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Northern Water Tribe – Morning

"You are hereby charged with the murder of Chief Arnook. How do you plead?"

"Not guilty." Sokka was in chains, standing before a group of judges. The head judge, named Benthas, eyed him curiously from his bench. There were other judges as well. Elder Zendo was also acting as a judge. Hahn sat next to him, looking smug as ever.

"Not guilty?" It was clear Benthas was not buying it. "You were there at the scene of the crime. You were found with the chief's blood on your hands!"

"But I didn't do it. If anyone is guilty it's him!" Sokka pointed his chained hands at Hahn, who raised his eyebrows.

"You dare accuse our new Chieftain, Hahn the Great?

"Yes. I was out walking last night. I saw Hahn. I followed him. He went to Chief Arnook's bedroom. He was in there for a few minutes. After he left, I went in. There was Arnook, dead. It's the truth, I swear."

"Don't listen to his nonsense," Hahn spoke up. "He's obviously delusional. He murdered the chief and wants to pin it on me!"

"Why would I want to pin a murder on you?"

Hahn was now pacing back and forth in front of the judges. "Because Soka wanted my beloved Yue."

Fury erupted over Sokka's face.

Hahn continued on. "Soka was extremely jealous that Yue didn't return his … lustful feelings. He was jealous that she was madly in love with me. He was angry because I had her and he didn't. So he came back here with a plot for revenge."

Sokka flipped out. "That's crazy talk! Yea, I'm horribly jealous of you, oh 'Great and Mighty Hahn'. Gimme a break." Sokka turned away, his nose in the air. "Oh, and in case you couldn't tell, I was being sarcastic!"

"Well, duh," Hahn said.

"Mr. Sokka," Judge Benthas said. "You claim you hold no hostility towards Hahn, yet last night, you were seen viciously attacking him at the banquet. What do you have to say about that?"

Sokka opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. He lowered his head.

"You see," Hahn shouted. "We have a motive. We've had past attempts to harm me. He killed our Chieftain and wishes to pin the murder on me." He turned to the judges. "You have no choice but to throw the book at him."

Judge Benthas nodded. "We hereby find the defendant guilty of murder of our chieftain. Our sentence…"

Oh please just a slap on the wrist, Sokka thought.

"…is death."

Everyone gasped. Suki, who was watching the trial with the rest of the Water Tribe, burst into tears. Ty Lee held her close.

"The execution will be held first thing tomorrow morning – at dawn."

Sokka went nuts. "EXECUTION?! But I'm innocent! Innocent I tell you!"

Benthas snapped his fingers and two guards gagged Sokka. One guard punched him hard in the gut. Sokka doubled over as he felt the air leave him.

The guards then led him away.

Suki and Ty Lee watched as the judges left. Suki eyed Hahn with outright anger in her eyes. That despicable little. She watched Judge Benthas get up and leave. He was talking with Elder Zendo, who seemed rather upset.

Ty Lee tried comforting Suki. "Don't worry. We'll find a way to prove his innocence."

Suki nodded. "Thank you Ty Lee."

***

Suki and Ty Lee had been allowed to visit Sokka, who was now imprisoned in the Tribe's jail. Sokka gripped the frozen metal bars.

"But I didn't do anything! I'm innocent, you've got to believe me!"

Suki and Ty Lee entered the jail, and headed for Sokka's cell.

"Suki, thank goodness. You've gotta get me out of here. They're gonna kill me. Not to mention the food here stinks."

"Don't worry Sokka. We'll find a way to prove your innocence," Suki said.

"Well you might wanna hurry. 'Cuz when dawn comes…" Sokka traced his finger across his neck.

"Do you remember anything from last night?"

Sokka nodded. "Yea. I was out walking and I saw Hahn talking to that Elder Zendo guy. Hahn left, and entered the Chieftain's room. I waited outside. Then Hahn came running out of the room. I went in, and the Chieftain was dead."

"You mentioned Hahn was talking to Elder Zendo," Ty Lee said.

"Yea, he was."

"Then that's the first place we'll look," she said cheerfully.

"Don't worry," Suki said. "I'm going to fix everything." She and Sokka kissed between the prison bars.

Council of Elders – Afternoon

Elder Zendo was alone in council chamber. He was busy archiving some new artifacts that had been brought here, when Suki and Ty Lee came in.

"How may I help you ladies," he said, dusting off a rare antique.

"We have some questions for you, concerning the murder."

