Chapter 34: Sleet, Her Silver Tears

Yue insisted on attending the last-minute meeting with the White Lotus and made the argument that she was feeling absolutely fine. Her healing abilities added to her stubbornness, for within seconds, she summoned water to her palm and rested her hand on her forehead, managing to lower her own temperature with a simple touch.

"I'm a healer myself," she told Sokka. "See? I'm perfectly alright."

"You still need to rest," came his frown. "Forcing down a high temperature isn't the same as feeling better."

"My curiosity won't let me rest even if I wanted to. I have to do this, isumataq."

"Then at least let me come with you!"

Shaking her head, "You need to go back to the estate. You've been up all night with me."

Crossing his arms, "What, only you're allowed to have superhuman energy to work nonstop?"

By then, the servant who had interrupted them earlier at the shelter approached them with a tray containing two cups of tea.

"Here, have this," Sokka picked up a cup and handed it to her. "Moonroot. Your favorite. Drink up."

"Sokka, I'm fine—"

"Princess, please. You shouldn't be running around right now, but you're insisting. So at least have this. For me?"

Yue caved in with a sigh and took a sip, letting the warmth soothe her insides. "What about you?"

"I will after you—"

"No, not after me, now."

With a grin, he took the second cup. Watching him as she gulped down her tea, "Isumatavut illersuutaasumik." Our prince is protective.

"Pissutigalugu dronningivut nangagassaanani." Because our princess is stubborn.

Their interaction attracted the attention of the servant. It surprised him how the isumataq of the South appeared openly-affectionate, behaving in contrast to the claims of his bitter indignation at the North's lack of response to Southern calls for help. And, of course, the mysterious princess of the North— she was likely to draw attention. It was crazy; barely a few weeks ago, the tribe found out about her existence, and to this very moment, people were still registering the possibility of her future leadership. Here she was now after proving that she was actually a powerful waterbender trained by Lady herself. How many more shocking revelations was this princess hiding in her sleeves? The tribe would probably never know.

Yue eventually put her emptied cup back down and pulled her mask back up. "Are you happy now, isumataq?"

"I will be if you promise me you're going straight to bed after this." And after sensing the servant's eyes on him and the princess, he looked at him, "What are you looking at?"

The servant blinked at Sokka and shook his head, "Nothing, sir, it's nothing."

"Isumataq Sokka?"

They turned to see Ivaneq entering the palace hallway with swift strides and a relieved look, which quickly transitioned into surprise to see the princess beside him.

"It's good to see you, Mr. Ivaneq," Yue bowed.

"Your Highness," he bowed back in greeting, "I assumed you were in your chambers."

"Something came up in the meanwhile."

"You shouldn't strain yourself, Princess."

"Tell her like it is, Ivaneq," Sokka said, earning another amused look from the servant.

"You shouldn't be straining yourself, either, Brother Sokka," Ivaneq turned the tables on him, "Chief Hakoda is asking for you, by the way. He's concerned that you haven't returned yet. I will be happy to escort Her Highness wherever she needs to be. You should go home, sir."

"We're about to meet with Chief Arnook and White Lotus over something important—"

"I am about to meet with them," Yue corrected. "Prince Sokka, you've been a big help, but I really think you should take a break."

"Her Highness thinks everyone in this world is deserving of a break except for herself," Sokka told Ivaneq with a stubborn frown, "And I must go with her to prove her wrong."

To which the princess raised her eyebrows. "You should take the prince with you anyway, Mr. Ivaneq. I understand Chief Hakoda must be very worried—"

"This is extremely important, and as a soon-to-be White Lotus sentry, I have to be there," the Southern prince said, his stance firm. "Tell him I'll be back after this, Brother Ivaneq."

The servant held back a snort, murmuring something about a married couple before leaving with the empty teacups. Ivaneq sighed at the prince's stubbornness, attempting to say something else to try to convince him otherwise, but he froze in alarm as he saw a few shadows appear from one of the corridors beside theirs. Khasiq stepped out, followed by a few chained Nationalists, who were being led away by a few White Lotus officials and kept under close watch. The White Lotus sentries bowed to the prince and princess in greeting, pausing to speak with Ivaneq and becoming distracted for a moment. And all the while, Khasiq and his men only scowled at Sokka and Yue, particularly the masked princess.

"Report to the investigation quarters in a few hours, Mr. Khasiq," one of the White Lotus officials told the advisor before dragging the other Nationalists with them. Ivaneq, who was requested to accompany the sentries, gulped as he looked from Sokka to Khasiq and then back to Sokka, wordlessly trying to convey to the prince to practice restraint. And with that, they stepped out of the hallway, leaving only the princess, prince, and advisor in the same vicinity.

