disclaimer. atla is property of bryke, i own nothing familiar, etc.

author's notes. thank you everyone for the kind comments and for following along! please accept this new chapter as a (sort of) belated christmas present. since its been a while, i'd recommend re-reading chapters 17 & 18 (and maybe even 29) as a bit of a refresher for this chapter.

of course, immense gratitude to circaasurvival for beta-reading and all the moral support!

i give you...

southern lights

chapter xxxiv. becoming wind

take a look around the world
you see such bad things happening
there are many good men
ask yourself is he one of them

"special cases"/ massive attack

Faint sunshine traces through the worn wooden beams scoring the stable roof, cutting through the dim thatched interior with beams of bright gold and warming the hay piled in the corner of the sky bison's stall. The sharp, fresh smell is strong in Aang's nostrils as he bends a bale out of its pile and into Appa's waiting mouth.

The large jaws clamp down and the sound of dutiful chewing fills the air. A grin crosses Aang's mouth as he places a hand against the bison's foremost paw. "I still can't get over how big you got, Appa! What have they been feeding you here?"

The sky bison pauses to direct a bleary gaze at him. Aang sees himself reflected clearly in the liquid depths of his large, dark brown eyes. Then Appa lowers his head to the ground and continues to chew away.

"Yeah, I know. I guess I got pretty big too," Aang admits, slumping down to sit on Appa's paw. Tufts of soft fur cocoon him on all sides, nearly hiding the rest of the stable from view. From here, it almost seemed like the only part of the Temple complex that actually existed was Appa's stall and his shaggy warmth. Wouldn't that be nice? No Elders, no rules, no blips on the horizon…

But Chief Elder Pasang had hosted General Iroh's council and sheltered his ships for the better part of a week without being swayed into more meaningful action. And early in the morning, with the sighting of what looked like warships approaching in the distance, the atmosphere in the temple had turned tense indeed.

"I know the monks swore to protect all life," Aang mutters as Appa gulps down his mouthful. "I know they believe that removing themselves from the conflict is the only way to stay true to that. But -"

"Talking to yourself again, Twinkletoes?" Toph's voice cuts across the stifling silence of the stable air. "That's not a good sign."

Aang raises his head to see a small silhouette outlined in the stable entrance. He smiles faintly at her but doesn't get up from his perch on Appa's paw. "Not to myself. Just Appa." He raises a hand to pat the sky bison's leg and earns a deep rumble of appreciation.

"Appa, huh?" Toph picks her way toward the stall, her movements all the more graceful now that she was off the solid metal ship and on solid ground again. "Is he yours?"

Aang nods before remembering for the thousandth time that Toph can't see. "Yup," he replies, mentally smacking himself. "Every Air Nomad gets their sky bison. Appa's mine."

"Cool." Toph's face scrunches in focus. "From the general difficulty I have in sensing him, I take it he must be very fluffy."

Aang grins. "Very." He gets to his feet as Toph steps into the stall and pauses, sizing up the large sky bison. "Do you want to pat him?"

"That depends. Am I gonna lose a hand if I try?"

Appa lets out a growl of dissent and Toph flinches.

"I think you offended him," Aang whispers in a low voice. "He's really friendly. See?"

Before she can protest otherwise, he grabs her hand and places it on Appa's forehead. Her sightless eyes widen as the sky bison grumbles but doesn't pull away.

"Wow," she says after a moment. "He is really fluffy."

Appa lets out a sharp snort. Toph starts but doesn't pull away. Then a large pink tongue emerges without warning, lapping at her from toe to head.

"Agh!" Toph screams, wrenching back and tripping on her feet to land cross-legged on the ground behind her.

Aang can't help the short laugh that bursts out of him. "He likes you!"

"He slurped me!" She scrubs at her face agitatedly, where her bangs clump together in a matted mess over her eyes. "This washes off, right? Oh it'd better wash off, Twinkletoes."

To emphasize her point, she pulls at her tunic, now heavy and thoroughly sodden. The sky bison lumbers toward her, probably closing in for another slurp.

"Back, Appa," Aang commands, grabbing at his haunches. "We need to have a conversation about boundaries." He glances nervously at Toph as she struggles to her feet. "Sorry, he's not used to strangers."

"No kidding," Toph grouses, still fiddling with her uniform. "I can see why you didn't take him with you."

Aang's face falls. "He was too small when I left for the army," he laments, his grip loosening. "I hated leaving him behind."

An awkward silence descends upon them, punctuated by the sound of his fingers trailing absently through soft fur and Appa's contented snuffles. In the distance, the windchimes lining the temple doors clink faintly.

"They're not going to help us, are they?" Toph asks suddenly, her expression unusually withdrawn.

Aang stills and closes his eyes. "I don't think so," he admits. He wonders if he sounds as disappointed as he feels.

"Bummer." Toph crosses her arms. "What next, then?"

Aang shrugs. "We stay here as long as we can. Every day is another day that we can regain our strength, come up with a plan, maybe even add some numbers to our forces."

Toph raises an eyebrow. "You just said the Air Nomads weren't going to take part in our fighting."

"But maybe some more people from the capital are trying to make their way to us," Aang persists, scrabbling for hope, thin as it was. "Everything was so chaotic that night, we still haven't even found everyone in our own division! You can't tell me that they're siding with Ozai in this."

"I don't think he's giving them a choice," Toph says darkly, her fists clenching. "You saw what he did to Sparky after he said no thanks to being part of his psychopath society."

"Yeah." Aang rests his face against Appa's side, feeling it swell with the bison's steady breathing. "If he could do that to his own son, what could he have in store for the rest of his people?"

"Or the rest of the world?" Toph finishes, her forehead creasing uncharacteristically with worry.

