Disclaimers: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or anything related to it. I am not earning a profit from this fanfiction.

This fanfic started out as a drabble. I liked where it was going, so I continued to write it. It basically covers what took place in between episodes 312, "The Western Air Temple" and 314, "The Boiling Rock, Part 1." Zuko's behavior towards the other characters changes drastically in those episodes, and I want to at least explore what else may have brought about the change. For instance, I want to cover specific interactions with other characters.

I originally posted this fanfic as Crescendo back in April 2008. Numerous things took place over the last couple of years to hinder the creative process. I decided to take a new approach to the story. I am making the original prologue of Crescendo and the chapters I had in progress into a two-shot prequel.

I wrote a sequel back in 2008. It's the prologue to a larger story arc. It takes place after the end of the series. The original Crescendo will be known from here on as "Prelude." As I said before it should be considered a two-shot or short story.

"Prelude, Part 2"

By: Inazuma Akai

After practice, Aang went off on his own, preferring the peace the inner sanctum of the air temple provided. As he felt footsteps approaching, he quickly realized only one person could have discovered his whereabouts so far into the temple.

"You've been acting strange lately…well, strange for you anyway." Toph's voice reached his ears, its tone sounding only slightly uninterested. As he began to make out the outline of her body in the dimly lit room, he could see her sightless eyes peering in his direction, suspiciously. Aang knew she was blind, but it was clear to him Toph could see things people with vision could not. It was certainly one of the many disconcerting things he had witnessed. He stood firm and tried to slow his heartbeat.

"I haven't been acting strange. I've just got a lot on my mind." It was a cop out, and he knew it. He almost flinched when she continued her interrogation.

"I can tell you're lying." She teased in a sing-song voice.

"Oh, so now you're calling me a liar?" Aang retorted. He wasn't all that upset she had told him he was lying. He was more offended she had seen through him.

Toph's face contorted into a slight pout. She could tell by Aang's vibrations that her accusation upset him. She clicked her tongue and crossed her arms.

"Okay," She began, slowly. "Maybe you're not lying," She played along. "But you are trying to conceal something." Her expression softened just the tiniest bit. "Everyone's been really stressed out lately. I can't walk five steps without feeling all the tension the person next to me is experiencing. I mean literally. It's like walking on glass," She continued, unperturbed by his lack of response. "You know my approach to life, right? I do what I want, when I want. It's the stress-free method. Of course, I can't do that when everyone around me is acting like the world is going to end. Jeez, have some self-confidence!"

Aang's face contorted into a scowl. He understood Toph showed concern by antagonizing her friends. But in this particular case, negative reinforcement just wouldn't work. Part of him appreciated her trying to 'cheer him up.' The other part of him wanted to just be left alone. He vouched for a more neutral response to her comment. "Thanks, Toph. I'll try."

Toph was surprised. She expected him to show either anger or resignation. Instead he became stoic, almost emotionless. Apparently, he refused to use the direct approach to address his issues. In which case, she decided it would be best to leave him to his thoughts. She would wait for him to come out of his funk on his own.

"If you say so," She told him before walking away.

Aang found himself alone again. He'd spent countless hours brooding, and he still hadn't found the solution to his problem. All he had accomplished so far was alienate his friends.

Inhale, exhale. Her chest rose and fell. She could feel the stress slowly dissipate, and her tense muscles began to loosen. She went through her warm-up form. Her movements were steady and fluid. Calm settled on her mind.

She smiled, thinking, "Complete balance is my goal." Deciding to advance her practice, she summoned water to her from the nearby fountain. The water answered her beacon obediently. It wrapped around her shoulders and ended at the back of her hands. She wore the mass like a boa constrictor using it to lash out at her imaginary opponent. The kata only hinted at the true danger involved in challenging a master waterbender.

Katara deftly moved across the surface of the platform. Being out in the open meant she could witness the first droplets of rain fall from the sky. It rained gently at first. She could feel it sliding down the sides of her face. She was of course unperturbed. The rain began to increase its intensity. A huge droplet splashed in her eyes as she looked up. She laughed, wiping it away. She was enjoying her element. Getting back to business, she started the kata over. Only this time she accounted for the presence of water. The large amount of rain meant she could try a move she'd started working on.

