This is my first Avatar The Last Airbender fanfiction thank you to Mullach21 for beta reading the first chapter my story and helping editing I highly recommend you check out their work and I would also like to thank LunaStar07 for helping out with my writing and beta reading my work hope you enjoy my story

Disclaimer I don't own anything related to ATLA

It had been a few days since Zuko left his uncle's side to go down his own path. He had set up his camp as night settled in, the sun disappearing over the horizon and darkness enveloping the trees. Zuko sighed heavily as he stared down at the blue and white mask in his hands. His callous fingers traced around the devilish grin as his mind flashed back to the night he re-dawned his dark persona. Him. towering over that vile man who treated his uncle and him like trash; making his uncle dance for him like a monkey. He felt good taking those swords for himself, but he started to wonder if his uncle was right, was stealing truly worth it. He shook his head, of course it was worth it. It was for survival. Nothing else matters except completing his mission of capturing the avatar.

Zuko continued to debate in his head whether or not what he was doing was moral or justified but his thoughts were soon interrupted by the loud growl in his stomach. Zuko groaned when he felt his stomach ache and gripped his sides in pain as he put down his blue spirit mask. He turned and rummaged through his pack, searching for any rations or scrap of food he may have had left over. His search bore no fruit. All he found were gold pieces and other useless junk he stole. He made a mental note to pawn most of this stuff off when he finally found a town to sell to, but he shook his head, knowing he would need food soon or else he would starve, and so would his ostrich horse. He couldn't let that bird die. It had been useful so far and a faithful beast, even if he did steal it. Zuko picked up his Dao swords, strapping them to his back, and pulled out his mask, slipping it over his face and tying off the straps, becoming the blue spirit. Zuko walked over to his ostrich horse. The beast was fast asleep, and he double-checked to make sure its reins were tied tight to the tree. "I'll be back soon. I'm gonna get us something to eat," Zuko whispered to the sleeping creature outing the campfire with a wave of his hand. "Time to hunt," he said to himself as he went through the forest, leaving his camp. As he shifted silently through the woods he pulled out his pearl dagger and slashed at the trees, marking his way back to his camp.

Zuko scoured the forest, creeping through the darkness, even leaping from tree to tree, but he couldn't find anything to eat. It seemed his hunger was starting to slow him down. He was used to hunting with only his swords but somehow even the smallest of animals slipped from his fingers, and he knew he couldn't keep this up. His body was already feeling exhausted from traveling, but as he hunched over, leaning against a tree trying to catch his breath, he heard voices in the distance. His ears eagerly perked up. The voices were soft but not too far. He listened carefully, holding his breath to try to hear them and he could tell the voices were feminine. Maybe they were camping out here as well. Maybe they were some royals or other pompous officials, which meant they may have food. That sounded pretty good to him, and his stomach quickly agreed. Zuko leaped to his feet and made his way quickly to where the voices were being carried to him by the soft breeze.

The Kyoshi warriors had set up camp near the road on their way to Ba Sing Se. After the Avatar had left their island they decided they would no longer isolate themselves as the war continued to wage on and let innocents continue to get hurt. They wanted to help, and by heading to Ba Sing Se they could do a lot of good helping refugees seeking shelter. The leader, Suki, was tending to the Ostrich horses, helping to get them settled in while Aikio was setting up the tents with Ami. Kikki and Tam were both gathering up the food and rations, raising them up into the trees so no platypus bears could get to them during the night. Suki turned and smiled at her sisters, glad so many decided to join her. A few had to remain back at the island to protect their people, but knowing that the island was in good hands eased her mind as they traveled.

"Captain, all done with the food," Kikki called out to Suki as she finished tying the rope that hoisted up the food anchoring it to the tree trunk.

"Good job. Now, Aikio, when you're done with the tents, make sure to double-check Kikki's knots; we don't want a repeat incident like last time," Suki said cheerfully as the girls giggled, while Kikki let out an annoyed huff.

"That was one time!"

