Book I: Water
Chapter 9: The Shape of the Future
Gaoling, South-Western Earth Kingdom - Ten Years After Sozin's Comet
The week after Kohnna's funeral, it was decided that Sokka would be the one to return to the South Pole. He would inform the tribe of both Kohnna and Uquino's deaths, as well as Hakoda's capture, but he could also tell them that Zuko and Katara had made it safely to the Underground with the Avatar. Katara would accompany him as far as the nearby harbor town of Heikou, where he would find passage south aboard a merchant ship. Then she would return to Gaoling to continue Aang's instruction in waterbending.
The weather was pleasant as they made their journey on foot, but the mood was still rather sedate. It was more bad news than good that Sokka had to deliver, and they both knew Katara would rather be going in his place. They spoke quietly of home, and what had changed since Sokka had been there last, and Katara told him all about her son, whom he would be meeting for the first time. She and Zuko had bought a copper whistle and a painted toy dragon at the market in Gaoling, which Sokka would bring to Arvik as birthday presents.
They reached Heikou around midday, and found a ship headed south. When it was time for Katara to leave him at the docks, she hugged Sokka for a long time, as if trying to pour into the embrace all the love she felt for Arvik, so that Sokka could bring that to him as well. But she knew that would be a futile gesture - she could hold on to her brother for the rest of time, and it wouldn't make things right.
"Safe travels," Katara said as she let him go.
"Don't worry," Sokka replied, squeezing both her hands reassuringly. "We'll see each other again soon enough." He sounded so certain.
"Did another water spirit tell you that?" Katara joked.
"An air spirit, actually," Sokka replied with a straight face. "The water spirits usually know where you are, but it's the air spirits who are best at seeing the future." It might have been sarcasm, or it might have been the truth - Katara found it hard to tell now.
"You're branching out into other elements," she commented, unsure how else to respond to her brother's talk of spirits other than with teasing.
Sokka shrugged. "The elements aren't as separate as most people think. You know that."
Katara shook her head, struck once again by how much wiser he sounded. "You're so different," she finally said aloud. "You're all...serious and ascetic. What happened to Sokka the meat-and-sarcasm guy?"
Sokka laughed. "You know, sometimes I miss him, too," he said wistfully. "But I'm not the only one who's changed."
Katara wanted to deny it, but she knew he was right. All her priorities had shifted since she had left the Underground. She didn't want the same things anymore, and in some ways it still felt like giving up - except the simple things she wanted now seemed even more unattainable.
"We both grew up," Katara agreed. "And the whole world is different now." Really, the world had been changing rapidly ever since the war began, and it was only in the last few years that Katara had been aware that it was still changing, perhaps even more rapidly than before. And in her own life at least, not all the changes were for the worse.
One of the ship's crew appeared at the top of the gangplank. "Hey, Guru," he called down to Sokka. "We're shoving off soon, you coming or what?"
"I told you, I'm not a guru!" Sokka called back.
The sailor shrugged. "Well, whatever you are, hurry it up."
Katara gave her brother one last hug, and Sokka invoked the blessing of the moon and ocean spirits upon her. Then he boarded the ship. Katara watched the ship make her way out of the harbor until they pulled in the oars and unfurled the sails. Then she turned and left the docks to begin the journey back to Gaoling on her own.
As she reflected on their parting, she began to wish she had asked Sokka if his spirits had told him anything about when she and Zuko might see their son again. But some part of her was also glad she hadn't, for fear of the answer. If Sokka's mysterious melancholy was anything to go by, it might be better not to know what the future held. Without that certain knowledge, she could still hope for the best.
Fire Nation Capital - Ten Years Earlier
It was a far smaller crowd that gathered for her coronation than there had been for her father's. Most of the army was too busy burning the Earth Kingdom to the ground to attend. But Azula still reveled in her moment of glory. The chief Fire Sage secured the golden flame of Agni in her hair, and anointed her hands with the sacred oil that made her fire burn dark red as she lit the ceremonial flame. This flame would be taken to the great temple which stood at the opposite end of a long avenue leading away from the palace. There it would be preserved as long as her reign lasted.