"Ah," he said. "Nasty business. Chief Arnook was a great friend of mine. In fact, one could consider me his right hand man. Why anyone would want to murder him, I will never know."

"Sokka said that you were talking with Hahn before the murder."

"That is true. For a while, Hahn was unsure of himself. He often comes to me for advice, seeing how he's going to be the new Chieftain and all. That attitude changed pretty fast. Come to think of it, he's been becoming more and more eager to become Chieftain as of recent."

Suki and Ty Lee exchanged looks.

"Do you know where he went after talking to you?"

"Not really. He said he had some business to take care of. I wished him well, and came back here."

Suki bowed. "Thank you for your time."

"My pleasure, my dear."

As Suki and Ty Lee walked out, Suki was deep in thought.

"I think I'm starting to get the picture," she said.

"Picture?" Ty Lee began looking around. "But I don't see anything." Suki smacked her forehead.

"About the murder. Elder Zendo said that Hahn was very eager to become Chieftain. He probably murdered Arnook, hoping to become Chieftain sooner. Then he would pin the murder on Sokka."

"Suki, you're a genius!"

"This doesn't prove Hahn did it, however. We should investigate the crime scene first."

Chief Arnook's Bedroom – Afternoon

"This room is off limits." Several Water Tribe soldiers stood guard, refusing Suki and Ty Lee access.

"Well that plan is shot," Ty Lee said, as she and Suki made their way out.

"No, it's not. We've just got to sneak in."

***

After the sun had set, Suki and Ty Lee decided to put their plans into action.

Ty Lee snuck throughout the Water Palace, using her superior agility and stealth to make her way through.

Since it was night, only two guards were there.

Suddenly, Ty Lee landed behind them. She hit their pressure points, and they went limp. "Sorry," she whispered to them.

"Good job, Ty Lee." Suki appeared around the corner. They entered into Chief Arnook's room.

It was dark and eerily quiet. Of course, Chief Arnook's body had been removed and buried that morning. However, the murder weapon was still there, left as evidence.

Suki removed a handkerchief from her pocket, and picked up the bloody knife. Ty Lee wrinkled her nose at the sight of it. Suki closely examined it.

"This doesn't look like any knife Sokka has," she said. "Look, Ty Lee. It's covered in ancient runes. This is definitely a Northern Water Tribe antique."

"How can you read those runes?"

"Sokka's been teaching me some things about the Water Tribes."

"So what does this mean?"

"This weapon's an antique. And it came from the Northern Water Tribe. I'm willing to bet that it belongs to the Council of Elders." She looked excitedly at Ty Lee. "This was probably why Hahn was so interested in Elder Zendo. Hahn probably managed to gain his trust, and then was able to steal it from him."

Suki was getting excited. "If we can just link this weapon to Hahn, we can prove Sokka's innocence!"

Ty Lee jumped up for joy.

"Hurry. We have to talk to Elder Zendo again."

Prison – Night

Sokka sat in his prison cell, moping. It was late. There was only one guard on duty here. That was okay. Sokka preferred being alone right now.

He was going to die. It was that simple. He was going to die and leave Suki and everyone else behind. All because of a crime he didn't commit. Curse you Hahn, he thought. If he ever got his hands on him, he'd. Well, he wasn't too sure what he would do.

Sokka's thoughts drifted to Suki. He would die without another chance to kiss her or hold her ever again. He felt a sudden pang of guilt. Yue.

Why was he still beating himself up about this? Yue was dead. Suki was alive. Why did he feel this way? Because deep down, he still loved Yue. He couldn't help it.

Sokka began to softly cry. Why couldn't he save her? He was assigned to protect her. Sokka was so lost right now. Even if he somehow managed to avoid execution, he would have to deal with all of this for the rest of his life.

Every time he would kiss Suki, he would think of Yue. Every time he held Suki, he would think of Yue. Maybe it was better he would be executed. He would be relieved of this mess.

"You mustn't think this way, Sokka."

Great, Sokka thought. Now I'm imagining I'm hearing Yue's voice.

"You're not imagining anything, Sokka."

Sokka looked up. He rubbed his eyes in amazement, just to be sure he was seeing straight.

Princess Yue was standing right before him.

Sokka got up. He slowly walker over to her, and touched her cheeck. She was real all right. Sokka threw his arms around her.

"I missed you," she said.

"Me too," he replied. "But how is this possible," Sokka asked. "How are you here, right now?"

"The spirits have allowed me to return, just this once. I understand you're having a very difficult time Sokka."

