A/N: This is the first episode in a two book piece, each comprised of twenty episodes. I will be posting regularly in 2015 but am posting this first chapter now looking for a beta reader. I would like someone who excels in believable character dialogue and efficient plot lines. :) Please PM me as soon as possible.
It's good to be back.
Enjoy!
Episode One: Pilot
The paper lanterns cast a flickering golden light that oozed its way ominously through the shadows of the deepening dusk. Fur clad men fidgeted uncomfortably in the stone courtyard as they waited for the servants to escort them from the elegant marble courtyard to the chambers in which their leaders' agreement was to be organized, unaccustomed to the lush green of the surrounding gardens and the warmth of the hard ground underfoot.
A servant emerged from behind the silk screen walls of the chamber, bowing so low that the draping sleeves of his robes brushed the ground.
"The Earth King requests the presence of King Hakoda of the southern water tribe in his dining hall." The servant's nasal tone bounced strangely off of the ground as the tallest tribesman stepped forward, his jaw tensed.
"My men," he protested, "also wish to be present for the negotiations on behalf of our tribe." Hakoda saw the servant's eyes flicker nervously from side to side, adding to the growing feeling of shame and unease that he felt for what he was about to do.
"The King's escorts will be fed from the king's table in the courtyard," the servant's back strained from the duration of his bow, but his voice was firm in spite of his less than authoritative tone. Hakoda stepped forward and hesitated, glancing apologetically at his men, and then strode forward towards the luxuriously furnished dining hall, leaving his warriors behind for the second time.
"King Hakoda of the southern water tribe," the same servant announced, falling back into his bow as he faced the distinguished audience within the room, and Hakoda did his best to conceal his grimace at the title as he took in the decadence of the room. The table lay low to the floor, heaped with delicacies, and was surrounded by luxurious cushions on which sat the most powerful citizens of the earth kingdom, all looking, save one, directly at him.
"Ah," he coughed, "just Hakoda will serve as well." He was met with silence. "It's an honor to be here, your majesty," and he nearly bowed before realizing that at least for the night, they were both kings.
"Please, be seated, King Hakoda." The hand of an opulently dressed woman beckoned him to the silken cushion at the foot of the table, directly across from the Earth King at the head.
"Your majesty," the man across from the woman intoned, "perhaps we should send our blossom out as to spare her from the fineries of political discussion."
"Qu-Quite right, Lao," the earth king nodded, squinting through spectacles that did little to conceal his fresh and innocent face. The two nobles and their king turned to the back corner of the room where the small girl stood next to a nursemaid, still looking directly ahead as she had been when Hakoda entered the room.
"Toph, darling," the woman spoke loudly and clearly, as though to an infant, "it's high time you retired to bed. Bid the King goodnight, and kiss your parents." The child stepped hesitantly across the floor, aided by the nursemaid at her elbow, and bent to kiss the noble man and then the noble woman, her hair softly brushing across her painted pink cheeks, before bowing to the Earth King.
"Goodnight, mother, father. Goodnight, your majesty. May you sleep well." A soft, innocent smile followed her sweetly spoken words and was returned with a brilliant one from the king before she made her way out of the hall, nearly walking straight into one of the painted urns before being adjusted by her caretaker. Through all of this, she seemed entirely unaware of the eyes of the water tribe leader, fixated unfathomably on her small, silk draped figure.
"That's her?" Hakoda asked hoarsely, watching the door she had left through.
"Indeed, that is the darling princess of my kingdom," Toph heard the king reply warmly through the paper thin walls and sighed as her nursemaid led her over the stone bridge of the eastern garden and to the chambers of her estate, leaving Lao and Poppy Beifong alone with the kings of two different nations.
She was docile as a lamb as her shriveled prune of a nurse maid, Yan, washed the paint from her face and put to bed in her chambers. Whatever it was that her parents were doing, she had long since learned that asking was futile, particularly as the nursemaid they had chosen her conveniently happened to be deaf. Toph resigned herself to not knowing and went still on her mattress, waiting for as long as she could bear to ensure that her nurse believed her deeply enough asleep to leave the room.
