I would like to thank WildCitrusSunflower for being the beta for this story and fixing all of those mistakes I tend to make . Also I do not own Avatar the last Airbender .
Sipping her tea quietly, Katara listened to Colonel Antei as he presented the final plans for the upcoming travel. Now that she thought about it she realised, that these meetings between her, her husband, and some official had become a rather regular occurrence lately.
"From the royal palace, the royal assembly will move over several smaller stops to the twenty first county, were their arrival will be expected on the third day of travel. From there the Duchy of Sekitan will be reached in a days travel…"
She had heard most of this a felt dozen times now and could not help letting her mind wander at times.
After some discussion Fire Lord Zuko had decided that the upcoming trip would be too perfect an opportunity to visit the counties to pass up. So in only a few days the travel plans had been turned upside down. Instead of by boat the large group of servants, guards, courtiers and the royal couple would travel most parts of the trip over land, either riding a komodo rhino or being carried in a palanquin.
A list of nobles invited to join the royal's visitation of the Fire Nation in celebration of the peace treaty was quickly compiled, a schedule decided and clothing ordered. After all if the Fire Lord and his wife were visiting their subjects it had to be done in style.
"… after a short stop in the sixteenth county, the group will move …"
During the last two weeks the upcoming three month long travel had been the only thing anyone would speak of in the palace. Surprisingly not only the servants that would accompany them were excited about the upcoming trip, but the invited nobles as well.
Every last one of them was from old, especially respected families and yet they acted as if they were children that would go to their very first fair. From what Katara had been able to overhear from the tailors, they had been working without pause to complete all the orders made for the trip. It seemed as if the whole Capital City was ordering new wardrobes.
"… here, the guard detail will be changed once more and the Duchy of Tetsu will house the royal court for…"
Her husband had somehow managed to extend the invitations in a manner that transformed them into a medal. When his mother had joked that they acted as if the Fire Lord never invited for any amusement, he had turned a slight red and admitted to never really being one to hold balls just for the sake of it. Dowager Fire Lady Ursa had shook her forefinger at him and scolded that parties were important to keep the nobles happy. Lady Ursa would remain behind and handle affairs at the palace.
Well from how the nobles were acting the whole trip would be nothing but one large celebration. Not that Katara would mind, but she doubted that the trip would be overly enjoyable.
She had spent enough time with her husband by now to know that he was not one for celebrations. If she had to guess she would say that he had simply no idea what fun was even supposed to be. She had yet to hear him laugh, or even truly see him smile for that matter.
It was almost sad.
"… for the last two days of travel before the Duchy of Sakana…"
He was a professional through and through, managing to arrange everything perfectly with seeming ease and so, two weeks before the official signing of the peace treaty, a group of over two hundred civilians and just as many soldiers would be ready to leave tomorrow morning.
On the way to the border they would visit the five duchies as well as the counties located in the north of the Capital City until they would finally board a ship and, after a short stop at Ember Island, travel to the border town of Taku, which was supposed to regain its former glory as a great trading metropolis.
"…this concludes my final report on the plans for the upcoming travel to the city of Taku. If highnesses have any inquiries?"
Katara could not help sighing in relief when her husband shook his hand in a dismissive gesture. "Thank you colonel, for your report. You may take your leave."
When the man had finally left, Katara slumped a bit and muttered gently, "I thought he would never finish."
Whether her husband heard or not, she could only guess as he showed no sign of it. Sometimes the emotionless mask he wore was truly unhandy.
"I was wondering if you could perhaps tell me a bit about the different nobles and their position, my Lord?" Lady Tetai had spent hours droning on and on about who was whose parent, sister, second removed cousin and so on, but Katara had mostly forgotten the information again only hours afterwards.
"Certainly. There are eleven duchies, in total 109 counties, a few baronies as well as 32 Crown lands, where a governor rules. The eleven duchies are unfailingly positioned in the original territory. Out of the eleven there are five especially powerful ones."
Unrolling a map Zuko showed the different duchies positions. "On the one hand we have the Duke of Sekitan, whom we will visit first, as well as the Duke of Tetsu, who highly disliked the peace treaties. Their duchies earn their money through coal and iron mines and consequently fear the loss of income. On the other hand there are the three southern duchies that are mainly based on food production, but also have several larger factories. Though they dislike the staggering economy, they have far smaller troubles with it and consequently are less opposed to peace, especially since they often lack the manpower needed to tend to all of their fields due to conscription. So far, they have given me very few reasons to be concerned.