Her subjects bowed as she was proclaimed Fire Lord. They hailed her three times, wishing her long life. They cheered as she lifted her flaming hands in a gesture of benediction. The last of the oil burned away, and her fire faded from red back to blue. It was almost perfect.
Almost, because there was still one little dangling thread she had been unable to resolve before her triumph - the nuisance that was her brother. She had failed at Kozei, not through any fault of her own, of course, but it had been a failure nonetheless. And she had not managed to find him again after that, before her father had ordered her to return home. He wanted her in the capital when Sozin's comet returned, to take her throne on the day of the Fire Nation's final victory.
That meant Zuko was still out there, somewhere, alive and a disgrace to the royal family. Azula had no doubt he would turn up again like a bad copper piece, to cause problems. It was the only thing he was really good at. She couldn't help but wonder, if her father shouldn't have just killed him when their grandfather had told him to. How different things would be now. She wondered what her mother would have done…
At least this way, Azula might still get the satisfaction of getting rid of Zuko herself someday.
News reached the capital early the next day that the Phoenix King's campaign had been a success, not that Azula had ever doubted it would be. Ba Sing Se was nothing but a smouldering ruin, the Earth Kingdom was crushed, and her father was returning home a conquering hero.
Azula met her father at the spire of the great temple, which had recently been retrofitted to allow airships to dock. The sages had grumbled about this, but Ozai had not let that stand in the way of progress. It was Agni's blessings that made the Fire Nation the most technologically superior country in the world. Surely he would not begrudge them this.
The Phoenix King descended from his ship, all gold and scarlet, his face barely visible beneath the ornate helm he wore. The guards and attendants who formed her retinue knelt before him, but Azula merely bowed from the waist. The Fire Lord knelt to no one.
"Fire Lord Azula," her father greeted her formally. She couldn't help but smile in satisfaction at the title. "We trust there were no difficulties in our absence?"
"None, Father," Azula replied. Ozai nodded and walked past her, heading for the stairs down to the ground level of the temple. Azula fell into step beside him, her retinue and his trailing behind. "Your victory over the Earth Kingdom went unchallenged, I take it?"
"There was no significant opposition," Ozai said. He kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, so Azula could not see his face under the helm, but he sounded displeased. She took that to mean that no significant opposition was still more than he would have liked. But as long as they had won in the end, what did it matter?
"Were there surviving generals?" Azula asked, eager to hear the details. "Did they offer a formal surrender?" It would be more satisfying to simply crush them, but a surrender would do better to break the spirits of the people of the Earth Kingdom. They were less likely to attempt any uprising if they believed their leaders had given up.
"We will discuss this later," Ozai said curtly, and Azula reluctantly let the matter drop. They descended the rest of the stairs in silence. As they passed through the temple, where her coronation fire burned next to his, Ozai ignored the Fire Sages who bowed low before them, heading straight outside. The brilliant sunlight gleamed on the gold ornamentation of his formal robes, and the waiting crowds burst into cheers to greet their victorious king. Ozai paid them no attention either as he settled into the larger of the two palanquins that were waiting there.
Azula took her seat in the smaller palanquin, and took the opportunity to meditate with a small flame in her hands as they made their way in procession to the palace. She did regret having missed out on the great battle that secured their nation's complete supremacy over the world. But surely she would hear all about it soon enough, and in the future there would still be a need to secure their empire. She would still have opportunities to show the world what she was capable of.
When the pomp and ceremony of their return to the palace was finally over, Ozai ushered her into the private receiving room off of the throne room, where the Fire Lord held more personal audiences. In theory, both this room and the throne room should be hers now, but the Phoenix King was a title without precedent. Azula supposed they would have to work that out.
Ozai removed his helm at last and set in on the desk. It was heavy, and made a resolute thud against the laquered wood. Ozai rolled his neck, clearly relieved to be free of its weight. It was strange for Azula to see him without crown or topknot, his hair actually mussed by the helm. "That does still need some work," he admitted with a vague gesture at the royal burden in question.
