Chapter 4.1- And so the Dragons Danced (ATLA; OC FirebenderSI)

"I'm so sorry about all that, Natsu," Lee said as we walked towards the great hall for breakfast the next day. Of course, when we walked in, it was to whispers and stares. We were the first years who spent our first night in the academy in solitary because we'd beaten up a couple of fifth years and their friends. It was a shock when the fight started, and Toji had singlehandedly taken down three of them with nothing but his fists. Strong for a ten-year-old, he was. Lee was much weaker, and I'd taken a nasty hit defending the boy from one of Noaya's attacks.

Don’t ask me why I did it. I don’t know either, but since we got out of solitary in the morning, the other boy had been following me like a lost puppy and apologizing all the way through.

"For the seven thousandth time, Lee. It’s fine. Naoya got a lucky hit. The last he ever will against someone like me, and I took my pound of flesh from him." I'd be surprised if the boy got out of the infirmary for a few weeks at least. I'd broken a bone or two and burned him pretty seriously. The hit had gotten me angry, and apparently, I was terrible at controlling myself when I was angry. Only the fact that literally the entire hall saw Naoya start the fight had kept me from more serious punishment, but I was probably the new record holder for the fastest time taken to receive a strike on one’s permanent record. Toji and Lee had been spared that particular honor. All of Toji's opponents could still walk when the fight had ended, and Lee hadn't managed to even land a punch on anyone. His firebending had been pitifully weak, and I'd spent more time defending him than I'd ever like.

"But the lucky hit came when you were trying to defend me. Please accept my apologies for being so weak," the boy pressed.

"Fine. I'll accept your apology when you stop."

"Stop?"

"Stop being so weak. That's all I need from you."

"Yosh, Natsu. Yes, I will stop being so weak. That is my new ambition. Thank you, Natsu," he said, rushing over to a table made up of people I could recognize from orientation. Faces only, though. No names.

When I joined Toji at the same table we'd shared yesterday, the boy just looked up at me with a quirk of his lips.

"You're not so bad, Genius boy. I've never seen anyone near our age hand Noaya his ass like that," he said, showing a masterful ability to avoid taking responsibility for the situation he'd caused.

"You had no need to goad him into a fight right then and there," I said after taking a bite of my breakfast.

"Of course I did. He backed off because of your name. He would have come back for me the second you weren't able to interfere. By forcing him to come on the attack right after you defused the situation, I forced you to get involved, and now he won't mess with me anymore after what you did to him yesterday. I dare say anyone who would have even had the idea in their heads would have rethought it already."

"Well, aren't you just a little bit too manipulative for a kid?"

"We're all kids. It doesn't make us any less manipulative than the adults. In fact, I think it makes us better at it," he rebutted.

"Yesterday was your win, Toji Zenin. But only because I had stood between the two of you. If I was only a few feet to the left or right, I would have let your cousin do what he willed to you and lost no sleep about it."

"Sure you would have, Natsu. Sure you would have." The doubt in his tone was obvious.

"You overestimate my ability to care for things that are none of my business."

"No. No, I don't. In fact, I've gotten your entire measure from yesterday. If you hadn't taken that hit for that Lee boy, I might have believed your claims of callousness. But after that? Nah. You're a bleeding heart. No chance you're convincing anyone otherwise." I just scowled at his reply and took another bite of my breakfast.

"I would never have expected you to interact with one such as him, though. Especially with what your Grandfather has said about the colonies."

"What are you talking about?"

"You really don't know? Oh, this is rich. Lee has Earth Kingdom blood. He stinks of it. Practically wafts from every pore. The stocky frame. The hair. Even the facial features. I'm surprised he can even firebend with blood like that."

"And what does that have to do with my Grandfather?" I asked, ignoring the racism with practiced ease. The Fire Nation's belief in its superiority is only one of the multitude of reasons why the solution proposed in the TV series would never actually work out. Peace would only come with victory or death. Nothing else would suffice.

"Well, your Grandfather has been publicly criticizing the dilution of Fire Nation blood for as long as the colonies have existed. I'm surprised you don't know any of this. Guess behind the fancy fighting, you're still a spoiled, sheltered rich kid."

"Big words from a Zenin." The horn went off before he could reply, signifying the start of our very first class of the day. PE. Well, not with that exact name. It was called Physical Discipline and Fitness Training.

