The Fortuneteller

Katara woke up and didn't know where she was, so panic momentarily gripped her heart before she remembered that the cage wasn't supposed to be there anymore.

Just like every morning.

She let out an anxious breath and took a moment to reorient herself. She was in a sleeping bag in a tent, somewhere in the Earth Kingdom. Beside her, Sokka was still snoring away in his own sleeping bag, so big and gangly and loud compared to the image of her brother that she had cherished in her mind for a decade. The rhythm of his snuffling helped settle her panicked heart and reminded her that she wasn't alone, that her family hadn't forgotten her. The tent was small enough to be comforting.

Katara could hear Aang and Appa 'conversing' outside, prompting a smile. She still couldn't get over the Avatar being back. Sure, he was just a goofy kid, but he also really sweet, and he wanted more than anything to help people. As far as Katara was concerned, that made him a truly great Avatar- or would, once he learned all four elements. That was important, too. Katara slid out of her own sleeping bag, threw on her outer tunic, and reached for her hat. She knew that Sokka was worried about the hat, and she wanted to be able to go without it for him, but the very thought made her breath quicken. She needed more time, more strength, more experience in the world, and then maybe she could give it a try.

She put the hat on and tied it beneath her chin before making her way out of the tent. As expected, Aang was talking to his sky bison while sharing a breakfast of apples. Momo flew around them both, chasing some of the winged morning-mites that made this green glen their home. Katara kept her focus on the little group and not the big broad sky that sprawled above them.

A quick glance around the campsite revealed that Mai's tent was still sealed up. That didn't surprise Katara. Mai wasn't anywhere near as lazy as Sokka, but she still had a preference for sleeping late, as well as a fairly strong aversion to daylight. Katara had no criticism for that last part, as she couldn't imagine how anyone with skin as light as Mai's didn't sizzle in the bright sun. Still, she also sympathized with Aang, having to deal with two such lazy teenagers by himself for so long.

"Good morning, Katara!" Aang hopped over with a burst of his Airbending and offered an apple as he landed. "Breakfast?"

"Thanks." Katara took a bite and motioned over to the river a short way from their camp. "Ready to get the water?"

"Sure!"

Katara and Aang had made a daily ritual of collecting water every morning with a shared bending exercise. As simple as the task was, they figured that practicing their teamwork was worthwhile, just in case. It had become habit, and now it took barely any effort for them to stream some of the river into the air to snake its way into their biggest pot. They moved as one without having to so much as look at each other, the knowledge of the other's movements coming from feel alone.

By the time they brought the pot over to the campsite, Mai had emerged from her own tent in her green robes and was scowling against the sunlight. Katara made a point of waving and saying, "Good morning!"

Mai blinked back and didn't say anything in what Katara had learned was Mai's way of not showing hostility. Katara helped Aang get the campfire going under the pot, and then went over to the group's other girl. "Excited for today?"

"Probably not. What are we doing today?"

"You know, that spirit festival we heard about?" Katara looked over at Aang to make sure she didn't have the day mixed up, and he took a break from stirring the rice to give a thumb's up. Satisfied, she turned back to Mai. "The one we've been flying towards for two days straight?"

Mai's waved it off and began pulling her loose hair together in preparation of setting it in her usual complicated style. "Yeah, I remember that. I mean stuff I'd be actually excited for."

Katara gave a laugh, not caring if it was actually meant to be a joke. "It's going to be amazing! Those people the other day said that all the best mystics come to the festival, and there's also food and dancing and stories from history-"

"I thought I heard someone mention food," came Sokka's voice from his tent. His head poked its way through the opening. "Is there food?"

"Coming up," Aang said, shooing Momo away from the steaming pot.

Katara turned back to Mai, and found her struggling with making the bun at the back of her head. Katara reached over and helped hold an errant bit in place. "There has to be something about the festival that you're looking forward to!"

Mai sighed as she worked her hair. "It's just going to be a lot superstitious people crowding around acting like fools."

"How can you not be 'superstitious?' You're traveling with the Avatar!" Katara helpfully pointed over to where Aang was scooping rice into everyone's bowls.