"So what happened in Ba Sing Se?" Azula asked impatiently. "Was the entire Council of Five wiped out, or did they surrender? Did you take prisoners?"
"Your uncle was there," Ozai replied with a grimace, still not answering her questions. "He tried to stop me, but he failed."
Azula didn't have to ask what failure meant. It didn't particularly bother her to learn that Uncle Iroh was dead, just as Lu Ten's death had failed to move her. Neither of them had ever paid much attention to her, preferring to coddle her brother instead. But the fact that Iroh had been in Ba Sing Se did raise another interesting question.
"Was Zuko there with him?" Azula asked, as her father walked around to the other side of the desk and sat down. Clearly they were still on his territory, as far as he was concerned.
"Yes," Ozai said. Azula couldn't tell if he was angry about this, or regretful, or merely tired. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to him, that even in his disgrace Zuko would find a way to disappoint once again. It irked her, how her father always seemed to be disappointed, every time.
"Did you kill him, too?" Azula asked casually.
"Don't concern yourself with that," Ozai answered dismissively. Azula took his evasion to mean he hadn't. So he had failed at that, just like she had. Interesting.
"What should I concern myself with, in your opinion?" she asked, letting just a hint of a challenge color her voice, as she leaned on the desk with both hands and stared down at him.
Ozai looked up at her, unfazed by her boldness. "Doing what I tell you, naturally."
If she were less in control of herself, Azula would have scorched the desk. Instead, she maintained her calm façade, both dutiful and uncompromising. "And what will that be?" she pressed.
"To start with," Ozai replied, folding his hands on the desk in front of him, "you will kneel when you greet me in the future."
"The Fire Lord does not kneel," Azula insisted. He had said it often enough since his own coronation, whenever the Fire Sages had tried to subject him to this or that antiquated ritual. She would be no less assertive.
"But this is a new age, and before the Phoenix King, every knee must bend," Ozai countered. Azula could see he was claiming still more ground. "You must not question me in public, either," her father went on. "You are Fire Lord, but you are not my equal. Is that understood?"
Azula took the lecture in stride, as she was used to doing. She excelled when he wanted her to excel and demurred when he wanted her to demure. That was how it had always been. She had hoped things would be different, in this new age, but now she saw she would have longer still to wait.
"Yes, Father," she replied patiently.
Gaoling, South-Western Earth Kingdom - Ten Years After Sozin's Comet
They spent the next four weeks with the Underground. The lower levels of the current hideout included a training room that opened onto a natural spring, where Katara would take Aang for waterbending lessons. The boy finally seemed to be taking his training seriously, and his progress was even more rapid. She started him on sparring - sometimes with her, sometimes with Zuko. Katara couldn't help thinking of her own years of training, when Amaruk would have her and Kohnna face off against each other. It was still strange to think that he was gone.
The resistance conducted more raids, which sometimes Zuko would participate in, but they made no major gains. Their targets had to be carefully selected - remote military bases, convoys through deserted areas - so that retribution wouldn't fall on the town. The outpost they had destroyed was soon rebuilt, and fortified more heavily than before.
Just when Katara was beginning to wonder if they were really making any difference, General Kwon asked for a private meeting with her and Zuko. He had an office of sorts, an alcove off of the war room that was large enough for a desk and a few chairs - all fashioned with earthbending, of course - and that was where they met him. He was studying a map as they came in, stroking his dark, neatly-trimmed beard in concentration.
"You wanted to see us, General?" Zuko prompted. With a tired smile, Kwon set down the map, which Katara noticed showed the disputed region to the north of the mountains. Fire Nation strongholds were marked with little red triangles, and safe havens with green circles. There were far more of the former and fewer of the latter than she remembered.
"Yes," Kwon replied, waving a hand for them to sit down. "I've been thinking about what the Avatar's arrival means for us in practical terms, in the immediate future."
"He's becoming a skilled waterbender," Katara said carefully. "But he's still a child."
