister that she’d never forget. That struck home that she was really standing here, really alive. Zula supposed that should have caused her some sort of relief, and deep down she could feel her heart calling out, wanting to grab her sister tight and tell her how much she had missed her.

But that was deep down, and it wasn’t what rose to the forefront of Zula’s mind. Her hands curled tightly at her sides as the truth started to click together, even without answers as to why. It only made her even more furious, for this was not a game that Zula ever imagined she’d have to play. This time, Zuka had taken everything much too far. “For all the lies and things you’ve kept from me, they do not even compare to this. How could you let me think you were dead, Zuka? What could have possible allowed you to think this was okay?”

As angry as Zula was with their mother, she could still see her crestfallen expression, feel the sadness of their home. She could feel the pain stabbing into her again, over and over. Even if Zuka was sorry, an apology wasn’t going to take back that grief and Zula didn’t know whether to feel like a fool or just plain outraged. It hurt, looking at her now, when Zula had for so long gone over and over in her head what Zuka’s last thoughts were, if she had been in pain, if it had gone quickly or not. All along, she’d been perfectly fine.

She shook her head, having to look away from her sister for a moment or risk exploding. Did she even want to demand answers this time? There couldn’t be a good enough reason to have done this. She looked back to Zuka, and the anger set her blood on fire yet again. “Running away is one thing, but this? This is cruel. You have no idea what you’ve done!”

[Zuka]

Zuka took in a deep breath at Zulas anger filled questions and she let her sister finish and get out what she needed to before she answered. Zuka knew she had been in the wrong and she doubted she could ever convince Zula that what she did she did so she could protect her. "I know its not ok" Zuka said softly once Zula had finished "I am so so sorry for putting you through that but Zula...it had to be done. People were after me and...my friend" Zuka didn't want to bring up Kenji in this, she could at least keep his identity safe for a while longer. "People that wanted us dead because of what he did to the Triads and would go after our families.

We did the only thing we could..."

Their decision to fake their deaths hadn't been a easy one and it didn't leave much room for error either. The less people that knew the truth the better it was for her and Kenji. It had taken a lot of convincing to even get him to keep Neva and Teo in on the plan she didn't want to push things by telling her sister too. Zula's pain needed to be real as awful as that was.

"I was going to tell you once things were safe again, have you brought to where I was hiding and explain everything to you I just didn't think it would take this long. But, I heard what you were doing and I had to come see you, to try to talk some sense into you. Keep you from making my same mistakes."

[Zula]

“We did the only thing we could…”

That had always been Zuka’s reasoning. She did everything to protect her, and Zula supposed if she were a better sister, maybe she’d feel honored in that. Maybe that would make her feel loved and it would make everything okay. But as it stood, Zula did not feel that way, only more frustrated. Of course this stemmed from her sister’s poor decisions and involvement in the underground; yes, Zula still believed them to be poor despite her own choices. At least hers hadn’t put a price on her head...and well, the person who had wanted her head was long gone now.

She listened as Zuka explained herself, and Zula blew out an exasperated sigh and rubbed her forehead. Sure, maybe Zuka always had intended to tell her eventually, but that didn’t exactly make it any better. She’d still be this angry and hurt, and to know that she may have had to wait even longer to know her sister was alive only made it worse. However, the end of her explanation caught Zula’s attention, and she dropped her hand and looked to her sister, expression completely masked, refusing to give anything away. “Heard what? As far as I’m aware, I’m not making any mistakes."

It had to be a bluff. As far as Zula was concerned, Zuka knew nothing about her activities since her disappearance, and how could she? She probably still assumed her to be the same person she’d left behind; naive and unable to defend herself properly. That wasn’t the case, and for once Zula felt like she had things to hide, things that Zuka had no idea about her. Things that Zuka probably didn’t need to know, and that she’d probably kill her for doing. It was odd, having those tables turned, but Zula clung to her secrets, not willing to give any information up until Zuka started talking. "You have no reason to be concerned about anything."

[Zuka]

“Heard what? As far as I’m aware, I’m not making any mistakes."