The moment Yan's soft footfalls passed over the threshold of the door, the Earth Princess's flat jade eyes flashed open and stared blankly until the footsteps echoed from the end of the hallway. Tiny, calloused feet hit the floor, gripping the stone gratefully with relieved toes after the confinement of silk shoes all day. Nearly silently, the ground where the wall met the floor seemed to vanish into a tunnel, and, hardly hastening to arrange pillows in human formation where she had been sleeping, the blind princess bolted down the tunnel and sealed it seamlessly behind her, letting the earth push her through its cavernous underground until she began to hear and feel the vibrations of the roars coming from the stadium and burst into the light, relishing the gasps of the arena as she emerged from the billowing dusk in the direct center of the fighting platform.
"Ladies and gentlemen," roared the loudspeaker, "are you ready to RUMBLE?"
"Please, King Hakoda, eat," the Earth King smiled magnanimously, "politics can wait until our appetites are sated. The Beifong estate serves only the finest of what the Earth kingdom has to offer." Hakoda forced a smile as he thought about the villages starving as the fire nation armies worked them to death in their own fields, remembered the black snow falling across the world as the Earth King and his court invited him to feast in oblivion. Things would change, he reminded himself. The sacrifices he had made and the deal he was about to strike would change the tide of the war, if he could just finish eating. And even just looking at the food surpassed any feast that he had attended before—if he didn't eat it, who would? So he ate his fill, chewing the meat with relish as he did his best not to think of the one other person in the world who may have been more excited about the succulent roast than he was.
By the time he was sucking the last of the honey off of his fingers from desert, the war was indeed the furthest thing from his mind. It would be easy, he thought ruefully, to surrender to a life of luxury and leave all thoughts of the war behind: until the fire nation showed up on your doorstep and killed what little was left of his tribe and family. He crushed the bitter thought from his mind and folded his still-sticky fingers in his lap. All that mattered was an end to the war, and Hakoda would do whatever he had to to ensure the safety of his people.
"Your majesty, Lord and Lady Beifong." He heedlessly obliterated what remained of the dinner small talk as the tea was poured. "When you are ready, shall we discuss the finer details of my visit? My warriors in the courtyard will be anxious to know the outcome of our meeting." The Earth King pouted at the abrupt gravity of the topic, but the Beifongs nodded gravely, their expressions pensive.
"The dining servants with us are deaf, King Hakoda," Poppy Beifong informed him, a twisted sense of pride in her voice. "You need not fear speaking in their presence."
"I-I trust that you choose all your servants well." Hakoda blinked, taken aback. "You all three know my intentions here, yes?"
"Oh, yes," Poppy gushed, "such a wonderful opportunity for our sweet princess."
"For Toph?" The Earth King's brow furrowed in confusion and Hakoda felt a sudden sinking sensation in his chest, as though a turtle seal had dragged a lobster buoy down into the depths of his stomach. "What does Toph have to do with your visit, King Hakoda?" Hakoda was speechless, gaping wide eyed at the Beifong's with as much becoming dignity as he could muster.
"Ahem," Lao coughed politely. "Your majesty, my wife and I intended it to be a surprise to you, but Hakoda is here to make our lotus princess a queen."
"Kuei," Poppy placed her slender, manicured hand on the king's sleeve. "We've brought you the answer to both our daughter's future and the future of our kingdom." Hakoda felt as though he were witnessing a nest of vipers consuming their prey, but he forced himself to speak nonetheless.
"Your majesty, I came here to arrange the marriage of the Earth princess with the prince of my Southern Water tribe."
"Your son?" Kuei asked, his head reeling as he processed the unexpected turn of the information. Hakoda nodded, trying to keep the panic out of his eyes. He had been invited, or so he thought, by the Earth King when he had made his proposition. How was it that the king new nothing of Hakoda's intent?
"You do understand," the Earth King rubbed his spectacles haltingly, evaluating Hakoda as if for the first time, "that Toph is not my daughter. She is our princess in name only, the people's affection for her has elevated her to a status of near royalty. And although the Beifong's are the Earth Kingdom's finest family, without a doubt, they are of no real royal blood." Hakoda thought he saw the expressions on Lao and Poppy's faces sour for the briefest of moments before rearranging into smiles.