"I know," Kwon agreed. "Zuko has certainly told me as much, repeatedly, as if it weren't obvious." His tone was teasing, but light, and Zuko shrugged. "What is also obvious," Kwon continued, "is that Aang is nonetheless eager to do something in his role as the Avatar. And for that, I think I may have a diplomatic solution."
Katara exchanged a confused glance with Zuko, but they said nothing, waiting for Kwon to elaborate.
"Ever since the burning," the General said, smoothing out the map with both hands, "those of us who have continued to fight have struggled to persuade others to join our cause. Many have simply given up the restoration of balance as hopeless." He looked at Katara. "The Northern Water Tribe, for example, has refused to send us any assistance. And…" Here he tapped an area on the map free of both red and green symbols. "There are others even closer to us who remain stubbornly neutral."
Zuko was studying the area on the map that Kwon had indicated. "That's the Foggy Swamp," he observed. Katara looked carefully at the map and saw he was correct. Neither of them had ever been into the swamp themselves, but Sokka had told them stories…
"You mean the waterbenders who live there," Katara concluded. "You think Aang can convince them to help us?"
"I think proof of the Avatar's return changes everything," Kwon declared. "The mere fact that the boy is alive, in spite of all odds, makes our prospects look less bleak. And yes, I do think that may persuade some of the more reluctant to fight for our cause."
"So you want us to bring Aang into the swamp," Zuko reasoned.
Kwon nodded in agreement. "And all the way to the North Pole, if you can."
Katara exchanged another glance with Zuko. It would be a risky venture. Safe passage through the swamp was no guarantee, and beyond that lay colonized territory. And if they were going to reach the Northern Water Tribe, they would have to cross the burned lands, which held dangers of their own, more terrifying than Fire Nation soldiers. But if they stayed, and the resistance continued as it was…
"We are losing ground," Kwon finished her thought. "Slowly, so that most don't even realize it yet, but we are losing. If help does not come, it's only a matter of time." He sighed, sitting back in his chair and folding his hands on the desk. "That boy is our last hope."
Zuko's shoulders slumped, and Katara knew Kwon had won him over just as he had her. Probably even more easily, actually. "So we're setting out with Aang again," Zuko said tiredly, "on another dangerous quest, for the sake of the world."
Kwon gave Zuko a sympathetic look. "There's no one I'd trust more with the boy's safety than you and Katara," he said. "And at this point, I think you feel the same way."
Once they were all in agreement about undertaking the mission, the conversation turned to logistics. Kwon had already worked out what he thought would be the best route for them to take, but he wanted their input as well. He handed Zuko a writing tablet and a reed pen with a wistful smile. "Here," he said, "somebody should take notes." Zuko gave a rueful laugh and accepted the writing implements, jotting down the landmarks and waypoints the three of them agreed on.
When they found Aang in the stables with Appa afterwards and informed him of their new quest, the boy nearly hit the ceiling with excitement. Seeking out isolated tribes of waterbenders appealed to his sense of adventure, it seemed.
"I bet the swamp tribe has a totally different bending style," Aang speculated. "Maybe we could learn it together, Katara! That'd be so cool!"
"It would be interesting," Katara admitted. But it was the Northern Water Tribe that she was more curious about. She'd heard many stories about them over the years, and couldn't help but wonder how they would measure up to reality. Personally, she also felt the northerners were more likely to help them. They had sent the delegation to the south, after all, just before the comet had come.
"It's a good idea," Zuko agreed. "But remember, Aang, our goal is more than just learning new bending techniques. The General is sending us on this mission to convince these people to join the war effort."
Aang leaned back against Appa's flank, burying his hands in the bison's thick fur. "Right," he said dully, "it's always about the war effort."
Katara exchanged a glance with Zuko. "Yeah," she agreed. "Unfortunately, it is."
Fire Nation Capital - Sixteen Years Earlier
"It's time you and I had a talk."
Azula reluctantly followed her mother as she dragged her out of Zuko's room, knowing this was not going to be a pleasant conversation. She was expecting to be brought to her own room, where she would probably end up being confined when their talk was through, but to her surprise she was led to her mother's rooms instead.