She stomped her right foot to the ground, shooting her arms out evenly at her sides. She held them there and strained to maintain the form. She could only control the rain pouring down within a radius of 12 feet. She lifted the rain above her head then separated it into sections. The particles flailed listlessly as she concentrated on her next feat. Moving quickly she turned the sections of water into icicles. The icicles bared sharp points.

Katara strained briefly against the new density of the water. Next, a thrill passed through Katara as she let the ice shards hurl into an adjacent pillar. They careened into the pillar, shattering. She gave a huff of satisfaction before settling out of her stance. Stretching out her tense limbs, she spared one more look at her handy work before heading back to the inner parts of the temple. She made it ten paces before a flash of lightning, too close for comfort, struck nearby. She sped her pace but would not make it in time before the next strike, aimed above her head, came down on her. Without warning, a dark figure appeared beside her. He made a spinning motion with his body, deftly moving her out of harm's way. Now he stood in the same spot she once occupied. His arms then moved above his head. In a fluid motion reminiscent of her own techniques, the figure absorbed the lightning through one outstretched arm and released it off into the distance, far away from them. Once the coast was clear, the figure breathed in deeply. His hair was a bit harried after the encounter. Without saying a word, he turned. Katara's eyes widened when she saw Zuko. He wore his normal expression, but he seemed even more perturbed than usual. He grabbed her arm and dragged her to the safety of a nearby over hanging. As soon as they were no longer out in the open, he went into his customary tirade.

"Are you nuts?" In the aftermath of Katara's little stunt, Zuko's emotions were quite raw. In such times his thoughts tumbled out whether he wanted them to or not. If his uncle had been around, he would have referred to Zuko's outbursts as the 'uncensored truth.'

"Of course not!" Katara was fuming now. How dare he make such an insinuation! She thought.

"Hn…either all girls are crazy, or I just have the pleasure of meeting the insane ones." Zuko muttered darkly.

"Thank you," Katara said between gritted teeth. She would not react negatively to his comment. And as payment for his good deed she would refrain from responding the way she truly felt about his observation.

Realizing he was on the verge of undoing weeks of progress in their relationship, Zuko quickly apologized for his harsh words. "Sorry. I- I didn't mean to yell like that."

Katara nodded wordlessly at his admission. They stared at the ground for several minutes.

"That was some impressive bending. I mean before the lightning and all." He added awkwardly.

Katara chuckled nervously. "Yeah, you, too. It was kind of creepy though. Where'd you learn that?"

Zuko shrugged. "From my uncle. He learned it from watching waterbending forms."

The Water Tribe maiden perked up at his statement. "I've never heard of a firebender being interested in anything that wasn't Fire Nation."

"Well, my uncle says all of the nations can learn something from each other."

"Your uncle sounds like a wise man." Katara continued, "You should probably teach Aang how to redirect lightning. It would have helped a lot when Azula-" She paused and thought better of continuing the statement. Zuko also felt uncomfortable and shifted his weight to his left leg, staring off at a spot over her head.

Somewhat uncomfortable, Katara decided to break the awkwardness her comment elicited by plopping herself on the ground, lacking her usual grace. Her companion followed suit, mindfully giving her space. Neither spoke but instead opted to gaze out at the gradually clearing sky. A rainbow could be seen in the distance as the last droplets of the past rain trickled down. They could hear the distant calls of wildlife as they emerged from their dens.

Katara pulled her legs up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. She sighed deeply. Silence was not something she was accustomed. Even when Aang, Sokka, and Toph took a break from their antics, she could always count on Momo's incessant chattering. Introducing a topic of conversation with the former Fire Nation prince would be an ordeal. The two were on amicable terms, but there was still the possibility of breaking the thinly formed truce. She thought long and hard before saying anything. She settled on discussing Aang and the others.

