Chapter 21: Interrupted Plans

Ty Lee idly plucked a lily from Mai's family's garden. Usually she would admire the flower's beauty and tuck it in her hair, but today she wasn't in the mood. She had recently heard the news: Prince Zuko had run off with Lady Katara. The news had originated from pirates who claimed to have encountered Lady Katara with Prince Zuko on one of his boats. It had spread quickly throughout the Fire Nation.

Once she had gotten over her initial shock, Ty Lee had tried to figure out how she should react. She wasn't very angry; she was sure Zuko had a reason for his decisions. But at the same time, she felt disappointed and a little hurt. Zuko had left without a word to anyone. Just when people were starting to get over Zuko and Katara's incident at Ba Sing Se, Zuko created another scandal. But for some reason, Ty Lee found it hard to be mad at Zuko. Ty Lee knew that he had a good heart, and would never be malicious to anyone.

Does he love Lady Katara? Ty Lee wondered. What's so special about her?

Mai joined her in the garden. A couple of servants followed her, holding bags filled with her belongings.

When Mai had heard the news, she had decided that she wanted to leave the Fire Nation. She planned to go to Omashu with her family for a while; her father owned a lot of property there. Ty Lee would go with them and stay with them for a little bit. She knew that it was hard for Mai to stay in the Fire Nation, with the constant gossip about Zuko's recent actions. Mai had been humiliated once again, and she had had enough.

"…Do you know what people outside of the Fire Nation are saying about Zuko?" Mai's expression was hard. "They're saying that he kidnapped and is raping that Water Tribe girl. And…that's actually pretty easy to believe. It explains a lot…why would Zuko have any feelings towards her, other than wanting her as his whore?" Her voice was filled with disgust.

"Zuko would never do something like that!" Ty Lee protested. "How can you say such a thing? We've known him for so long…"

"Yes, we've known him for so long—I'm betrothed to him—and he leaves without saying a word to us. He leaves to go and make that Water Tribe girl his plaything. That selfish idiot only cares about himself."

"…I don't believe that." Ty Lee said quietly. "He's a good person…"

"You're still defending him?! After all he's done…" Mai shook her head. "You're just like the other idiot people here...still on his side."

"Have you really given up on him?" Ty Lee asked, sadly.

"I…" Mai stopped. Frowning, she stared at the entrance of the gate surrounding her family's home. "What are all those soldiers doing there?"

"Maybe they're here to escort us?" Ty Lee took a guess.

The two girls approached the soldiers at the gate. "What are you doing here?" Mai demanded, speaking to the soldier in command. "My family and I are leaving this home for a while…we don't need all these guards."

The soldier cleared his throat. "I'm afraid you are mistaken, Lady Mai. Firelord Ozai has ordered you and your family not to leave the Fire Nation Capital." He held out a scroll. "The command is written here."

"That's insane." Mai glared at the man. "Get out of our way. We're leaving."

The soldiers tightened their grips on their weapons, looking uncomfortable.

"Mai…it's the Firelord's command." Ty Lee whispered. "The punishment for disobeying it is death…"

"The Firelord does not want any more of his people to leave." The soldier explained. "As you probably know, he is very disturbed that his son left without his permission, taking some of his best men with him. The Firelord needs you, Lady Mai, to stay…in order to give Prince Zuko a reason to return home."

"So I'm being used as bait." Mai eyed the soldiers, and Ty Lee noticed that her hands were withdrawn into her sleeves…where she kept her knives hidden. Ty Lee knew that Mai was contemplating fighting her way out of this.

She grabbed Mai's sleeve. "Mai, don't. There are too many of them." Ty Lee didn't want any violence, and she knew that although Mai was skilled with using knives, they wouldn't be able to take on so many soldiers.

Mai knew that Ty Lee was right. She let out a frustrated sigh. "…We're basically the Firelord's prisoners now."

"It…it'll be okay." Ty Lee tried to reassure her friend. "Staying here won't be that bad. Things will get better." Although she was trying to be optimistic, Ty Lee couldn't help but worry. Being restrained by the Firelord was not good. But there was nothing they could do about it at the moment.

"Lady Katara."

Katara looked up to see Mako approaching her. She was relaxing in the shade by a river, taking a break from her daily waterbending practice. Seeing Mako made her tense up a little. They hadn't really spoken to each other much since arriving at Taku.