Ursa dismissed her attendants and seated Azula on one of the low sofas in the sitting area of her apartment. Azula glanced around the room with furtive curiosity. She and Zuko used to play in here sometimes, when they were younger. She remembered sitting on this sofa with the whole family, her mother leaning against her father's shoulder with Zuko under one arm, while Azula herself was curled in her father's lap as he read a story to them.
But Azula hadn't been in this room in what felt like ages.
"What nonsense were you frightening your brother with this time?" Ursa asked sternly, interrupting Azula's reminiscing.
Azula frowned. "It wasn't nonsense," she insisted, crossing her arms and refusing to look at her mother. "I was just telling him the truth." And she had been. This time.
"And what truth was that?" Her mother did not sound impressed.
Azula squeezed her hands into fists, still staring stubbornly at the floor a few feet away, where the red carpet gave way to the dark wooden floorboards. "I don't want to tell you," she said primly. "You're just going to be mad at me, like Zuko was, and accuse me of lying."
Ursa sighed and came closer, kneeling in front of the sofa so she was in Azula's line of sight. Azula attempted to turn her head away, but her mother caught her chin with one hand and forced her to look at her. "If you tell me the truth," she said gently, "I promise I won't be mad at you."
Azula hesitated. There was no hint of anger or malice in her mother's amber eyes. She really did look like she just wanted to know - probably because she was worried about Zuko. There were so many reasons to worry about him. Well, let her have one more, if she really wanted it.
"Grandfather told Dad he has to kill Zuko," she said in a flat voice.
Her mother's grip tightened on her face and Azula winced as she gasped. "What?" Ursa said sharply. "Why would he do that?"
"Dad asked Grandfather to make him the heir instead of Uncle Iroh, and Grandfather said it was disrespectful and he needed to suffer for it," Azula said in a rush.
Ursa let go of her chin, and grasped Azula by both shoulders instead. "If you're telling stories, young lady, this is not funny," she warned.
"I'm not!" Azula insisted. "It's the truth! And you promised you wouldn't be mad at me!"
"I'm not mad at you," her mother replied, but she still sounded angry. "How do you even know about this?"
"I hid behind the curtains in the throne room," Azula said in a small voice. Her mother stared at her, appraising her answer. "You don't believe me!" Azula accused. "You think I'm a liar! Well, you'll see, when Dad kills Zuko! Then you'll know I was telling the truth!"
"If you heard the Fire Lord say those things," Ursa said in the same fierce tone, ignoring Azula's outburst, "why wouldn't you come tell me straight away?"
"Maybe because I knew you wouldn't believe me!" Azula shouted, blinking furiously. She was not going to cry about this like some baby, just because Zuko was going to die and no one would listen to her…
Her mother pulled her into a hug. Azula hid her face against her shoulder and still refused to cry. "Listen to me, Azula," Ursa said carefully. "I am not punishing you. But this is a very frightening situation, and I want you to stay in your room for the rest of the evening, until bedtime." She held Azula at arms' length. "Do you understand? I don't want you to worry about anything else, but you must stay in your room."
Azula nodded. "Good girl," her mother said, but the words rang hollow. Her mother said lots of things she didn't really mean - that she wasn't mad, that Azula wasn't being punished, that she shouldn't worry. Why should Azula take any comfort from her false assurances? She knew what her mother really thought of her.
Ursa led Azula back to her own room, gave her a kiss on the forehead, and shut her in. Azula thought about throwing herself on her bed in frustration, but that was the sort of thing Zuko would do, pointless and melodramatic. She opted to practice her firebending forms instead.
"I don't even care," she muttered, shooting a small plume of fire from her fist. "I don't care!" she repeated, more forcefully, producing a larger flame. "I don't!" she shouted, and her fire came dangerously close to catching her bed curtains.
"You're not supposed to be firebending in here," came her father's voice from the doorway.
Azula spun around in surprise, but didn't apologize. "Dad," she said, wondering if he knew why she'd been confined to her room, "what are…"
"You've been eavesdropping," Ozai cut her off. Well, that answered her question. Now he was mad at her, too. Fantastic.