Zuka had to fight hard to control the scoff that wanted to come. She got it, Zula was trying to do the same to her like what she had done when it came to her secret life. She understood she really did but this was not a game and what Zula was doing was going to get herself killed and she didn't have someone else with her like Zuka had with Kenji. There was no one to watch her back out there.


"You have no reason to be concerned about anything."

Oh that was it.

"Oh really? Zuka asked, her soft demeanor changing as she folded her arms "where do I begin? Joining a Triad....Hans triad?!" After everything that was probably the one thing she had been most upset about. Zula knew Han was dangerous and Han had been there that night, he had once again tried to kill her and she thought he had died in the fire but like the cockroach he is he had somehow managed to escape. Even if Zula didn't know that particular detail she knew of all the other horrible things he had done. Yet, she had still joined with him. "What about what you do at night? I hear they call you The Cinder. " Zuka realized the potential bomb she had probably just unleashed because there was only one way Zuka could know all of this but it was necessary because her sister was being childish and stupid which she didn't have time for.

[Zula]

So it wasn’t a bluff, then. Zula said nothing, narrowing her eyes at her sister as she rattled off all the crimes that she was guilty for. All of them were true and she couldn’t deny them, not that she really had any interest in pretending they’d never happened. The mention of her masked persona caused her eyes to narrow further, and Zula knew there was only one person who could have told her everything. “Neva knew you were alive this entire time? Of course. I’m sure you two enjoyed gossiping about me, since you are such good friends.”

She was furious, not to mention hurt. She’d trusted Neva with that and she didn’t expect her to go tattling on her, especially not to her supposedly dead sister. All the refusal in the beginning to help her, all the times she said Zuka would kill her if she knew, that wasn’t her honoring her sister’s memory. Zula knew that Neva wouldn’t have just gone out and said that to anyone, and telling Zuka had brought her back to Republic City, but still, no one seemed to be honest with her anymore. So much for friends.

“Han was a means to an end,” Zula said, raising her chin slightly, “and it was worth giving him the lightning strike later.” Truthfully she should have just killed him right then and there, as he met his end shortly after. Still, that memory did give her a surge of vengeance; taking him down was what had convinced her to put on a mask, after all.

“As for The Cinder, it does have a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?” Zula paused, and then said smoothly. “Just like The Talon.”

Oh, Zula was still bitter about that. There were many things she realized she was bitter about, but this she had shoved down because it hadn’t been worth it when she’d assumed she would never see Zuka again. Neva probably had told Zuka already that she’d let her in on that little secret, but it didn’t matter now. She’d decided to put on a mask before she’d known about Zuka, anyways. “I had my reasons for everything I did. Do not act like I did it to walk in your footsteps. You have no idea about any of it.”

[Zuka]

When Zula brought up Neva knowing Zuka winced a little bit. She didn’t want to get her involved in this and it had never been her intention to have Neva keep screts from Zula but that was not how it worked out. ”Don’t be mad at her, you and Neva were never meant to cross paths and I never expected the two of you to become friends. She did what she had to do, what she was sworn to do to make sure I remained safe from the people that are still looking for me and my friend.”

”That’s why I came back Zula, you’re making the same mistakes I did. I know how it feels, I know that rush you get, the feeling of power but eventually you are going to cross the wrong person and it will end badly…very badly.” Zuka knew that if she had kept at things alone that she would have been done for a lot sooner but she had had a partner. Someone who kept her level headed when she tried to be too rash…Zula had none of that.

The mention of Han still brought back bitter memories and Zuka couldn’t say she was sad when she heard that he had been killed but that still didn’t make any of this better in her eyes.

” “I had my reasons for everything I did. Do not act like I did it to walk in your footsteps. You have no idea about any of it.”

”You’re right, I don’t”

Zuka took in a breath and sighed while she brought her hand up to her forehead and rubbed a little ”Look, I didn’t come all this way to fight with you…can we at least try to talk? I'll answer any questions you have and then you can explain to me why you are doing this.” She did not want to spend this whole time fighting with Zula, not when her time here was so short and this was the only way she knew how to try to calm the fire her sister was feeling.