The other six dukes are less important, mostly because their duchies are smaller or play only a minor role in the economy. Two of them are neighbours to Sekitan and Tetsu and generally follow their more powerful allies. The Duchy of Sakana lives mainly of the trade and fishing. They welcome a less militaristic view and the trading possibilities peace would bring.
The last three duchies are relative unknowns. Though the families are very old, and as such prestigious, they mostly refrain from attending court.
Then there are the counties, which are positioned both in the old and in the new territory. They are generally quite a bit smaller than the duchies and also less influential. Many of them consist of one small island with maybe one or two villages and are quite remote.
They pay their taxes and attend when called for but otherwise generally stay away from court. I would say that I have actually truly met perhaps one fourth of them.
During my first three years of ruling I was forced to interfere with two duchies, the smaller neighbours of Sekitan and Tetsu, and twenty-one counties. The reason for my interference was exempt from two cases high treason, in other words an attempt on my life or to otherwise remove me from the Dragon Throne. In nineteen cases, another family member could be found to be trusted with the land and title in the other four the families were stripped of their privileges. These counties were turned into temporarily crowned land until a capable replacement can be found."
"So all of those assassins?"
"Are either send by the same few noble families or by an underground organisation."
"But if there are only two main enemies amongst the nobles then why are you so concerned, my Lord?"
"There are only so few known adversaries, because I have been extremely careful not to offend anyone more than absolutely necessary for the peace agreements and because many are too afraid to openly show their dislike. Having to strip four noble families of their title in only three years is practically unheard of, leading to great unease amongst the other families. On top of this there is also the belief that the war wasn't wrong at all. My predecessors have spent a great amount of time to convince their subjects that their actions are justified and correct. These factors along with recession because of staggering war productions, lead to an unstable situation and consequently to my worries. Especially since the high officials in the military are also fearful of losing influence."
"I see."
"I have mostly kept to rearranging the military. They have always been the Fire Lord's base of power. Though the nobles are of course officially a part of the military and as such have both an obligation and influence on it, very few actually take advantage of this. Their titles might be militaristic, but their structures and priorities are not.
Though almost all my higher officers are of noble blood, they are normally second or third sons, who would never receive their title. This connection could be enough however to weaken my influence with the army if the nobles are too dissatisfied."
What a strange world this was.
Her husband had to have seen her slightly puzzled expression, for he ducked his head and scratched his ear, "I am not doing a good job explaining matters, am I my Lady?"
"It's fine, really. It's simply a lot to absorb; things are so different from home. No need to worry though, I will get used to it."
"As you say, my Lady. If any other questions bother you, please do not hesitate to inquire."
Smiling gently Katara nodded. "I won't."
"Before my Lady leaves, there is one more matter left to address."
His eyes were slightly widened, his hands hidden behind the table and the head lowered ever so slightly. With any other person Katara would have thought nothing of it, but in the always straight backed man she had come to recognize the motion. He was nervous.
"Yes, my Lord?"
How strange, him being nervous somehow put her at ease. But then she could not help remembering the last times he had worn said expression: The offer to spar together, the showing of her new rooms, a few times during the wedding night.
Each and every time he had been trying to make her comfortable and happy. Each time he had seemed worried about her rejecting his efforts.
And each time, he had done his best to offer her something she had wanted.
She would not be proven wrong.
He retrieved a small pile of scrolls and placed them on the table in front of her.
"When you mentioned that a great deal of your tribes bending knowledge had been lost during the war, I looked through the private royal library. There are quite a few scrolls kept there, that speak of your tribes traditions. I have ordered the scribes to copy the relevant ones, but I am afraid that they were unable to finish. I still wanted to present my Lady with these though, since I thought it might make for enjoyable reading material for the trip."
Katara stared at the small pile and did not know how to respond. All those years ago she had been so excited over one, just one scroll on rudimentary bending forms and now she had a whole pile of scrolls to herself.
And just because she had mentioned that she wanted to know more about her tribes bending and culture.
The thank you, given as response seemed once again too small, but when she saw the slight twinkle in his eyes, she could not help but wonder if maybe, maybe it was all that was needed. Still, she would find something that she could do in return, something to show that she appreciated his efforts.
The first few days of travel had been unexpectedly comfortable. She had spent it in a palanquin that was carried by two kodomo rhinos. Though the swaying movement had taken some getting used to, she had found it quite soothing after a while. Her husband rode next to her and at times would point out a beautiful or famous sight, for which she would pull back the curtains surrounding her. At first she had complained that it truly destroyed the purpose of the trip if she had to stay hidden. She had, at least officially, requested the trip to get to know the country after all, but had finally given up.
