The warmth of actual bedding was a great victory in the eyes of the Water Tribe Warrior, the cloth keeping in the warmth during the cool night kept him asleep well after sunrise- well not too long; half dozed he rolled over to get slightly more comfortable when it hit him- he was sleeping in the same bed as Azula- who at the moment was sound asleep. He held in a shriek and pulled himself from the mattress; she had scared him more than any surprise attack could have- she was so quietly lying there, as if she wasn't even there, other than for her lump of mass rolled over the side of the mattress. Looking at the woman- which he usually tried not to do- he saw her without her witty remarks or frustrating comments and further her background as the heir of the empire he was fighting; she was just a young woman- same age as him he guessed, tired and in pain after days lost in the wilderness- he didn't pity her- he was stuck with her after all- but at he put that into perspective as he sat there, gazing at her near motionless body.
"I woke up first this time." he remarked to himself with a smirk, realising he had beaten Azula at her own game- although he knew that she wouldn't certainly be in the same rush she had been while looking for some form of 'civilisation'; funnily enough this village was far larger than his own, and he it made him chuckle at the thought of Azula being stuck in his village- would she find the icy tundra and it's igloos too cold and barren for her taste? She was sleeping in a barn- he was sure she could tolerate the South Pole with the proper clothing and bedding.
Sokka turned himself from his analysis of Azula- feeling somewhat uncomfortable about his thought patterns- it wasn't like Azula would ever even go to the South Pole, and not that he would want her to- she was the enemy, and soon enough they'd part ways for good, at least he hoped so. He might go as far to say he would miss her, but that would be an overstatement on his behalf- there were far more enjoyable company, although probably none as interesting as her- unless there happened to be an even more powerful bender with a bad upbringing around. His chain of thought was interrupted by the rambling of fast steps toward the barn, making Sokka immediately get up and grab his boomerang from the bedside- only to realise it was Naiko, exhausted and panting from running up the hill- as if she had been running for her life.
With the boomerang aimed at her, Naiko trembled but sputtered out "Amaruq! You and Zaira have to leave right now- whoever you messed with- some earthbenders- they're here."
"How did you figure that out?" he asked her, Naiko sighed and almost smirked back.
"I'm a good listener, and I'm not stupid- mysterious Water Tribesman and a 'firebending woman'- I'd guess that'd be you two running out of the forest away from them." she explained.
Sokka nodded and turned down to Azula, shaking her on the shoulder, shocking her awake, making her roll over and try to get into some stance to fight him, making Sokka immediately raise his arms in fear, "No don't set me on fire! The deserters are here!"
"Deserters- that makes more sense than guerrilla soldiers." Naiko offhandedly remarked.
"Yes- and they'll probably kill me and rape her- it's best we get out of here before they find us." Sokka told her, pulling Azula to her feet, still slightly shocked from being waken up.
"U-uh so- time to beat up those bastards for a second time?" Azula smirked at Sokka, making him slap his hand into forehead.
"No! We need to get out of here so we don't cause any more unnecessary injuries- or worse." he shouted at her, frustrated that she would immediately turn to violence.
"So who are you two?" Naiko intervened between them, somewhat awkward realising they were both only partly dressed.
"Uh- I'm a Water Tribe warrior- and it's best you don't know who she is." Sokka admitted, Naiko turning to Azula with suspicion.
"Fire Nation? I don't care for the war too much- but I don't want the Fire Nation coming back here to do anything stupid- could you do me that favour."
"Why do you assume I have any power over Fire Nation military policy?" Azula questioned her, genuinely fearing that she had overheard something she might have said.
"I don't know- you seem important- high-class maybe; you can do something, can't you?" Naiko asked her, eyes full of fear and desperation, a face Sokka himself knew too well.
"Maybe- if I can get out of here alive." Azula told her, standing up to her height and seeming more imposing, ready to fight.
"I'll make sure of it- I think I've got a distraction in mind." Naiko affirmed, smirking at Azula and Sokka before running out of the barn- leaving them alone again.
Sokka looked back to Azula and blushed upon realising that she was wearing only her pants and undershirt- leaving her somewhat physically exposed; he didn't see many women in such form, being from a place where most people wore thick parkas. Upon realising Sokka had been perhaps unintentionally ogling her, she smacked him in the face.