When we reported to the field that was chosen for us, it was to assemble in front of a man with broad shoulders and the kind of arms that could crush a watermelon between them. If one Googled "musclehead," I'm sure his image would be the very first one to come up. When he spoke, it was in a deep baritone that matched his frame almost perfectly.

"Welcome, young tadpoles. I am Hiroshi. It is my duty to mold your bodies into weapons to strike fear into the hearts of those who would name themselves as enemies of the Fire Nation," he said before walking across our assembly line and staring at us all without moving his expression.

When he stopped in front of Toji, part of me held my breath, waiting for my roommate to say or do something that would leave me with a whole room to myself. Luckily for him, he avoided pissing off the man who looked strong enough to rip our heads straight from our shoulders. And of course, once he passed Toji and stopped in front of me, I almost actually took a step back.

From far away, I couldn't feel it, but now I could. The man radiated menace. It was like being near a lion or bear. The man triggered the instinctive fight-or-flight senses in my brain. He made them go haywire. And when he leaned forward, I damn near fell right on my ass. It was all I could do to keep myself standing at attention.

Once he left me, and I could breathe again, it took me a bit to notice that he'd gone straight to Lee next. And the colony boy put up an impressively brave face in the presence of the menacing teacher. When Master Hiroshi returned to the front of the class, he began speaking.

"Some of you have already decided to use your bodies to strike fear into the hearts of your fellow students. That will only be tolerated because I had yet to teach you anything. After now, any such behavior will be quickly and personally punished by me." He punctuated the last word by slapping his chest and staring us all down. I gulped and nodded quickly.

"Good. Now, let's get a good look at where you all are. Give me 20 laps around," he said, and I found myself jogging in line with the rest of the class in short order.

After the run, there were a whole variety of physical exercises that ranged from sit-ups to squats, to even balance tests. I was proud to note that I averaged in the top 10% of the class in virtually all the tests. Balance and flexibility were where I did best. I was the unconditional best in the class. In virtually every other test, Toji was far and away the best of us all.

Lee, on the other hand, was in the top 50% in everything that didn't involve speed or balance. The boy was clumsy. I saw what Toji did as I watched him attempt test after test. His clumsy frame would not lend itself well to the dynamic and explosive movements common with firebending. It was almost like he was a firebender born in an earthbender's body.

"One more round, boys," Hiroshi said, waving to me and Toji to take the stage. He'd used us and Lee to demonstrate most of the exercises he wanted us to do. It was almost a punishment of sorts. "Now, you'll be attempting a seated toe touch while balanced on one hand. So it's more of a floating toe touch," he said, gesturing for us to demonstrate.

XXXXXX

After we freshened up from Physical Discipline and Fitness, we had to head straight for our next class of the day, Mathematics. This class was much more boring than the previous one. The teacher, Master Chen, spoke in a droning monotone and seemed to care little for what we did as long as no one made any noise to disturb him.

Toji was visibly taking a nap on his desk. Some of the other boys were passing notes, with Lee in the middle of them, and the girls looked torn between following Toji's example or Lee's. The only person who seemed to be paying the slightest bit of attention to the lecture was a girl with bandages wrapped around her forehead. She watched with narrowed eyes and took notes of every single word that dropped from the teacher's mouth, even when he essentially repeated himself. Her attention seemed partly performative, but it was still genuine.

On the other hand, the girl beside her didn't stand out. The only notable thing about her was that while it looked like she was taking notes, her quill never actually made it to the parchment to form actual characters. From the angle, my best guess was that she was drawing. Her pen strokes didn't match the teacher's words at all.

As for me, instead of agonizing over material I already knew better than the back of my hand, I spent my time observing my classmates. Learning from their behaviors and habits was crucial, as I'd be spending the next eight years with these people. I couldn't just pretend they didn't exist for my entire time here. Sooner or later, I'd probably be forced to work with them.

Once the class ended, I kicked Toji's table to wake him up and headed to the last class of the day, one Toji and I wouldn't be taking together. Introduction to Firebending. This was the class I was looking forward to the most. It was a class I knew I'd find easy. Nothing besides the personal attention of a firebending master on par with Jeong-Jeong had a chance of challenging me. Still, the opportunity to firebend, to let out my excited inner flame, was too good to pass up.

The excitement was palpable as I walked into a domed room. The floor, ceilings, and pillars were all made of granite. Every square inch of the place seemed to be formed from heat-resistant stone. The rest of the class filed in behind me and instinctively fell into attention.

A/N; Here’s the first part of the chapter, I guess. I hope you enjoy it.