The venom in Khasiq's eyes was oozing out in the form of a glare cast at the princess, in particular, having decided that she was to be his main prey. Lady's student. The realization had struck him hard but provided him with lots and lots of opportunity, especially in the field of getting the princess to reveal Lady's whereabouts, but the investigations had paralyzed him and snatched away the prized boat of opportunity before he could reach the docks.

"So it appears you can hold your own," Khasiq said to the princess. "No wonder you've been living in the illusion that you're untouchable."

Yue didn't respond, simply turning to the prince, who was caught glaring back at the advisor, "If you insist on coming with me, then we leave now, isumataq."

Sokka swallowed down his inward flames and followed the princess as she led him further down the hall, but Khasiq wasn't finished with them just yet.

"The guts you have to take down my enterprises in just a single night," he called from behind them. "You made a mistake, Princess. A big mistake."

And at that, Sokka couldn't resist stopping. "You know, Princess, we think Mr. Khasiq has puppets of his own, but he's a puppet himself," Turning around to shoot another remark at the advisor in spite of the princess shaking her head, "Poor thing's worried about his rich, blue-balled puppeteers."

"Prince Sokka," Yue tugged at his sleeve, "I told you to ignore—!"

"I'm not too worried," Khasiq took a few steps closer to them, his amble more amused than anything else, "It seems the princess was envious of our ladies. Maybe she would like to strip for us and put on a show in lieu of those outdated wenches?"

Sokka cried out in rage and fisted Khasiq's shirt, "You fucking blubbersucker—"

"Prince Sokka, calm down!" Yue pulled the prince away, stepping in front of him to have him stay back.

Khasiq calmly brushed at his rumpled tunic and furs, straightening them as he leered at the masked princess. "What? Not willing to share your whore with others, Prince Sokka—?"

Another incensed roar followed by clenched fists ready to swing at the advisor, but Yue was firm as she held the prince back. She glared at the advisor, "Don't you have any other comebacks other than calling every woman you see a slut? It gets boring after a while, don't you think?" And with that, she pulled the prince along again, picking up her strides.

"Don't take his words to heart, Princess," Sokka repeatedly back to the Nationalist and hissed, "It seems our advisor is frustrated because he was looking forward to be stripped and beaten with his brothel friends a couple of hours ago—"

"Alright, Prince Sokka, I'm serious, that's enough—"

But Khasiq was a triggered man at that point, grunting in fury. He swooped forward and grabbed hold of Sokka's coat from behind, but the prince shoved him off and sent a kick to his stomach that sent the man tumbling against the ice wall of the corridor, whacked in the head by a torch that had gone out from the force of the blow. Khasiq yelled and grasped his throbbing head as Sokka grabbed him by his hair and yanked his head up, making the Nationalist look him in the eyes.

"No matter how hard it tries or how long it rolls around in the snow, a filthy Arctic pig can never be a wolf," Sokka spat in his face, "At the most, it can only be its dinner. And one day in the very near future, I will strip you of your pride, maybe throw you to the people like the Gentleman threw Kinji to a raging crowd. And they'll make you put on a show for them and cook you up like the filthy pig you are—"

"Isumataq! Another word, and I'm leaving without you."

Sokka huffed and shoved the advisor aside, the prince's hand caught by Yue's firm pull. She dragged him away from the corridor, a displeased expression on her face.

"Don't listen to him, Princess. He's a filthy lowlife—"

"I'm expecting you to stay put and not go looking for another fight," she said sternly. "And if you can't do this, you're not welcome as my bodyguard."

The glare on his face softened then, and he caught up with her pace, sporting a worried look, "Are you okay? He's an idiot, princess, there's nothing but perversion in that sick excuse he calls his brain—"

"I know that, Sokka, I'm aware. Now calm down."

Still not convinced, "You're okay, right?"

She answered with a dry sigh, "I've learned to be."

Chief Arnook and the high-ranking White Lotus members— Jeong Jeong, Piandao, Monk Gyatso, and the Grand Lotus, Fire Lord Iroh— were seated across from Yue and Sokka in the privacy of the Northern chief's study. The Southern isumataq tapped his foot impatiently against the ice and kept close to the princess in his worry, waiting to get this meeting over with. A casual brush of his hand against hers proved that her temperature was starting to rise again. The considerable warmth of her palm was a lot even for someone who kept their gloves on all day in the Arctic; what could then be said of the princess herself, whose hands had been numbed from the cold thanks to her efforts to heal the women? Moreover, what could be said of the princess's stubbornness? Her refusal to budge from the meeting?

Come on, come on, let's get talking already, Sokka frowned.

