Author's Note: So...it's been a looong time. How is everyone? Good? Yeah? That's good. *sweat drops* Errr...well, I don't have anything to say, except that life happened and I lost my muse for this story. However, one day, I found myself logging back in and re-reading the reviews for this story...It gave me motivation to give this another shot and to keep it going. Again, no guarantee that I'll update regularly, but this has officially been put back on the "active" list, so to speak.

So, without further ado, Chapter 10! I hope you all enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender nor any of its characters.

Enjoy! :D

Koda was forced to suffer further scolding. Normally, the scarred man could handle a good verbal thrashing—he endured more than enough of it in the past—but receiving it from Mai's mother had been a completely different story.

It had all started with Mai's father. His rage was practically palpable and it crashed over Koda like a heavy tsunami.

"You insufferable buffoon!" he yelled.

Koda's head pressed further into the floor, his lungs tightening from the fury in his voice. His bow was the picturesque image of obedience and apology, but Mai's father continued to lash into him without pause.

"You've placed my child in danger! In the hands of filthy Earth commoners! Are you mad?! If it weren't for my merciful nature, I'd have my guards burn you down this instant!" The man's words were not of particularly high volume but the tremor in his tone spoke of barely concealed rage. Even then, the anger clashed poorly with his lithe and athletic frame, dwarfed by the layers of his crimson robe. His wife sat to his right, silently fuming in her throne.

Gulping audibly, Koda risked a glance up and stuttered, "M-my deepest apologies, Your Highness. I was careless."

A thick silence settled over the throne room.

Lingering in the background were Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula. The acrobat was squirming in her spot while staring at the sex slave in utmost pity, unlike Mai and Azula, who were standing in their own unique pose of indifference. Of course, Azula wished nothing more than to defend her lover but, as humble as Koda was, even he had his pride. Intervening would ultimately embarrass him, not because the thought of a woman coming to his defense was demeaning—in fact, the idea would slap a goofy smile across his face. It ran deeper than that. The baking apprentice would spend several nights tossing and turning, groaning in fear as nightmares infected his mind, and, upon awakening, constantly reminded himself of a personal vow: No matter the consequence, he would take full responsibility for his mistakes. Whenever uttering this phrase, fire burned in the young man's eyes—there was no way Azula could undermine that passion.

On the other hand, Mai could care less about Koda's feelings. In her eyes, he deserved every scream and more—hell, she was tempted to jump in on the fun. However, she was notorious for self-restraint. Hands tucked into her large sleeves, she simply traced her finger along the blade of a knife and watched the show unfold.

Finally, something seemed to rise within Mai's mother. The woman, who was silent the entire time, sat forward in her seat and her full lips peeled apart to reveal teeth. No matter what nation she represented or what position she held, her title as a mother always reigned supreme. Her youngest child was kidnapped by a band of rebellious peasants. Only Agni knew how little or how much danger Tom Tom could be in. Her figure seeming to inflate with boundless anger, she seethed, "Listen and listen well, slave…"

Mai couldn't help but stare curiously as Koda's head instantly dropped, his vision avoiding the regal woman. His hefty, muscular frame seemed so fragile, his physique was racked with soft tremors, and a strangled sound escaped him—

A shift from Mai's right.

It was Azula, her expression the same but her arms now crossed, nails digging into the fabric of her sleeves. The knife-wielder's brow arched, baffled. No matter, she'd question the princess about the oddity later.

"Do you understand what I could do to you? I could have your head mounted on a wall!" the woman screeched.

Koda remained deathly silent.

Her fury spilled forth. "I could have each and every bone in your body snapped from blunt force and ground into powder! I could toss you at the feet of a tiger boa and allow it to swallow you whole! I could sentence you to death! Do you understand, you worthless waste of space?!"

Only the echoes of her words filled the room. They traveled through the atmosphere, slicing into Koda and making his organs tremble. The queen's anger was righteous, viscous even, and he found she had every right to be cross with him. He had made a grave mistake.

But it was not her rage that frightened Koda.

Nor was it the king's.

The woman's presence—the mere fact that she was a mother—disturbed his soul beyond words. The tone of feminine maturity, yet the wisdom and self-control shattered by unbridled emotion. This…this provoked a feeling far worse than anything Koda could handle.