"You're worried about your parents, aren't you?" Aang guesses softly.

He regrets it instantly as Toph's face hardens uncompromisingly. "No, I'm not," she retorts coldly. "They're filthy rich and cozy enough with the royal family to sell their own daughter out to them. They'll do just fine." She lowers her head and her bangs shadow her eyes from view. "There's no point in worrying about them at all."

Aang blinks, weighing his options and wondering if he should just quit while he was ahead. Instead, his mouth opens and he hears himself speaking most unwisely. "The thing about family is, they sometimes compel you to do certain things, even when it seems pointless."

"Like this conversation?" Toph grumbles. Her jaw tightens but she doesn't turn away from him yet.

"Maybe," Aang allows diffidently. "Look, I know you don't have a great relationship with your parents and that was before they - uh…"

"Tried to have me kidnapped?" Toph lets out a harsh laugh. "Yeah, that left things a bit sour."

"And I don't blame you," Aang supplies hurriedly, trying to steer the conversation back into calmer waters. "Just remember. We're your family too. And we won't sell you out or hold you captive -"

"I know, Twinkletoes, do you have to be a sap all the time -"

"Or judge you for worrying about your parents even though they've been horrible to you," he finishes pointedly.

"For the last time, I'm not worried about them!" Toph exclaims. Twin spots of red flush her cheeks as she steps back. "I couldn't care less what they do. Actually, I hope they try catch me again. I hope they have the guts to do it themselves." Her voice lowers, shaking somewhat. "Who knows how strong that would make me?"

Aang is spared from answering as the stable doors bang sharply against the walls. Both he and Toph snap their gazes to where Katara storms toward them, her face clouded with ill-concealed fury.

"Uh," Aang tries, now feeling thoroughly out of his depth. "Hi Katara. How's it going out there?"

Katara doesn't answer until she flops down onto the ground next to him. "Oh, the usual. The Elders are arguing about how to stay neutral in this fight. Pasang says offering shelter is enough, Tashi says that's going too far, Gyatso says that's not going far enough and they should join the fight before it comes to them…"

"So still nothing new," Aang groans, slumping against Appa's shaggy bulk and earning another rumble in response.

"Yeah, and then there're those weird warships sailing toward us, you'd think that would make them come to a decision sometime soon, but no, they're still arguing!"

"What about General Iroh?" Aang ventures.

"What about him?"

"Well, what's he doing in all this?"

Katara scoffs. "The same thing he always does. Spout a bunch of proverbs and wait for other people to do his work for him."

Toph lets out a low whistle. "That's a little harsh, Sweetness."

"It's the truth," Katara insists, folding her arms stubbornly. "Someone has to do something, but General Iroh has no idea what he's doing!"

"You're mad at him for leaving that night," Aang says.

Katara looks at him wildly. "Shouldn't everyone be? Think of how many people were in danger that night because of him. Because they were loyal to him!"

"Like you and Zuko," Aang suggests.

Katara winces as though he'd shouted. "Like all of us here! Lucky you were able to rescue Toph but what about the others?"

"He probably wasn't thinking straight, Sweetness," Toph interjects quietly. "He just found out his son was murdered. Can you blame a guy for wanting to quit that hellhole?"

"No, but he had the luxury of a safe escape plan," Katara argues hotly. "What about everyone else? He just left us to claw our way out of there!"

"What would you rather he have done?" Aang asks her calmly.

"Something! Anything!" Katara exclaims, jumping to her feet in her agitation. "If he had any idea it was dangerous, he should have warned us! Not just left us to the mercy of his crazy brother again!" Her shoulders rise and fall with the weight of her breathing. "But it was more important to him to find out what his brother was up to and he didn't care about the cost. He never does."

"Katara," Toph begins, "you're not being fair. He lost his son -"

"He's not the only one who lost someone!" Katara snaps back angrily.

An intense weariness passes over Toph's face but wisely doesn't push the matter further. Instead she crosses her arms and leans against the stable wall, coughing nonchalantly. "So...what does Sparky think of your take on all this?"

Katara stares deliberately at her feet as her ears redden. "Nothing. Why?"

Toph raises her eyebrows. "You haven't mentioned it to him, have you?"

Katara freezes even as her fists clench and unclench slowly. "Well...there's so much going on, it hasn't exactly come up." Her lowered voice falters before she shakes her head. "Besides, with all his new duties, he's been glued to his uncle's side and - and he won't hear a word against him..."

Toph wisely chooses to remain silent, drumming her fingers against her sleeve. Aang glances at her uncertainly her before steeling himself to face Katara.

"You're right, Katara," he says, even as Toph exclaims "What?" and Katara gapes at him in bewilderment, apparently expecting more of a fight. "General Iroh miscalculated and it cost us all. But you especially."

"I-"

"You had to fight your way out of there all by yourself, and you did it not knowing if Zuko was going to make it," Aang continues. "And Toph and I left you behind. We didn't mean to, but you'd be right to be mad at us if you are."

"I'm not mad at you," Katara mumbles, averting her gaze again.

Toph blows her bangs out of her eyes. "Well that's a lie if I ever heard one."

"I'm not!" Katara insists, whirling on Toph. "Look, I'm glad both of you got out. It was crazy back there but the timing sucked. If you'd seen or heard me, I know you would have helped me, but it didn't work out that way. I'm over it."

"So…" Aang tries again, "then why are you taking it all out on General Iroh of all people?"

Katara glances at him over her shoulder before shaking her head. "You wouldn't understand."

"Why don't you try make us understand?" Aang challenges. "That's never stopped you before."

She claps a hand to her forehead. "I just don't want to talk about it, okay?"