Aang, for his part, looked up and smiled. "I am kind of spooky."

Katara nodded in satisfaction. "See?"

Mai made an, "Ugh," sound, finished with her hair by pulling the tails forward to rest on her shoulders, and went over to get her breakfast. "Yes, obviously spirits and monsters and glowing boys in icebergs are all real."

"Don't forget ghosts," Sokka said through a yawn as he took his own bowl of rice. "You Fire Nation types made lots of ghosts."

Mai threw a glare at him, but then let her gaze drop to her boots. "And ghosts." She produced a long knife from somewhere in her sleeve- Katara still had no idea where the other girl kept all those weapons- and used the flat of the blade to scoop some rice into her mouth. "But I just have a tough time believing in all the stupid little superstitions that these kinds of festivals get so worked up about. I'm pretty sure that shooting off fireworks doesn't actually chase away any spirit monsters that might be lurking nearby, and using a broom on Cinder Day won't really bring down eight years of bad luck."

Katara acknowledged the point with a nod even though she didn't think it was entirely right. "But you have to admit that showing reverence for the spirits is worthwhile, and that's what festivals like this are really about."

"No I don't." Mai pointed the knife at Katara in the same kind of casual manner as most people would point a pair of chopsticks. "You have to admit that people manage to pack an awful lot of games and commerce into these festivals for something that's supposedly about a bunch of spirits. Besides, our reason for being here is to find Aang someone who can tell him about energies or something. It's about as reverent as a visit to the Yukuefumei Library."

Katara sighed and went to get her own bowl of rice. "I think we're all going to learn something today. And we'll all be better for it."

The camp was silent for a moment, and then Sokka said, "I'm here for the food."

Katara flicked a grain of rice at him.

They ate the rest of their breakfast in silence, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Katara would have liked it if Mai and Sokka could have more respect for these kinds of things, but that was their cynical personalities at work. Both of them were probably just arguing for the sake of it. Maybe if they spent a decade in a prison, they'd be more inclined to look for the bright things in life.

Not that Katara wished that on either one.

She finished her rice and put her bowl down carefully beside the big pot. "So, Aang, how are we going to find the festival? It would be risky to fly Appa above it."

Aang winked and put his own bowl down. He took an Airbending stance and began moving his arms in broad, slow sweeping motions that made the wind around the campsite pick up. It was a strong wind but a soft one, cushioning Katara like a pile of furs and tugging gently on her hat. It was such a pleasant sensation that she almost missed the other part of it: the faint sound of music- bells and flutes and drums- that was being carried on the wind.

Katara held her hat down and felt a grin growing on her own face. She looked over at Aang to find him returning the expression.

"We just follow our ears," he said.

When Aang found the Valley of the Mountain of Death, it was a complete surprise.

He had led the way as they traced the music back to its source, guiding Katara, Mai and Sokka- Appa and Momo had been left back at the camp with a bushel of apples- over the undulating landscape, around the little cliffs and stone outcroppings. At first, he had stopped every so often to use his Airbending to catch the snatches of tunes on the wind, but soon enough it was audible with no extra effort. Even so, he found himself walking around the side of one outcropping to suddenly find the ground falling steeply below him to reveal a massive gathering in the center of a wide grassy valley, a lone mountain rising beyond it all.

Beneath the gaze of the Mountain of Death, deep in which the bodies of the Kings and Queens of the ancient Earth Kingdom were said to be waiting for the Earth to awaken them once again, the Spirit Festival was in fully swing. Drawn from all the villages in the province and probably all over the Earth Kingdom, a thousand people- maybe more- were sprawled across the length of the valley, filling the air with the sounds of talking and music and chanting. Tents and shelters rose up at what seemed like random points, each one the center of its own uniquely shaped crowd. And the colors were amazing! Most people were wearing green, but tunics of other hues were present in significant numbers, and many people wore accessories or masks or even full costumes that assembled a range of colors second only to the Hanging Flower Gardens of the Eastern Air Temple.

Aang was ready to run on down and join the fun when he noticed something else. Apart from the festival, atop one of the low valley walls on the east side, a large Fire Army camp overlooked the festivities. More armed and armored soldiers than Aang could easily count stood guard at the edges of the camp.