"Yeah and next time you'll know to double check your knots, and not to take naps while you're supposed to be securing our rowboats too," Suki said smugly, imagining Kikki screaming for help when the boat she was napping in was pulled away by the current. The girls laughed even louder now, all picturing Kikki's face as Kikki huffed again, her face flushed with embarrassment.

"Okay, girls enough chit-chat let's get settled in and off to bed. We need to get up bright and early if we wanna make good time getting to Ba Sing Se," Suki said as the girls nodded in agreement. "Yes, Captain," the girls sounded off as they started heading to their individual tents, while Suki did the final checks on the supplies and followed along after making sure camp was secure.

Zuko had found the Kyoshi camp and as he stayed in the trees he observed them quietly. Seeing as they were a group of only women, he thought at first this would be an easy job, but as he observed them, seeing them both well armed and clearly physically fit, he could tell just by the way they walked around the camp they were well-trained warriors. His mind ended up wandering to his sister, knowing full well at an early age that girls could be as deadly as any man, and especially in Azula's case, even deadlier. Zuko needed to remain cautious. He was in no state for a fight, but if he could get what he needed from them then that should be enough.

Zuko stayed close to the bushes, melting himself into the darkness as he waited for sleep to take hold of the warriors. A few hours passed and he could feel even sleep wanted to claim him, but hunger wouldn't let him, and now he had no choice but to move. He stepped out of the bushes, trying to keep himself clung to the shadows as he tiptoed his way around the camp, making sure not disturb the tents. He climbed up the tree to get to the food hanging above the camp. Zuko wrapped his legs around one of the stronger branches as he flipped his body around to hang upside down like a wolfbat as he unsheathed his swords. Reaching out with the blades, trying to reach the food stash, he carefully used the blades like scissors to cut one of the ropes of the net holding all the food together as he extended his arm and hooked one of the blades through a cloth package, slowly pulling it from the rest of the stash. Zuko bit his lip as he tried his best to ease the package over to him, and the cloth package slowly slid down the blade. He caught it, pulling it into his grasp, and sighed heavily in relief. Zuko took the package and examined it, quickly seeing it was a bag of uncooked rice. He decided this would be enough and strapped it along his back. He started to slowly try to untangle himself from the tree, but as he did, he didn't notice the cut he had made into the rope holding up the food stash began to unravel and before he dropped from the tree, he looked up and his face went pale, watching the food and rations come crashing down onto the campgrounds below.

The loud crash immediately woke up the Kyoshi warriors. They jumped out of their tents, grabbing their weapons to defend the camp. They pulled out their katanas and golden fans, and readied themselves in fighting positions while they quickly checked the camp. Zuko held his breath and dared not move, hoping to not give away his position in the tree. But he knew they would see him sooner or later if he didn't move. They continued to scan the premise to try to spot who was out there as Suki stood in the center of the girls.

As their eyes darted around, one of the girls, Tam, saw a blue glimmer in the darkness above them. She looked up, squinting her eyes, which went wild when she saw the blue demon face staring back at her.. "There it is! There's the thief!" she yelled, pointing up with her katana.

"Crap," Zuko said under his breath, knowing full well he screwed up.

As all the Kyoshi Warriors looked up to see the thief, Zuko jumped down, lunging himself at the group to catch them off guard. He quickly shoved them down and out of his way. He jumped to his feet and bolted. The Kyoshi Warriors quickly recovered and sprinted after the masked man. Suki signaled for her sisters to split up and surround the thief while she ran full speed behind him.

Zuko tried to bob and weave his body through the trees and bushes, but the girls were relentless. As he got closer to the cover of the forest, they would slash down upon him or throw their fans to drive him back, forcing him to stick to running down the dirt road and keeping him in the moonlight. Zuko barely noticed one of the girls were right in front of him, charging straight at him. Zuko quickly reached behind him, drawing his broadsword, and slashed out to parry the girl's oncoming attack. The momentary block was all the Kyoshi warriors needed to catch up and surround the masked thief.