[Zula]

Zula could not remember a time in her life when the words of her sister fell on such deaf ears. She’d always tried to listen, tried to hear what Zuka was saying even if she had an argument with it. Now her defense was so high that she just wanted to refute everything. She was not making mistakes, she was fine, and she would continue to be fine. Zuka could not come back here after all that had happened, after what she had done, and expect her to just drop it all because she said so. That wasn’t going to work.

At Zuka’s request, however, Zula realized just how turned the tables were. Never in her life had Zuka asked for them to just talk. Fighting had always been their solution, it had been the only way as exhausting and exasperating as it was. Zula accepted that it was just how they communicated, as taxing as the cycle could be. So to hear that Zuka wanted to talk caught her off guard, and she was silent, staring at her and quietly seething.

Did she really want to talk? Zula had half a mind to grab what she came for and walk out the door. It was what she’d done when she had felt betrayed by Feena and even if it was childish, it had been the best solution. But Zula had always done her best to try and quell the arguments between her and Zuka, and her sister was obviously attempting to do the same. She could go along with this, for now.

“Fine, we’ll talk,” Zula said, and as much as she itched to cross her arms she kept them at her sides. She didn’t know how long this was going to last, but she figured they might as well get a little bit comfortable. Zula stalked over to where Neva’s living area was set up and took her usual seat on one of the couches. Her posture remained stiff and defiant, as straight as possible. She always seemed to naturally fall into her best noble mannerisms when she was angry, and that at least hadn’t changed.

She waited for Zuka to either take a seat or remain standing, and when she did so Zula eyed her sister and then let the questions fall, one at a time, each articulated individually, “Where have you been all this time? Who is after you that is so dangerous you felt the need to go to all this trouble?”

[Zuka]

This was such a odd feeling, being the voice of reason between the two..or at least trying to be. Zula had always been the calm one, the one with the cool head and Zuka had always been the first to want to jump to a fight. It was almost funny considering their bending types, by all account Zula should have been the hot headed one but she guessed now she was getting her chance. As her sister stood there and comtiplated her offer to talk Zuka waited, almost holding her breath while she did because she was expecting another fight. Zuka waited, wondering if Zula would see reason even if she knew she really had no right to ask that but eventually she agreed and she followed her sister and sat on a chair across from her.

Zuka was going to let Zula set the pace, ask any and as many questions she wanted and she would answer them as best she could. ”The things I’m going to tell you cannot leave this room. Please, that’s all I ask.” After that was out of the way Zuka sighed a moment before sitting up a little bit to answer Zulas questions.

”I’ve been on Kioyshi Island, it was one of the few places where no one would know who I was. “ That was the easy question the next one however took a bit more explaining. ”The Triads.” Zuka paused for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to explain this ”Do you remember that explosion in the Dragon Flats? Zuka waited to see if she remembered ”That was us. There was a woman who was trying to take over and control all of the Triads in the city and she made a deal with the leader of the Platinum Fist and Han….or at least that’s what Han thought. They turned on him and tired to kill him but apparently somehow the cockroach survived and managed to escape."   Zuka's jaw tightened even if Han didn't know she had been there she couldn't say that watching him die didn't give her a sense of pleasure after everything.  Of course, she should have known it was too good to be true.

"The Ghost…he and the leader of the Terra Triad had a...history and he let himself be captured without his armor and mask.  She tried to give him one last chance to join with her. Of course it was all a trap because I was waiting above them. ‘ Even if it had been months ago Zuka still remembered that night well, it had been a close call a few times and she wasn’t sure they were going to actually make it out of there alive.

”When things started The Ghost dealt with Jaya while I dealt with the Fist leader Ula…” Her voice hardened at the memory of their fight. ”It was very close and I think they only way I beat her was because I had bloodbent her. “ There was another surprise Zuka had forgotten to mention to her sister. ”I killed her.” She paused for a moment ”The Ghost put down Jaya and we set the warehouse on fire and made it look like we had died along with them. The reason we had to leave is because every Triad in the city would be looking for us after that, we had given them a major blow and the only way to protect those close to us was for us to disappear because eventually they would have figured out who we were. Jaya knew the Ghosts identity, at that point so did Ula and Han and even if they were dead we had no idea who if anyone Jaya told.  He needed to protect himself and it would have been only a matter of time before they learned the truth about me and being a ex Triad myself it was just…It had to be done.

