chapter 3: now
but i'm a believer
that there's a fool in all of us
-lived a lie by you me at six
"Come on, we need to check out the food stalls." Katara glances back at the girl behind her; startled out of her thoughts. Raina clutches at her stomach in mock agony and a strand of dark hair falls forward from her pearl-comb adorned updo. "Please, Katara? We can come back to the stationary later."
"Your appetite's going into Sokka territory," Katara says, cracking a smile. "Didn't we just eat at your house? Your mom even made those fancy cakes because of General Irek."
"That was tea, and I couldn't even eat too many of the cakes because my mom kept shooting me looks," Raina protests. "Besides, like Sokka himself says, if it doesn't have meat-"
"-then it's a snack," Katara finishes, knowing her brother's saying all-too-well. Raina's eye is already wandering up ahead in the market. "Alright, let me just buy this ink and I'll head there with you."
Katara opens up her pack to dig around for the four copper piece price while Raina darts ahead. The man selling stationary wraps the bottle of ink in a small stretch of cloth and hands it to Katara. She drops the copper pieces into his palm and wishes him a good day.
The market is unusually busy and all of the stalls seem brighter and the merchandise showier. Katara looks around and she thinks she spots a few of the visiting Northerners wandering the markets; standing out only because of the slightly purple hues they don; a sign of high-class in the North. Katara follows a steady flow of people on the right side of the markets' streets up to the food stalls' area. She steps forward into the smell of stewing sea prunes first, then baked rolls, and then more and more smells start to drift her way until she can't distinguish them from one another.
She picks up her pace as she walks past all of the different stalls, heading for the seaweed-noodles vendor that Raina has probably made a beeline for, but then slows down when she picks up the stinging air of cooking spices. Momentarily forgetting Raina, she wanders in chase of the spicy smell, and finds herself at a small noodle cart.
The person manning the cart brightens when he sees her. "Ah, Lady Katara. I thought you might find your way here."
Katara reaches for her pack and smiles back at the man. "I'll have the usual, please." She pauses momentarily to think, and then says, "Actually, I'll take an extra helping this time."
"A good decison, Lady," the vendor replies with a toothy smile. Then his expression dims. "We haven't been able to ship as many spices into the City these days anyway."
Katara ducks her head back down to fish out more coins. "Why is that?" She asks, making as if she doesn't know the problem just so they don't descend into silence.
"The Earth policies are getting stingier. Some of the men who went out to get their monthly shipments came back empty-handed."
Katara looks back up and shoots a wistful glance at the second bowl of packed-up noodles. She's three copper pieces short. "I'll have to bring it up with my father," she says, even though her father is well-aware of the issue, and the man shoots her a grateful smile. Katara holds out the copper pieces in her hand to him and smiles apologetically. "It looks like I'll only be taking one of the packages. I'm short a few coppers."
"It's fine," the man says. "You can send someone to drop by to give the rest of the money some other time." Katana must've made a strange face because the man quickly adds, "Of course, you don't have to. What's a few coppers anyway?"
"No, no, it's not that-" Katara starts, and the man's gaze wanders to over her shoulder.
"It's okay, Katara, take the second package. I'll pay," someone says from behind her.
Katara tenses. The person behind her reaches out an arm to put a silver piece in the man's palm. The man starts to hand a few copper pieces back in change but he's stopped by.
He frowns slightly. "With all due respect, Admiral, I'm only going to take the fair price."
"I've heard about the troubles a lot of the vendors are having with imports. It's no problem, really."
The man still looks unconvinced, but after a bit of coaxing from Katara, he retracts his change with, "You're too kind, Admiral. Thank you."
The man turns to his next customer and Katara turns to look at her side. "Thank you, Hahn. Pardon me, but Raina's waiting for me at a stall up ahead." She readjusts the two packages in her hands and starts walking away leisurely without looking back. "I should be going."
Much to her dismay, a group of people crowded around a jewelry stall halts her progress across the market after only a few feet. She first hears Hahn step towards and then sees him in her periphery.
"Can I talk to you for a moment?"
Katara keeps her gaze trained on the small troupe of people in front of her and wills them to move.
"I'd just like to extend an invitation," he says. "I'm hosting a dinner on behalf of me and my crew as a celebration of our Fire prince's capture. I'll be formally inviting your family, of course, about next week, but I needed to start the whole dinner process somewhere."