He could hear her—the monstrous figure from his nightmares. Its words melded to the queen's until their voices bounced off the other in painful dissonance.

"Be a good boy and keep quiet…"

Mai's mother narrowed her eyes before hissing, "You're pathetic!"

"How weak! Crying! Like a newborn!"

"I can't even stand the sight of you!"

"Such a childish face! Come, darling, let me fix it~."

A familiar burning filled Koda's eyes. His teeth gnashed.

"It hurts, you say? Be a man!"

He could feel the interconnected muscles beneath his skin tense and inflate, as if the panic bubbling up stretched his body to its limits.

"It's only a little bleeding, you'll be fine...It's a beautiful color."

A sob pounded at the back of his throat, begging for release.

"I always love seeing your blood."

"Scatter! Leave my throne before I have you decapitated!" The queen's orders did not register in Koda's ears. His cranium pressed further into the floor; a painful distraction usually helped to assuage the fear but this woman was a powerful trigger. Everything about her rage mimicked that monster's.

A long, suffering groan emanated from him. "I'm sorry…" It was happening. A wail gathered at the pit of his tongue before rolling forward, pushing at the back of his teeth. The fear was unbearable—uncontrollable.

His lips began to peel apart.

"I did not request an apology!" the mother spat. "I ordered you to leave—"

A hand wrapped around Koda's arm and pulled him to his feet. "I've lost interest," Azula said casually. "Come, Koda." She then sliced the queen with a glare so toxic that the woman unconsciously leaned back. "If we are to retrieve the infant, then let's hurry up and get it over with."

The queen shot to her feet, gaping in disbelief. "B-but! Princess Azula—"

"Choose your next words wisely!" Venom coated Azula's voice, surprising everyone in the throne room. Of course, it was common for the prodigy to speak harshly; however, doing so to defend a lowly sex slave was unheard of. Even Koda gaped at his lover, at a loss for words. The queen deflated and fell back into her throne, trembling in fear and anger. Her husband avoided eye contact, ashamed by his inability to defend her honor.

Satisfied by her silence, Azula nodded. "Much better." Without sparing a glance at a baffled Mai and Ty Lee, she dragged Koda through the doors.

Neither of the lovers spoke a word.

The ex-prisoner only trailed behind, his glossy gaze glued to the back of Azula's head as she led him through a maze. Despite the heavy silence, an undeniable warmth and security emanated from her grip.

Finally, their moment was shattered when the girls caught up to them. Ty Lee threw herself onto Koda, arms wrapping around his beefy shoulders. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that!" she said. "I know you made a mistake and all but what she said was so harsh!"

Still recovering from the ordeal, all Koda could do was pat Ty Lee on the back before prying himself free.

"I'm fine," he said with a smile. The expression was so achingly forced that the acrobat cringed. She chose to ignore it, though. Koda went through enough already; calling him out on his bluff would be excessive.

A scoff traveled from Mai. "Whatever," she grumbled, "If he can't handle a few choice words, then he's far too sensitive for his own good. And you." She then turned on Azula, who arched an elegant brow questioningly.

"What about me?" Azula asked.

"What was that? I saw how you tensed up back there."

"You're imagining things. Is your boredom that intense?" Azula chuckled mockingly at the knife-thrower, appearing quite pleased with her quip. The zeal for competition was as alive as ever in the princess's eyes, anyone could see it if they peered closely enough. Thus, the triumph radiating from her was not lost on Mai; however, she had never seen this breed of it before.

In place of that cold, calculative blaze was the roar and vivacity of a flame. Since when did she gain so much purpose behind her words? Mai's jaw clenched before expelling a sigh of frustration. "Forget it," she huffed. She had little to no patience for Azula's flip-flop behavior, nor did she want to ponder when the prodigy's eyes became so open. "If we're going to do this trade then we should leave now. The hour's almost here."

"I am aware." Though Azula responded to Mai, her focus was entirely on Koda. Tapping her chin pensively while staring the man down, she said, "One to ten. Rate it."

The silence that overtook them was so prominent that one could hear a pen drop.