[Zula]

Zula gave a simple nod to Zuka’s request. It wasn’t like she was going to go telling the whole world her sister was alive, but she let it go and listened as Zuka told her what had happened. Zula never would have guessed she’d end up on Kyoshi Island, and she supposed that was a reason why it ended up being where she stayed. It just seemed so...unlike her sister that of course it would be the perfect place to hide.

“Yes, the city was a mess in the days afterwards.” Zula could remember all the reports and investigations that had went on, everyone trying to pinpoint what had caused it. As Zuka recounted her story, the real explanation made much more sense. Well, somewhat. The mention of the Ghost caught her attention, but Zula held back from interrupting so that she could hear the whole thing. Part of her wanted to ask Zuka why she would even bother getting involved in something like this, but she had run the Dolls, so Zula supposed in a way she was sucked into it no matter what.

At the mention of bloodbending Zula’s eyebrows raised. She had been very unaware that her sister had that capability, master waterbender or not it wasn’t like it was common knowledge. Not to mention an illegal practice, but when had that actually mattered? Zula didn’t bother getting worked up over it, not when so much else had happened. There was a time when she would have shot off into a lecture, though that time had passed. She understood Zuka having to defend herself, and well, if it was between this Ula and Zuka, she obviously preferred the latter alive and well.

She was quiet when Zuka finished, and then sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “I can’t argue with you about your past choices that led up to everything because they are long finished. Nor can I be angry that you defended yourself, as I would have wanted that. As furious as I am about what you’ve done, and believe me I am angry, I do see why you had no choice but to leave.”

It was so frustrating to have to see reason when she just wanted to be angry. It still didn’t pardon Zuka for what she’d done, but could Zula understand her reasons for leaving? Yes, as having every person ever involved in a Triad on her back wouldn’t exactly have been pleasant. The Triads were messy business, dangerous business, and Zula had known that even when she’d figured out her sister was involved in them. In a way, it wasn’t surprising that things had ended up so complicated.

Zula dropped her hand, looking levelly at her sister. “So this friend of yours is The Ghost.” It wasn’t hard to connect the dots, when Zuka had given her enough information to put two and two together. “And you say you were ex-Triad at the time. Did you go into this as the Talon, then? Have you been working along with the Ghost all this time?”

[Zuka]

Now that she had finished with that part of the story Zuka let Zula process it all. There was so much she wanted to tell her sister now that she was laying it all out on the table. About her time in the Earthkingdom when she first started getting involved and learning with the Triads, how and why she started herself down that path…all of it but Zuka didn’t want to take away from her sisters more important questions.

Maybe that time would come later.

It was nice to hear that Zula understood why she had done what she had. Zuka didn’t expect her to forgive her but now that she heard her reasons it lifted a great weight off of her shoulders. Zula’s question about her friend being the Ghost made Zuka simply nod her head but as Zula pushed on for more information about how she got involved with working with him Zuka sighed. ”Its….a complicated story.”

Where to even begin? ”The idea for The Talon came about out of necessity to get revenge on the man that had framed father for being a Equalist supporter.” Zuka explained about the Ambassador and what he had done, that he had been paid off by a disgruntled member of the Red Monsoons because of her and about how she had hired a friend who was a private investigator to find out information for her because she couldn’t get involved. ”I had all the evidence I needed to prove he had set father up and all I had to do was bring the evidence to President Raiko but…it wasn’t enough because it would have all just been swept under the rug. I got the idea from a newspaper article about The Ghost and decided I was going to pay the ambassador a visit. My suit at first was simple, a costume really just some old things I had found in my attic but it worked. After my visit he went and confessed to Raiko the next morning. “ It still gave her a sense of pride knowing she had been able to scare him like she had.

”After that the seed had been planted and over the next month or two I started to collect more things and plan out a better, more protected suit. Initially I was just using The Talon as a means to sabotage the other Triads. I was very careless and I used extreme methods but, I still did some good and I figured that anything I did would just be blamed on The Ghost. Of course, my actions caught his attention and we finally met face to face.”