"Do you mind if I take a seat?" Mako asked.

"…No, go ahead." Katara patted the ground beside her.

Mako sat down next to her. After a moment of silence, he spoke. "I guess I'll get straight to the point. I know this is long overdue, but I want to apologize for…you know, that night when we left the Southern Water Tribe. I shouldn't have knocked you out like that."

"…I accept your apology. I…I know you were in a hurry that night. So it's okay. I don't hold it against you or anything." Katara paused, and then added. "…I just have one request."

"What is it?"

"I would like you to be honest with me." Katara quietly said. "I know that you probably don't like me much. You're wondering why Zuko chose to do all of this for me, right? Please don't feel like you have to pretend to be friendly or nice to me. I'd rather know your true feelings towards me."

Mako stared at her, surprised at her response. "No, I…that's not it. I mean, I was confused at first because I didn't understand why all of this was happening…but I never disliked you." Mako went on, "Zuko told me about how you're the Painted Warrior. It's really impressive, and I think that you deserve the same respect that all those other powerful, talented benders get."

"…Thank you. That means a lot coming from you, since you're one of the most powerful benders. Everyone talks about you and admires you…I never would have imagined someone like you complimenting me on my bending skills." Katara smiled.

"I know talent when I see it. And…that's not all…" Mako hesitated, then decided to say what was on his mind. "You make Zuko happy. Him coming here with you is what he needed. It's been a while since I've seen him so relaxed. Back in the Fire Nation, he had a lot of pressure on him, and all these issues with his father…but here with you, he seems to be more at peace. Because of that…I'm grateful to you."

Katara contemplated his words. "…Zuko's happiness is really important to you, isn't it? You guys must be really close."

Mako nodded. "We've been friends for a long time. He's like a brother to me."

"What was he like when he was younger? What did he like to do for fun?" Katara asked, curious.

Mako smiled. "Years ago, he would go sit at the corners of busy streets of Fire Nation towns, and play the erhu, which is a Fire Nation instrument. He wore a mask so that he wouldn't be recognized. I would be the one nearby, watching over him and ready to protect him from any harm. I also made sure that no one stole the money that people put in his little basket beside him, while he played his music."

Katara laughed. "Did he make a lot of money?"

"He did! You've heard him play the tsungi horn—he's very good at musical instruments. He was known as the Blue Spirit, because of his blue mask. People would talk about how beautiful his music sounded all the time."

"What did he do with all the money he made?" Katara asked. "It's not like he needed it…"

"Well, one time he gave the money to other musicians on the street. One time he gave it to an orphanage. He would always give the money away, except for one time…" Mako grinned. "One time he got very, very drunk. All that money could buy a lot of drinks."

"Didn't you help him finish all those drinks, then?" Katara asked with an amused laugh.

"I did drink, but not as much as him. Seeing Zuko drunk like that was a rare sight. It was very entertaining."

"Maybe one day I'll get a chance to witness a drunk Zuko." Katara said with a grin.

"Maybe you will." Mako stood up. "I've got to go. Zuko's uncle, General Iroh, is planning to visit. We've got to coordinate with him so that he arrives unseen and not followed."

So much secrecy…Katara thought. She understood why it was needed, though. She was also pretty excited to be able to meet General Iroh, another person whom she had always heard about but had never expected to meet.

"It's a messenger hawk." The hunter told his partner, studying the bird he had just captured, who was struggling in the hunter's net.

"It's unusual for a bird like this to be flying around in such an empty mountainous region." The other hunter remarked. "It will sell for a lot. Take good care of it."

Something caught the first hunter's attention. "It's carrying a message." He took the scroll from the hawk, and opened it up. "Huh. It's addressed to Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe. Doesn't give much information, though. Apparently his daughter is safe."

"It's none of our business." The other man said, uninterested.

"You're right." The hunter shrugged. He used his firebending to burn the paper into ashes. Then he returned his attention to his partner and the hawk. "Let's get this bird to the market. We're going to be rich."

Author's Note: The erhu is also known as the Chinese fiddle/violin. Since it would be hard for Zuko to play the tsungi horn while wearing a mask, it made more sense for him to play this instrument :) Thanks for reading!