For the briefest moment Katara feels a twinge of pity for Hahn. Event organizing in the Southern City is a testing chore. First confirm that most of the upper class is available on a certain day, then make sure you get out the invitations fast enough as to not offend anyone, and of course, organize the actual dinner. Gossip doesn't run as rampant in the South as it seems to in the North, but there are still the wives of lieutenants and generals who have the money and time for it.
"I believe it's better if you see what day all of the others are available on," Katara says, not knowing who the others is. It could be ten people or a thousand. "Then I'll ask my father about his schedule and see where we can fit in."
Hahn nods. "Of course." With relief, Katara makes out Raina moving towards them with a bag in hand.
"It was a pleasure, Hahn," Katara says as cordially as possible, tilting her head slightly in the direction of Raina's approaching figure. Hahn's gaze flits to Raina and bows the best as he can with so many people surrounding them.
"I'll see you in a week or two, then," he says.
As soon as she's within hearing range Raina asks, "What was that about?", looking pointedly at Hahn's retreating form.
"Dinner," Katara says. "I'm guessing in about two or three weeks."
"Probably," Raina agrees. "My mother heard that Hahn's parents are coming for a visit from the North in a week and a half. He'll want to wait until then."
"And your father's fleet is returning next week," Katara adds, and then she sighs."I was hoping the dinner would be small."
"Well, Hahn is a Northerner at heart," Raina says. "Not even an oath of loyalty to the South can change that."
Katara thinks of all of the talk and fabrics and preparation that will go into this and can't suppress a second sigh. "You'll help me pick out clothes, right? I don't have time for this kind of thing."
Raina smiles and Katara realizes she has made a mistake.
"But you'll have to wear exactly what I say."
-O-
Katara pushes back her chair and walks across her room over to her nightstand. She absentmindedly dips her ink-stained hand into the bowl of water resting on the honey-colored wood. An import from the Earth lands. The use of wood had been absorbed into the Water culture so long ago that no one alive remembers a time without it, just like no one remembers a time without Fire spices and Earth vegetables.
The ink dissolves into the water, leaving streaks of black and tinting it gray, and Katara draws her hand out and flicks her fingers to half-bend and half shake off the excess water. She'd keep the bowl of water with her on her desk, considering how many times she ends up having to use it, but one temper flare and a stack of soiled papers taught her better.
She slips back into her chair and stares at the list of words she's made whose meanings she doesn't know, and keeps the original document to the side so she can keep glancing back at it. She uselessly keeps reading over the words in the form on a letter, from one of Fire Lord Sozin's commanding officers. Katara gets the gist of it: a compilation of witness reports of a "strange" someone, but the part that caught her eye was the mention of the Water Tribes.
These reports for the purpose of information records give her the most trouble; their language painfully formal, even for the Fire dialect, and too careful and removed to get any feel for tone or context.
Making a frustrated sound, Katara pulls out her reference papers from a drawer built into the left side of her desk. She spares another glance at her work-in-progress and decides that the fully-translated history of the Fire Nation collapse will probably help her the most.
Katara unfurls the scroll and her eyebrows further crease as she clears off more space on her desk to open up the scroll enough. She'd been meaning to go to one of the city printshops to have the scroll inked as a hard-leather book. But between her father's watchful eye and the rumors of Katara's military incompetence that are sure to spread if she's seen wasting time on Fire papers, she can't find a safe way to do so.
She scans past the introduction on the parchment. How the world was in peace until Fire Lord Sozin took power, and how the Avatar helped maintain that peace. Then come the details of the Fire Nation's expansion lead by Sozin, and right after that, information on Sozin's raid on the Air Nomads behind Avatar Roku's back.
Katara skims past the section detailing Roku's trial of Sozin before the Fire Nation court, the back-and-forth arguments that ruled each time in Sozin's favor, and the fight in the middle of Caldera's volcano that lead to the death of first Sozin and the fume-induced illness that took Roku's life only a few days later.
The outbreak of war, the chaos in the Fire Nation, left without a ruler, and the military coup in the Earth Kingdom that shook the government and let Long Feng's family rise to power.
The Water Tribes were the only stable, united forces, and the war was an easy win. Katara's direct ancestors held birthright to the position of chief in the Southern Water Tribe and that transferred during the formation of the new Southern City. They are a celebrated bloodline of military genius.