Zuka stopped and let out a little laugh ”we might work together now but there were a few times in the beginning when we had almost killed each other. “ Zuka told her sister about their first encounter when she had blown up a Triple Threat warehouse that was used in their human trafficking and how the Ghost had found her on that rooftop and moved on to their second encounter where they had beat the ever loving snot out of each other. ”After that fight naturally we both retreated for a bit. I was hurt…bad but I couldn’t explain away my injuries to the healers in town, not even the healers associated with my Triad so I did what I could to mend my wounds and decided to close down the club early so I could deal with them in private. I had come down stairs to get something to drink and saw my P.I friend sitting at the bar with the same injuries I had given the Ghost the night before and he noticed the same on me. It was….a surprise, to say the least.”

She went on to explain how the two of them clashed heads on her way of ‘dealing’ with the Triads to how over the next few months to help ease the pain Zuka had started self medicating with Black Fin to where she had used her bloodbending against Kenji in a weak moment before she finally fled the city to the Northern Watertribe to get help from their grandmother and how she helped Zuka get clean and supported her decision to do what was right.

”When I returned I wanted to do the right thing, I wanted to stop the Triads from hurting people. I stepped down from the Dolls, moved out of the building I…they owned and began going out at night stopping them where I could. I also went to my friend to apologize for what I had done to him and things were very..tense between us and it took a long time for me to gain his trust back but once I had we started working together and, well, obviously you know how that turned out.” Zuka didn’t mean to share all of that with her sister but she thought it might give her a better understanding on why she did the things she had.

[Zula]

Zula listened intently, and as she did so her rigid posture began to relax. Zuka was actually telling her everything, giving her straight answers for the first time in years. It was a bit shocking and unexpected when Zula was so used to her sister holding everything back. Zula embraced this change, nodding along as Zuka spoke, going right back to the origin of The Talon. She should have known that it would be something so personal to have started Zuka out on this path; she would do anything for their father, even in death.

As she listened Zula also found herself looking past the anger, past her emotions, and remembering just who she was talking to. Perhaps her sister hadn’t made the best choices, she’d made mistakes, but underneath it all she had a great heart. Zuka always had that, she’d always had a determination to do right and help people. She didn’t just do crazy, reckless things for no good reason, even if the methods were questionable. Zula knew Zuka was brave, that she always had been and it had shown from the day she packed up and left the Fire Nation. There was no denying those traits, and Zula didn't want to forget about them.

They all had their dark moments. At Zuka’s mention of her self-medicating she frowned, but it was not one of disapproval but sadness. If she had known, maybe she could have done something. Maybe she could have done a lot if she hadn’t been so naive back then, if she had been more understanding. There was no changing the past though, and Zula was thankful for their grandmother for getting Zuka clean. It only added to the mystery that was her family in the Northern Water Tribe, the family that she didn’t know but owed immensely.

When Zuka had finished Zula gave a slow nod. It was a lot to take in, a lot to learn about her sister in such a short amount of time. It had eased her anger, knowing these things that Zuka had kept from her for so long. Really, Zula hadn’t known her sister that well in a very long time, and now she found herself remembering, no longer having to try and figure out her twin who was shrouded in mystery.

“You believed you were doing what was right,” Zula said slowly, “and perhaps you were. I know that you have always wanted to do your best to help people, of many different kinds. That is more honorable than I can say for many of those in this city who are actually in a position that’s supposed to help the people who live in it.”

She sighed, and Zula leaned back against the couch. “When I first found out you were The Talon, I was furious. But at the same time, it wasn’t shocking. You’d already given up a life of nobility for a life in the Triads. How could I be so surprised that you’d decided to do that, too? Of course, it would be you of all people who found themselves entangled with The Ghost.”

She shook her head, but there was much less anger in it now. “Trouble has always found you, but you’ve always tried to make the best out of it. I still don’t understand how or why you chose this path in life, but I see why you set out to do what came after. You had good intentions in mind.”

Zula looked up at Zuka, “What happens now? Are The Ghost and The Talon living in shadow for the rest of their lives?”