"You told me I should be paying attention to how the Fire Lord runs his court," she said, not even bothering with the innocent tone she would have affected for anyone else.
"That is not what I meant," her father scolded.
Azula studied him carefully. He didn't look nearly as upset as her mother had. Even his displeasure with her seemed perfunctory. "Are you really going to kill Zuko?" she asked boldly.
"Don't concern yourself with that," Ozai replied. "And save your firebending for the training rooms. While you're in here, perhaps you can work on your other studies. I know your tutor gave you a scroll on the reign of Fire Lord Raiden to read."
Azula tried to hide her disappointment with the evasive answer, or at least let her father think it was just because Fire Lord Raiden was boring. "Alright," she agreed, dutifully heading over to her desk and finding the scroll in question. Ozai gave her no platitudes, but he nodded in approval before he left.
Azula did read the scroll, and even finished it by the time a servant brought her dinner. After she ate, she changed into her nightclothes, ran through her firebending forms one more time - without actually bending - and then went to bed, for lack of anything better to do.
But she had trouble getting to sleep. She kept thinking about what Grandfather had said, how she'd gone back and forth over whether she thought her father would actually go through with it, and how he hadn't told her one way or another. But she was sure her mother would try to talk him out of it. Mom always came to Zuko's rescue.
Eventually she drifted off, and if she dreamed at all she didn't remember it when she woke again in the early hours just before dawn. Everything was still and silent, and there was a strange energy in the air. Azula felt that something important must have happened while she slept. Maybe Zuko really was dead, just like Lu Ten.
She bolted from her bed and scrambled to the door in her bare feet. Opening the door just a crack, she peeked out into the corridor just in time to see a dark figure slip into Zuko's room. Heart pounding in anticipation, Azula crept silently down the corridor as well, stopping just outside her brother's door, which had been left open. She heard voices coming from inside the room, and realized the dark figure had been her mother.
Azula couldn't make out the words her mother was saying to Zuko, but she could hear the urgency in her voice. Whatever she had to tell him, it was something very important.
She hurried away as her mother left Zuko's room a minute later, keeping to the shadows and trying to be as quiet as she could. Ursa headed down the corridor, towards Azula's room, and Azula's heart jumped when she realized her mother would catch her out of bed and know she had been eavesdropping again. She had just been scolded for doing this…
Ursa stopped in front of Azula's door. For a moment, Azula considered stepping out from her hiding place and owning up to what she had been doing. Her mother was deathly serious about something, and it would be better to come forward with honor than to be caught skulking.
But Ursa sighed, and continued down the corridor without going into Azula's room. Her secrets were only for Zuko, it seemed. Azula wasn't worth her time.
She watched her mother disappear into the darkness.
Gaoling, South-Western Earth Kingdom - Ten Years After Sozin's Comet
The night before they were to set out, Lagora came to the Underground's hideout again to deliver some medicines she had prepared, as well as a message for the General from Lord Gaozu's partisans in the eastern Earth Kingdom. Katara could barely follow the subtleties of the ongoing power struggle between Goren and Gaozu, but it seemed to her a disheartening waste of time, and she knew Sokka felt similarly. General Kwon, however, was perpetually trying to smooth things over between the rivals.
But Lagora had little interest in discussing Earth Kingdom politics with Katara when they were alone in the training room. She'd agreed to do a few waterbending drills before she left - Lagora would never be a warrior, but Katara had talked her into learning at least basic self-defense - and was pleased when Katara told her about their upcoming mission to recruit more waterbenders.
"There were more people who wanted to come with us to the south, you know," she told Katara as the two of them went through the first form in unison. "Chief Arnook didn't want the delegation to be too big, but he said that he might send another in the future, if the south agreed." They finished the form, and Lagora stretched one arm over her chest, then the other. "That was before the comet, of course," she said regretfully.
"I can't believe they're still refusing to help at all," Katara said, as she laced her fingers and stretched her arms over her head.
Lagora sighed, letting her arms drop. "It's so risky crossing the burned lands, we've only sent one messenger," she explained. "And the north was isolated for so long, I guess it was easy for people to fall back into that way of thinking. What Ozai did to the Earth Kingdom must have terrified them."