Katara finds the part of the scroll focused solely on the Water Tribes' role. She lines up her work-in-progress with the history scroll, looking for the unfamiliar words.
Majo, sosaru, giniro, quori.
She almost immediately finds that giniro means silver after going through a description of the Water Tribes' weaponry. Her frown deepens. She has forgotten more words than she thought she had. While giniro still held some semblance of familiarity to Katara, she doesn't recognize the other words in the slightest, and they don't appear anywhere in the Water Tribes' section. Katara eventually trails her way into the part about the Earth Kingdom in her search.
Just as she's finishing a paragraph on Long Feng's family, a knock sounds on her door and she nearly jumps in her seat.
"One minute!" she calls, and scrambles to roll the scroll closed and shove the various documents littering her table into drawers, lest it's her father. Katara walks quickly to her door and swings it open, and finds with relief that it is a guard.
"Your father is calling for you," he says. "He said he'd like to meet with you in his study before the departure of Major Sokka."
"I'll go down in a moment. Thank you."
Katara presses a lid onto her pot of ink and heads out the door.
Her mind is still on her translations but her feet automatically take her to her father's study, and when she gets there, she finds Asoka already in a chair across from Hakoda; both of their heads bent in conversation. Katara lingers by the doorframe for a moment and when they don't notice her, knocks lightly on it. Both her brother and father's heads tilt up and she takes the seat next to Sokka.
Katara almost asks is anything wrong, but at the last moment changes her question to, "What's wrong?"
"Chief Arnook doesn't want to let too many people know as to not cause a big ruckus right away, but King Long Feng has almost blatantly refused to abide by the disarmament terms," Hakoda says.
"How?"
"Arnook was able to get the first of the amendments to the disarmament terms to the Earth lands sooner than expected by messenger hawk," Sokka answers. "It seems like Long Feng took one look at them and laughed."
"Which ones?"
"Reducing the number of blacksmiths and silversmiths licensed to produce weapons."
"That wouldn't have helped anyway," Katara scoffs. "The illegal market is huge-"
Sokka waves her doubt away. "We know that it wouldn't be very helpful already. Arnook was only testing the waters. If Long Feng didn't agree to this, there's no way in hell he'll agree to the stricter amendments."
Katara looks from her brother to her father. "Is there any other plan from the North now?"
"None that we know of, and I doubt it anyway. The letter that we received about an hour ago said that Long Feng had sent his refusal yesterday. Arnook is probably holding meetings with his top officers."
"Force shutdown of weapon production seems like the only real solution," Katara says. Who knows how many sophisticated weapons have already been produced to get to the point where mere rebels have their hands on them?
Sokka shakes his heads slightly. "That's the ideal solution, but the balance, Katara."
She sighs. "I know, I know."
They are toeing a precarious line here on two fronts: one with the Earth King and the other with the Northern City. Though the two cities of the Water Empire coexist in relative peace and share the same element, many of their beliefs and policies are wildly different even after a century, and for the Southern City to pull a drastic move could lead to the cities working against each other. The Southern City's population stands at a third of the North's and Hakoda's control of overseas lands at a tenth.
With the Earth King, of course, is the issue of him seeming ready to start another war at the slightest turn.
"Has the prince given up anything useful?" Katara asks.
They are running in circles. Information is needed from the prince for the crackdown on nobility, the crackdown is needed to trace weapon distribution, weapons need to be seized; and at the same time they can't provoke the Earth and Fire people.
"Not particularly, but we're getting there. He's given a few names we already knew. It's a start. Remember how long the Northern City took with the Fire princess?" Sokka replies.
Katara nods. "Of course. And all they got for their trouble was a wild goose chase."
"The princess was too sharp for fifteen. They misjudged her and they underestimated her intelligence. The prince is older and the stakes are higher. We're using different tactics this time. We can't afford to push our soldiers around into different places like the North could." Sokka pushes back in his chair. "I should get going. We're leaving for the Fire colonies in an hour, minus Aritak. He can help with handling things while I'm gone. I'll try to cut the trip as short so I can be here for as much of the interrogations and negotiations as possible."
"Good," Hakoda says, and then turns to Katara. "You may get back to your training or wherever else you need to be."