"That is an act of disrespect savage- I don't want to see you looking at me like that again." she ordered him, Sokka drooping his face in embarrassment.
"Ah- yep, I'll just go get dressed over there." he replied as quickly as possible, gathering up his weapons and shirt, walking out of the small pen they were located in.
Quickly pulling over his shirt and tying it up, Sokka looked down the hill and wasn't able to see much, meaning that the deserters weren't nearby- yet. He pulled over his boomerang holser. and slid his club in between it and his back, before turning back to Azula- who had already donned her boots despite her foot injury and to the best of her attempts, done her hair in an orderly fashion. He saw her face contort in frustration as a hair drooped down over her forehead.
"Ah I think it's okay Azula- let's just get out of here." he advised, the Princess sighing and walking herself out of the barn with an air of authority, before turning back to glance at Sokka with a smirk.
"I'd stand back if I was you." she remarked casually, before taking a deep breath, Sokka realising what she was going to before he could even protest; she let out of a massive beam of fire from her mouth and two smaller ones from her fists- to catch the attention of the deserters.
He paced up behind her after the fire had dissipated, his face distraught "I admit that did look cool- but what the fuck Azula! They're going to come straight for us now!"
She smirked back, "I'm counting on it- what did the old military guides say- the high ground is a supreme advantage?"
"I'm not well-versed- but I see what you're getting at, we're not an army- it's just the two of us."
"Five Earth Kingdom deserters can't face up to my power- I have been blessed by Agni as prodigy and my own years of work towards achieving perfect bending- you're about to see the pay off." she monologued making Sokka slap his hand on his forehead once more.
"You can't be serious- we need to get out of here- what about the villagers? They'll tear you apart for being a firebender." he argued to her, Azula dismissing him with a flick of her hand.
"We will fight- or at least I will if you're so averse to violence these days- where did the warrior on the ship go? Did he drown with the others?" she mocked him, making Sokka scream in frustration and hurt from her harsh words.
"Argh! I can't deal with your shit any further- I'll beat the shit out of these spirit-damned deserters if it will stop you being so damn irrational." he shouted, making Azula curtly smirk back again.
"That's what I was waiting for, now let's beat these bastards again."
Within a minute four of the deserters, led by who Sokka recognised as Huang, were at the base of the hill and were racing up to fight them- Huang initiating the battle with a rumble of Earthbending, destabilising the ground underneath them; Azula simply smirked at him and within a moment she drew lightning and bent it right into the man's chest, flinging him to the ground.
"The earthbender's down for the count, the others should be easy." she deviously chuckled, Sokka trying to ignore her passionate enjoyment of the fighting.
Sokka quickly withdrew his boomerang and threw it at the next closest man- he recognised this as the one who had been getting up from their various hits during the first fight- hard-headed, too much for his own good, he thought. The boomerang just missed the man's head, ready for it's arrival, but was unprepared for Azula's wave of fire that bellowed down the hill, causing the men to trip and fall or duck to the side- stopping them momentarily.
As soon as the boomerang returned to Sokka's grasp he threw it again, this time at one of the tripped men, quickly incapacitating him. The hard-headed one ran straight for the two of them, pulling out two swords and racing with a screaming war-face- which Sokka would be intimidated by if he didn't pull one himself; Sokka deflected his attempts at attacking him with his club, which he used to whack hard into the man's jaw, flinging him off his feet and forcing him to roll down the hill. The other two men, one of which had already taken a boomerang to the head, formed a defensive line with their small wooden shields- Azula immediately set them alight however, making them defenceless against Sokka charging in with fury, whacking them in the knees and faces with his club, quickly knocking them both out cold.
"That wasn't so hard wasn't it?" Azula chuckled, walking down beside Sokka to look upon their defeated enemies; only to be interrupted by the grumbling of Huang from the pain of being struck by lightning- somehow conscious after the hit.
"L-lightnin'?" he asked out in a slur, gasping for air after the savage burning of chest by Azula's lightning strike.
"Oh no you fucking don't!" Sokka shouted, kicking him straight in the jaw, knocking him out cold "We're not killing needlessly again- as I already said." he remarked, looking back at Azula with cold eyes.