Katara hissed when she noticed them. "Are they going to attack?"

Mai pushed her way to the front of the group, and Aang could see her sharp eyes running over the sight. "No," she eventually said, "they're on alert, but there's not enough activity for an imminent attack. I bet they're here to watch over things and keep the peace."

"Yeah, keep the peace." Sokka snorted. "You mean spy on a big gathering of Earth Kingdom folks and come down on them like a hammer if anything vaguely anti-Fire starts up."

"Basically, yes." Mai straightened her green tunic. "The festival is too big and well known to shut down, but obviously the Fire Nation government here wouldn't be happy with a major cultural thing from the people they conquered."

Aang stepped forward to stand between Sokka and Mai. "Okay, then I'll need to cover my arrow, but as long as everything stays peaceful, it should be no trouble. Right?"

Katara nodded. "Right! We'll keep an eye on the eye the Fire Nation is keeping on the festival."

Sokka blinked. "How many eyes is that?"

"As many as we need!" Katara smirked and tugged her hat.

Aang laughed and pulled out one of the scarfs Mai had given him back on Kyoshi Island. He tied it as a bandana over his shaved head, but didn't worry about the rest of his clothes, what with all colors and costumes already present amongst the crowds. He led everyone down the sloping grass into the valley, and soon the sights and sounds and smells of the festival welcomed them into its fold.

As they worked their way into the flows of people, one man took notice of them and jogged over. On the edge of his vision, Aang caught Mai reaching for a weapon, so he stepped in front of her and turned to greet the man.

He was fairly young and dressed in green, and he was carrying what looked like a bundle of leaves and red berries. "Greetings, travelers! Here, take a dogwood sprig."

Aang accepted one of the little cuttings and took a look. The berries ranged in hue from bright red to an almost purple deepness, and the leaves were orderly little things, smoothly shaped with strong visible veins.

Sokka sniffed at his. "Do we eat these?"

The man laughed as he handed one to Katara. "It won't poison you, friend, but you're supposed to wear it. It will purify you, helping you remain in harmony with the valley."

Aang smiled. Now this was a proper festival. "Hey, I have a question, if you don't mind?"

"Sure." The man handed one of the sprigs to Mai.

"How come the festival is happening now, instead of at the summer solstice?"

The man lost his cheery expression for a moment. "Er, well, yes, that's when the natural world and the spirit world come together, and the festival is about honoring the spirits and keeping the energies of the province balanced. But we like to hold the festival when the spirits are still far away enough that they can sense our good will, but not confuse this all for an invitation, you know?"

Aang wasn't sure he did, but Sokka nodded and said, "I understand completely," so the man smiled once again and moved on to pass out more sprigs.

Aang looked at his own and wondered how he was going to wear it. Maybe if he could find some string, he could tie it and wear it like a necklace-

Mai sighed and snapped her hand up to reveal four long needles between her fingers. "Go ahead, just give them back when we're done here." Everyone accepted one and pinned a sprig to their clothes.

Feeling more spiritually pure already, Aang led the way deeper into the festival. Now that he was in the midst of it, the gathering was revealed as a lot more boisterous than an Air Nomad holiday like Yangchen's Festival. Singers shared songs with an elder sound to them, and bands worked instruments that ranged from works of art to ramshackle things assembled out of junk. There were even little stages where actors put on plays, comedies and dramas and operas and pantomimes. The only thing uniting all these entertainments was the row of sitting mats right in front of the performers, always left empty by the audience.

Aang ignored that stuff for now. He fully intended to find out more and have some fun with the entertainments later, but he wanted to get started on business first. Guru Pathik was a man of rare knowledge, and finding someone who could even begin help Aang in the same way could be a long task. Aang had failed to learn enough in time to save the Guru, and he wasn't going to fail again.

He found a quieter section of the valley where people lounged instead of moving about, and the sound of conversation was more muted. Peace emanated from older men and women in the robes of shamans, and people respectfully listened to their words.