Mai and Ty Lee exchanged looks, making sure they weren't the only ones stumped by the random statement. The confusion only escalated upon hearing Koda sigh wearily while running a hand down his face; the question seemed to hold far more impact than they could ever fathom.

"Honestly? A solid eight—no, a nine," Koda said.

"I figured as much," Azula said, her eyes narrowing. Whether the look was out of annoyance or something else, Mai and Ty Lee couldn't tell. The acrobat raised a hand and flashed a sheepish smile.

"Um, sorry to interrupt but," she played with her braid while exchanging glances between Azula and Koda, "What are we rating?" In response, the princess's expression instantly cooled and shot a chill down Ty Lee's spine.

"None of your concern."

Ty Lee paled, taking a step back. She instantly regretted opening her mouth in the first place. "R-right. Sorry, Azula." Mai, on the other hand, refused to back down from a glare, at least not right now. Koda and Azula's interactions were beyond suspicious; though she doubted the firebender would ever care about the safety of TomTom, she should've snapped at Koda for his failure ages ago. However, she didn't. In fact, she almost seemed to be…comforting him? The knife-thrower felt bile crawl up the back of her throat, sickened by the thought of Azula "comforting".

Mai didn't speak but the absolute skepticism in her eyes was heavy. When Azula caught the stare, she simply looked back and cocked an eyebrow. Then, a smooth grin graced her visage. "Something on your mind that's worthy of my attention, Mai?"

Mai scoffed, her jaw clenching as she averted her gaze and crossed her arms. "Let's just go already." Azula's smile widened a fraction, satisfied with the gloomy girl's compliance. Besides, the princess was in no mood to deal with her over-analytical eye. She placed her attention back on Koda and ordered sternly, "You will wait here. Do not leave this palace until we return. If you disobey me," Venom laced her tone, "There will be consequences."

Koda held back a dopey grin. He was not one for violence; if he could avoid a fight, he would. Of course, the tussle he had with the prison guards was inevitable and his sudden burst of anger with the gatekeepers was…well, sudden. And uncontrollable—only when his fury boiled past a certain limit. Outside of these circumstances, Koda was quite the pacifist and well-aware of how useless he'd be if the trade for TomTom turned to combat.

Azula also knew he hated fighting; thus, forcing him to stay behind was the best option.

Slapping on a frown and rolling his eyes, Koda grumbled sarcastically, "Your wish is my command, oh sex slave manhandling one…" For the briefest moment, Azula's eye twitched and Koda was the only one to notice it. Again, he restrained his laughter, plopped onto the nearest couch, and simply pouted. He could vaguely hear a sigh expel from Azula.

-XXX-

Sokka was surprised he hadn't suffered whiplash by now. His head whipped about frantically as he stood with Katara, keeping an eye out for any sign of royal Fire Nation scum. TomTom squirmed restlessly in his arms, clearly showing a dislike for the Water tribe teen.

"Daa!" TomTom wailed angrily.

Sokka's left eyebrow twitched. "Keep still already!"

TomTom's squirming grew peevish.

Katara ignored her brother and the baby's bantering, opting instead to focus on the space ahead of her while calming her breathing. It wasn't until after they received the letter accepting their trade that they found out Princess Azula was in Ba Sing Se. Initally, Katara was completely determined to participate in this transaction, as she still withheld guilt about treating an infant like bargain goods.

However, the stakes have now been raised.

Azula, daughter of Ozai, merciless ruler of the Fire Nation, murderer of men, women, and children alike. A shudder traveled down Katara's spine. Keep calm, she thought, This'll be a quick and calm trade…but…She shot a glance over her shoulder, reminding herself of Aang's hidden location. If things get out of hand, we'll be ready.

Finally, a set of footsteps snapped Katara and Sokka to attention; TomTom also halted and stared curiously as his sister came into view.

Of course, the siblings were especially focused on a figure sauntering forward in the middle of the trio. Azula's indifferent purse of the lips, her rim-rod straight posture, and commanding aura chilled them to the bone. Her regal voice carried over the distance and rung sharply in Sokka and Katara's ears. "Water Tribe peasants. How intriguing…I presume you have the child?"