"Good reflexes savage- I knew you'd come of use." Azula smirked, making Sokka sigh, already going over the recent events in his mind.
"So where did Naiko go?" he questioned, knowing full well no one would give him an answer. The girl had helped them by warning them about the bandits instead of leading them to them- she was good- honourable, and Sokka didn't want anyone like her getting hurt in the crossfire.
"She isn't the priority Sokka- she seemed smart enough, she'll find her way out of this mess like we just have." she remarked.
"She said a distraction, what could she mean by a distraction?" Sokka thought out loud, his question receiving an answer when they heard shouts and a squeal.
The two ran down the path into the village, realising immediately what Naiko had planned. She stood above the last remaining soldier, his head red and swollen, from what looked like Naiko whacking him in the head with a piece of scrap wood, surrounded by shocked villagers.
"By the spirits- you call that a distraction." Azula remarked in slight disappoint, looking upon Naiko standing in frustration above the incapacitated soldier, who looked around at the villagers surrounding her before shouting back at Azula with fear.
"Run damn it! Run!" she shouted at them, before the villagers begun to pick up pace and charge towards Azula and Sokka, knowing all too well who they really were- a firebender and her lackey, although Sokka would likely rephrase it as 'partner'.
"Get the girl! She's one of them!" one of the villagers shouted, a young man with a topknot, raising his hand to rise a rock from the ground- an earthbender; the rock raced past their heads before Sokka and Azula begun running away with haste, first into the thick fields of grain that bounded the village.
Sokka turned to Azula and screamed in fear, "I don't want to get killed by a bunch of angry Earth Kingdom villagers- these are the people I'm trying to save from the Fire Nation!"
"We're not going to!" Azula shouted back, lighting her hand on fire before sending a beam of fire into field of grain, setting it alight behind them.
"That's food you idiot! They'll starve!" Sokka desperately argued.
"Would you rather they go hungry or we end up being stoned to death?" she asked him with all seriousness, still keeping a sprinting pace as they ran into the forest once more.
Sokka looked back at the villagers and nodded to Azula, his face genuinely terrified; he didn't want to be killed by people that he believed were good and well-intentioned- unlike most of the world he knew. The two travellers continued to sprint into the brush for a while, hearing the pattering of footsteps behind them as the villagers diverted around the field, now led by a haphazard squad of local earthbending men- at least they assumed, from the rocks they could see and hear being flung in their direction.
"We need to get out of here- and find some way to actually mask our identities." Sokka commented, glancing back at into the thick brush, echoing the footsteps of the villagers.
"What a smart idea- where would there be anything to help us outside the village?" she asked him with a hint of sarcasm.
"Didn't Naiko say she and her family worked a mill- if they're preoccupied with the search, maybe we can steal some clothes or a steed to ride- we'll outrun the villagers on the back of ostrich horses." Sokka thought out loud, his plans forming in the moment.
"That's good enough- it'll be along the river, right? We go there and sneak along there until we find the mill." Azula replied, agreeing fully with Sokka's plan- they had been found because of their clothing and obvious backgrounds- dressing like Earth Kingdom peasants ought to save them the trouble of being recognised, although she reminded herself to keep her current clothes at hand- how else could she persuade the Fire Nation that she was actually Princess Azula?
They raced downhill towards the sound of water, quickly crossing over the 'road' between the village and the next one, which was their next planned destination- hopefully the Fire Nation had someone stationed there for them to find safety with; Sokka was going to have a fit when he realised they'd have to find refuge with his sworn enemies. They looked upon the stream that was next to the path, seeing it was easy enough to cross on foot at this point- luckily for them, they wouldn't want to go back to the village to cross it.
"Well time to get in the mud again." Sokka sighed in a tone of genuine sadness that made Azula cackle- she disapproved of getting dirty as well- she would describe herself certainly as the clean and tidy perfectionist, but she found it overly amusing how concerned he was for cleanliness- at least for a man.
The two crossed the river, wading through it slowly, although it was only a few metres wide, and within a minute they were on the other side and patting themselves dry, Sokka checking scout immediately for any villagers who came looking this way; luckily for them it seemed they assumed Sokka and Azula would be hiding in the forest they ran into, a much easier feat than sneaking back toward the village along the river- without being spotted that was.