"Carrying that much pent-up rage inside you sounds like it would be exhausting," Aang suggests, making a wry face at her. "You sound like you need to pat Appa."

Katara stirs, glancing curiously at the giant sky bison towering over them.

"Careful," Toph warns, taking an involuntary step backward. "He licks."

Katara shuffles to her feet and extends a hand cautiously. Appa surveys it placidly before pressing a cheek against her palm and growling low in his throat.

"Hey, that's not fair," Toph says plaintively. "How come you didn't get slurped?"

"Oh you know. I guess I have a way with animals," Katara replies primly, just as Appa bounds forward and topples her over.

"Eurgh!" Katara yelps as Appa licks her enthusiastically. "Okay, Appa, cut it out!"

Aang scrambles atop the sky bison, pulling him back amid the competing sounds of Katara's protests and Toph's raucous laughter.

"You were right, Sugar Queen, you sure do have a way with animals!"

"Keep that up and I'll let you drip dry out of here!"

Aang smiles weakly. "Katara?"

"Yeah?"

He leans against the crown of Appa's head. "You don't have to talk to us if you don't feel ready. But you should really let all that anger out one way or another."

She stares at him quizzically,

"I mean it. Do what you have to. But don't let it fester inside you."

The corners of her mouth quiver before twisting into a grimace. "I'm not sure I know how." She stares darkly at her feet.

Aang smiles kindly at her. "You did it once before. I know you can do it again."

Katara gapes at him, stunned and momentarily lost for words.

Suki doesn't remember leaping to her feet or clearing over the tea table in her rush to the door. Faint sounds of surprise and scraping of wooden table legs against the tatami floor register in her ears but the whole of her attention is bent on the figure in the doorway, standing directly across from a nonplussed Riko.

"Ty Lee!" she exclaims, nearly pushing Riko out of the way. "What are you doing here?"

"Suki!" Ty Lee nearly knocks Suki over with the force of her hug. "Oh, thank Agni you're here! You don't know what I went through to get here…"

Suki hugs her back, discomfited by the way her friend's entire body quakes uncontrollably. "It's okay. You're safe now." She lets go to examine her friend at a closer distance, critical of the singed edges lining her tattered clothes and the burns crisscrossing her skin. "Come. Sit. Nobody will hurt you here."

"Suki," Riko begins waspishly but Suki cuts her off with a fierce glare.

"Anyone who has a problem with Ty Lee can take it up with me. She's one of my closest friends from the army. We fought side by side at the Sun Warriors battle. She saved my neck more than once."

Riko holds her tongue as Suki leads Ty Lee to the tea table around where the rest of their company is congregated.

"Master Iio? Piandao?" Ty Lee asks suddenly as she kneels next to Suki and noticing the familiar faces. "What are you still doing here?"

Iio inclines her head as Piandao claps a hand to his forehead. "It's quite a story. But I suspect it is nowhere near the one that explains how you got here."

Ty Lee blanches but remains silent.

Not a word is exchanged until Suki, getting up and retreating abruptly to the kitchen, has brewed a pot of tea and poured some for everyone at the crammed table. "It's going to be a long night, I think," she says grimly, passing a small clay cup to Ty Lee. "You missed out on some action here."

"It's not for lack of trying," Ty Lee laments, sipping at her steaming beverage gratefully.

Suki watches some colour return to her pallid cheeks before daring to ask. "What happened at the wedding, Ty Lee?"

She freezes before setting her cup down at length. "What did you hear?" she asks carefully.

Riko slams a fist onto the tabletop and the teacups rattle in complaint. "Enough!" she orders. "We have our own conflict with the Dai Li to think of, not the stories of every traveler that washes up on our shores -"

"The Dai Li?" Ty Lee asks curiously, staring blankly at Suki. "What are they doing here?"

"They want us to join them," Suki grits out. "They're looking to start a war with the Fire Empire. They claim - they claim that they killed Prince Lu Ten, Ty Lee - at his own wedding! Is...is it true?"

Heads turn to face Ty Lee, whose mouth opens and closes wordlessly before nodding shortly.

"So they did it," Suki breathes, shaking her head. "I thought they were bluffing. But - so he's dead, then?"

"He is," Ty Lee heaves out. "It was chaos that night, Suki! When the prince fell, all hell broke loose, and the entire city is under lockdown! I had to stow away on a ship to get out of the city, and that nearly got commandeered by Admiral Zhao's men and…" She trails off, the purple marks under her eyes appearing more prominent in the flickering lamplight.

"Everyone must have been so afraid," Suki muses. "They must have wanted to escape the Dai Li -"

"It wasn't them," Ty Lee chokes out, sounding like the words cost her a great price. "At least…I don't think it was, entirely."

Confusion ripples across the faces of everyone gathered. "What do you mean?" Haru is the first to find his voice. "The Dai Li claimed responsibility for it, they stand to benefit from this confusion and they're taking advantage of it as we speak -"

"They're not the only ones who stand to benefit," Ty Lee whispers, fear swirling in her eyes. "The morning of the wedding, I had breakfast with Princess Azula."

"Zuko's sister?" Suki asks, wrinkling her brow. "What for?"

Ty Lee shrugs. "We went to school together when we were kids. My family, and Mai's family, we were all close with the royal family. Mai kept in touch with her, but I…" She clears her throat. "Anyway. Azula heard I was back, asked me to dine with her that morning. She was testing our loyalties, to the Empire, to the royal family. To her."

"What's the difference?" Suki asks bluntly. "They should all be the same, shouldn't they?"

Ty Lee shakes her head. "They were plotting something. She wouldn't say what. Only that things would be different the next morning and she wanted to know if she could count on us to support her in the times ahead. She - she didn't say as much, but Mai and I got the sense that it wouldn't spell well for Emperor Iroh." Her fingers tighten around her teacup, the knuckles turning white. "It freaked us out, but even we didn't realize they would go this far."