Mai stood behind Azula. Her blank eyes instantly latched onto TomTom and, upon witnessing the infant gumming his fist happily, just the slightest hint of relief infected her features. He appeared to be unharmed; lucky for Koda, his near future no longer included a blade to the jugular.

Gulping back anxiety, Katara took a brave step forward, Sokka following close behind, and attempted to mimic Azula's confidence. "I presume you have King Bumi?"

This earned an amused smirk out of the princess. "Not only a meager water peasant, but one with spunk too." A beat later, her smile hardened back into an indifferent mask. "We shall make this quick. You must handover the child first and then we'll lower the old fool."

Lower? Katara thought, perplexed. However, the confusion lifted once she looked up and caught sight of King Bumi trapped in a crystal coffin, only his head showing, and dangling above them by a chain. The elderly Earthbender's cackling could be heard.

"Oh, don't mind me! Just enjoying the view!"

"Now then," Azula said while holding a hand out, "The child."

Katara gulped, glancing back at Sokka wearily. Her brother nodded in encouragement. The waterbeneder took a moment to steady her heartbeat before slowing crossing distance between her and the trio. She moved slowly, as if each step registered in her mind anxious mind like an eternity. Finally, once Katara was a few feet away from the princess, she gently placed TomTom down.

"Daaaah!" the baby gushed before crawling up to Mai. The knife-thrower quickly scooped him up into her arms and took a few steps back. In that moment, she didn't need her blades to slice into Katara—her glare did the job just fine.

"Th-there, you have the baby. Now give us King Bumi," Katara said. She could feel the cold sweat dripping down the back of her neck, following its path of descent into the collar of her robes. A light breeze skimmed her skin, sending an uncomfortable chill through her system.

Azula grinned.

"As you wish. If I'm anything, I'm a princess of my word." She raised two fingers and, without tearing her gaze from Katara, yelled out, "Drop him!"

A loud clang followed by the chain jerking. King Bumi's coffin yanked up, only for the link to go slack and send him falling at high speeds.

"Now this is what I call a rush!" he cackled.

Before Katara could register what was happening, she nearly jumped back in time to avoid a flaming swing from Azula. She didn't have time to recuperate as a hailstorm of rapid jabs and punches rained down on her, pushing her back inch by inch. Mai retreated with TomTom.

Ducking under a viscous roundhouse kick, Katara uncorked the basin at her hip and wind-milled her arms up. An arc of water lashed into Azula, who crossed her arms and blocked the blow with a flare of flames at last second. She stumbled back, taking up her stance once more. "A waterbender," she hummed in pleasant surprise.

Globes of cobalt hovered over her palms.

"This should be fun."

Katara gritted her teeth. Steeling her gut, she gripped her waterskin with one hand and held out the other in a makeshift stance. "I think you mean difficult. I won't go down easily." Azula merely giggled in response before launching after the waterbender, absolute fire dancing in her eyes.

Ty Lee dashed after Sokka, who gaped in sheer shock as she descended on him faster than he could retract his boomerang. A swift jab the inside of his elbow and shoulder rendered his right arm numb.

"W-what the?" he gasped.

Ty Lee giggled and delivered the same fate to his other arm after dodging an off-centered swing. "Hey, you're actually kinda cute," she cooed. Just as she set her sets on numbing the rest of him, a figure rocketed from beyond the palace gates like a spite running on air.

"Hold on, Bumi!"

A powerful gust of air ran across the fields and cradled Bumi just before he met the ground. The vortex swirled about him and gently lowered the man onto his side. As the mystery person sprinted up to Bumi, he discarded his wide-brimmed straw hat and folded the wings back into his staff…

A blue arrow on his cranium.

"Wait, isn't that…" Ty Lee uttered in shock, completely forgetting about Sokka. She paid for this by receiving a kick to the gut, sending her tumbling back and onto her haunches. The tan teen blinked, a bit surprised that he managed to land a hit, before grinning in triumph.

"Ha! Don't mess with the Sokka Man!"

Ty Lee pouted. "I take it back." She cartwheeled back onto her feet with the grace of a cat. "You're not that cute."