"It terrified everyone," Katara retorted, her hands falling to her hips. "That's why all the nations should be trying to do something about it."
Lagora gave her a patient look. "I'm not the one you have to convince," she said. "But don't tell me you can't understand why they'd be reluctant."
Of course she understood. Katara had as much reason as anyone to want to stay out of the war. "But I wouldn't hide away in an ice fortress like that when there were people who needed me," she insisted. She was here, doing what needed to be done, no matter how much she wished it could be otherwise.
Lagora laughed. "Maybe don't put it to Chief Arnook that way," she suggested. "You're trying to get on his good side."
"I feel like that's going to be an uphill battle," Katara admitted, fidgeting with the strap of one of her waterskins. She had no doubt they would welcome the Avatar with all due respect, but she was less certain how they'd receive her, female warrior, erstwhile student of Amaruk, and wife of a firebender. And that wasn't even getting into the old scandal with her grandparents…
"Pakku might try to give you a hard time," Lagora conceded. "But if he does, you can kick his ass, I'm sure. And then you can commiserate over how much you both hate Amaruk."
Katara rolled her eyes at the mention of her old waterbending instructor. "They made him leader of the delegation just to get rid of him, didn't they?"
"Probably," Lagora agreed. "Which means they owe us now." She snapped her fingers, as if she'd just had a brilliant idea. "Bring that up, if you have to."
Katara laughed at the irony of using Amaruk as a bargaining chip. He would probably approve, even. Anything that got them the help they needed would be fine by him, no matter how ignoble.
"Any other helpful suggestions?" Katara asked dryly. "Anyone in particular you want us to bring back, maybe as a suitor for you?" She gave her friend a teasing smile. "Or is there an Earth Kingdom soldier who's caught your fancy, too?"
But Lagora wasn't amused. "No," she said shortly, the playful tone of their conversation suddenly icy.
Katara hesitated before she spoke again. "Is there something wrong with Nivi's husband?" she finally asked. "Nobody else seemed bothered by her marriage."
Lagora shook her head. "It's not him, specifically. It's just…" She shrugged and looked around the empty training room, but apparently found nothing to distract from the conversation. "She was supposed to marry Mekkino."
"Oh," Katara said. "I didn't know they were betrothed." Nivi had never worn a necklace, and as far as Katara knew, Mekkino hadn't even courted her. Had there been some ill-fated whirlwind romance Katara had missed?
"It wasn't formal," Lagora clarified. "But when we first left, before the comet, it was understood. We were chosen not just to help rebuild the south, but to help repopulate as well."
"You mean they had already...paired you off?" Katara asked in disbelief. Nivi was barely older than her. "Before you were even of age?"
"Of course," Lagora replied, giving Katara that same old look of surprise at how little she knew of the north. Some things didn't change. "That's pretty common in the north, anyway. It's not binding or anything, but families make arrangements."
That did make sense, with what little Katara did know about marriage customs in their sister tribe. But if the arrangements weren't even binding in the north, Nivi couldn't possibly be held to it in the south. "Mekkino didn't seem heartbroken about it," Katara pointed out. "What's the big deal?"
"She married out of the tribe," Lagora said, sounding frustrated, as if she thought it should have been obvious that this was a problem.
Katara frowned and crossed her arms defensively. "So did I."
"That's different," Lagora said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Zuko's an exile, he basically has no nation anymore." Katara would have argued, but Lagora went on before she could. "You probably knew Shi Xin when you were at the refugee camp with Nivi, so you tell me: Is there any chance of him moving to the South Pole?"
Katara turned the name over in her mind, trying to remember the soldiers from the camp. Shi Xin was a tall earthbender, practical even to a fault. Nivi had always liked him. "Probably not," Katara admitted. "He's a true Earth Kingdom patriot."
"Exactly," Lagora said, hiding her resentment even less than she had up until then. "She's never going back home. Her daughter will be Earth Kingdom, not Water Tribe."