Aang turned to the others. "Let's split up and ask around. Remember, we're trying to find out more about how to bring the world back into balance, but the Guru said it had to do Línghún energy, and the way everything is connected. We need someone who can really teach me about that."

Mai added, "And let's not mention that you're the Avatar. Not right away. We want to be sure we don't cause the wrong kind of disruption."

Aang blinked. "What do you mean? Wouldn't any shaman be glad to help the Avatar?"

Mai's eyes shifted, and Aang followed her gaze up and over to the eastern wall of the valley, where the Fire Army watched over everything. "The last thing we need is someone to overhear the wrong word and see what the Fire Nation will pay for a tip."

He hated to admit it, but it was a good point. "All right. But come and get me if you find anything. Okay?"

The other three nodded, and then they all spread out to explore the area.

Aang started his own search, picking out a group listening and asking questions of an old man with a droopy mustache who wore a puffy fur vest. Aang sat at the edge of the gathering and tuned in to a discussion of the physical and spiritual healing properties of properly mixed mud...

Three hours later, Aang was bored out of his skull.

He had heard about mud, had heard about the correct composition of a Tranquility Garden, had heard about proper meditation technique, and had heard lots of stuff about the unsettled nature of the world, but no one here seemed to know about how to really look beyond the physical.

He hoped the others were doing better.

Katara was taking a break from an ongoing but fairly lacking discussion of how a traveler could actually get into the Spirit World when a girl who was half-pigtails walked up and said, "Excuse me, you wouldn't happen to be from the Water Tribes?"

Katara blinked and turned his attention to the girl. She was a few years younger than Katara and was showing off a gapped-tooth smile that was immediately disarming, so Katara nodded. "I am."

"And are you traveling with the Avatar?"

Katara couldn't stop herself from gasping. "I- Uh- What?"

The girl bowed. "My name is Meng. I was told that there would be a beautiful Water Tribe girl here who could bring the Avatar to my employer."

"Uh, hi, Meng. Uh- and who is your- uh- employer?"

"A fortuneteller from Makapu Village." Meng motioned back towards the busier side of the festival. "She said you could come meet her, if you like."

Katara bit her lip. She could investigate this fortuneteller before putting Aang in danger, but that would mean walking into a trap herself. Maybe she could go get Sokka or Mai- no, there was no need for that. She had her waterskins and was a warrior now. She could handle this. She was strong enough. She needed to be.

Katara pulled her hat down lower. "Lead the way, Meng."

The fortuneteller's tent proved to be one of the plainer in its area, surrounded as it was by stands where people were selling luck charms, incense sticks, and what looked like old coins. The only decoration on the tent was a pair of crossed tree branches tied above the entrance, unusual things with tips that hung like long fingers, almost looking like the reaching tentacles of the shark-squid.

Meng pulled aside the large tent's flap and bowed low. Without hesitation, Katara flicked the caps off her waterskins and walked inside.

"Welcome, child." A smiling old woman sat within, her streaked white and gray hair dully reflecting the glow of the fire in the pan beside her. "No need to be shy, it's just us in here. I am Aunt Wu. Please, sit down."

Katara sat on the waiting mat, shifting her waterskins so that they would be accessible. "Nice to meet you." She eyed Aunt Wu's golden robe. "Your assistant was telling stories about you."

"I know." Aunt Wu sighed. "Fortunetelling has changed, since the end of the war. I used to have to look harder to see ahead, and could only focus on one destiny at a time, but things have changed. The details are all too easy to see, now, and I get visions without even trying. The world is out of balance, and its energy is not flowing properly, so it's flooding all over the place. The Avatar knows this."

Katara decided to risk a nod. "He wants to fix it."

"Of course. And I want to help. The funny thing is that the more destiny someone has, the harder it is to for me to see right now." She winked. "People with lots of destiny tend to let it get all cluttered and mixed up."

Katara smiled. "So how can you help?"

"Oh, I know some tricks. I can reveal some touchpoints to focus the Avatar on a good path. You can bring him to me, and stand by to protect him if you like."

Katara pushed her hat up to get a better view. "I'd like to see your fortunetelling first. If you don't mind! I just- I want to see how it works before I bring him."