"Of course, your majesty," Lao purred. "It is that affection which will sway the people into the union of the Water and Earth nations, is it not? You wish to show neutrality and goodness, of course. What better way than to unite our princess and their…" he trailed off, glancing at Hakoda with what may have almost been disdain. "Their prince?"
"I… I suppose," the Earth King agreed slowly, and Poppy clapped her hands in delight.
"Then let us discuss the details," Poppy enthused, "so that I can begin wedding plans with our sweet lotus blossom. Oh, Kuei, she will be thrilled! Every girl dreams of their wedding."
"She will?" The Earth King's uncomfortable expression changed to one of tentative pleasure as Poppy nodded fervently.
"King Hakoda," Lao ignored Poppy and the King. "Our Toph is a rare beauty, the greatest treasure of our nation, adored by all—but all the same, we understand there may have been some… hesitations in selecting her as a bride."
"Because of her blindness, you mean," Hakoda stated, and the noble trio flinched at his directness.
"We assure you it makes her all the sweeter," Poppy protested feebly, and Hakoda held up his hands, shaking his head.
"There were rumors of the condition before I made my offer," he acknowledged, feeling mingled panic and relief that he seemed to be momentarily in control of the situation. "My only other consideration was the princess of the Northern Water tribe, daughter of chief Arnook. But the water tribes are both of moderate strength and unity in our culture. And the daughter, Yue, is engaged to their strongest warrior, who will someday be their chief—I mean, their King. I seek true unity, a statement of our stance towards the war and the fire nation." The Earth King shuddered violently.
"'War' seems like such a definitive term," he corrected Hakoda in discomfort, and Hakoda did his best not to stare at the naive, youthful king.
"And what expectations do you have of the unity of our children, once the marriage is performed?" Lao entirely ignored the Earth King, speaking directly to Hakoda.
"Safe harbor," Hakoda said quickly, pulling his list of requests to the forefront of his mind. "Safe harbor for all water tribe soldiers, and men for the war from the Earth Kingdom. Troops of benders," he explained, envisioning the formidable armies that would stand against the fire nation. "To show the world that the last two nations will stand against the fire nation."
"Troops!" The Earth King exclaimed. "I hardly think that would be necessary." Lao all but shushed the King, silencing him with a near icy glance.
"We will negotiate the terms of the contract with the lawmakers, King Hakoda." His tone was frosty and his long fingers picked absentmindedly at the candle wax that had begun to drip onto the table. "Your son, of course, will live here in the Earth Kingdom."
Toph and the Water Tribe prince will live on the palace grounds, so that you may have the blossom of the kingdom near you always," Poppy told the King warmly, and conflicted emotions of pleasure and discomfort twitched across the King's face.
"He has to come here?" Hakoda asked, his face suddenly blank at the detail he hadn't considered.
"Why of course," Lao replied deeply, "where else do you expect the world to see what we've done? The wedding will be in Ba Sing Se, of course, rather than here in Gaoling. The strength of the prince from the weak—" he cut off, "the, ah, more delicate Water Tribe will stand clearly next to the delicacy of the princess from the mighty Earth Nation, and they will reside here on palace grounds as a constant reminder of unity to the people, to attend parades and festivals and balls."
To masquerade like the armadillo lions in a zoo, Hakoda corrected miserably in his mind as he realized just what type of life he was sentencing his son to, his would-be warrior.
"And with our nations' union," he persisted, "the Earth Kingdom will aid us against the fire nation? I will not have my son pay this price without your promise."
"'This price'?" All hospitality vanished from Poppy Beifong's tone. "Are you implying, King Hakoda, that the prince of your nation will be marrying anything but above himself? No raggle-taggle water tribe can possibly compete with the Earth Kingdom, and you would be wise to keep that in mind as we offer a priceless union that can only stand to benefit you."
"Now, now," the Earth King attempted to mediate, but Poppy stopped him with a flick of her wrist and allowed Hakoda to gaze despairingly at the urn that the Earth Princess had nearly run into so short a time ago.
What had he gotten himself into? White knuckled fists gripping the bottom hem of his tunic, he willed himself not to think of his children, but of his tribe, his nation. It had to be done. The chief that brought unity to the battlefield would be remembered, praised, but more importantly he could bring peace to the world, with nothing but a simple arrangement.