Katara thinks of her trip to the interrogation cells and the prince's too-quick reply. "One last thing; I think it's better if none of the officers besides Aritak know about this yet."
"That's what I was thinking. I'm hoping Arnook's diplomats are able to handle this, or else I might have to pay a visit to Long Feng myself."
Sokka stands up at that and Katara mirrors him. "Aikana's probably on her way to the training chamber. I'll be there if you need anything."
"And I'll be in my study," Sokka says. Hakoda nods wearily and they both leave.
-O-
"Majo. What does it mean?"
"You've decided to drop by in normal clothes today." The prince is shackled up this time and his pale skin is mottled with bruises of varying degrees and yet he is acting like Katara has struck up a conversation in the market.
Katara spares the briefest of glances down at her clothes. She still hasn't changed since her trip to the market in the morning, and she's wearing one of her nicer tunics, with embroidery and silk borders.
The prince seems to be able to read her thought process because then he says, "You know, I've seen children in the Fire colonies wear themselves to the bone and earn half of that pretty shirt of yours."
Katara clenches her teeth. "Tell me what it means."
"Kids almost die and get ten copper pieces-"
"You know what I meant."
The prince coughs once and then opens his mouth as if to speak, but then lets out another cough and soon he falls into a hacking fit. The noise makes Katara cringe internally but she keeps a neutral expression and watches patiently from the other side of the bars.
"If you really want to know, you could torture me for it. Use that bending of yours and beat me up," the prince gets out lowly once he can speak again. He tilts his head towards the pot of water in the corner behind Katara. "It might work."
"Maybe I'll revert back to my previous offer of freezing you." Into oblivion.
Katara starts to feel anger for herself instead of the prince. Why did she think coming a second time was a good idea? She's obviously not getting any information and although she doesn't think anyone notable saw her, since it is the middle of the night, the guards also have a habit of talking about things they shouldn't.
"But then your father would wonder who froze his prisoner in the dead of night, wouldn't he?"
"We have plenty of waterbenders; not just me." Katara feels the raw edges of anger flare up in her and she bends the water from her waterskin into her hands; ready to strike.
The prince eyes the water calmly. "Maybe we can strike a deal."
"I am not bargaining with you. Besides, your bloodline is known for betrayal," Katara says. She scowls. "Your only redeeming quality is the blood of Avatar Roku that runs in you."
"Who ironically turned out to be a traitor himself in the end."
"After Sozin betrayed him. Avatar Roku was doing what he had to to restore balance."
"And how is your empire keeping balance? By taking over the Earth and Fire lands until everything is Water?"
Katara narrows her eyes and the water in her hands tenses. "We've opened trading and spread technology and education to everyone. We let the Earth people keep their own government and all bending except for lightening is allowed; everywhere. I'd say we've done a pretty good job, considering what your ancestors had in mind for the world."
"You treat my people like savages," the prince hisses. "You enslave us, kill us-"
"I can assure you there were only three Fire colony deaths in the past year because of our soldiers' actions and we do not have a single slave in this palace, in the rich's homes, or anywhere else-"
"Then explain why I saw kids from the Fire colonies scrubbing the floors of the Earth people, looking dirty and sick," the prince says lowly. "Explain why I've seen firebenders die at the hands of earthbenders just because of their element."
Katara's next words lack steam and it suddenly hits her again that she shouldn't be arguing with a Fire prisoner at this hour of the night. "We do not condone any of that."
"But you don't stop it either."
The water finds its way back into Katara's waterskin.
"One word for a bit of information. It doesn't have to be too important. Anything will do."
"Your words are not worth that much to me."
"Anatagi kora ni aqui," the prince says. Katara can't help but admire the grace of the words rolling off his tongue. They sound at home in his accent. Then you wouldn't be here.
"Watashe sali nogoso," Katara replies easily.
As she walks out, Katara hates how she considers the deal for just a second.
-O-
(a/n) this was supposed to be posted one week and a day ago, so sorry for the late update. i've had finals for the past week but now they're done so i won't be prolonging the next updates (yay for summer).
thank you guys for all of the reviews! i appreciate every single one of them, even though i didn't get around to replying to any; but i'll be sure to do so now.
oh, and I promise there's more exciting times on the horizon, because I needed these first few chapters to set up the scene for you guys. i hope the history and basics are fairly clear by now, and more bits and pieces will of course be revealed a little more ways in.