In the meantime, nearly everyone else in the room looked with a mixture of fascination and curiosity at the masked princess given her bending prowess and combat capabilities revealed during one of her most important missions to date. The chief, in the meanwhile, was vibrating with shock, his face pale and raided with perspiration as he gawked at Yue as if she was a completely different person from the young woman he knew all this time. His extremely-sheltered nonbending daughter was actually a waterbending prodigy? Somehow having received secret instruction in the ways of fighting and healing? That, too, from none other than Lady? How was it even possible? Yue had essentially been locked away in a room; was it possible to practice combat and healing in such an environment? Unless if Lady broke in and led her out of the palace to train her, oh, Tui and La! The mere thought drowned him in waves of agitation; no wonder Yue's actions seemed Lady-inspired.

By then, Sokka was getting increasingly tired of the silence, his anxious boundaries further pushed by the princess's tired form, obvious in spite of her masks and veils. "Now I'm not one to rush things," he began, "but seeing as you gentlemen had a long night of investigations and Her Highness busted a lot of criminals…"

Which prompted Jeong Jeong to speak. "A prodigy locked away from the world who finally takes the chance to prove her true capabilities. Every nation seems to have a Toph Bei Fong of its own nowadays," he joked, sporting an impressed look. "The princess must be the one for the North."

"You must be very proud and relieved to have a prodigy like her as your daughter, Chief Arnook," Iroh remarked with a smile.

And yes, ideally Arnook should be relieved. Instead he only appeared mute, brushing away the sweat at his brows.

"You continue to amaze us with your capabilities, Princess," Monk Gyatso grinned. "Your consideration for restoring justice is exemplary as is your determination in preventing harm. I am seeing an Air Nomad in you."

"I thank you for your kind words, honorable sentries," Yue bowed, her tone remaining solemn.

"We have heard what happened, and we must say we are very proud of you both," Piandao said to Sokka and Yue. "But we must also address the issue of your security, Princess. Even though you are highly skilled, it does not mean you are immune to the possible dangers presented by the extremists of the Nationalist Party. Especially after the news that's spreading that you're Lady's student."

"Anyone who has connections to Lady in any way is targeted by Khasiq and his administration," Arnook said, outwardly appearing somewhat confused despite the turmoil and terror in his eyes. "He is not going to sit back."

"Khasiq seems to be targeting the princess politically— that is, through misinformation rather than violence," Gyatso noted.

"During the investigations, he kept saying that the princess is not the biological daughter of you and Chieftess Ahnah," Jeong Jeong said to the chief, "He was insisting that she was actually someone called the...was it the Anka...? No, Akna."

Arnook widened his eyes, his heart stopping. Sokka's stomach dropped. Yue merely blinked, appearing bewildered by the sudden statement.

"Nonsense!" Arnook eventually bellowed. "She is our own! Made of our blood and flesh!"

And as everyone else was distracted by Arnook outburst, Sokka subtly shook his head as if telling Arnook not to get too emotional about this. Too much of a reaction was just as suspicious as frozen silence.

"The sheer idiocy," Arnook took a deep breath, calming himself somewhat. "How can she not be ours? She obviously gets her rebellious side from my wife."

"I hope no one here makes the mistake of believing all the nonsense that Khasiq's regurgitating," Sokka said to the sentries, turning to Gyatso next, "Your observation is exactly right, Monk Gyatso. Khasiq's tactic is to spread misinformation. He's already started spreading rumors about Her Highness's executive policies, which led to the resignation of several officials from her cabinet." Turning back to the others, "And I'm sure it's no surprise to any of you because it's extremely common for political figures to be subject to rumors made by these types of idiots. Heirs to the throne are no exception."

"Of course," Iroh nodded.

"Khasiq is acting up because of his need to protect himself and his reputation, especially since so many tribefolk have been put off by his associations with a man like Kinji," Sokka continued. "And he's circulating rumors and asinine commentaries so he can delegitimize the bloodline. Rumors saying that Her Highness was adopted, that she was illegitimate. If I was in her place, there would be rumors about me, too."

"We are not doubting the princess's bloodline by any means," Piandao assured. "We are only telling you what we've been hearing during the investigations."

"But may I ask who this 'Akna' is?" Iroh asked.

"A religious figure whose esteemed reputation is tragically being thrown under the sleigh by Khasiq and his sexist idiots," Sokka explained.

Arnook, wanting to do anything he could to steer the conversation away from the Akna, spoke, "Today he's spreading lies, tomorrow he will use force. Khasiq cannot be trusted." Shaking his head, "Of all people...of all the people in the tribe, in the world, my daughter's master had to be Lady…I had no idea that street child was influencing my daughter this entire time—"

"Chief—" Sokka caught his tongue before saying anything further. What should he say? Defending Lady publicly again would draw suspicion as it had before from Jeong Jeong, who had been eyeing Sokka the entire time at the last meeting. Even now, the master firebender was looking at Sokka with raised eyebrows.

Yue, who had been fairly quiet, then stood up, seeking to end the confusion then and there. And after looking at her audience, "I am Lady."

Pitch silence followed after that. The very little chance Arnook had of soaking in the situation was shattered by the current revelation. Sokka gawked at the princess with wide eyes as he eventually whispered, "Dronningi!"