Sokka slumped down. "I don't know anymore." He didn't really feel comfortable discussing his feelings towards his current girlfriend with his ex-girlfriend.

Yue sat down next to him. "I know what you're feeling Sokka. You feel as though, somehow, you've betrayed me by dating Suki." Sokka nodded. Yue took his chin with her fingers and guided his face so he looked her in the eyes.

"But you must know that those feelings of guilt are irrational."

"I know," Sokka said. "But I can't help it. This is just how I feel." He looked down. "I loved you, Yue. I still love you."

"But you also love Suki," she said.

He nodded.

"Sokka, you must stop beating yourself up about this. You protected me all you could. I willingly sacrificed myself to save my people. To save you. You didn't fail in your job to protect me."

Sokka sighed. He hadn't thought of it like that.

"Sokka, I'm gone. But just because I left this world doesn't mean that you should be miserable and unhappy. Yes we loved each other. But our love just wasn't meant to be. You've found new love with Suki. You have to move on with your life."

"You mean, you're not upset?"

Yue laughed. "Upset? Why would I be upset? I love you Sokka. I want you to be happy. I'm glad you and Suki are in love."

Sokka smiled. Just knowing that Yue was fine with him and Suki gave him a lot of comfort – and closure. There was still some pain left, but Sokka would work through it – with Suki's help.

Yue stood up. She pulled Sokka up with her. She brushed Sokka's hair aside. The two leaned in, and shared one final, heartfelt kiss. They slowly pulled back.

"Remember when I told you I would always be with you," she asked. Sokka nodded.

"I was telling the truth. I will always be with you, Sokka. Remember that."

Yue slowly faded away, and Sokka smiled. Even though Yue was gone, she was still with him in spirit – and in his heart.

***

The Council of Elders Building - Night

Suki and Ty Lee rushed towards the Council of Elders. They came to the door. The small man that had met them earlier was still there to greet them.

"I'm sorry ladies," the man said. "We're closed."

Suki pulled out the knife, and the man's eyes widened. "Where did you get that? Oh my, oh my. Elder Zendo may want to see this. Follow me."

The man led them to the large council chamber. Zendo was in there, alone. The man showed the knife to Zendo, whose eyes widened. He took it from the man. "Leave us," he said. The man bowed and left, leaving Suki and Ty Lee alone with Zendo.

Zendo examined the knife. "Where did you find this?"

"We found it at the murder scene," Suki said. Zendo's eyes widened.

"You were at the murder scene?"

"Yes. We found that knife, and we figured that you might know something about it."

Zendo smiled. "Yes. I know very, very much about this knife."

Prison – Night

Sokka had fallen asleep in his cell, when he heard the door open. A man entered, wearing all black. A black scarf shrouded his face.

"Oh, what? Is it execution time already," Sokka exclaimed.

"No."

"Well then why are you here?"

The man pulled Sokka to his feet. "I'm going to get you out of here."

"What? Why?"

"Because I know that you're innocent. You don't deserve to be executed for a crime you didn't commit."

"Who are you," Sokka asked suspiciously.

The man removed his scarf, and Sokka's jaw dropped.

"Hahn?!"

Council of Elders – Night

"Ladies, this knife is mine," Zendo said.

"So Hahn must have stolen it," Suki remarked. "Then he used it to kill Chief Arnook and frame Sokka." She turned to Zendo. "We have to tell the rest of the Tribe."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, ladies," Zendo sneered. He closed and locked the doors.

"What? Why not," Ty Lee asked.

"Because I do not want this murder to somehow be traced back to me."

"You," Suki said. "Why would it be traced to you? It was Hahn who…"

Zendo erupted into laughter. "Hahn? You think that Hahn had the intellect to pull something like this off?"

Suki felt a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"It was me," Zendo exclaimed. "I killed Chief Arnook!"

"But why," Ty Lee asked.

"I was next in line to be Chieftain. Then Hahn came along and ruined everything. Arnook made him next in line over me! I was furious! I was his faithful right hand man, and he promoted that fool over me!

"So I gained Hahn's friendship, his trust. When the opportune time came, I murdered Chief Arnook. I hoped to pin the whole thing on Hahn, so that I would become Chieftain. But then that idiot friend of yours had to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, and screw everything up!"

Suki was enraged. "You monster," she said.

"You call me a monster. I call myself a revolutionary. Sometimes, the only way to get what you want is to step up and take it. And if someone has to get hurt along the way, well then so be it."