"What are you saying?" Haru asks incredulously. "That some of the royal family knew that the Dai Li were going to attack? And did nothing to stop it?"

Ty Lee swallows. "I think they helped the Dai Li do it," she breathes fearfully, as though she expected to be struck down on the spot for daring to voice such suspicions aloud. "Or at least looked the other way long enough for them to pull it off. How else could the Dai Li carry out such a mission? The imperial palace is a well-defended fortress and the entire army was present that night. To murder the prince on his own wedding night, they would have needed detailed knowledge of the palace's defenses and layout." Her voice grows stronger with every word. "No, they had help and they got it from the only person who stood to gain everything from Iroh's line ending."

"Ozai," Piandao spits, his face darkening. "What wouldn't that man do for power?"

"This is grave news indeed, if Ozai and the Dai Li have joined forces," Iio remarks solemnly. "But I find that difficult to believe. Why would they help each other? If the Dai Li want freedom for the Earth continent, why support Ozai's bid for power? Iroh was ever more a friend to the colonies than Ozai ever was. Yet here they are, rounding up every able-bodied person to join their ranks for a strike against the Empire. It doesn't make any sense."

Lee clutches at his forehead, frowning deeply as though struggling to remember. "They're not building an army to attack the Empire," he realizes. "They're just doing it to cement their hold on the Earth continent."

A horrified silence washes over the group. Suki feels much like the ground is shattering beneath her feet.

"Divide and conquer," Iio says slowly. "Ozai holds his people in thrall by the existential threat of a Dai Li attack on their sovereignty, while across the sea, the Dai Li consolidate power with the promise of a bid for their continent's freedom." Her mouth purses in distaste. "An unholy alliance, but one that would entrench their grasp on power."

"She's right," Suki admits. "The Dai Li are already running the place on the Empire's behalf. Now they're just trying to make it official. And if they get credit for driving the Empire out of here, they'll be lauded as heroes for doing it." A harsh laugh escapes her. "Look at how popular they got around here after the Sun Warriors battle - and that was when they failed! Kick the Empire out now, and the people will happily give them anything they want!"

"Including complete control of the region," Iio finishes grimly, tucking her hands into her sleeves.

The shrill whistling of wind blowing through the shutters causes more than a few people to jump in their seats. A wave of nausea threatens to upend the contents of Suki's stomach all over the pristine tatami floor.

"Well then," Riko pronounces, sizing Lee up coolly. "If things are as dire as they seem to be, it appears your plan is as good as we've got."

Oyaji shuffles uncomfortably in his seat but doesn't protest his captain's decision. Even he must recognize a dead end when he sees one, Suki thinks to herself bleakly.

"We'll try our best to placate them," Riko continues grudgingly. "Give them some excuse, send them off with some warriors and a token show of fealty. With luck, they'll get off our backs and we can lay low."

"With your eyes and ears open," Lee advises, though Suki notices he doesn't appear thoroughly pleased that his plan was gaining traction. Maybe he also realizes what a risk he's asking us to take. "The Kyoshi Warriors are well respected, even among the Dai Li. I'm not sure how quickly they'll trust you, but if there's anyone likely to be sent to carry out a covert mission, it'll probably be you."

"And then what?" Riko demands, crossing her arms. "I can't ask my girls to leave their posts and their home undefended at a time like this, put their very lives at risk and court discovery to no end. You said you had a plan to take down the Dai Li from the inside. We want in."

Lee chokes, his face clamming up in an uneasy pallor. "That's - that's strictly need-to-know information…"

"Well, we need to know," Riko maintains, arching her eyebrows. "You want the Dai Li off our backs? I can guarantee that to the best of our ability. Before daybreak, you'll have a discreet escort off our island. We'll be the picture of receptive to the Dai Li's interests. I'll go with them personally to ensure that they have no reason to doubt our loyalty. I'll even send you back regular reports of what they're discussing, as often as I can without being discovered, so that you have a regular stream of intelligence. If that's what you need to make this work, then you'll have it." She leans forward, steepling her fingers together on the tabletop. "But everything has a price, Mr. Lee. You want us to put our necks on the line for you? Then tell us why."

Outside, the wind seems to sigh as it rustles against the barren trees, echoing the scrape of the teacup Lee nervously slides along the table surface. "I did warn you that you're not going to like it."

"Well, we're not huge fans of basically surrendering and putting our trust blindly in you either, but here we are," Suki retorts witheringly, looking him squarely the eye. "Why stop now?"

He squirms uncomfortably under her scrutiny. The tips of his ears flush darkly, and he lets out a long sigh. "Fine. You want to talk about risk? Let's talk about risk, then." He takes a deep swig from his teacup before slamming it down on the table with a crack. Suki flinches at the sound but keeps her gaze trained on his. "By now, you're probably aware that the Dai Li is a top-down machine of control. Well…to stop the machine, you have to get at the heart of their control."

Haru inhales sharply, his green eyes widening as everyone turns to stare at him blankly. "I remember," he breathes in rising panic. "It comes and goes in flashes…" He scrunches his face as though in pain. "A lair...dark, damp, crawling with them."

Lee nods solemnly, and the grim set of his jaw suits him strikingly, Suki thinks absently. "I know where it is," he admits softly and Haru's jaw drops. "And I found out what it is."

"You did what?" Haru gasps, and the fear in his voice runs shivers down Suki's spine. "That's - that's crazy!"

"I'm meeting with the resistance on mainland soon," Lee continues in that same whisper-soft voice, glancing at Piandao. "We're planning an operation to infiltrate their base...and take it out."