"Of course." Aunt Wu reached beside her to an open box with shadowy compartments of various sizes. She produced a bundle of thin sticks from one of them, and held them out. "What would you like to know?"

Katara took the sticks and considered. Maybe Aunt Wu could tell her if she would ever fix herself, if she could ever be able to go back to her Tribe without being a failure. But the more Katara thought about, the more she wasn't sure she actually wanted to know. Maybe she could do something that would be a clue, but wouldn't rule anything out- "Can you tell me who I'll marry?"

Aunt Wu nodded. "Throw the sticks to the ground."

Katara did so, and then looked at the results to see if they were spelling a name or something. Aunt Wu didn't show any reaction, and merely plucked some of the sticks out of the pile and laid them aside. "Again." Katara picked up the remaining sticks and once more tossed them to the dirt. Aunt Wu removed a few more of the sticks and then said, "The Avatar's destiny clouds your own, but I see possibilities. Throw the sticks once more."

Katara did so, and Aunt Wu nodded.

"What is it?"

"The Avatar himself is working his way into your heart. If the Fire Nation girl doesn't give him what he needs, you and he will marry."

Katara was on her feet before she even realized it. "Me and Aang?!" The Avatar?! And wait, what Fire Nation girl? Did Aunt Wu mean Mai? Why would Mai be a problem? Aang and Sokka were both kind of upset at her, and love didn't seem likely even with Mai being sorry. And if Katara was supposed to marry Aang, did that mean she'd never be ready to go back to the Tribe? Or would Aang come with her? He didn't have any people of his own, after all. Would their kids be Airbenders or Waterbenders, or maybe a mix? Why was she already planning out the kids she would have with Aang? What did this really prove about Aunt Wu? Obviously, Katara needed more information. "Thank you. But, um, before I bring Aang, is it okay if I bring someone else?"

Aunt Wu smiled. "You do what you feel you need to, child."

Sokka rested his chin on his knee. "So when you say you saw a group of women flying through the air, you mean- what, exactly?"

The old shaman scooted closer. "I mean I saw them flying. I was passing by the cliff my people call Great-Grandfather's Nose, and naturally I looked up to take in its majesty, when I saw people running at the edge. I was going to shout at them for being stupid and jumping to their deaths, but then the winds picked up, and their clothes were very baggy and flapped in the air, and then they swooped right over my head and went back up in the air, and proceeded to flip and twist through the sky. They were like fish darting through water, except fish don't laugh!"

Sokka nodded like he believed what he was being told. "And then what?"

"Well, I started proclaiming the return of the Air Nomads, of course. The Airbender Avatar has returned, you know, and he must have brought his harem."

"His-" Sokka choked. "His harem?"

"Well, of course. Why else would these all be girls?"

"Are you sure Air Nomads have harems?" Sokka tried to imagine Aang- with all the awkwardness he had displayed around Mai- lounging amidst a gaggle of girls, and found his imagination completely insufficient. "Maybe they're his sisters? Or bison tenders? Or maybe they were Air Nomad ghosts? I've heard that some people are having problems with Air Nomad ghosts."

The shaman ran his hands through his bristling hair. "Nnno, I don't think they were ghosts. The simplest explanation is usually the best, so they're probably his harem."

Sokka once again lowered his chin onto his knee. "Well, I'm certainly not inclined to argue against that logic."

"Ah, you're a smart boy!"

Sokka was about to agree when he felt a tap on his shoulder, and looked up to see a dark-skinned girl whose pigtails stuck out to easily triple her natural width. "Can I help you?"

"I'm Meng. Katara sent me to bring you to her."

A short walk later, Sokka found his sister standing in front of a large tent with willow branches tied above its entrance. As soon as she saw him, she ran over with anxious eyes and grabbed his hands. "Sokka, I'm going to marry Aang!"

"WHAT?!" Sokka clamped down on Katara's hands, the world spinning around him like that time he tried riding a tiger-seal. "No, no you can't! You just got out of prison, and there's lots of people to meet out there-"

"What?" Katara blinked. "No, Sokka, I mean that Aunt Wu predicted I'll marry Aang. She's a fortuneteller."