Zuko pushed himself back as he looked at the woman surrounding him, His mind quickly thinking of a way to escape, or at least how to hold them off until he thought of one... With a loud huff, he took his Dao Sword and split it into the twin blades, spinning them around in his grip as he got low in his fighting stance, waiting for them to make the first strike.

Suki eyed up the masked man. He knew how to use those swords of his and she would be a fool to underestimate his ability. But as she examined him closer, she saw the slight quiver and shake in his stance and in his arms. Her lips curled into a smirk, knowing he was tired from running. The other girls had a similar smirk on their faces "You led us on a merry chase, but we'll be taking back what you stole," Suki told the thief. The masked demon remained silent and tightened his grip on his blades. The Kyoshi leader gave a shrug before locking her eyes onto the black sockets of the mask. "Now sisters, take him down!"

Zuko quickly slashed his blades along the ground by his feet, launching a cloud of dirt up to blind the two girls charging in front of him. They became stunned by the dirt slamming into their eyes. Zuko took this opportunity to leap at them, ramming his knee into Aikio's gut and knocking the air out of her lungs, sending her sprawling on the floor. He then twisted his body and rolled forward, dodging a frantic swing from the blinded Tam, as he swung his heel into the back of her leg, tripping her. She collapsing face first into the ground. Zuko got back on his feet as the warriors behind him began to slash and swipe their blades at him. His arms were shaking but with the pump of adrenaline rushing through his heart, he began to steady himself, blocking every blow sent at him.

Suki was surprised at this one man and how he was able to hold his own against five of them. Even in his obviously tired state she never knew a non-bender could be so skilled. She watched him gracefully duck under another slash of her fan before she felt the sting of the butt of his sword being slammed into her back, making her stumble forward. She gritted her teeth, hating that she was actually admiring his skill. She shook her head, trying to focus back on the fight at hand and advanced again to strike him.

Zuko knew he needed to end this fight quickly or he wouldn't last much longer. His heart was beating out of his chest, and his breath had become ragged in his throat. His lungs were burning as he fought to keep standing. He started to go on the offensive, slashing wildly, spinning the two blades mercilessly at the three—and now five warriors, the two girls who had been knocked down now returning to the battle. Their fans and katanas bounced off his steel, the sound ringing in their ears and echoing through the trees. Zuko then tried to parry the next few attacks that came down at him, but he found himself beginning to stumble, his stance weakening and legs feeling like jello. His arm faltered as another fan came down at him and his right sword got knocked out of his grip. Zuko's eyes widened in shock as he had to jump back to avoid the next few attacks, getting to a safer distance.

Suki smirked at the masked man, now down to one sword, as she and her sisters bared down on him as he backed away defensively. He flipped his left blade to a backhanded position as he attempted to use it to shield himself from any oncoming attacks. "We have you now," Suki mumbled to herself, already feeling victorious as she and the Kyoshi warriors prepared to strike again, but suddenly stopped in shock as the man in front of them fell to his knees.

Zuko was breathless, his body aching and he felt like he couldn't even lift his arms to fire bend, let alone wield a sword to fight back. He rested his last sword down on the ground in front of him. He knew when he was beaten and let out a sigh. He just hoped that whatever they decide to do with him, they made it quick. A single thought crossed his mind. 'An honorable death...'

"What...what is he doing?" Tam asked as she glanced at her sisters for some kind of answer as they all looked down at him.

"I think he's...conceding," Aikio said with an arched brow.

"Con...seeding?" Tam asked, confused, which made Aikio growl lowly in annoyance.

"It means admitting defeat! You know, surrendering," she said through gritted teeth as Tam nodded.

"Yeah...Okay got it."

Suki rolled her eyes as the girls spoke to each other and gave them a quick glare, making them all fall silent. She then turned her gaze back to the man before them. "Return whatever it is you stole." She spoke in a harsh but commanding tone as she and the Kyoshi warriors got back in their fighting stances.

Zuko knew he had no choice as he reached behind his back, pulling the sack that hung over his shoulder, and slowly placed it down in front of him. The girls eyed the sack he put in front of them, seeing the small bag leaking some uncooked rice as he pulled his hands away, keeping them in clear view as to not to look threatening.