Suki and Ty Lee turned to exit. Zendo raised his arms, and ice crawled up along the door, freezing it shut. "I can't allow you to leave. You ladies know too much."

Suki and Ty Lee turned around and took battle stances.

Zendo sent huge gushing flows of water at them. The two Kyoshi warriors dived out of the way, only to be struck by a water whip from Zendo.

The two stood there, panting. "We have to find a way to get close to him," Suki said. "Then you can disable his bending."

The two dived as another wave of water was sent at them.

Suki dodged out of the way and stood up, only to have a flow of water strike her up against the wall. Zendo then froze the water, leaving Suki pinned to the wall.

He then turned to Ty Lee, who was now all alone in the fight.

***

Hahn and Sokka rushed through the Council building. They came to the large Council doors. They could hear the sounds of a battle taking place inside.

"Stand back and let a true man handle this," Sokka said. He charged the door, and pushed with all his might. Nothing happened. Hahn folded his arms and smirked.

He pushed Sokka aside, and then pulled out a club. "Looks like we're gonna have to do this the old fashioned way."

Sokka pulled out his own club (Hahn had returned all of Sokka's weapons and effects which had been confiscated). The two began bashing the door down.

***

Ty Lee was struggling against Zendo. Ty Lee was a close range fighter. However, Zendo was a long range fighter. He was an expert at keeping his opponents at bay.

Ty Lee ducked as huge chunks of jagged ice flew past her. They missed her head by and inch. Suddenly, a chunk of ice struck her in the leg. She screamed and fell to the ground, holding her bleeding thigh.

Zendo stood over her. He held the knife up high, preparing to finish her off.

Suddenly the door to the room busted open, and Sokka and Hahn came charging in.

Sokka withdrew his boomerang and threw it at Zendo, who leaped away. Zendo watched the boomerang in amazement; his eyes wide open in shock.

"It can't be…" he breathed.

Suddenly, he lost all feeling in his legs. While Zendo had been distracted, Ty Lee had managed to get close enough to block his chi. The old man fell to the ground, paralyzed.

Sokka rushed over to Suki, and began chopping at the ice. It took a few minutes, but finally, she collapsed into his arms.

Sokka laid her on the floor. Her face was purple. No! It can't be, he thought. Suki had been in the ice for several minutes. Sokka held her close, trying to warm her up with his body heat.

He began to cry softly. "Please don't die. Please."

The color began to return to her face. "Sokka…" she said weakly.

Sokka embraced her. "I thought I'd lost you."

"It's o.k. Sokka. I'm o.k. You can stop crying now."

"I – I wasn't crying," he said defensively.

"Aaaw, does little babykins need his mommy, or is he gonna cry some more," Hahn sneered.

"Shut up!"

Several guards came rushing into the room, along with Judge Benthas. Hahn had had the sense to warn them about Zendo before coming to rescue Sokka.

Benthas bowed down Sokka. "My deepest apologies for the … umm, misunderstanding. It was just…"

"Hey, no sweat," Sokka said.

"By the way," Benthas said. "Do you need a tissue? It looks like you may have been crying."

"I WAS NOT CRYING!"

"It's o.k. Sokka," Suki said. She kissed him. "I'm glad you were crying over me."

Meanwhile, Benthas' eyes landed on the boomerang still in Sokka's hand. A look of pure bewilderment crossed his face. "Where did you get that?"

"What, my boomerang?"

Benthas and the guards bowed down before Sokka, much to Hahn's annoyance.

"That's no ordinary boomerang. That was Beto's boomerang – his reliquary."

Sokka was in shock. He held up his boomerang. "This is Beto's reliquary?"

Sokka started laughing. He didn't know if it was because of the irony or because of all he'd been through. He just started laughing.

***

The Northern Water Tribe – The Next Day

Sokka, Suki and Ty Lee were preparing to board their ship to return to Ba Sing Se. The newly crowned Chieftain, Hahn was there to see them off.

"By the way," Sokka said. "How did you know I wasn't guilty?"

"Well, you guys are gonna think I'm completely nuts, but I had a little visit from Princess Yue last night. She set me straight."

Ty Lee and Suki looked at each other like Hahn was, in fact, crazy, but Sokka knew better.

He gave Hahn a Water Tribe handshake, before they set off.

As the boat left the Northern Water Tribe, Ty Lee sighed.

"So your boomerang was Beto's reliquary all along. Great, so we came here for no reason at all."

"Well," Sokka said, drawing Suki closer to him. "I wouldn't say no reason." The two kissed as the boat sailed off into the horizon…