Hakoda inhaled deeply through his nose, the warm air of the dining hall wafting slowly towards the door in the evening breeze. It was a matter of trust, and he had no reason not to trust the future in-laws of his son—of the water tribe prince.
"My apologies, Lord and Lady Beifong, Earth King," he forced out. "The marriage will be bounteous for both of our nations, and may it bring an end to the fire nation's reign of fear over our lands."
"Indeed," Poppy ingratiated him with an approving smile, and Lao extended a glass to the Earth King.
"Let us toast, your majesties, the royal wedding of our year!" Hakoda forced himself past the overwhelming feeling that he and the Earth King were in deeply over their heads, and toasted the wedding he had arranged.
"The prince will be on his way before the end of the year, of course?" Lao phrased the question more as a statement as he delicately wiped the drink from the edges of his mouth.
"Of course," Hakoda swallowed quickly, ignoring the strange glance from Poppy and the Earth King's face crinkling at the potent drink. "I will send him with full regale."
"Excellent," Lao nodded, his eyes glinting with approval. "The terms of our contract will be negotiated and signed by our king on the prince's arrival. Now," he clapped his hands and a servant hastened to the table, "more tea." The swirling steam spouting from the beautifully painted china kettle renewed what fragile layer of small talk had existed up until the discussion of politics.
"You have, no doubt, heard the rumors of the Avatar's return?" Poppy asked dismissively, and Hakoda did his best to conceal his violent flinch.
"Of course," the tribesman scoffed, the golden herbal tea no longer seeming so soothing. "But what is his return to us when we have a marriage to celebrate?"
For all intents and purposes, from a distance, the opulent table appeared to be surrounded by conversing companions making meaningless conversation into the night. Nothing but the white knuckles the three parents wrapped around their fine china teacups could have possibly revealed that the meeting was anything but a simple arrangement.
"Hakoda!" One of the warriors sprung up from where he sat cross legged in the marble courtyard, and the wolf tails of the rest of the men turned in sync anxiously towards their leader, who cast a long shadow across their faces in the lantern light.
"Hakoda," the eldest of the soldiers strode towards him, brushing aside the younger men. "What happened? Was the king there? Is our tribe safe?"
"Yes, Bato." Hakoda's tanned face seemed suddenly ancient, and Bato watched his leader in remorse as he remembered the lively child, brave warrior, and even better father that Hakoda had been before the war. Hakoda turned towards his men, facing all that remained of his elite southern water tribe warriors—all but one.
"My son, Sokka, prince of the southern water tribe, will marry the Earth Kingdom noble Toph Beifong before the end of the year." Hakoda saw the blank shock on his men's faces as they processed his words. "In return, the Water Nation will receive safe harbor within Earth Nation walls and the Earth King will provide his troops for our cause."
"The earth benders?" Joyous whispering broke out among the men as they leapt to their feet, energy renewed despite the sluggish warmth of the Gaoling night.
"Hakoda," a young soldier clapped him on the shoulder into a tight embrace, "you've saved us all!" Hakoda's blue eyes met Bato's steely gray ones over the hood of the young warrior and locked tightly with things unsaid.
"Southern Water Tribe," he commanded, his voice raw in what should have been a rallying cry, "move out!" The weary warriors swung their packs onto their shoulders with vigor and made their way towards the resplendent gates of the Beifong estate and back towards their ships.
"Bato," Hakoda hissed, his hand holding the warrior back.
"Hakoda," Bato's hands clenched against his scalp, pulling stray hairs out of his customary wolf's tail. "What have you done?"
"I did what I had to." Hakoda's voice was more pleading then explanatory. "I have to trust that the Earth King will help us."
"At what cost?" Bato looked into the distance of the dark sky, as though imagining the smoke rising from the fires between the igloos while the otter penguin fat dripped into the leaping flames, or perhaps imagining another night sky with starlight framing the outline of a flying bison that should have been extinct. "What reward is worth selling your son?"