Naiko was not having the best morning, if she was to be completely honest- she had helped her new and unusual friends but had ultimately paid a hefty price for it- the village didn't trust her after realising she had warned the two 'enemies' of the Earth Kingdom 'soldiers' who had been searching for them- Naiko tried to point it out to them, but she had her hands bound and was practically being held captive by the village's elder men, who certainly distrusted the Fire Nation more than most of their people- veterans of the war who had returned home scarred men.
Held up against the wall by her own cousin Lee, Naiko spat out at his face, "You idiots! You all act like those bastards are our friends just because they wear our colours! Zaira and Amaruq weren't trying to harm us, or undermine us-" she shouted, before being slapped in the face, her cheek now raw and her eyes falling with tears.
"Shut up Naiko- you should know better than to trust the ash-makers- she had a Water Tribe lackey with her- she probably stole him from his people, a captive turned servant!" Lee called her out, clearly disgruntled with her willingness to 'help' the Fire Nation.
"Stop right that now young man!" a voice called out, making Lee smirk and turn around.
Holding Naiko against the wall with one hand he almost laughed, "Or you're gonna-" being immediately interrupted by a fist to the face- his uncle's fist.
"Argh!" Lee cried out, falling to the ground- dazed and confused from the articulate strike.
"Don't you dare touch my daughter again- hear me? Or I'll castrate you myself." Naiko's father warned him, towering above him. He was a tall, muscular man- he looked like an elite earthbender soldier in form, but was only a lowly non-bending peasant man- but not today- he was Naiko's protector, as was his duty.
"B-but u-uncle Yano, she betrayed our people by helping them- those degenerates!" Lee argued to his Uncle, rubbing the side of his head to try and lessen the pain.
"You dare call my daughter a traitor?!" Yano asked him, making Lee reel back in fear- he knew too well not cross his uncle, "That's what I thought; now all of you, I don't want to hear any more bad-mouthing- Naiko did what she thought was right. You're just beating up your own kin because you have an itch with the Fire Nation!" he stated, grabbing his daughter by the arm and taking her away from the crowd of angry villagers.
Looking to her father with red tearful eyes, Naiko tried to smile "T-thank you father, they wouldn't stop-"
Yano held his hand to her face, "Don't worry now Nai, you're all okay- I'll take you back home, I'm sure your mother can help tend to the sores." Naiko sighing in relief upon hearing her fathers reassurances- she feared the worst when she realised he had found out of her complicity, but she understood from her words- she was doing what was right, not what any idea of obligation to her nation told her, better than most people in the world these days.
Walking down the path, holding her with his arm, Yano looked back to her face and decided to ask, "So are you certain those men are deserters- how could you even know such a thing?" he asked her, Naiko sighing and smiling,
"I guessed from their attire- either guerrillas or deserters, and it seemed they were far too willing to harass the villagers- Amaruq confirmed my suspicions."
"The Water Tribesman; so he's really helping a firebender- of all the nations- you'd think he'd be least willing." Yano commented, concerned by the possibility of a Water Tribesman betraying their own- something that was unheard of, at least from what he knew.
"That's what I thought too, but it seemed he trusted her, and they were in it together- if anything, I think they didn't lie about being ship-wrecked- maybe they found each other after a battle- the Water Tribes do send raids this far away from the poles, don't they?"
"Yes- my late brother- your uncle, spoke fondly of the Southern Water Tribe, supposedly they had led a fleet against the Fire Nation after the Fire Nation had raided their nation to oblivion- no more waterbenders, supposedly. That's what I heard, but I trust my brother- he knew what he was talking about."
"Why aren't you angry like the rest then- Uncle died in battle against the Fire Nation, and you're willing to let a firebender slip away?" she questioned her father.
"I'm not a spiteful man, I have children- you and your brothers- to worry about; the war is for young idealists who want to see glory- or have some obtuse sense of duty- that's not me darling- I'm just a man living his life for the real things that matter."
Naiko smiled back at her father, hugging him with joy "Thank you dad, I really- uh- I'm just happy you trusted me."