The White Lotus sentries were also obviously shocked— well, save for Jeong Jeong, who didn't appear too surprised.

"Did we hear you right, Princess?" Piandao asked.

"Yes." Yue briefly looked at her father, who was frozen in his spot, "The aforementioned street child. I am her. Vigilante, social activist, founder of the Revivalist mission. The Revivalists call me Kuunnguaq."

Sokka chewed at his bottom lip as he looked from Arnook to the princess and back to Arnook in apprehension. The chief, on the other hand, was nearly an annihilated man by now as he fisted the pelts that he was sitting on, his knuckles having turned white. He shook his head vigorously, "No...There is no way." He stood up as well, pointing to his daughter, "You're trying to protect her, aren't you? You can't be Lady, there is no way! You were highly guarded!"

"It was with the aid of my bending that I was able to explore the tribe on my own and craft a life to call mine," she said. "To everyone else in the tribe, Lady and the princess are different people. The Revivalists don't know that I'm the princess, and the people in my cabinet don't know that I'm Kuunnguaq."

Jeong Jeong nodded, showing no trace of suspicion regarding her exposed identity. "I had a feeling as soon as I learned some of the details behind your mission a few hours ago. Even in all of that chaos, there was not a single casualty. Especially at your request to make sure no one was harmed. The methods utilized in restraining the Nationalists strongly echoed your handling of the previous criminals you and the Revivalists had rounded up."

Yue's gaze returned to the floor.

"If you are Lady, why did you say you were her student?"

"I lied and told the guards that Lady is my master so I can maintain my image as a nonpartisan candidate. Because that's who I really am. Granted, there will still be rumors that I favor the Revivalists regardless of my reveal, but if I don't publicise myself to be Lady, at least they will remain as rumors. People will not have evidence backing those claims, and that would always be in my favor. But if I myself speak the truth of my status as Kuunnguaq, then people will forever brand me as a Revivalist, and that will not be helpful for my nonpartisan efforts."

"Why are nonpartisan efforts very important to you?" Iroh asked.

"Not being biased towards anyone in a time like this is very important if I want to unite the nation," Yue answered. "I can only reach out to all groups if I am not affiliated with any particular group. If people think that I am a Revivalist, all Loyalists and Nationalists will automatically be skeptical of me and my efforts."

"Even if you admitted that you were Kuunnguaq, I feel that you would still have significant support. The North's population is more commoner than Nationalist and aristocrat combined."

"But I do not consider myself a Revivalist anyway," Yue said. "I don't support or subscribe to any party or ideology. Even though a lot of my ideas were adopted by the Revivalists. My focus is to unite the tribe and pull people out of party worship long enough for them to consider the horrors that are happening in society."

"But if you are independent of all parties, why did you create the Revivalists?" Piandao asked.

"I did not create them necessarily. Nine years ago, my friends and I took the effort to help the people in need. We did not have the name and legacy of Revivalism back then; we were normal people trying to do what we could to help others. And part of our mission involved doing what the guards could never do: hand over perpetrators to the Loyalist law enforcement." Frowning, "If I'd known that my social mission would warp into a political party, I would've taken measures earlier to prevent that transition from happening."

"And yet, you reached out to hundreds of thousands of people with your efforts," Gyatso noted.

"Her mission went from having a few dozen followers to being well-known all throughout the Northern Water Tribe," Sokka said, mixing positivity into the scenario. Mass feedings, free healthcare services, providing people with homes and jobs—"

"And the rounding up of criminals," Jeong Jeong looked at her with renewed curiosity, "Did you think it was right for you to take the law into your hands?"

To which she replied, "Master Jeong Jeong, I heard a lot about your efforts when you sided with the lower class during the Fire Nation civil war. I'm sure you did not think it was wrong when you challenged the laws at the time. Because the system itself had been fundamentally flawed. I don't believe our situation is too different. The system here is fatally flawed as well, and we felt like we had to do something. Something that wasn't as extreme as overthrowing the government, yet something strong enough to help the people in need. We were not carrying out sentences or anything. If anything, we were policing in our own way." Looking up, "You sided with the helpless, and I happened to follow in your footsteps, that's all."

And needless to say that Jeong Jeong and the other White Lotus sentries were pleased with the answer, drawn more to her vibrant need to restore justice in the tribe as she explained to them how morals have hit all-time lows during Khasiq's regime. How there are not enough Loyalists to remain unbiased from Nationalist propaganda.

"Families are slaughtering their own daughters. The poor are standing helpless as their virtuous sons are being castrated. Children are running the bazaars when they should be in schoolhouses. Many of the men in the streets are running around like beasts in a rut, and our women can't cross a single canal in a gondola without facing some form of misconduct. Not to mention we have a sex offender around every corner claiming he's an incarnation of La and taking advantage of the helpless. I know all of these things aren't limited to just the Water Tribe. They're happening all over the world. But at least there are governments willing to act on them to an extent. That's not the case here as long as Khasiq and his corporate allies are invested in these things to make money."