"Food...this was all for food?" Kikki chimed in, louder than she meant to be, but all the girls had the same reaction, although not as audibly. Suki was still stunned. she thought, maybe he was stealing weapons or gold or their other valuables, but seeing him fight so hard just for a bag of rice was unbelievable. She then started to realize why she noticed the shaking and weakness in his stance. He was hungry—no, starving.

Suki folded her fan and sheathed her weapon in her scabbard as she stepped closer, reaching for the bag and retying it so no more rice would leak out. Her eyes then gazed at the man only a few feet in front of her and she finally got a good look at his mask exposed to the moonlight and with a sudden realization, she finally recognized it. "You... you are the Blue Spirit aren't you," she said getting to her feet.

Zuko lifted his head to look up at her. She has said his alias, and he couldn't help himself but stare. She was beautiful. he had to admit her soft olive skin was flawless, her auburn hair nearly glowed like fire in the light of the moon, and her eyes a soft blue, like pools of water he could get lost in. He was relieved that his mask hid his flushed cheeks before he mentally scolded himself, knowing this wasn't the time nor place to be gawking at girls. After a moment of silence, he watched her arch her brow expecting some sort of response from him as he finally gave a subtle nod.

She then let a soft smile grace her lips "I've seen your wanted posters. Seems the Fire Nation is offering a hefty price for your head," she said, trying to gauge his reaction as she continued. "I've also heard stories about you, like how you steal from the rich to give to the poor, some saying you are a ghost of a fallen soldier roaming the countryside, others say you are either a monster or a spirit from the Spirit World, sent here to exact justice and vengeance." "But one story I heard interested me the most. You signal handily broke the Avatar out of a Fire Nation fortress. That you faced down nearly an army of Fire Nation soldiers to save him, with just two swords."

As she spoke about the tales people had made up about him, mystifying him, he nearly chuckled to himself at how absurd some of the stories about him have gotten, but as she spoke of Pohuai Stronghold he tensed, his arms becoming stiff as he gripped his knees, remembering that night in almost vivid detail. Remembering the fighting, how he had basically betrayed his people by freeing the Avatar. Fighting his own people made a knot grow in his stomach.

Suki saw his reaction to that last story, almost confirming it. "At first, when I heard about you freeing the Avatar, I couldn't believe it to be honest. To think one man could fight off so many soldiers by himself...It sounded ridiculous. As if someone made the whole thing up, or he took the praise of what the Avatar did, while he stood in the background."," she said and she could feel him glaring at her as she belittled him.

"But seeing you fight first hand, you holding your own against us five Kyoshi warriors even in your state...I have no doubt in my mind that story is true." She said, smiling warmly at him.

When she said Kyoshi warriors, it finally dawned on Zuko where he recalled seeing these girls before. They are from Kyoshi Island and he distinctly remembered how he nearly burned down their village when chasing the Avatar, which made him curse his luck. He couldn't let them learn who he was, now knowing they would definitely kill him if they knew his identity. Zuko then took a breath and bowed his head in thanks as he remained in his knelt position not wanting to speak.

"During the fight, you had plenty of opportunities to kill us but you didn't, and when you were cornered you admitted defeat. Only someone with a great sense of honor would admit when they lost, even when facing a couple of girls," She spoke with a soft chuckle making Zuko arch his brow wondering what she was getting at.

"That's why I think you should come with us," Suki said in a calm tone while everyone looked at her like she just grew a tail.

"You want him to come with us?" Kikki asked, dumbfounded.

"Yeah, isn't that a little much? He was stealing from us after all," Aikio said as she eyed up the masked man.

Ami shook her head "I'll have to agree with Aikio, Captain. Plus, he's...he's a he," she said glancing at the girls as they were all skeptical of this idea.

Zuko almost wanted to speak out that this idea was probably bad as well, though he remained silent, not sure speaking out would help his predicament.

"Look, I get it that he was stealing from us, but he's a great warrior and if he were to help us, I'm sure together we do a lot of good," Suki said glancing at the Kyoshi warriors before turning back to the Blue Spirit.