"Just like that?" Oyaji asks skeptically.

"Just like that," Lee echoes, and to Suki's chagrin, he had the audacity to sound confident about it.

"That's absolutely crazy," she huffs, her fists clenching in her lap. "That's not a plan, that's suicide."

"I've been there before," Lee points out, infuriatingly reasonable. "Now, they're stretched thin trying to recruit people left, right and centre to their cause, leaving their home base guarded by a skeleton force. Now is the time to strike."

"Count me in!" Haru declares, jumping to his feet. "I want to make those bastards pay for what they did to me!"

Lee casts a sidelong glance at him. "Well…" He shrugs. "We could use all the help we can get. And you're familiar to them too. And an earthbender. That'll help us get in."

"You're serious!" Suki splutters, nearly knocking her teacup over in her consternation. "You mean to go ahead with this suicide mission, then?"

Lee meets her wild gaze evenly and something quails in her at the resolve she sees there. "I do. And I'm going to need all the help I can get. Unless you have a better plan up your sleeve? In which case I'd love to hear it."

Her breath catches in her throat. But like it or not, the infuriating boy with the big blue eyes had a point, loath as she was to admit it. Prince Lu Ten was dead, the Empire was tearing itself apart amidst Ozai's struggle for power, and a handful of very real Dai Li agents were lying in their lockup, waiting to inflict the same on her home island.

I can't let that happen.

"Fine," she hears herself say through the roar of blood in her ears. "I still think your plan sounds absolutely insane. But seeing as it's the only plan we've got, our best shot lies in making sure it has as much of a chance to succeed as possible." She crosses her arms and sets her jaw formidably. "I'll go with you."

Lee's mouth curves into a knowing half-smile and the sight of it annoys Suki almost as much as it makes her cheeks burn inexplicably.

"Count me in too!" Ty Lee pipes up, looking more animated han she has all night. "You can't leave without me, Suki!"

"Are you sure?" Suki inquires carefully. "After all, you just fled for your life from the capital. Are you sure you don't want to take it easy for a while?"

Ty Lee shakes her head. "Nothing's going to be easy now, Suki. I might as well try stay one step ahead of them!" She tilts her head in amusement. "Besides, anyone would think twice before crossing the pair of us!"

A helpless grin bursts across Suki's face in response.

"It's settled then," Riko decides as Lee's grumbling tapers off mutinously. "You four will leave as soon as you can. I want as much distance as possible between you and our island by the time we engage the Dai Li in our prison hold at daybreak."

"They'll notice that some of us are missing," Suki points out. "Won't that be suspicious?"

"We'll feed them some story," Riko answers with a shrug. "Say these two defected and fled our shores as soon as they were able. And we sent some of our own to recapture the traitors. Hopefully they won't think twice about it, not if I convince them that we're on their side now."

"I can fly you to the mainland," Iio offers. "You won't travel any faster than you will on Buri's back. Besides, it seems that I have some old friends of my own to catch up with, before I return to the Western Air Temple." She glances coolly at Piandao. "Will you be joining us?"

But Piandao shakes his head. "I think I'll stay here and help Oyaji rebuild. Besides, this is the first port of entry to the Earth continent, and it's losing a chunk of its fighters. I can help protect it in their stead." He directs the last bit appeasingly at Riko.

"Thank you," Riko acknowledges Piandao's offer with a nod of her head. "It would seem that fate has made cautious allies of us all, even as we go our separate ways already." She turns to Oyaji, bowing her head deferentially. "While I'm gone, I leave the island's defenses in the charge of my second-in command."

Oyaji nods in understanding. "We will remember your bravery, Riko."

Riko swallows before meeting Suki's gaze with blazing eyes. "Suki, you've taught us so much in the short days you've been here, and now you're our best hope to weather this storm. Come back to us soon."

Suki jerks her head shortly, feeling her eyes prickle dangerously. "I will," she whispers fiercely, clasping at Riko's hand tightly.

Riko's eyes seem to burn as they turn to Lee's. "We're trusting you with our lives here," she warns. "Don't take it lightly, spy."

Lee gets to his feet. "I won't," he says briskly. "Come on, let's get packing. Time won't wait for any of us."

The sounds of distant arguing echo around the Temple courtyard's stone corners, mingling with the rising wind and resonant windchimes. Aang groans inwardly as he leads Toph and Katara through the cobbled pathways and under the terraced awning that opens up into the austere order of the Temple's audience chamber. With the late afternoon sunlight slanting in through the yawning empty windows, the polished stone chamber glows brilliant gold and touches the gathered Air Nomad Elders with a warm halo.

Gyatso catches his eye and nods in approval, before turning back to hear whatever cranky Elder Tashi tries to say next. The five Council Elders are seated cross-legged at the head of a raised dais on the far side of the room. Behind them sprawls an intricate mosaic of two large sky bison circling three intertwined spirals, the symbol of the Air Nomads.

Assembled before them in neat rows along the marble tile floor are the members of General Iroh's war council: powerfully built Admiral Liang, soft-spoken Captain Shu, the occasionally brash Major Kuro, newly promoted Commander Jee, and, standing at their head, General Iroh himself with Zuko, his new heir. Sunlight winks off their black armour, now greyed and grimy with dust, and the rumpled velvet of their crimson uniforms sit at odds with the immaculately pressed silks that the Air Nomad Elders wear.

A sorry bunch, but a desperate one, Aang reflects, falling in place with the rest of Iroh's council.

"We have heard your concerns to their fullest and have nothing more to add," Chief Elder Pasang pronounces, staring haughtily down at the company assembled beneath his feet. "It fills us with sorrow to hear of your losses, General Iroh. Your brother has committed heinous crimes indeed. But it has been generations since the Air Nomads swore to uphold life in all its forms and take no part in the conflicts of this world. We cannot break this tradition."