It would not do for a Fire Lady to stay in the sun and dirt for such a prolonged time. Her argument that it seemed to be just fine for the Fire Lord to mingle amongst dirt and sun had been ignored. Well perhaps she would simply have to learn how to ride one of those blasted beasts. If she had ridden on an air bison, she could certainly handle one tiny rhino.
Now it was about time for them to arrive at Duke Sekitan's home, having already passed through several smaller settlements belonging to the duchy.
The villagers had assembled next to the road and bowed lowly when the royal procession had passed, but Katara could not help but feel as if they had not come fully of their own bidding.
The way they had kept their children shielded and not even attempted to catch a rare glimpse of their ruler, had seemed unnatural. Their huts, if they could even be called thus, were in terrible shape and many of the farmers were too thin for her liking. But she had thought that the last harvest had been quite good in this area?
The castle they were moving towards, placed on a small hill and surrounded by fields, though did not appear to be rundown, quite the opposite.
The walls were painted in a clean white and the red tiles gleamed in the sun. Decorative statues and a beautifully ornate gate gave the castle a rather palace like appearance.
After stopping in a beautiful patio, they were greeted by a long line of bowing servants and the noble family, two small children, a young woman and a significantly older man, itself.
When her husband assisted her out of the palanquin, the noble family followed their servants' example.
"The Family of Sekitana is overwhelmed with the enormous honour of having been chosen to host the most gracious royal Highnesses." The slightly round older man said in a surprisingly high voice.
"May our appreciation be known." The Fire Lord responded in a quiet but firm tone.
"If your Highnesses might perhaps be inclined to use this humble house's facilities to refresh before a simple meal is served in the dining hall?"
Accepting, grateful for the chance to wash the grime of their weary bodies, the royals followed two servants to their rooms.
The entrance room they were led to was just as luxurious as the outside had been, if not more so. Kept in traditional style the room was decorated with a beautiful shōheki-ga portraying mountain scenery. Though the painting was exquisite, the dark ink gave the room a slightly unapproachable feeling.
"I wonder why someone would paint something so beautiful, yet forbidding in an entrance room", Katara mused after the servants had left them to let them settle in. "The paint is fresh, barely even dried."
"It's meant to show the importance and power of the coal industry. If you look closely you can see that the smaller mountains are not natural, but instead the result of mining."
"Oh, you are right! They don't look right for natural ones and there is far too little vegetation."
Before another word could be spoken a light knock announced the body servant's arrival.
The feast that followed was neither humble nor small, but rather as extravagant as Katara could possibly imagine. Half of the delicacies offered, she had never even heard of before, but as was expected she ate a few bites of every course, before allowing the servants to replace the plate with yet another dish.
The conversation mostly circled around meaningless pleasantries, that the Fire Lord only rarely took part in. Katara on the other hand enjoyed a lively talk with the Lady of the House concerning gardening, which was still quite foreign to Katara, who had grown up in the ice.
When the Fire Lady finally excused herself, her husband decided to accompany her. The day had been long and there were still several reports he had intended to read.
Once they were alone, he quietly approached his wife.
"I am sorry my Lady, but there is one request I would like to make."
"Certainly, what can I do?" Surprised, since the Fire Lord never seemed to make a request of her, Katara looked at him.
"If you could perhaps show an interest in coal mining tomorrow and request to see the mines? It would be very beneficial if you could have a look at them before we leave the day after and tell me what you have seen. I would especially be interested in the amount of coal produced and stored."
"Yes, of course. Mining has always interested me after all." Katara answered with a mischievous smile.
She was surprised when she was answered with an ever so gentle rising of the corners of Zuko's mouth. "I am certain, my Lady will find the mines most fascinating."
"Do you think they are embezzling funds?" Was that perhaps the reason for the people's deplorable condition?
"From the way the servants, farmers and this castle look it's not a question of whether, but rather how much. The last two harvests were while not plentiful still good. There is no reason why the farmers should be in such a pitiful state. Coal prices are also still quite high, but I doubt that the miners will look any healthier. The real question will be whether I am able to prove anything. If they have more than half a million tons in storage or produce over eight hundred thousand tons a year, they are definitely embezzling, though this should not be discussed so late at night, my Lady."
Noticing her exhaustion Katara nodded agreeably.
"I wish you a good night's sleep. If you need anything I will be in the study for the remainder of the night."
Surprised the waterbender asked, "You don't plan on sleeping tonight?"