And that was why she was very invested in the Black Lotus Project, which had received Fire Lord Iroh's support. It was in part her way of bringing awareness within the Water Tribe to these kinds of issues, but it was also a way for her to come in contact with influential world leaders who were willing to represent and speak to such issues in their own homelands.

"I know I am not the most loved figure in the Water Tribe by some standards," Yue said, briefly looking in Arnook's direction as she said it, "But everything I did, I did because I felt it was right. I also know I did not have to tell you this about me, but I did anyway because the Order of the White Lotus seems so...untouchable. Untainted. It gives me hope." Sighing, "I understand you might have your suspicions; the Nationalists have labeled me a terrorist after all. I will be happy to cooperate with you all for any investigations and inquiries."

"But you are not a terrorist," Monk Gyatso told her with a smile, "Why would investigations be necessary?"

"Khasiq and his Nationalists say a million things," Piandao said, "But you have earned our trust, Princess."

"We studied all the information we have of you beforehand," Iroh told her. "We read all the copies of your speeches. We've also monitored the activities of the Revivalist Mission. Your efforts are honest and noble, and you have our support."

And Sokka let out the huge breath he'd been holding in throughout the entire meeting.

"Winning over the White Lotus is not an easy feat," Gyatso told her. "Many congratulations to you, Princess."

"Thank you for believing in me, honorable sentries," she said with a smile from beneath her mask, "I'll keep this in mind during my campaign for global domination."

Jeong Jeong was the first to burst out laughing; it came as a pleasant surprise but settled much of the highly-charged tension in the room. Sokka, too, was smiling, highly charmed and highly relieved; it was obvious that the White Lotus sentries really took a liking to the princess's efforts to better her country. Arnook's expression was unreadable— a myriad of tumultuous juxtapositions like relief and fear, acceptance and bewilderment, equilibrium and shock. He couldn't be as excited.

"Do let us know if there is anything we can do for you from our end, Princess," Piandao said.

"Well...there is one thing. Whether or not Khasiq will target me through violent means, I know he certainly has the chief written down as his next target. Previously, it was just the threat of having the throne taken away from Khasiq's reach. Now it's because his daughter is an 'ally' of Lady." The princess turned to her father, "It would give me much comfort to know that the chief is relocated with high-scale security to a different place, preferably someplace that is not in the North."

"That is not a problem at all," Fire Lord Iroh said. "In fact, we were about to suggest a similar thing."

"Is there a place you have in mind, Princess?" Jeong Jeong asked.

Arnook did not meet the princess's look, frowning at the ice. Yue sighed before suggesting, "Nansei. In the Earth Kingdom."

There seemed to be a level of understanding among everyone at the mention of Nansei with the exception of Sokka, who wondered what on earth could be so significant about a small Earth Kingdom fishing town just outside of the Northern Water Tribe-Earth Kingdom border.

"Piandao and I will take them to the Fire Nation from there and keep an eye on them," Jeong Jeong said, and Sokka frankly felt lost. Them? Who was this "them"? But he didn't have the chance to ask when Arnook interrupted the conversation by standing up.

"That will not be necessary," he said. "I'm not going anywhere." And with that, he excused himself and left his seat, leaving the room with a highly disturbed look on his face.

The palace was emptied of Nationalists; a vast majority were rallied up for investigations, and a handful left on their own to lay low for a while. The Loyalist guards in the corridor of Arnook's chambers were dismissed to tend to other areas of the palace in need of supervision, a significant portion of them assigned to keep track of Khasiq in his own sector. This left Arnook to wallow in complete solitude as he stared at a painting of a humanized Tui and La, both holding hands and smiling down at two little tribesgirls— the sister tribes personified.

Do not be stubborn, Great Goddess, Arnook sighed at Tui's image. I only want you to be happy with your La.

His solitude was soon interrupted by the Southern isumataq and the Northern dronningi, whose reasons for the visit were obvious; they were trying to convince the chief to relocate, especially after the revelations from the wee hours of the morning.

"You say you don't want to play games," Arnook looked at his daughter, "but you're really good at them."

Yue took a deep breath, "At least I'm only playing with my own life and not the lives of the people like your politicians do, Chief."

And Sokka, who was adamant in keeping close to the princess, was caught somewhat in the middle of ending the conversation there for the sake of conserving the princess's energy or letting her speak her mind. Then again, Arnook was quite stubborn and was refusing to consider the option of relocation. It drove the isumataq crazy given how no one around here— the princess included— was giving a care about her health. Even with her mask down at this moment, could Arnook not see that she was sweating in the Arctic? That her face was paler than her usual bright complexion and that her eyes were bloodshot with lack of sleep? That this was the time to throw his own tantrums?

