Disclaimer: Aren't all the other chapters enough? Still don't own Avatar.

A/N: Sorry about the relative lack of updates. Things refuse to stop coming up.

Mai woke abruptly at a sudden movement beneath her, her eyes shooting open with practiced caution. She took in the metal surroundings around her and closed her pale gold eyes with an internal groan. Not danger, just a ship. She lay there for another moment then rose sleepily. She shook her head to clear the sleep away, sending her thick black hair cascading from the loosened buns that had held it in her sleep. Mai rose, rocking in her steps with the ebb and flow of the movement beneath her feet. For all her dislike of being on the ocean, she rarely suffered seasickness and gained her sea legs in an hour. Strange, yet convenient. She changed from her simple black night shift into her regular outfit and brushed her hair vigorously, tying it into its typical buns.

Once done with her morning preparation rituals, Mai turned around to survey her room, her eyes falling on the diary her cousin had given her. She paused for a moment, thinking of what she'd written two nights before.

The man I love asked me for something. Any order I would perform to the fullest extent of his wishes, though he made it very clear that this was not an order. I am setting off tomorrow for the Earth Kingdom on a mission. He took me aside after the farewell dinner into his private study. I knew it was completely a professional arrangement, yet I found myself distracted from his words by the very man speaking them. He asked me if I could perform something or him, a favor. He said that it would not be part of my mission, yet something else. Of course my heart leapt, and I was willing to perform any task he would wish of me. Yet when I said I would gladly take it, he attempted to stop me, telling me this would be unofficial, unpaid for, and something he would not ask someone he did not trust. I knew whatever was on his mind must be important, and I was ready to do this thing for him—not merely because of his rank, or what I owe him, or even because I love him. I do this because I would take any weight of the burden he bears.

Again I said I would gladly accept his task. He told me of when he was on the run from Azula, a refugee. He spoke of how he acted against his honor, against innocent people in some cases. He asked me if, knowing this, I would deliver his return to those who he'd wronged or deceived.

I accepted.

He gave me a list of names, towns, areas, descriptions. Song, Lee, Jet, and Jin. Also towns with no specific names. He asked that I would visit these towns as I traveled back to the Fire Nation, if I still wanted to do this task. I answered that I would be honored to serve him in such a way. He said that I would receive my formal instructions later and gave me a parcel for each town and name. He thanked me, saying that I didn't know what a great service I was doing him. I bowed and left.

Mai walked onto the ship's deck for a bit of air before breakfast. She inhaled the salt laced air slowly, looking out onto the waves. Off on another part of the deck she could hear Ty Lee doing her morning exercises Mai cast another look around and began to head back below decks for breakfast. Ty Lee happened to glance in Mai's direction as she was going in and bounded up beside her.

"Hey Mai. How's travel agreeing with you?" she asked brightly, falling into step behind her on the steps.

"Well enough. Did the cook ban your cat after the ramen incident?" Mai asked, referring to a rather unfortunate happening of the previous night.

"No, she's just a bit sick. Water travel isn't so good with her. I've been thinking of some names—"

"Please nothing like Princess Cherry Blossom or Fou-fou Cuddly Kins or Fluffy," Mai interjected, turning down one of the labyrinthine halls.

"No, she wouldn't like those, no matter how pink her aura is. Though it's got a definite blue tint that makes it pretty purple at times. And she's too sleek to call Fluffy. I wanted to name her for how she acts, but Akira doesn't suit. Aidyn seemed nice, though I don't think she'd suit a Water Tribe name well. It's good though, little fire. Sorcha seemed good too, so did Amakai. I also like Huong, Mio, and Hoshi," Ty Lee listed thoughtfully, following Mai to breakfast with a hand on her chin.

"Amakai Huong sounds best to me."

"A bit long though. I know! I'll name her that and call her Hua for short! That certainly clears things up—it'll be nice to have something other than 'cat' to call her." They entered the galley and found seats. A cabin boy promptly brought them two bowls of soup and wontons. Mai nodded mutely and began to eat, Ty Lee across form her temporarily mimicking the silence.

"So…. What did Zuko want?" Ty Lee asked, breaking a wonton open and eating half. Some of Mai's soup became stuck in her throat as she tried to answer.

A light bout of coughing later she answered, "Just something to do with my task."

"Oh, all right then. It'll be nice to see your family again. Or, at least without Azula," Ty Lee commented. A silence followed as the two pondered what she'd just said. Finally breaking the silence, Ty Lee stated "Zuko hasn't set a date yet. For her, I mean."

"It must be hard," Mai commented, looking at her soup. "Even after all they've gone through, it still must be so hard to make an order like that, to family. Especially with so few people left he can really rely on and others he trusts traveling and leaving." The two sat wordlessly for a moment.