"Ouch—OW!" Sokka's little comment morphed into a genuinely exclamation of pain as Ty Lee swept his feet out from under him. She landed on top of him, her knees clinging tightly to his sides, and scattered several jabs throughout his torso. With each hit, another nerve shut down. Two nerves, five, fifteen, twenty-eight—Sokka almost feared he'd never be able to feel anything ever again. She migrated down to his legs, which were now nothing more than limp noodles.

Ty Lee backflipped off him and clasped her hands behind her back, smiling in satisfaction at her work. "Stay there, okay?"

Sokka could only gape in a mixture of annoyance and horror. "Where would I go?!" he yelled.

"That's the spirit!" Ty Lee laughed before turning her attention back on the princess.

A cloud of steam blurred Katara's vision as her whip of water intertwined with a wave of fire. She waved the smoke from her vision, only for her eyes to widen when she failed to spot Azul—

A bone-rattling impact under her chin.

Katara's head snapped back, shooting a sharp pain through her temples and a sharp ringing in her ears. She backpeddled, nearly tripping over her own feet, and frantically tried to shake her sight clear of doubles. As she cracked her eyes open, she caught sight of Azula dropping the heel of her palm before setting off like a snap of lightning.

The waterbender didn't have a chance to react.

Three burning punches to her chest, knocking the wind from her lungs.

Followed up by a backhand to her already aching temple. There was a flash of white light behind her lids and pulsing spots.

A whopping front kick to her torso threw Katara onto her back. A series of coughs and wheezes shook her to the core; she cradled her ribs carefully while trying to gain back as much oxygen as she could. However, she heard approaching footsteps and glared up at Azula's looming form. Her right fist was encased in caustic blue.

"How sad," she sighed, "I expected more of a challenge. My own fault for overestimating a water peasant." Her flame doubled in size and Katara could feel it nearly triple in heat. The waterbender's already labored breathing grew ragged and the horror she'd been restraining jumped into her eyes…

And there it was.

A hesitance.

Azula ceased. For the briefest fraction of a second. Something held her back, though Katara couldn't figure out what—

Whoom!

The Fire Nation princess was sent flying aside like a rag doll. She rolled across the field several times, scraping and bumping painfully, until she came to a slow halt and flopped onto her side.

"Azula!" Ty Lee gasped. She sprinted to her childhood friend, raw worrying tainting her visage and she kneeled next to her.

Aang appeared over Katara, his eyes wide in concern. "Katara! Are you okay?"

Katara took his offered hand and hauled herself onto her feet. "Thanks, Aang…" She winced and cradled her side, which the Avatar definitely noticed. More panic settled into his frame as he looked about frantically for an escape route.

Then his eyes landed on the mail shoots.

Good enough.

"Katara! Sokka!" Aang swung his staff out to the side, producing another sweep gust that propelled Bumi's coffin into the air. It landed onto a mail cart with a rumbling thud. "Get on with Bumi!" Katara quickly climbed on, grabbing hold of a crystal for leverage.

However, he then realized that Sokka was completely immobile. Aang quickly ran over and drooped the teen's arms over his shoulders, grunting under his weight as he dragged him to the cart. Katara helped Aang haul Sokka on. Once the airbend vaulted on top of Bumi, he stabbed his staff into a wooden plaque.

With a click, the cart plummeted and raced down the shoot at nauseating and eye-watering speeds, carrying them further and further away from Azula and Ty Lee. A row of empty carts next to them also dropped, Ba Sing Se's mail system turning into an actual stampede.

Aang, Katara, and Sokka's yells mixed oddly with Bumi's laughter.

However, there was a fourth scream.

To their right.

The Gaang glanced over in confusion to see a dark-haired, bandaged man in a cart next to them.

They locked eyes.

Koda screamed even louder. "Oh Agni, help me!"

-XXX-

Azula groaned as consciousness soon came back to her. She cradled her head with a grimace and slowly sat up, ignoring Ty Lee's nervous babbling.

"Oh my goodness! Thank Agni you're alright, Azula!"

The princess sourly scoured their surroundings. Sure enough, the water peasants were gone and it was all because of that damned airbender. She knew what a natural gust of wind felt like and the one that smacked into her like a typhoon was specifically made for combat. There was no denying the rumors now—the Avatar was alive.