"Of all people, my own daughter…Khasiq is looking to destroy you," he nearly whimpered. "You saved his son and taught that boy to heal—"

"His son was a mentally challenged man," Yue hissed. "What was I supposed to do? Do nothing when that poor man was about to be killed by his monster of a father?"

"Your mother did not wake up from her years-long coma just to have every bit of her sanity blown away by the truth that you are Lady!" the chieftain said, earning shocked looks from the princess as well as Sokka. The young warrior did not understand. Is the chieftess alive? "I'm sorry, but I thought that the chieftess…?"

"She's alive," Arnook told him. "I was going to tell you this when the time was right, but there's no better time than now."

He explained that Yue was barely two days old when Ahnah was badly injured in a struggle with the Nationalists— a struggle that he didn't care to elaborate very well. Everyone assumed the chieftess was dead, but she had actually been in a comatose state ever since. Arnook did everything he could with the aid of a few trusted people— none of them members of the court— to get the chieftess taken away from the North. She had been in Nansei receiving treatment all this time.

"And now she's awake," Arnook told his daughter. "I received a letter from the Nansei healers. She's finally awake, and she wants to see the both of us."

Yue choked out a relieved laugh, "This is amazing news!"

"The healers said she should not be upset at any cost," Arnook said, "But if I take you with me, and if she asks me about everything she's missed out about you, how should I tell her about you? Reveal to her your activities? The tribe full of Nationalists and suspicious Loyalists ready to bring you down? Do you think she will handle this?"

"I'd like to think the chieftess would support me," the princess crossed her arms. "She was quite a rebel herself several years ago."

"And that's why we're paying the price of being separated from her," Arnook frowned. "The Spirits were merciful, and she is finally awake and healing. I can't have anything happen to her ever again."

"The only way you can do that is by being next to her," Yue told him. "You should leave the North as soon as possible. Go and stay with her in Nansei. Make up for lost time with her. Be confident in letting me stay in the North so she will think the situation here is safe enough for me to stay by myself."

"So you want me to lie to her?"

"Some illusions are powerful enough to save lives," Yue said. "Let her believe in the illusion that the North is not as bad as it is. Don't tell her that I'm Lady."

"You will be escorted by White Lotus sentries, Chief," Sokka said. "I'll personally make sure they arrange top-notch security for you. And when Her Majesty is feeling well enough for travel, the White Lotus will take you to the Fire Nation and safeguard you there just as Jeong Jeong and Master Piandao promised. No one here will know where you are."

"That will not be necessary," Arnook said firmly. "I will have Ahnah come back here."

Yue glared, "Are you out of your mind? You're going to bring her back here after everything that happened? Khasiq and his men are the reason why she was suffering all this time. Now you want her to come back? Especially after it's revealed that I'm an ally of Lady?"

"Then Ahnah and I will just have to keep staying in separate locations. I will stay behind and she will stay there in Nansei."

"Do you not understand?" Yue raised her voice, "You are in danger!"

"Calm down!" Sokka flailed, "Both of you, calm—"

"And you weren't thinking this through when you made your announcement that you're your own master? That you were an undercover prin—?!"

"I had to save those women somehow—!"

"You should've also thought about who's going to keep you safe!"

"Alright, enough!" Sokka stepped between the two of them, "Dad and daughter both need to calm down right now!" And turning to the chief, "I don't know if you've noticed, Your Majesty, but the princess is not feeling too well right now. This conversation is over. You are going to relocate to Nansei, and there's nothing you can do to stop that." He then turned to Yue and grasped her hand, "Everything's gonna go just the way you want it to, alright? Now come on, get some rest."

"If everything went the way she wanted it to, then she wouldn't survive a day in this place!" Arnook said, earning the prince's glower but ignoring it. "Princess, we have no one related to us by blood, no one we can trust. You can't expect me to leave you here in the middle of this mess in fear of my own life. You might be a healer and an impressive bender, but I can't take any risks."

Yue frowned.

"It doesn't matter what you think of me," Arnook went on. "You are my daughter, and I am going to protect you in whatever way I can. I might be too weak to wield spears and swords again, but I will do everything I can to make sure your identity is not revealed. I will grovel before Khasiq a million times if it means he will spare you. Just as I've been doing since the tribe knew about you. And if he gets suspicious, I will persuade him however I can to make him not suspect you—"

"You still think Khasiq is going to listen to you after all of this?"

"I'll do something! Anything! But I won't go. If I go, you won't have anyone by your side. No one to look after you."

"I have plenty of support—"

"And I don't mean those Revivalists or those ministers with their temporary loyalties, I mean family."

And as the seconds wore on, Yue knew exactly where this conversation was going. "Are we really about to do this right now?"