"Oh." All of the sudden, the world decided to stay still. "Oh, good. Wait, what are you doing with a fortuneteller?"

"Aunt Wu knows we're with Aang, and has information for him. But I wasn't sure if it was okay, so I talked to her first, and she told me a fortune that I'm going to marry Aang if Mai doesn't get him first."

Sokka let go of his sister's hands so that he could properly smack his own forehead. "That's- that's just silly. You don't have anything to worry about from Aang or Mai."

"What about Aunt Wu?"

Sokka turned his gaze to the tent, where Meng was holding the flap open for him and trying not to meet his gaze. "I'm going to find out about that right now." He stalked into the tent and found an old lady sitting on a mat beside a fire pan. "What have you been doing to my sister?"

Aunt Wu motioned to the mat across from her. "Sit down, and we'll talk. I didn't mean to upset her, but she asked for a love fortune."

"Yeah, just an innocent misunderstanding." Sokka remained standing. "The problem is that fortunetelling is just a scam, and now I'm wondering why your scam involves getting my sister all upset and trying to make her fight one of our allies."

"Ah, you're not a believer." Aunt Wu eased herself to her feet and looked at Sokka with narrowed eyes. "Normally, I'd just push you away with some vague prophecy of doom, but I want to prove myself to you. To the Avatar. He and I share a kind of sight, but he doesn't know how to use it like I can. I want to use my gifts to help him, so that he can set the world right."

Sokka crossed his arms over his chest. "Making junk up about my future isn't going to accomplish that."

"I know." Aunt Wu stepped forward, and the light of the fire played across her face in a way that almost made her look like Gran-Gran. "You and I, we're both protectors. You have your tribe, and your grandmother, and those she has taken into her care. You've seen death, and you've seen loss, so you try to stay aloof even as you do everything in your power to help them. When you take someone under your care, you take them as family. That's why you'll protect the Avatar as much as your sister, even if you sometimes tell yourself you can make a choice between them. It's why the Fire Nation girl's betrayal hurt you so much. She was your new sister, and she was a traitor."

Sokka's thoughts had come to a halt in the midst of that whole stupid speech, kind of like what Aang said meditating was like. Sokka's focus was so strong that there was nothing left in him to devote to thought, and that focus was the kind his dead father had taught was the true power of a hunter. "You want to stop talking about me now."

Aunt Wu nodded. "Then let me talk about myself. I live in Makapu Village. The people take care of me, and I take care of them. They find reassurance in my word, even when I don't really tell them anything. So many of them were lost, and I brought them together so that they could be safe. Happy, even. They have no idea what I really do, but they love me all the same. But I can't protect them from what's happening to the world. Only the Avatar can do that. So I help them by helping the Avatar. Helping you. And you can see that. You're observant that way."

Sokka breathed in sharply. He had been focusing during her little speech, watching her face, her eyes, and her movements. He saw the bit of moisture at the edge of her eyes, heard the slight tremble in her voice, noticed the way she worked her hands opened and closed as she talked.

His focus revealed these things, but then he let himself think again and his thoughts wondered if Aunt Wu might not just be a really good actor.

"Wait here," he said. Then he stepped outside to talk to his sister.

Katara found Mai standing apart from the gatherings around the shamans, staring up at the kites being flown from the edge of the festival. The kites were decorated with faces, and Katara thought she recognized something more like a pixiu amongst the many dragons. "Mai!"

The other girl looked over, and while her face didn't move, her voice was intense as she said, "There you are. You and Sokka just disappeared. Aang went with the parade to the Death Mountain thing."

Katara gave a little bow of repentance. "Sorry, but we found out about this fortuneteller who we think can help Aang! But we're not sure if we should trust her because she revealed that you're going to determine if I marry- well, details aren't important, and then she told Sokka what he says were a lot of the secret thoughts in his head but he's still not sure if she's telling the truth so he didn't actually say so but he implied that he'd feel better if you went to see her and gave us your opinion. So that we know if it's okay to bring Aang."

"Wait, hold on." Mai blinked slowly. "A fortuneteller said that I'm going to marry you?"