"With all due respect," Iroh counters wearily, as though he had heard this argument several times before, "it is difficult for me to understand how abstaining from a conflict that threatens to cross all borders will succeed in upholding life in all its forms -"

"It appears General Iroh thinks he is the only one who thinks his cause to be a just one!" Elder Tashi crows with a titter. Aang tries his best not to glare at the wiry old man. "Only he knows what is best for the world, and how to accomplish it!"

Aang glares at the old man's long beard, the way it bounces up and down like an overgrown sprout as he continues smugly. "Of course you couldn't understand us. Your kind only know how to fight and kill over your pathetic grievances! We have transcended such petty squabbles." He sits back contentedly, his shoulders very straight.

Aang longs to lob a fruit pie in his face like he would have done when he was younger. Instead he draws a deep breath. "What's wrong with thinking like someone who's not us?" Aang challenges, even as his palms slick with sweat. "You know, I've been personally involved in the conflicts General Iroh's speaking of. If Ozai succeeds, the whole world will be thrown out of balance. Permanently."

"Ozai has done nothing to threaten us," Tashi insists infuriatingly. "Should we join them now, we expose ourselves to unnecessary violence for a cause we do not believe concerns us at all."

"Tashi is right, General Iroh," Pasang agrees, stroking his long, thin moustache. "We cannot support your venture any more than we already have. Food, shelter, medical aid… All these are yours while you recover from your wounds. But once you are healed and your next plans finalized, you must leave here."

"Not until I have a final answer from you, High Monk Pasang," Iroh says in a steely voice. "Am I to understand your dedication to your principles is more important to you than the world that surrounds you?"

"It is our dedication to our principles that defines us, General Iroh," Pasang answers patiently and Aang's heart plummets even as it races with indignation. "Without them, we are no better than you or your brother. Should a peaceful resolution present itself, we will be only too willing to assist in its fruition."

"But Tashi just said anyone who attacked the Temple would be struck down," Aang bursts out, no longer able to contain his frustration. "So why is a peaceful resolution necessary for General Iroh's men, but not us?"

"Elder Tashi was merely expressing the paramount need to defend ourselves," Pasang answers calmly, though the warning in his eyes fails to move Aang at all. "We would not deny ourselves that right."

"But you can deny that right to people who aren't us?" Aang argues hotly, blood rushing through his ears. "Wouldn't it be more proactive to defend ourselves by helping end the conflict before it reaches us and gives us no choice?"

"It is the choice of violence that would require sacrificing who we are," Pasang replies, clasping his hands in his lap. Aang stares at the spot in his forehead where both overgrown eyebrows fuse together as he continues. "You have been exposed to many different schools of thought, young Aang. Do not think that just because they are different they are also right. There are things bigger than your sense of right and wrong."

"Don't you realize how hypocritical you sound?" Aang demands incredulously. In the corner of his eye, he perceives heads turning to stare at him but he pays them no heed. Except Katara, sitting next to him with her mouth agape and eyes wide with appraisal. "You think your principles are more important than keeping people outside our borders safe, but not important enough to protect yourself? You won't strike a blow yourself, but you'd rather look the other way and fail to protect innocent lives from a tyrant just because he might not have noticed you yet? How is that any less violent?"

"Enough, Aang!" Pasang thunders, his face turning an alarming shade of red. "I have heard quite enough about your juvenile philosophical theories in your letters, there is no need to repeat them here!"

Aang opens his mouth to argue further but he glimpses Gyatso, cross-legged on the dais beside Pasang, shaking his head forlornly. He bites his lip to hold his silence instead.

"What am I to do next if you will not help me?" Iroh asks in a hollow voice. "It is a fool's hope to await more forces to escape my brother's claws. And I dare not turn to what allies I thought I had in the Earth colonies, for my nephew tells me the Dai Li have thrown their lot in with my brother also. And now I cannot rely on your help either. Where do I turn to now?"

"What about the Northern Water Tribe?" Gyatso suggests kindly.

Tashi scoffs. "Oh yes! They may be more desperate for friends up there in the frozen wastelands."

"That does indeed seem to be our last resort," Iroh admits, crestfallen. "But they are near half a world away. And my fleet is so small."

Pasang glances at Iroh but his gaze is more sympathetic than dismissive. "All the better to outrun any force that your brother sends to follow you."

"Even the ones sailing in our direction as we speak?" Admiral Liang asks bluntly. "Our scouts report a growing number of ships originating from the Empire's capital sailing in this direction!" He scratches the back of his neck in consternation. "I was an Admiral of the Navy and yet somehow, Ozai has managed to acquire vessels whose size, shape and purpose remain a mystery to me!"

"He has resourceful friends in many places," Zuko says tightly, a muscle working in his jaw. "Even if he is in no condition to continue fighting, Azula and his followers will bear his torch to the bitter end."

"They call Ozai the Phoenix King," Liang scoffs, shaking his head derisively. "I overheard Bujing and that impudent wretch Zhao cackling about it the night of the wedding, just as I was putting two and two together." His lip curls. "Some phoenix he turned out to be. May he never rise from the ashes again."

"How could he?" Pasang dismisses his concerns without a second thought. "My understanding was that he was undone by the barbaric form of waterbending employed by your…General there."

He glances disdainfully at Katara, who bristles aggressively and pushes forward, mouth open to protest.

"That's not fair," Zuko speaks up hurriedly, moving discreetly to block her path with a well-placed shoulder. "Katara saved my life. And probably countless others. If my father's loyalists hadn't been so distracted by his injury, my uncle's forces would have had a much more difficult time escaping."