"Okay, I see your point," Katara said. That had never been an issue for her and Zuko. There was no question of raising Arvik in the Fire Nation. When they had talked of having children, there had never been any debate that they would grow up at the South Pole. But that was them. "Isn't that Nivi's choice, though?"
"Yes, it is," Lagora scoffed. "But it has consequences for all of us."
She and Katara stared each other down for a moment, before Katara decided to drop the subject. Trying to change Lagora's mind when she felt strongly about something was like getting water from a stone. "Alright," Katara said, "so no handsome Earth Kingdom soldier for you." But returning to the question of Lagora's marriage prospects piqued Katara's curiosity. "Who was your, um, intended, then?"
"Pamuk," Lagora replied, with neither enthusiasm nor displeasure.
Katara thought about the warrior who had remained at the South Pole, the reserved middle child between the haughty Ikino, who was always doing Amaruk's bidding, and the gregarious Nivi. She'd always found him a bit dull by comparison. She tried to imagine him married to Lagora, and she couldn't picture it. "Honestly, that doesn't sound like your ideal match."
"He's dependable," Lagora said, as if that were all that mattered. "We'll make it work."
"So you're still set on marrying him?" Katara asked. There weren't many options, even including the other members of the tribe who were in Gaoling, but there were some. "Even though you don't have to?"
"It's what's best for the tribe," Lagora replied, as Katara probably should have predicted she would. "Nivi may have forgotten that part of our duty, but I haven't."
Another thought occurred to Katara, which was both unsettling and, in light of recent events, a little sad. "If everyone was intended for someone, was it always the plan for Kohnna…"
"Not specifically. We didn't really know who we'd find in the south. But I think Amaruk at least had that in mind."
Of course Amaruk would have had big plans for his firstborn son, his only waterbending child. Even if Kohnna had never been everything his father had hoped, he had still been the obvious favorite. Katara wondered how Amaruk would take the news of his death. Would even that be enough to thaw the ice in his veins? "Maybe he'll pay more attention to Kinto now," she speculated out loud.
Lagora seemed to have followed her train of thought. "I'm not sure if that would be a good thing for Kinto," she said quietly. As a one-time focus of Amaruk's attention herself, Katara had to agree. Still, it was sad, how little affection Kinto got from his father.
"It must be getting late," Katara said suddenly. That was the trouble of being underground - it was easy to lose track of time. They left the training room and headed towards the Kyoshi warriors' barracks, where Lagora would be spending the night. They ran into Aang and Senorit in the corridor, heading in the direction they had just come from.
"I thought you had gone to bed," Katara said to Aang.
"Senorit was looking for a sparring partner," Aang explained enthusiastically. "And I haven't gotten to use my waterbending much against nonbenders."
"Well, go easy on him," Lagora said to Aang, throwing a wink at her brother. Aang laughed.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, sis," Senorit replied. "Don't worry," he said to Katara, "I won't keep him up too late."
"Alright," Katara agreed. It wasn't a bad idea for Aang to get some more practice in, and she was always glad to see him happy about something. It was good for the boy to have fun, as much as he could. "But I still expect you to be on time for breakfast tomorrow," she warned.
"Yes, ma'am!" Aang replied with an ironic bow.
Lagora shook her head as she and Katara walked away. "You're still adopting everyone you meet," she joked.
"Don't exaggerate," Katara admonished her.
"Come on, Katara. You did it to me and Nivi, you did it to your own brother, and now you're doing it to Aang. The only person who's ever been able to stop you from acting like his mother is Zuko." She cocked her head to one side, as if just thinking of something. "Which is probably why you married him," she concluded.
"Wow, that doesn't make it sound weird at all," Katara deadpanned.
"Just an observation," Lagora said innocently.
"If I'm so motherly towards you," Katara complained, "shouldn't you show me a little more respect?"
"I guess I was poorly brought up," Lagora shot back in perfect deadpan.
They reached the barracks, and Katara gave her friend a hug. For all her faults, Lagora never thought of herself. Her whole life was centered around doing what she believed was the right thing, for the sake of the tribe. "I think there's still hope for you," Katara said before they parted.