Katara could feel her face warming, and she couldn't even talk for a moment. "I- I didn't say that!"

"Well, I wasn't sure, but it sounded-"

"That's not what I meant!"

"If you're sure."

"I am! Okay?"

"Okay."

"Okay." Katara was glad that was settled.

Mai held up a hand. "So how am I keeping you from getting married, then?"

"Oh, for-" Katara decided that the truth couldn't possibly be more embarrassing than this. "She said that if you don't seduce Aang away from me, we'll get married."

"The 'we' being you and Aang, not you and me."

"Yes!"

"Okay. I just want to be clear on all this." Mai's face had remained perfectly calm and perfectly pale the whole time. "So let's check out this scandalous fortuneteller."

Katara was grateful for the chance to turn away and blush in peace. She tugged her hat down and led Mai back to Aunt Wu's tent, where they found Sokka pacing and glaring at Meng. The young girl didn't seem to care and was trying to twist her pigtails into a more traditional position, but she let go when she saw Katara and opened the flap of the tent with a bow.

Katara turned and pointed in the tent. "There!"

Mai folded her hands together in her sleeves and walked into the tent.

Katara turned away from Sokka so that he couldn't see the blush that could still feel on her cheeks. She stood and waited for a while, but it seemed like Mai was taking forever in there.

Katara decided that anything was better than waiting, and so walked over to Meng. "Hi."

"Oh, hi." Meng let go of her pigtails again. "Can I do something for you?"

"No, I'm fine. I was just- well, I was hoping you could distract me for a moment."

"Oh." Meng blinked. "Then do you mind if I ask what you put in your hair?"

"My hair?" Katara flicked her head so that her long braid was visible. She hadn't liked her hair until recently, when it had stopped breaking at every little tug or manipulation. Sokka said it was because she was getting real food now and wasn't spending all her time in that awful volcano heat. "Nothing, really. My friend lets me use her soap to wash it."

"Oh."

"So, how long have you been working for Aunt Wu?"

Meng thought about it for a moment. "I guess it's been three years now. It's a good job. I get to meet people, and Aunt Wu gives me fortunes whenever I ask."

"Oh, yeah?" Katara decided that it was time for someone else to deal with a little embarrassment. "Anything about romance?"

Meng grinned, showing off the big gap between her front teeth. "She said I'm going to marry a guy who wears glasses and talks with a southeast accent. So I'm still keeping an eye out."

Katara nodded and was going to ask what a southeast accent sounded like, but then she heard the rustle of the tent and turned to see Mai emerging into the sunlight. "What happened? Did she give you a fortune?"

Sokka ran over. "Did she say anything creepy?"

Meng hopped up to look over Katara' shoulder. "Are you going to bring the Avatar now?"

Mai held up a hand and waited for everyone to stop talking. "Aunt Wu is fine. We should bring Aang. He can decide for himself about what she has to say."

Katara was going to ask how Mai could tell, but then Sokka actually pushed her aside and stepped forward to say, "How can you tell?" Katara slapped the back of his head.

Mai ignored it all. "I'm not surprised that you can't see it, but 'Aunt' Wu is a very high-class lady. Half the nobles in the Caldera wish they could be so good. My maternal grandmother is the same way, and women like that- of that age- are always exactly where they want to be, and they have no need whatsoever to lie. Ever. If Aunt Wu is here, then she's not working for the Fire Nation. If she says she has something for Aang, she does."

Meng began applauding, and Katara moved to give the short girl her space before saying, "But can she really tell the future?"

"I don't know and I don't care." Mai stepped away. "Aang can deal with that part. He went with the big funeral procession to the mountain tomb, so I'll go get him. You two watch the tent to make sure it doesn't fly away or something."

Katara watched the other girl walk away, and struggled with a mix of relief that Aunt Wu wasn't an enemy, disappointment that Mai didn't reveal what they had discussed, and continuing anxiety over the surprise love triangle she might still be caught in the middle of. She looked over at Sokka. "So should I be worried that they're already visiting mountain tombs together?"

He groaned. "Please don't tell me you're still taking that thing seriously."

"Well, why not? Mai said Aunt Wu was okay, so even if she's a fake, what reason would she have for lying to me about that?"