"Chief, you can talk about this later," Sokka snapped, "Let Her Highness—"

"I am not forcing you to do anything, Yue," Arnook ignored the prince yet again, earning a frustrated groan. "But I do want you to know that you have two options before you. Either I'm staying here to protect you at any cost, or you will marry by the next full moon and have your husband stand by your side while I'm away."

Sokka couldn't help but stiffen. What the…? This was all so...so sudden. Too sudden. A marriage? By the next full moon? Which was likely, what, a week away? "Chief, are you serious?"

"More serious than I've ever been," Arnook said, resolute, and all Sokka could think of at that moment was how the chieftain didn't tell him about this beforehand.

"The next full moon is six days away!" Yue exclaimed. "You can't possibly expect me to—!"

"I've chosen your suitor. You can't find anyone better than him."

This was obviously a lot for the isumataq and the dronningi to process, but on a side note, it made the prince nervous to wonder if this suitor was...possibly someone else? Did Arnook perhaps think that given Hakoda and Kya's displeasure of Sokka hanging out with the princess, this match would not work out? Because if a quickly-approaching marriage was what Arnook had in mind, he would've informed Sokka, right? And even if Sokka was still the chosen suitor, then why was Arnook in this much of a hurry? Didn't Sokka tell him that he needed the time to court the princess and earn her approval in the meantime? Or was it simply the urgency behind the arrangement given the reveal that Yue and "Lady" had connections? Whatever the reason was, Sokka felt he couldn't possibly give into the situation given the look of utter horror on Yue's face. The princess briefly looked at Sokka; she, too, knew it had to be him— it just had to be, Arnook couldn't possibly like anyone the extent he liked Sokka anyway— because the prince was supposedly "courting" her, after all. But she wasn't supposed to know that, of course.

"Wonderful, just wonderful, Chief," the princess said incredulously, "Who is it this time? A serial killer? A serial rapist? A serial killer and rapist who makes his living by forcing women into brothels?"

"Princess—!"

"Why not make him a husband to fifty different women and a father of five hundred? Is he a cannibal, too, by any chance—?"

"Princess, enough!" Arnook shook, his hands trembling as moisture raided his vision. "I was dense, and I made a horrible mistake, I admit it! But that doesn't mean I'm trying to purposely ruin your life!"

"Well whoever this man you chose is, I'm not willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, and I really don't think you should have unrealistic expectations on him to protect and support me," Yue said. "I would be lucky if that man doesn't touch my treasury. I'd be the luckiest person in the world if he doesn't slice my throat or bloodbend my womb in my sleep! You want me to risk my safety and marry a man like that? Bring children into the world in a time like this?"

"The man I chose for you is LA!"

"I'm already wedded to La, if you didn't know," she said. "I'm wedded to justice."

"Your 'justice' needs to be embodied to protect you! The man I've chosen—"

"Having a manhood doesn't make someone La," came her sharp response. "It takes loyalty, responsibility, a nurturing propensity. Come to me with someone who has those qualities, and I'll consider—"

"I already have!" The Northern chief grabbed Sokka by the arm and pulled him up front, making him face the princess. Sokka gawked at the princess, unsure of what to say. This was all moving very fast.

"Chief, I think maybe we should step back and—"

"This man listens to everything you say!" Arnook told Yue, interrupting the prince, "He didn't tell me that he was born during the Wolf Moon because he genuinely wanted to win your heart! He knew I would have the two of you betrothed, but he decided to wait to earn your affection!"

Yue glanced wide-eyed at the prince, who shook his head fervently and asked the chief, "Who even told you I was born during the Wolf Moon—?"

"It doesn't matter," Arnook cut him off, turning back to Yue. "Sokka is brave and persevering and just. He provided for his whole tribe. What's to say he won't provide for you and your children?"

Yue firmly believed Arnook had misunderstood everything that was going on, and it didn't help the fact that Sokka opted to "fake-court" her as a part of his master plan to get her off the marriage hook. They had hoped it would delay things, but it was actually expediting the prospects of marriage. She facepalmed, blaming her reveal for this, "You're not understanding the situation, Chief!"

"Prince Sokka told me he has feelings for you," he said, turning to Sokka, "Didn't you?"

Sokka fumbled to speak, unable to form coherent words, and Yue mistook his fumbling for panic and confusion. She scoffed at the chieftain, "That's ridiculous! He's been here for four days. Barely a week. And you're pulling the 'love at first sight' card on us? The most that our isumataq would be feeling for me right now is either gratitude or sympathy."

"He told me himself that he wanted to court you!" he nudged Sokka, "Don't just stand there, Sokka, tell her!"

"Instead of forcing him to admit to something he doesn't feel and pressuring him into a marriage, maybe you should stop to consider what his parents might think of supporters of the Revivalists and the Moon Temple."