"Avatar Aang is a friend of ours and you saved him, there is hope for this war to end because of you." She spoke as she stepped closer to him. "What kind of person would I be if I would turn away from someone who helped my friend."

Zuko looked down and away from her gaze, thinking carefully about what he should do, knowing that if he went with them, it's more likely they will figure out who he is and blow his cover and outing who the blue spirit truly is. Then again, if she is friends with the Avatar, it's more than just a little likely traveling with her that they would bump into the boy, giving him a better chance to capture him. Plus, they may have more food for him and his ostrich horse and his stomach really wanted him to agree.

Zuko looked back up at the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, giving a nod, making her smile even wider into a cheerful grin. "Great, but if you join up with us it's not a free pass. Everyone has to help and pull their own weight, and that means cooking, cleaning, helping pack and set up camp. No lazing around, got it?" She said, reaching out her hand to help him to stand.

Zuko glanced at her outstretched hand and took a few seconds before reluctantly taking it as she helped him to his feet. "My name is Suki, leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. These are my sisters," she said, gesturing to the girls behind her. "Now before we get too far ahead of ourselves what's your name?" Suki asked, looking at him.

Zuko held her gaze but remained silent, not saying a word. He couldn't or else he'd be found out. He wasn't sure if they would remember him or not.

Suki raised a brow as she looked at him strangely as she asked him again, with no response. "Can you talk? Are you mute or have you taken a vow of silence?" she asked and Zuko just shook his head, not really answering any of her questions. "This is going to be a little difficult," she groaned as she rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"Okay, we'll just have to work around this as best as we can," she said turning to her girls. "I may be the captain, but we are a team. So girls. what would you think if... Blue here joins us to Ba Sing Se?" she said. as Zuko glanced at her before turning to the other warriors. Each of them had fairly same confused and skeptical looks on their faces.

"Well I guess it wouldn't be the worse thing for him to join, but it would give me a chance to get back at him later for that dirt in the eye thing earlier," Aikio said with a smirk as she punched her fist into her other hand. She was much older than the rest of the girls, Suki's second in command, and as she spoke the rest of the girls seemed to relax.

"Yeah, I guess it wouldn't be the worst idea in the world," Kikki spoke next, and each other of the girls gave their approval. though some of them with a little reluctance.

Suki smiled and turned to the Blue Spirit. "It would be an honor if you did join us, Blue." She smiled but her smile faded from her lips as he picked up his sword, until she saw him start to write something into the dirt with the tip of the blade. "I still have to decide. I'll let you know in the morning my decision." she read out as he wrote.

Suki frowned at this but he wiped the message and wrote a new message. "I'm camped not too far from here. I'll still need to collect my things, but I'll let you know my answer when the sun rises." he wrote before giving her a bow.

Suki gave a nod and a knowing smile. "I understand, but if you can let us know by then, I would be grateful. We will be packing up in the morning, so be sure to meet us before we head on our way. I'm not sure if we can wait for you to decide."

Zuko gave another nod as he looked at the bag of rice, about to reach for it, but pulled his hand away, unsure if he could take it."Go ahead, take it. We will need you fed before we continue traveling. Besides, no snack breaks till we have to set up camp again," she said, and Zuko gave a thankful nod before grabbing the sack of rice and slinging it over his shoulder.

Zuko turned to the Kyoshi warriors, giving them all a solemn bow before he turned to Suki. He bowed before her as she and the others bowed before him. Zuko then turned and started to walk towards the bushes and Suki called out. "Remember to be by our camp by dawn with your answer."Zuko turned, giving her a thumbs up before snatching up his other sword and sheathing both Dao blades in his scabbard and disappearing into the darkness.

Just as he left their sight, a wave of tiredness came over the Kyoshi Warriors as they turned to head back to their own camp. "Come on girls, off to bed. We need to get some rest before the sun comes out," Suki told them as she let out a yawn. They headed back to their tents, not having the energy to clean up the mess from the fallen food stash, and they slunk into their sheets.