It's been many years since the fire nation made the first assault on the other nations. All hope was in the master of all four elements, the Avatar, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. After a hundred years of waiting, people decided to take matters into there own hands. They fought hard 'til one day the war was over. Now, to heal the wound, a marriage must be made between the Fire Nation Prince and the Water Nation tribe girl. A symbol of conflict joining in harmony, fire, and ice.
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Katara had no idea of what was to come that day. When she awoke, it seemed like every other. Living in a village of women, children, and the old, kept life pretty simple. All the men had gone to fight in the war against the Fire Nation. Even after some years, so did her brother, but now there was no war. According to traveled news, Fire Lord Ozai had died in his sleep. With his brother now on the throne, the fighting stopped.
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Katara was happy when she heard the news of the Lord's death. His people had taken the most precious life away from her, and now he was gone. She arose out of her fur bedding and quickly got dressed. There were a lot of things to do today, the men were coming home. The women had food to prepare, and because Katara's father was the chief, that made her in charge of planning the banquet.
"Do your best. I don't want to see messy work for our brave men." She playfully bossed the children. It was their job to make the decorations.
"Katara, will this be enough stew? It's a large pot, but-"
"The men may be starving for a home meal." Katara finished the sentence. "Do we have enough for a second large pot?"
"Yes."
"Then make that as well. We may not be able to give the men a feast fit for a king, but we will give them our best."
That evening everything was set. The food was done and cut out snowflakes hung off of standing twigs as snowmen stood close to the shore to welcome the boats. At the first sign of the ships, the entire tribe joined the snowmen cheering so loudly that the men aboard could hear and began to vocally salute back.
"Dad, Sokka!" Katara spotted them instantly and jumped into their arms for a long-awaited hug. "I've missed you so much."
"Us too," Chief Hakoda and his son replied in unison.
The festivities lasted all night even the little ones were allowed to stay up past midnight. Though all were happy, Katara could tell something was wrong. Sokka, the first to enjoy a moment like this, had found himself a lonely fire. Katara soon joined her brother, yet he didn't acknowledge her presence.
"You know, it's not like you to sulk at your own party."
"Huh, oh, when did you get here?"
"Not long ago. Is something the matter?"
Sokka looked into his sister's worried eyes wanting to tell her the truth. The truth was all he could think about. So why would it hurt letting his sister know now? It was bound to come out anyway.
"Katara-"
"You must have seen a lot of horrible things out there."
She hadn't even notice, but Sokka took her cutting him off as a sign that it wasn't for him to tell.
"Yeah, the things the Fire Nation did to people is hard to forgive, but then, it wasn't all bad out there. I saw some good from a lot of good people I met, even Fire Nation. I don't think I could have stayed sane without them."
"Still, even though the war is over, I don't think I can ever forgive them. "What they did," Katara took hold of her most precious belonging that rested around her neck, "After what they did to mom I don't think, I don't think I can."
Sokka looked at the clenched choker while reflecting on the day the Fire Nation came to the Southern Water Tribe's shores.
"Hey, what are you two doing over here? The war is over, so why the sulking faces?" Their father had interrupted the mood, but Sokka was glad for it. He wanted his talk to prepare Katara not to make her turn to the darkest memory of their lives.
"Hi dad," Katara quickly cheered herself up again, "I saw Sokka and decided to join him. He was telling me you met a lot of people on your journey."
"Yeah, even good Fire Nation."
Why do they keep pointing that fact out? Katara thought to herself.
"That's good. Well, I'm gonna go back to the party."
"We'll join you right after I talk to dad."
"Okay, don't stay away too long."
After Katara walked off, Hakoda took a seat next to his son. He already knew what Sokka wanted to speak on. His son had wanted to talk to him on the matter since the decision was made final.
"Alright, Sokka, what is it?"
"Why haven't you told her yet? How can you dance and sing and eat with everyone knowing what you know?"
"Why would I tell her this now? It would ruin the night, the memory. Don't worry, I will talk to Katara tomorrow."
"It will ruin the memory anyway once she knows that we are keeping this a secret. She will never forgive us."
"Sokka, don't say that."
"Dad, you practically sold your daughter to the Fire Nation. She hates them, and I can't blame her. They killed our mom."
"Yes, but there is a lot of good in the Fire Nation. Like every nation, there are good, and there are bad."
"Is that how you plan to explain it cause I don't think Katara will buy it."