"He'll be safe here, Bato. My family will be safe, the families of our tribe will be safer with earth benders to protect them! What more can you want, what more can I do than put our tribe first?" A turkey duck screeched somewhere in the distance, piercing through the raucous joy of the other warriors. Bato bowed his head in submission, remembering the eager child that had stood on the ice until the last of his father's fleet had disappeared from sight, leaving him alone with the women and children of the tribe. He deserved better than this, a life on parade with a crippled royal hanging from his elbow. Sokka should have been a warrior. But the people came first. Hakoda had to be a leader before he could be a father, and with a war to face, who was Bato to judge?
"You're right." Bato met Hakoda's eyes and then glanced nervously over his shoulder as they walked through the Beifong's garden. "But Hakoda," he lowered his voice. "Surely you've heard the rumors, the facts. The Avatar is on the move, and he has—" Hakoda's hand abruptly smothered Bato's voice.
"Do you want to bring the Earth nation down on us for breaking an agreement we've hardly managed?" Hakoda growled from between his teeth. "Sokka's marriage is going to save us, Bato. He will be here before the year ends. Take as many of our men as you need and bring him. Do you understand?" If the feelings of despair and conflict in Bato's heart were any indication, Hakoda must have been in agony thinking of the life he was forcing upon his son.
"I've heard that they're on their way to the Northern Water Tribe," Bato murmured as they finally crossed the gate out of the Beifong estate and turned away from the lights of the town of Gaoling and towards the distant docks. "They're looking for a master for the Avatar."
"They don't think Katara is capable?" Hakoda asked sharply, his pride momentarily wounded for his daughter, who had trained with some of the most legendary water benders of the time. "Never mind. If you know where they're going, Bato, then stop them. Do whatever you have to."
"Hakoda," Bato tried one last time to keep Sokka from his fate. "Why shoulder this burden? Why not let the Avatar defeat the fire nation?" Hakoda stared at him in disbelief.
"And put my children in that kind of danger? The Fire Nation is already coming down on their heads. Katara is a master and Sokka is a warrior, but no father allows the fate of the world to rest on his children's shoulders—or another child's. You would know that, if you had ever…" The chief's voice trailed off and guilt immediately crossed his face. "Bato, I'm sorry."
"It doesn't matter," Bato glared at the dark ground, too proud to let his feet shuffle in hurt or anger. "You are my chief and, I guess, my king. I will bring you the prince."
"Bato." Hakoda stopped Bato with a hand on his arm, despair etched into the lines of his face as the night breezes rustled the trees around them. "Bato, I'm sorry. There's no other way. The Avatar is just a child, a child who disappeared a hundred years ago. We can't put our faith in whatever he is. But Sokka, he is a warrior. He's strong. I know he's young, but this way, he can save the world. He can do it, Bato, not the way he may have dreamed, but when the victory is won he will understand."
And the girl? Bato wondered, wordlessly beginning to walk again. Sokka's bride, his wife, the girl he would be bound to regardless of loss or victory in the twisted war? The poor, crippled, manipulated young thing.
How was it that a war that had lasted over a hundred years had fallen onto the shoulders of children?
The lights had been put out for hours when the Beifongs finally dared to speak freely in the couple's bed that had been nearly immaculate for over a decade.
"Lao," Poppy murmured, the unusual excitement that coursed through her voice showing plainly her alertness. "Lao, we've done it."
"Yes." His voice was unfathomable as he spoke into the dark, the power coursing through his veins something that he hadn't felt in years. "I didn't dare to believe it. It is done, even with her blindness. You and I, Poppy, have done it." His manicured hand found hers in the darkness and clutched it tightly. "Someday our names will be spoken with reverence, with awe." Poppy laid her head on his shoulder in a calculated manner, her temple resting uncomfortably on his collarbone.
"Yes, Lao," she demurred.
"Lord and Lady Beifong," Lao murmured into the nothingness of the dark, vaulted ceilings above their head. "The family of the flying boar, nothing but meaningless wealth to their name until their blood became royal. Potent. Powerful."
"Lord and Lady Beifong," Poppy gloated blissfully, separating her head mindlessly from his shoulder in personal celebration. "The bearers of queens."
A/N: Prepare for a wild ride, readers. :) I'll see you in January.
Please message me if you are a beta so I can review your work and determine whether we're a good fit!