"I will be in the study, my Lady, there is a couch, which will suffice."
"Nonsense. The bed is easily big enough for four much less just the two of us. You can't spend the next three months on couches, my Lord." To underline her determination Katara placed her hands on her hips and put a determined look on her face.
"If my Lady is certain?"
"Yes. Now I will go to bed and I expect you not to stay awake too much longer either. From the sound of it it's going to be a long day!" So what if only a few months ago she had thought that she couldn't mother the Fire Lord the way she did her friends. He was still just a man and he definitely needed some mothering by the looks of it!
There were those upwards turning lips again!
"I will see what I can do, my Lady."
The next morning Katara did as requested and though the Sekitan family tried to protest weakly the Fire Lady as well as a procession of thirteen nobles was quickly on its way to the mines.
Once they arrived at the area, where the coal was quarried, Zuko's suspicion was sadly confirmed. The miners looked no better than the farmers and the little huts they passed were, if possible, in even worse condition than those previously seen. Everyone living here, even small children seemed to be working on the open-cast mine.
It was also obvious that the hosting family had had no plans of visiting this area of their land with their guests, as the workers were completely unprepared for royal visitors. Instead of the orderly rows of bows that had been seen before, many of the men and women did not even realise that a royal was amongst them and simply did the bow customary for nobility. Other seemed to recognise the Crown and, in their fear to show insufficient respect, threw themselves on the ground.
Even a quiet command to rise from the Fire Lady did little to change the situation. Finally one of the overseers hollered at the workers to get back to what they were doing and things settled slightly.
Katara, playing the interested but plan less Lady, asked question after question as she had done on their way there.
"So once the coal is cut out of the stone it's ready to be used?"
"I am afraid not, your Highness. It still needs to be sorted. While the miners cut it out they do not in fact manage to fully separate coal and stone. For this to be possible the coal has to be broken into smaller pieces and afterwards thrown into water. The water is in small containers with rifled bottoms. If these are shaken, the stones will remain at the bottom, while the coal will be slightly higher, making it possible to separate coal and stone. Wet coal though is useless, so it will have to be spread for drying."
"Really? That's quite fascinating. I would especially like to see the sorting. I am a waterbender after all. So how much coal does one worker mine in a day?"
"Oh, my Lady. That is difficult to say! It truly depends on the worker." The Lady Sekitan informed.
"I see. Send one of the men to ask the worker over there how many of those barrels he fills a day." Katara demanded, pointing to a poor man that had had the unfortunate luck to work close to where they were passing. Once the worker informed the nobles that he collected about three barrels a day, the Lady continued her questioning.
"So once the coal is dried it will be sent on its way?"
"We do not produce on order, but rather produce a constant amount and store whatever is not needed immediately. At the moment we store our coal for about a year before it's sold."
The area was dirty and muddy, but since the Fire Lady did not seem to mind getting her beautiful Kimono stained, the nobles did not dare complain as they were dragged through the different production areas.
After almost three hours though, most of the nobles were relieved that the storage area would be the last one visited. By now Katara's incessant questioning, at times even going so far as to speaking to the workers directly, when her companions answers were insufficient, had convinced even the most sceptical amongst them that she truly was fascinated by mining.
So when a worker answered her innocent question, how many tons of coal made up one of the large piles in front of them, no one thought anything of it. Even her surprised inquiry: "One hundred tons of coal, really?" did not raise any eyebrows.
The Lady Sekitan answered without hesitation, "Oh yes. It is quite astonishing, isn't it?"
"I simply didn't realise that the Fire Nation used this much coal. You said before that the coal was stored for about one year, so all of this is used up in only one year?"
"Oh yes, my Lady! This is all sold in one year. There are actually quite a few more mines in the colonies as well, though this one is one of the larger ones. We do need a lot of coal for our ships and so forth, which is why coal is so important."
Nodding slightly Katara smiled at the other sweetly. "I didn't think that one mine would produce over 1.3 million tons a year. What with there being thirteen piles..."
Suddenly the woman seemed to sweat, but when Katara simply continued to smile kindly, the woman answered nonetheless.
"Well perhaps not quite that much, but a bit more than a million should be right, my Lady."
"Amazing."
When returning to the castle Katara greeted Zuko in the dining hall and afterwards, in front of the assembled nobility, began chattering happily, "I am very grateful to you for arranging this journey, my Lord. I have already learned so much and it has barely begun."
"I am pleased to hear that my Lady is enjoying herself and offer my thanks to Lady Sekitan for showing my wife the area."