Unable to bear the heavy silence for long, Ty Lee began to speak again. "I've heard that there's going to be a festival in the Water Tribes soon, to remember their princess who became the Moon Spirit. In late winter sometime. We should be done with our duties by then, right?" Mai's thoughts left off for the passage in her diary, wondering how long her new job would take.

"I don't know," Mai answered, finishing her soup. "What are you planning to do in the towns you go to? More than speeches, I would think." Ty Lee brightened.

"I'll do something of what I did at the circus. I'm teaching Hua to dance, though she's no good on the ship. She seemed to have some talent in the Fire Nation, though. Then I'll make some speech thing for the adults and take questions or something. I'll see what doesn't work in the first couple of towns and figure it out from there." The cabin boy delivered a spring roll for each of them and left. Mai and Ty Lee finished and stood.

"What were you planning on doing?" Ty Lee asked her friend, stretching.

"Deck for practice. It's been a while since I was able to," Mai answered, beginning to walk to the door.

"Sounds fun," Ty Lee said, joining her.

Zuko groaned as the nobles began arguing about tariff prices. For the fourth time. This meeting. The northern nobles spoke of how their industries called for low tariffs to trade and compete with the Earth Kingdom. The southern nobles talked about how they needed high tariffs to protect their small business owners, the peasants. The difference in tariffs meant that smugglers, tariff dodgers, and merchants looking for lower prices in the north abounded. They argued about high tariffs, low tariffs, in between tariffs, compromise, the futility of compromise, and reasons why each region was more important and should win Zuko's favor.

Why can't you fools just be quiet and think logically? Zuko thought tiredly. He changed the brightness of his fire wall to signify he would speak. "It seems that with the current state of things, agreement is nearly impossible," he said. "Though it does seem better to me that the common citizens in the South should have fair opportunity." The southern nobles began to look smugly at their counterparts. "Though depriving the North of chance to compete is not an option." The northern nobles looked more satisfied, the southern less so. "It seems best that both sides gradually move to a closer tariff. Perhaps focus on products unavailable in other lands."

"Are you to say that our southern iron smiths should forget their work and take up ploughs simply because the North has more abundant supply?" one nobleman asked with airs that made Zuko want to cut half his overlong beard off.

"I am saying that my people are equal," Zuko answered with moderately suppressed rage.

"Perhaps it is best to move to another subject for now," General Iroh spoke from his position at the head of the delegation table. He often sat there in meetings to highlight his position among as opposed to over them at Zuko's side.

"Clerk, the next order of business?" Zuko asked, massaging the bridge of his nose.

"The issue of the next Fire Lady is now open for discussion," the clerk announced as his brother wrote.

"What?" Zuko asked. His uncle usually told him what to expect in his meetings, though this subject was conspicuously absent.

"The fact that you must take a wife," one general spoke up.

"To secure the line of the Fire Lord," another added. Zuko recognized him as Nobleman Huáng.

"Should we not begin by naming possible candidates?" one more said. They began to speak of daughters, nieces, and somewhat distant cousins as Zuko quietly fumed, gathering his words carefully.

"Might I ask why this is necessary?" he finally called over the din, which settled quickly.

"Fire Lord Zuko," one said, somewhat patronizing. "We know this seems a bit sudden, and that you may be comparatively young, but the facts are plain. There are three left alive of the Fire Lord's line. One of them is imprisoned, to be executed, one is becoming rather old to be a father—no offense meant, Revered Dragon of the West." Iroh shook his head to say none was taken. "And, then there you remain: Fire Lord. Should something happen to you in the unrest of a post-war society, the line must be secured. Otherwise, a terrible civil war could erupt over who the next or best candidate for Fire Lord is."

"Yes, and you have made my very point for me, General Rai. There is much unrest in the Fire Nation. To choose a wife too soon and from a certain region could possibly incite violence. It is simply too soon to consider a marriage with enough doubt of position among the—" Zuko stopped himself from saying 'nobility.' "Populace. They have already been asked to adjust to one new monarch abruptly. I would hesitate to make them accept another so soon." The crowd of nobles and generals spoke amongst themselves for a moment before Zuko spoke to the clerk. "How many more issues for this meeting?" he asked, thinking of the five already dealt with.

"Four, sir," the clerk answered. Zuko controlled the all but overwhelming urge to hit his forehead against something.

Mai spun swiftly, shooting stilettos accurately at the heavily armored guard she was against. He incinerated them as they flew. Looking past his flames, he couldn't find his opponent. He dodged several red and silver steel knives as they shot past him toward the deck rails. Turning to where they'd come from, he tripped, his armor catching on something in midair. He felt a concentrated weight pressing against the light armor on his throat and looked to the aristocrat holding a knife to his throat.