That certainly brought Arnook's stubborn spree to a jarring halt.

"Do you think they would be happy to learn that I am Kuunnguaq?" Yue asked. "Are you saying we should hide the truth from them, too? Are you saying we should deceive them? If you put aside your emotional investment in getting me married off as soon as possible, you'll realize that this arrangement is doomed from the start."

Arnook swallowed the burn in his throat. If this was how the situation was after learning of Yue's identity as Lady, then what to expect when the truth that Yue was also the Akna burst forth? Arnook turned to Sokka, who trapped a hundred different emotions and reactions within his expression.

"You know, I'm just coming back from those shelters, and I've seen just how cherished many women were by their husbands," Yue told her father. "I dare you to set foot in that shelter and ask me within that sacred healing space if I want to get married. Can you do it? Look those women in the eyes, see that they're no different from me, not much older and not much younger."

Tears filled Arnook's eyes.

"Those women were also daughters of men. They were married into households that were eager to have them, and yet, some of those women were sold to brothels by their own husbands and in-laws. Come to think of it, there was even a woman who was sold by her own father for the money—"

"Please," Arnook held up his hand, shaking his head, "I can't...It's too much…"

"You're flinching from simply hearing about these stories, but what about the women who experienced them? Could you imagine me in any of their places?" Yue demanded. "Now I'm not at all saying that prince Sokka is sadistic or abhorring like those extremists, and I do not mean to say that his family will do such a thing to me, but I am still not experimenting, Chief. I can't experiment and see how many marriages it takes to find someone loyal when I have a country to look after. I have zero expectations on people and situations. As of today, I have died a thousand deaths, and I don't have it in me to go through the nonsense of housewifery my entire life." Swallowing down the lump in her throat, "I might be able to handle being a healer in those shelters, but I refuse to blindly accept suffering as karma and see myself as a patient there. No sir, not happening."

It was like someone reached into Sokka's chest and squeezed out all the juices of hope from it. Here was yet again a rejection that stabbed through him. It was not just that, though; it was the recognition of the pain that he saw in the princess's eyes, the extent to which she truly empathized with those victims, the fear and hurt that had consumed the tribe now also having penetrated the depths of her very being.

"Nothing like that will happen!" Arnook cried out, assuring her. "You are Tui! You are promised La! You do not have to worry about that horrible kind of fate—!"

"Even Tui is essentially a rock hardened by chaos. Unmoving, unmelting," she said, her fists clenching. "And if any man has the audacity to claim he's my La, then let him melt and melt and melt some more. Because I'm not about to throw away my life based on your modified fairytales."

Arnook appeared as if he was drained of all life. He took one look at the smiling faces of Tui and La in the painting before turning back to their embodied versions. "It's confirmed," he said to his daughter, "Those streets have left you paranoid. They've ruined it all for you."

"No, they taught me everything," she corrected him. "If I had really stayed in that Spirit-forsaken room my entire life like you wanted, I would've matured only physically, not mentally. I wouldn't have even known the definition of assault, and I wouldn't have known how to escape one when your Earth Kingdom 'in-laws' tried to sell me off! I would've been used by some man— maybe even several men— in a Ba Sing Se brothel by now, and you—" pointing to him, " —would've never known!"

"Yue," the chief whispered like a sacred chant, reaching for her, but she tossed his hand aside, standing her ground with curbed ferocity and pain, even a degree of harbored fear. Taking a step further and piercing her glare at the chieftain, "The treasury is mine, the North is mine, my life is mine. Emotional blackmailing will not work on me. You are going to Nansei, and your journey has nothing to do with my marriage, and this is final."

"Your Highness," Sokka said softly, gulping down the lump in his throat as he held her by the shoulders, "Don't worry, everything you want to happen will happen. I'll make sure of that. Let's get out of here, okay? Let's go, please. You need a break."

He kept one arm around her tired form, trying to reassure her, but all words flew past her head as she felt her vision blurring little by little. The only thing somewhat clear in her vision was the prince's gaze, warm and worried, a soft chant of Dronningi, dronningi escaping his lips.

"Fine, do what you wish! But just know that our lives are in your hands!" Arnook called after her. "If your mother finds out that you are not married even at seven years past marrying age, and if she finds out that you are Lady crusading against the most dangerous group in the North, then her worry will consume her. And if anything happens to her, the next second, you'll see my dead body next to hers."

"Chief—!"

"You said you made an oath before La that you would never take a life! Do you want blood on your hands?!"

"That's enough!" Sokka exclaimed, exasperated, "Can't you see she's...Princess?" he turned to see why he felt a sudden weight in his arms, agitated to see her fall limp against him, "Princess, are you okay?! Princess!"

A/N: Couldn't upload this earlier since I was prepping for law school testing, but here it is. Think you can guess which popular fanfiction trope is coming up next in the plot? :D

Thanks for reading!