"It was my pleasure, your Highness." The petite, young woman replied.
Seemingly unable to stop her excitement Katara continued, "The mine was most fascinating, my Lord. I learned that the coal is actually separated from the stone by using water, after pulling it from the ground. It all looks so terribly labour-intensive and yet over a million tons of coal is produced a year in just this one mine!"
Zuko could not help choking for just a moment. "A million?"
While before the nobles had been speaking amongst themselves, suddenly a falling needle could have been heard.
"Yes, Lady Sekitan said over a million. We were in the storage area and there were 1.3 million tons of coal stored there and she said that all of this would be sold in about a year. Can you imagine, my Lord?"
Still Katara smiled innocently.
The Fire Lord on the other hand grew rather stiff as he answered. "No, I cannot. In the yearly report we have been discussing just this morning while you were gone, Lord Sekitan spoke of under half a million tons in storage and less than seven hundred tons being produced a year. The reports of the years beforehand are almost identical."
"Oh, my wife must have been mistaken, your Highness." Lord Sekitan was quick to intervene.
"But the worker we spoke to said the same: One hundred tons in each pile and there were thirteen full piles."
"How do you explain yourself, Lord Sekitan?" The Fire Lord seemed to have grown, while his opposite seemed to shrink more and more.
"There has to be some mistake, your Highness."
"Then you will not mind some men checking the amount stored and produced, will you?"
For several minutes no one said anything, until the man angrily shouted, clearly realising that he would never be able to hide over half a million tons of coal, "So what if I tweaked the numbers a bit every now and then? It's not as if anyone could survive on the pittance you have set as the tax maximum!"
"Your colleagues seem to be able to manage just fine."
"Nonsense! They change the numbers just as much as I do!"
Inside Zuko could not help jumping in joy. Things could not have gone any better for him. Not only had the man admitted to embezzling thanks to Katara's amazing performance, he had just made every single noble his enemy without even realising it.
"Is there anyone in this room, who wishes to express even the slightest slip of doubt that this man is not in fact guilty of stealing from the Crown in the highest degree?"
No one answered.
"Then in my position as Fire Lord, I declare you, former Duke Sekitan, guilty of embezzlement of the highest order and sentence you to fifteen years in prison. As you have only a wife and two young children and your wife can not be seen as trustworthy, you as well as your family are stripped of both land and title of Sekitan. You are hereby stripped of all your former positions and your possessions confiscated."
The man began shouting, "You cannot do this! I will not let you treat me this way! I refuse to accept this! I am of one of the oldest families of the nation!"
Turning towards the guards Zuko ordered harshly.
"Arrest this man. Some servants will assist you in packing some necessities for your journey, Madam. I hope you have family that will take you in." If she didn't, her and her children's lives were as good as over. She had no money independently from her husband and no education that would pay for her room and board.
Before the woman could even reply, Zuko turned to Katara. "I apologize, my Lady. I have yet again turned an event planned for your enjoyment into a matter of state business."
Nodding slightly Katara answered, "I understand, my Lord. It is of no fault of yours. I will not keep you from your work. The former duchess mentioned a beautiful park close by and I am certain the servants will be able to lead the way after a short lunch break. So do not mind me, my Lord."
Katara had not thought that excusing her husband for a while meant not seeing him at all anymore until she returned to their rooms late in the evening.
"Have you been able to arrange everything, my Lord?"
"For the time being, yes. As I do not have a noble I can trust enough to look after these lands at this moment, they have been turned into Crown land temporarily. Once an acceptable alternative has been found it will return to being a duchy once more."
Nodding her understanding, Katara could not help but ask, "Was this your plan from the very beginning?"
"No, my Lady. I had hoped to gain some information about the man's actions, but I never thought I would be able to remove him so easily. Thanks to you, I was able to sentence him without worrying any of the honest nobles. As a great number were able to witness today's happenings and will certainly spread word, there won't be any question of my decision being justified and correct. So thank you very much for your help."
"I hardly did anything, besides. I still owed you a favour for the scrolls." Katara smiled. "I truly enjoy them. I began reading during our travels yesterday and they are quite interesting."
"I am glad to hear it."
Hi,
Some explanations:
安泰/あんたい(antai) peace, safety
石炭/せきたん(sekitan) coal
鉄/てつ(tetsu) iron
魚/さかな(sakana) fish
Shoheki-ga: The Japanese wall paintings you might have seen before.
As allways thanks a lot for all of your reviews! Especially thanks to those of you who have been doing so continuously.
Greetings Yorushike