"You and Aang seem to have found common ground." Katara began looking at the other out the corner of her eye.

"Yeah, he's a good kid albeit pretty tense… at least that how he's been lately."

"And Sokka?" Katara inquired, pointedly ignoring the last part of Zuko's statement.

At the mention of Sokka's name, Zuko smirked. "His presence has become agreeable." He answered neutrally.

Katara blinked at his response, having expected him to have some words of criticism concerning Sokka. Then she smiled deviously.

"What about Toph?" She asked finally.

At the mention of the blind earthbender, Zuko's eyes widened. There was no easy way to describe Toph. He heard from Sokka that Toph was the daughter of a highly respected and extremely wealthy family in the Earth Kingdom called the Bei Fongs. Yet he found it hard to believe Toph would ever allow herself to be subjected to the life of an aristocrat.

"She's very…unique…" He answered, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

Katara eyed him strangely wondering if he had trouble articulating himself. He seemed pretty adept at doing so when he was angry. Perhaps he was worried about offending her friend? She smiled lightly at the thought. At least he was taking her feelings into consideration.

"Yes, she is very unique." Katara said with an imperceptible smile on her lips.

They both knew what Zuko had been trying to say. Toph wasn't unique in the artistic sense. Nor was she unique in the 'King Boomie' sense (he was just plain kooky). The blind earthbender had her ways about her, and she was undoubtedly stuck in them. Toph didn't abide by convention. Universal traditions were lost on her. She was always coated in a thin layer of dirt. She proclaimed it was a "healthy coating of earth," but said coating started to smell after a while. She may have been able to bend larger quantities of dirt off herself, yet the sweat and musk she accumulated from practice and/or play remained. Unless Toph became a stinkbender, she would have to learn to bathe regularly.

Katara reflected on his statements. She came to realize he was getting along rather well with their little group. It was as if everyone had forgotten he chased them clear across the world. Her reservations were beginning to seem less justified in the eyes of her friends. While her suspicions of their newest member ebbed quite significantly, they would still have to rebuild the trust formed during their imprisonment under Ba Sing Se.

For now, she'd be satisfied with their companionable silence.

Mai held no illusions of what would come next. The Fire Nation's princess was anything but forgiving. Azula possessed an evil streak that would terrify normal people. Unsurprising, fear was no longer familiar to Mai. Being in Azula's presence demanded the absence of fear or the ignorance of one's predicament. Either way anyone who could stand Azula for any length of time was abnormal.

The gloomy teenager stopped thinking of herself as normal a long time ago. Aristocracy taught her emotions were useless and bonds even more so. Maybe that's why she and Azula had gotten along so well. Mai became used to lacking any feelings, and Azula possessed none.

It was a harsh reality, but they were now enemies. In truth, Mai knew the day would eventually come. Her relationship with Zuko reawakened in her emotions she'd forgotten. His search for the truth initially seemed angst ridden at best. As she really started to ponder his predicament, she realized something. Zuko always chose his own way in the end. He always followed his heart and did what was right no matter the consequence. It made her question her own motives. Her newfound admiration of him fed her affection for him, in spite of his assumed desertion of her.

Sacrificing her freedom for his had been worth it. Now she awaited her fate, her conscience clear of any regrets.

Author's Notes: I am so sorry it took so long to get part 2 out. : ( I'd like to thank all those who have reviewed and encouraged me to finish this story. Many thanks go to you all! : )

All new and old readers of my work please review! I'd love feedback and constructive criticism. My goal is to continue to grow as a writer.

Also, I've designed a 5-star system for my readers' convenience. Feel free to use it to review the fic.

Inazuma Akai's 5-Star Rating System for Fanfiction:

1 star – This fic is unreadable! Get a beta-reader stat!

2 stars – This story needs a face lift in the worst possible way…

3 stars – Not bad, but with a little more effort you can make it a really good fic.

4 stars – There are some minor errors here and there but otherwise it's a very nice fic!

5 stars – It's an exceptional work of art! More, please?

Thank you all for reading!