"Sniveling swines," she growled under her breath. She staggered to her feet. The acrobat's voice continued to pound against her poor head like a nail driving into stone. Massaging her temple, she hissed, "Ty Lee."

"Y-yes? Are you alright? Do you need—"

"Shut up."

"O-oh. Right…sorry."

Azula caught sight of her crestfallen expression and a faint tightness pulled at her chest. However, she brushed the feeling aside and tried to regain her wits. This was not the result she expected—at all. As she attempted to mentally plot out their next move, Mai came running up to them.

As she and Ty Lee knew, Mai was not the most expressive woman. Nothing short of the apocalypse could faze her; thus, it was reasonably shocking to see the knife-thrower's eyes wide in exasperation.

"He's gone!"

"Who?" Azula spat. Just great. Who could it have been this time? Did Mai have another sibling that she didn't know about—

"Koda. I can't fi—"

"What?!" the princess snapped, the fog in her mind completely cleared. A deep dread filled her gut.

-XXX-

"For the love of Agni! I'm too yooooooung!" Koda wailed at the top of his lungs while clutching onto the sides of the cart for dear life.

It was official.

He was the biggest idiot known to man and, for once, he agreed. Wholeheartedly. At the time, he honestly couldn't help himself. He knew Azula; she wouldn't have given in to their demands of the trade so easily. Not a band of miscreants that kidnapped TomTom. No, the Fire Nation royal would function on her own terms and attempt to bring them to justice. That was how she worked.

Since Koda was aware of this, it was impossible to simple remain inside. To sit there and wait.

Thus, he followed. And he hid. Within a mail cart.

Only now did he realize how dangerous and stupid of a decision that was.

Agni, give him strength.

Meanwhile, Sokka chalked up Koda's appearance to a manifestation of his building horror. It was just a hallucination. Nothing more. So, all of his efforts were placed back into screaming his lungs out. Katara and Aang continued glancing over at the ex-prisoner in mutual confusion.

However, a beat later, their minds clicked simultaneously, and they traded meaningful looks.

If eyes could speak, then they would match each another word for word: He's the man Love was talking about.

Coming to a split-second decision, Aang created a miniature vortex and carried Koda over to their cart, ignoring the man's yelp of surprise.

"Ahhhh, what the hell is this?!" For as long as Koda lived, he had never seen bending like this. As far as he was concerned, being touched by an element he couldn't properly see was unsettling. Nonetheless, he clung to Bumi's crystals for dear life, screwed his eyes shut, and started praying to Agni while thinking of all the good times he shared with Azula. If he was going to die, he would do so with the love of his life in his mind's eye.

Contrary to what he thought, his eyes flew open again when he felt a weightlessness overtake him. He found himself mid-air hovering over the foot of the shoot, gentle wisps brushing against his clothes in circular patterns. The row of carts rested peacefully at the end of their tubes, as if they hadn't been rolling down at deadly speeds mere seconds ago. The baker's son could only gape as he and the others were gently lowered to the ground.

He just stood there.

Eyes still wide.

Heart racing.

Skin clammy.

Life still flashing before his vision.

"Oooooh my Agni…" he whispered breathlessly. Unfortunately, the poor man wasn't allowed much time to recover. Aang grabbed hold of his arm, gently tugging him along.

"Come with us! I…I know this is sudden, but I promise we'll explain later!" he said.

Koda stared at the Avatar as if his arrow tattoo transformed into a butterfly cricket and flew off his head. "Wait, what? N-no!" He yanked out of Aang's grasp, prepping to set off and run back to the palace. However, the next thing he new—

Wack!

A blow to the back of his skull.

Koda's vision went black and he fell over unconscious.

Behind his fallen form, Sokka stood with his boomerang in hand. A pleased grin was spread across his face. "Hey guys! I can feel my body again!" He then paused, noticing the looks of disapproval.

The watertribe teen blinked.

"What? He wasn't gonna listen anyways!"

Oh, Sokka...why you gotta treat Koda like that?

Welp, hope you enjoyed this chapter! Again, please, if you would be so kind...

HIT THE POST REVIEW BUTTON. -_-