"That may be so," sniffs Pasang, "but we cannot agree that wielding such savagery against another living being upholds our values. We cannot enter this conflict now."

Aang places a conciliatory hand on Katara's shoulder instinctively as she struggles against Zuko's back in her way. "Let me show them just how savage I can be," she growls under her breath, defiance sparking furiously in her eyes.

"You don't need me to tell you about the atrocities brother inflicted upon the Water Tribes," Iroh rebukes sharply. "Atrocities he would only be too willing to commit again -"

Breathing dangerously, Katara finally shakes Zuko off and leaps to her feet. Aang braces for the storm to unleash upon Tashi but to his surprise, she turns on Iroh instead. "You're one to talk!" she snaps. "After all the mistakes you made, how can you expect us to keep paying the price for them?"

Aang stares at her in confusion but not so much as the expression Iroh directs at her, astounded and hurt at the same time. "Sifu Katara, I have no idea what you mean -"

He doesn't get to finish his sentence before Katara turns on her heel and storms out of the assembly room, overgrown plants crunching loudly under her heavy footfalls.

The silence in the room that follows reminds Aang of the stifling stillness of a bunker buried deep underground.

"What's up with her?" Zuko grumbles under his breath as Iroh stares after her helplessly, before shaking his head and collecting himself.

"It matters not," declares Tashi, with a clench of his fists. "We will not fight alongside such poorly controlled creatures. Let this... Phoenix King come with ships of any number, size or shape. This Temple cannot be taken, not while we master the skies. A tyrant he is, but a short-lived one if he dares mount an attack on Air Temple soil!"

"This is a waste of our time, Uncle!" Zuko hisses, raking a hand irritably through his hair and scowling at Tashi. "We should depart quickly, and avoid drawing Azula's attention here."

"Best be on your way," Tashi chimes in, sounding infuriatingly self-satisfied. "The Northern Water Tribe is a long and treacherous journey. By ship, anyway."

Gyatso holds his hands out helplessly. "If you depart from the northern shores by nightfall, it is possible that you can escape without being seen by your pursuers."

"Nightfall. Yes," Iroh answers tersely, getting to his feet and his entire company follows suit. He bows his head humbly. To Aang it seemed like he carried a great weight there. "I thank you for your gracious hospitality, High Monk Pasang. May you have better luck protecting your own than I did."

"Oh, we shall," Tashi answers. "Unless they've found some way of controlling the skies also."

The wind whips violently at the scrubby plants lining the craggy summit, nipping at the exposed skin of Katara's face and wrists with cold sharp teeth. She wraps her arms more tightly across her chest, swaying with the wind as it eddies around her in a furious vortex. In the distance, the setting sun casts its last light across the sky like a hungry flame. It hurts to watch and yet she still squints into the horizon, eyes watering as the small pinpricks grow steadily larger, a promise of more trouble to come.

Somehow over the roar of the wind and the groaning of branches, she hears the faint crunch of footsteps a tentative distance behind her.

"Sifu Katara," says General Iroh's voice and she stiffens, knowing that he would come and dreading it nonetheless. "I…I sense that things are not quite alright between us."

She grips at her oversized tunic and pulls it tighter across herself, as though willing everything else away by doing so, but he takes a step closer. His words ferry to her on the breeze, as though travelling a very far distance. "Is there anything that you would like to say to me? Anything at all?"

Don't let it fester, Aang had advised her, but what did Aang know? The storm claws up Katara's throat, hot anger in her blood pulsing with a long-dormant fury of unfairness that could no longer be dammed by amity or respect or plain politeness.

"My mother," she says haltingly and hears him freeze in surprise. "You told me you met her when you visited the South Pole for the chieftain's convention. But that wasn't the whole truth, was it?"

The wind howls around them, sending bits of dry earth tumbling off the mountain's edge and punctuating the silence that draws out before Iroh finally answers. "No."

Katara's teeth sink into her trembling lower lip. "You knew her since she was a girl. She grew up in your city. She was friends with him. He told me, the night of your son's wedding."

Another crunch of Iroh's footsteps, daring to come any closer. "I'm sorry -"

"He blamed you for how it ended." Katara can't help the accusation shaking in her voice. "That you had her sent away on some pretense."

"He would think that," Iroh answers bitterly, sounding like a much older man. "Katara, I acted in your mother's best interests. Ozai was no friend to her even then."

"Then why did you hide it?" Katara whips around to face him. The wind snaps through her hair, through her oversized borrowed uniform, and the chill seems to burrow straight through to her bones.

To his credit, Iroh appears forlorn. His grey cloak rustles in the breeze and the lines on his face seem etched into them like cracks on the mountainside. "I didn't mean to hide it," he says at last, his amber eyes pleading. "I just wanted to spare you the whole truth."

Katara narrows her eyes. "Why?"

"Because I was ashamed." Iroh's voice breaks and he hangs his head, staring intently at his feet. Katara's mouth falls open as he continues in a thread of a voice, racked with remorse. "Because I realized that I had been arrogant. Arrogant in severing one of the only close friendships he imagined he had. And even more arrogant for seeking to right that wrong by giving him an opportunity to redeem himself to your mother's people."

The words wash over Katara, raking open wounds that had scarce begun to heal. "You knew," she hisses, and vindication savagely flows through her as he flinches. "All this time, you've been preaching about equality between the four nations in your empire. But you knew what he was and you still unleashed him upon my people just to console your brotherly pride?"

"I realize now that I made an error in judgment," Iroh says wearily, spreading open his palms. "What would you have of me?"

"Ask that to everyone who's already paid the price!"