"Hey you two, how long are you gonna chat?" Katara called out to the two men from a distant pyre.
"Almost done. Come on, I will tell her tomorrow. Right now, try and give your sister something good to remember."
Sokka hesitated, but reluctantly stood up and followed his father to the celebration. He kept up a smile, and after a few stiff drinks, his goofy side took over, it was the only way for him to get through the last night with his sister.
The next morning Sokka felt his regret as soon as he woke, "Oh my head."
Katara laughed at her brother, who had drunk himself to sleep. "Maybe you should slow down with trying to become a man." She teased
"What, I am the manliest of manliest man," he said then winced in pain, "Only men can be warriors, and I've been a man for three years, I'm eighteen."
Katara shook her head, though it was unmistakable by age; her brother was still immature in many aspects.
"Sokka, good you're up. Katara, I need to speak with you." Their father had entered the hut with three cooked fish—most-likely a gift from a tribe woman.
"Yes, dad, what is it?"
"If you don't mind, I want to stay too."
Hakoda looked at his son. He was going to refuse, but Sokka was there when the deal was made. He should be here for this as well. Besides, one day he would be chief and needed to know how to handle delicate situations like this.
"Fine, but let's discuss it over breakfast."
It was a quiet meal in the beginning. Still, once everyone had taken a few bites, Hakoda took the opportunity to speak.
"Katara."
"Yeah dad?"
Katara felt uneasy. The feeling hit her once her father and brother sat with her. They were hiding something, something big.
"You know the war is over, but after all the damage the nations need a symbol. An action to show that this will not happen again."
"It will have to be big if the world is to forgive what those monsters have done." Just thinking about it made Katara's blood boil.
"Exactly," Hakoda purposefully overlooked Kataras naming choice, "that is why Fire Lord Iroh and I have agreed to make an eternal bond."
"What? Dad, he may be a different Fire Lord, but you can't trust him that easily. He is still Fire Nation.
"No, Iroh, I mean Fire Lord Iroh is a good man. Without his help, dad and I would be in prison right now."
"Still, but he is Fire Nation."
"Not all Fire Nation is evil, Katara."
Katara looked at her father in disbelief. "Why do you keep saying this? Have you forgotten all that they have done already? In one night, everything from the past hundred years is dismissed."
"Of course not. You know that is not what I meant." Hakoda tried to defend his statement.
"Then what?"
"Katara, I think what dad is saying is, every nation is filled with good and bad people. Just the Fire Nation had some terrible luck cause it was their lords that were the worst of the bunch."
Katara looked away from the men in front of her. They were different from who she had remembered. It was all black and white before, but now they were smudging it to shades of gray.
"So, what's the price of making an eternal bond with the Fire Nation?"
The question seemed to make Hakoda and Sokka freeze in their skin. The way she said it made it sound as if they were still in Fire Nation bondage.
"It's not a price, but a gift. A gift of opportunity."
Sokka shook his head. People always said that he and his dad were just alike, but he prayed he never sounded like that.
"Dad," his son pushed, and Hakoda got the hint.
"Marriage, it is the bond. Iroh lost his only son in the war, so Ozai's son Prince Zuko is to marry you to represent a new beginning."
"What!" Katara couldn't believe it. Her father had sold her to a group of people, whom a few days ago was their greatest enemy. "How could you?"
"If you think about it, you and Prince Zuko are the perfect symbols to healing a large wound. Fire and water, opposite elements like yin and yang-"
"If you want a water tribe girl, shouldn't the northern tribe be the one to sell the chief's daughter like livestock? We are only a branch from them." The room became silent, Katara didn't know what she had said at first, but it didn't take long before it hit her. "Oh Sokka."
"Don't worry, I see Princess Yue every time I see the full moon."
Katara remembered the first letter of good news she had gotten from Sokka. He had made it to their northern brothers and had fallen in love with Yue. After a few messages about the happy relationship came the letter saying Yue had sacrificed herself for the right cause. Once again, it was the Fire Nation's fault.
"Sokka, how can you go along with this after everything that nation has taken from you?"
"They aren't all bad Katara and, Yue wouldn't want me to keep deep-seated anger, nor would mom."
The last part pierced Katara's heart. "Well I'm not like you. I can't do it."
Katara got up from the floor table and ran outside, but she didn't get far. Stopping her in her tracks was gray snow that fell from the sky. Off the coastline, three ships baring red flags with a flame insignia. The Fire Nation was already here.