"Oh, it's possible she really believes that she has fortunetelling powers." Sokka crossed his arms over his chest. "But if she's so good at that type of thing, why didn't she just intercept Aang directly and avoid this whole mess with us?"

Katara frowned. "But Meng knew who I was and where to find me. So Aunt Wu knew something that only a fortuneteller would."

"Then she's a fake."

Meng snarled, "Hey! Watch it!"

Katara just poked her brother. "But then we go back to what Mai said. You're contradicting yourself."

Sokka pushed her finger away. "Did you ever consider that maybe Mai isn't as trustworthy as you'd like her to be? You've been pretty nice to her considering that her people stole a decade of your life."

Katara only realized that her jaw had dropped when she tried to speak and found that her mouth wasn't working. "Y- you- you're telling me how I'm supposed to feel about growing up in a cage?! You're so angry at Mai but what did she really do to you? What did any of them do to you? You got to grow up with Gran-Gran, surrounded by your Tribe, and you're the one who gets to decide how I'm supposed to feel about the Fire Nation? You're so full of slush!"

Sokka was backing away, eyes wide, and Katara was glad that he was intimidated. She had forgotten how- how mean her brother could be, and she wasn't going to tolerate him getting meaner.

"I-" His voice cracked, and he quickly turned his back on her. "You're right. Sorry." He trotted off into the flow of the festival crowd.

Oh.

He-

She-

Katara pulled her hat down so that she couldn't see anything. Apparently, Sokka wasn't the only one who had gotten meaner.

She looked over at Meng, who was doing an industrious job of examining a blade of grass and not paying attention to anything else, and then to Aunt Wu's tent. Maybe she could talk to Aunt Wu about this, see if there was a fortune that would tell her where to find Sokka and what she could say to him.

"There! That tent! The sorceress is in there!"

What?

Katara whirled as the crowd pulled back and left her and Meng standing alone beside the tents and stalls of this lane. Even the vendors who had neighbored Aunt Wu's setup were leaving their charms and tokens and money boxes behind. What could-

An ostrich-horse emerged from the receding festival-goers, carrying a living symbol of Earth Kingdom prosperity in its saddle. The rider was a heavy-set man with a long beard, and he might have been mistaken for a mere merchant were it not for the sheen on both his green silk robe and his black wide-brimmed hat. Unlike Katara's hat, the simple conicular type that allowed rain to slide down, this man's hat had a tall cylinder as its main body, giving him an artificial height that was nevertheless quite impressive.

Nevertheless, Katara took a position between the ostrich-horse and Aunt Wu's tent and tensed for a fight.

The man glared at her from beneath the brim of his hat and spurred the bird-steed into an awkward amble that its powerful legs weren't built for, making the ostrich-horse sway with enough force to make the beaded strings hanging from his hat sway in the air. Katara stood her ground and waited to see if this busybody had the guts to run a teenage girl down in the middle of a festival crowd, but he surprised her by turning and saying, "This girl is interfering in a lawful arrest! Take her- take the sorceress- take them all!"

Katara followed his gaze, and hissed when she saw Fire Nation soldiers emerging from the same gap in the crowd, all of them lowering their spears in her direction.

She took in the threat as Meng ran to stand behind her. She could see at least a dozen soldiers, and there might be more behind them in the crowd. Her only chance of fighting them was to reveal herself as a Waterbender, and she didn't have to be an experienced world traveler to know that such a discovery would bring more than just a dozen soldiers.

Still, it was important that Aunt Wu talk to Aang- maybe important enough to be worth Katara's life. It wasn't like she had any real purpose, because-

Katara felt a warm hand on her shoulder, and turned to find Aunt Wu behind her. "It's okay, child. I'll answer the accusation."

Before Katara could decide, the man on the ostrich-horse sneered and said, "You'll all answer at the trial! Arrest them!"

Katara moved to take a Waterbending stance, but the shaft of a spear smacked against her head hard enough to send her hat flying, and through the explosion of pain in her skull she got a brief look of the terrifying openness of the sky before everything went dark.

TO BE CONTINUED