"What is done is done," Iroh explains earnestly, clasping his hands together. "We can only learn from the past now. We must work together to strive for the future we want -"

But Katara stares him down coldly, refusing his attempt to steer the conversation into safer waters. "All the signs were there that your brother was plotting something. Just like all the signs were there that you couldn't trust him with any power over my people. But you ignored them then and you ignored them now, and you never learned because you were content to let other people die for your mistakes! At the first sign of danger, you fled!" Katara closes in on him, all rational thoughts consumed by the rankle of injustice swelling through her. "I had to save Zuko! I had to drag his body out of there, and I was the only person who tried to do anything to stop Ozai when it should have been you."

Her voice cracks as her throat closes up dangerously and she fixes her gaze on her feet, suddenly unable to bear the hapless expression on Iroh's face, lined as it was with recent tragedy.

"You are referring to the practice of bloodbending, which you used to nearly kill him in cold blood," Iroh says in a strangled voice.

"Yes. I am," Katara answers, raising her head to stare at him defiantly.

She expects him to recoil in fear or disgust even, but she is unprepared for the sympathy that softens his eyes. "I am glad you stopped when you did," he tells her, sounding so genuinely concerned for her that it makes her feel sick inside. "Senseless violence is not the answer—"

Katara barks out a dry, humourless laugh. "I don't have the privilege of calling it senseless, General Iroh."

Sensing the trap, Iroh switches tactics. "To kill him in such a manner would be an unbearable burden upon one so young -"

"And everything he did to me isn't?" Katara shouts at him. "How can you understand so little? The only unbearable burden I'm carrying is the fact that I let him live! Whatever he does after that, any suffering or destruction he causes, that would be far worse than any guilt I'd feel over stopping him permanently!" She pants heavily, almost dizzy from exertion. "I don't know how you live with yourself."

She turns away from him again, this time staring back at the horizon and the echo of sunlight rippling across the turbulent waters. The shadows of the approaching vessels stretch out toward her like a long-fingered hand, drawing ever nearer.

"There is only one person responsible for Ozai's actions, Katara, and that is himself," Iroh says to the back of her head with a steadiness that makes her seethe. "You must not blame yourself for being a stronger person than he, or possibly even you, can understand. Whatever happens now, I implore you to be kind to yourself."

"Easy for you to say! You didn't do enough!" Katara snaps, his unsolicited sympathy crawling along her skin like slime. It's just like Aang said to the Air Nomads, she realizes, staring at him for perhaps the first time with clear eyes. Violence is only bad if he isn't the one doing it. "You may have meant well, but you still allowed Ozai to do unspeakable things to us." He can shed all the tears he wants for his mistakes, but only he has the right to make Ozai pay for it. If I take it upon myself, suddenly I'm the monster. "So you don't get to stand there and judge me for how I choose to wield what little power my people have left."

"Katara, I would have hoped by now that after everything I have done for you -"

She doesn't think she could hate him any more than she does in that moment. "What? What have you done for me that's so special?" She whirls on him again, positively crackling with rage. "Offer me the same compassion and justice that you would have given anyone else, just to hold it over my head later? You may have been the first of your kind to treat me fairly, but that doesn't entitle you to my forgiveness."

"Katara," Iroh pleads, "I am not your enemy."

"Then stop acting like one!"

Iroh regards her with the wariness of a man facing a beast threatening to savage. "A word to the wise," he cautions. "You will not progress far while making enemies of the few friends you have left."

The world seems to stutter with the weight of Katara's fury. "Excuse me?" she asks dangerously. "After all your failures, how can you expect me to keep on trusting you?"

"What other option do you have?" Iroh retorts, his long-tempered patience finally starting to crack. "My brother? I assure you, he will be a far greater threat to any future at all. I am the only choice you have, whether you like it or not."

"No," Katara whispers. Behind her, the setting sun casts her shadow long on the ground between them. "I refuse to accept help from a man who closes his eyes time and time again to very real dangers and allows others to take responsibility for his cowardice."

Iroh sputters in disbelief. "I beg your pardon?"

Katara gets the sense that his incredulity isn't from her insult. "We go our separate ways," she continues, barreling over his apoplectic shock. "I have nothing left to offer you, and I'm not sure I can trust whatever you have to offer me."

Iroh shakes his head emphatically. "You're making a mistake -"

"I'll go up north," Katara decides, squaring her shoulders confidently. "Find the rest of my people and live among them. Rebuild my home if I can. I'm done being a tool for you to use and paying the price for your mistakes." She stares at him and wishes her gaze could burn. "But maybe someone up there won't."

"If that is what you wish," Iroh concedes after a weighty pause, his face heavy and tight.

"It is."

"Then, seeing as my small fleet is also bound for the Northern Water Tribe, may I offer you an escort for your travels, or would you prefer to make your own way?" he asks her politely, without a trace of irony or resentment.

Katara glares at him but he only meets her eyes with a perfectly level stare of his own. "I'll accept your offer to travel as long as our paths align, thanks," she says coolly.

Iroh inclines his head, distancing her with his formality. "You are welcome." He turns on his heel, beckoning her to join him. "We must leave here with all haste, if we are to outrun Ozai's forces. With luck, they will be too slow to pursue."

Katara purses her lips, feeling everything settle into a strange sort of new calm as the conversation shifts back into the familiar. "I can pull up some mist to conceal us on the way out," she suggests perfunctorily.

Iroh steps aside to let her descend the winding steps down the mountainside ahead of him. "That is a good idea. Thank you, Sifu Katara."

"You're welcome," Katara acknowledges curtly, stepping in front of him. The last of the day's light dissipates into the murky gloom of evening as he falls in step behind her. "By the way, I misspoke. You were the second of your kind to treat me fairly. Zuko was the first. And unlike you, he didn't expect anything from me in return."