"Your surroundings may change in a battle. Attacks are not always straightforward. Remember that," she advised, stepping away. The guard looked, observing the wires he had faltered on. His eyes followed them to the railing, where they were wound around the metal poles, daggers dangling lazily. He stood heavily and bowed to her as she went to retrieve her weapons. Looking over he saw the other young woman in the middle of a rapidly thinning crowd, dropping man after man in spite of the heavy armor and obvious size advantage. He notices the wet color in her scraped, rapid knuckles and noted that the protection wasn't entirely worthless. Though, it didn't seem right for such a pretty girl t come to pain because of it...

"How was I today?" Zuko asked his uncle when they retired to his study after the meeting. He collapsed onto the couch facedown and waited for the tiredness to ebb.

"You did well, Fire Lord Zuko," Iroh answered calmly.

"Ugh. No. No politics, no titles, nothing to do with all that," Zuko said, still facedown. "Why don't we go be refugees again? That was rather pleasant." He turned face up and stared with great concentration at the backs of his eyelids.

"You won't be able to escape it forever, Zuko," his uncle's deep voice reminded him.

"I was raised think the Fire Lord's greatest job was to win the war and be a great firebender, not argue about tariffs, embargoes, and the possibility of some completely useless addition to the palace when I have entirely better things to spend it on."

"Find simple things to take pleasure in, Zuko. A hobby, perhaps," Iroh advised.

"My hobby is firebending," Zuko muttered.

"No, it's part of your job, just like arguing about drought relief, soil erosion, and marriage."

"Don't say it," Zuko said, covering his face with a pillow.

"Marriage? It isn't so bad as you think, Zuko."

"I'm seventeen."

"Your father was—"

"I don't care how young Father was when he married," Zuko interrupted, sitting up. "And at the time, he didn't have a country to run. He never had an issue with the words 'wife' and 'rule.' Yes, it was an arranged marriage, but there was not nearly as much riding on his marriage to Mother as mine with whomever I will marry." He rose heavily and walked to his desk.

"It isn't entirely about politics, Zuko. One person to be with you through all your trials will be your spouse," Iroh said wisely.

"I'm just worried about the trial of a wife."

Mai sneezed. The action didn't surprise her since she'd been aware of her new shadow for a while. She stopped and turned, looking the feline up and down. It meowed once.

"You are aware that I am not particularly fond of you, yes?"

It meowed once in response.

"And that you make me sneeze?"

She received the same reply.

"Will you please stop following me?"

Hua meowed twice. Mai decided to stop talking to the cat and kept walking. The early imperceptible sound of pads on the grate behind her kept Mai's thoughts occupied as she wound through the passages in the ship. She was making her way to the courier office on the ship, desiring to see if any messages had come by messenger falcon-gulls.

"L-Lady Mai, it's g-good t-to see y-you," the courier said. Mai had met him briefly only once before and gathered that he was either mad or a genius, stuttered, was very perceptive, had some fear of something vague yet nearly always present, and terribly allergic to cats. He sneezed heavily. He was a tall man, lean in a way that could look withered one moment, wiry the next. His salt and pepper hair and honey brown eyes gave him the look of a distracted father, though his lack of either wife or child was apparent.

"Hello, Jiro. Hua, please move," Mai said, gently toeing the cat out the door and closing it. Jiro sneezed again and began reordering his many maps and scraps of paper with information. Soon he had unearthed—or rather, de-papered—a chair for Mai, which she declined with a raised hand.

"I just need to know if there have been any new messages," she said.

He took a breath. "No, but there is one a-addressed to you," he said with effort. He went to a small cove in a honeycomb storage shelf that took up most of one wall. Mai silently marveled that he could make sense of the bedlam that was his library of small information. She soon doubted if he could, right as he brought out one letter. "H-Here it is," he said, handing it to her. "Left here ab-bout a week ago."

Mai looked at the letter. He name was expertly written, she assessed. A careful hand, well schooled and steady. The person was sure, perhaps even proud. She broke the seal—simple, plain wax, no higher quality than any commoner family would use. Her eyes trailed over the single line and signiture, shooting open in shock for a spilt second, then narrowing to hide emotions and suspicion.

"Mai—Hua came to get me. What's going on in there?" Ty Lee's voice came from cracked door. Mai hastily thanked Jiro and left the courier's office, stepping into the hall.

"Mai, what's going on? Hua's really upset," Ty Lee asked anxiously. Mai handed Ty Lee the letter.

"I'm not dead yet.

"

A/N: I've got to have a bigger antagonist than just some spoiled, doomed-to-fail Mary-Sue, don't I?

Tinh: What about me?

Me: Don't worry! You have a big part in the next chapter.

Jesus saves!

ZFF