"Don't worry- there's nothing to-" Yano replied, being interrupted by the sound of door opening- they were already near their house, but even in the distance he knew the creak of the back door all too well- Naiko and her brothers would always use it to sneak out.
"Somebody's at the house- I think I know who." Naiko commented.
Father and daughter walked slowly back toward the house, knocking on the door to be certain- and immediately heard a scrambling and a shout, before they opened it fully, seeing both Sokka and Azula with their hands full of clothes- their clothes.
"What is this?!" Yano shouted in shock, realising that this was Naiko's new friends, stealing their clothes.
"U-uh we'll leave right away- without the clothes." Sokka mumbled, in shock and unable to try and argue back- he was committing a dishonourable act, and he knew he couldn't do much but drop the clothes on the floor.
"Guys- I thought I told you to run- why did you come back to rob my families house of all things?!" Naiko questioned them, her tone baring disappointment in the two.
"We needed disguises- and maybe an ostrich horse." Sokka admitted, shrugging his shoulders.
"You could have just asked nicely," Naiko told them, "o-uh and this is my dad." she introduced, hands waving over to her father, who stood imposingly tall above the other three- even Sokka, who was pretty tall in Azula's eyes.
"I can't pay you back- or anything." Sokka admitted, lowering his head in shame.
"Actually- I can." Azula intervened, Sokka's eyes looking at her in fear- he didn't want her to spill her identity at such an inopportune time.
"So you do have the goods-" Naiko commented, smirking at Azula, who blushed slightly before readjusting herself.
"I- or at the very least my family can offer you a fair reward in exchange for your service, it's only fair for what I've put your daughter through because of my carelessness." Azula admitted, genuinely feeling like she had wronged Naiko after what looked like abuse from the other villagers- the beating reminding her starkly of her own brother's punishment by her father.
"I mean, we could always use the extra bit of money around- Dad?" Naiko commented, looking to her father for approval, who looked somewhat shocked and confused by the whole situation still.
"Uh, well it wouldn't hurt to help them in return for a good pay- they seem like the right kind of folk."
Sokka chuckled at the older man's comment, "Uh- certainly- 'right kind of folk'." he affirmed, eyeing Azula with a smug smile, making her look back in disdain.
He picked the clothes back off the floor and handed them back to Yano, who sorted through them quickly before handing back some- a shirt and pants that he thought suited the climate and their situation well.
"Thanks sir, this is really helpful." he curtly replied, giving him a bow of respect, while aside Azula just kept ahold of her 'stolen' clothes which she assumed were Naiko's.
"I'll trust your taste in clothes, from one girl to another." Naiko smiled at Azula, making her nod in acceptance.
The four walked out to the back of the house, Yano leading them to the stable, where they had a few ostrich-horses, taking out one of them by a lead "You can take this old girl, she's not of much use for me, but she'll get you along fine, help carry all your things-" he pointed out, eyeing Sokka's assortment of weapons- he thought he must be an actual Water Tribe soldier, no common man would carry such a large array without being expected to actually use them in battle.
"Thank you sir, this is really a great help- we'd better get changed though." Sokka admitted, before he slightly bowed again and ran off back to the house, trying to find somewhere to get changed.
Azula realised she would have to do the same and followed him into the house, looking out to make sure she wouldn't accidentally run into a naked Water Tribesman, before quickly making her way into a bedding area, where she immediately stripped off her dirty and somewhat uncomfortable Fire Nation drabs and instead put on Naiko's green and yellow attire, a loose fitting dress that banded across the waist- Azula would almost call it floral, but she didn't want to compliment the girl's wardrobe too much, she was just a peasant after all. She lay the dress over her red stockings and boots, which she was sure she would still need to wear- not wanting to take more than she actually needed; within a minute she had changed her attire but realised one other aspect would need some work- her poorly done hair. It had frustrated her over the past three days by it's messy and frizzy form and decided to tame it into a braid, similar to which her friend Ty-Lee would wear, a small smile coming to her face remembering the times of childhood with her friends- she was ever so far away from that world, dressed like an Earth Kingdom peasant- working together with a Water Tribe warrior who'd rather have her taken away in chains- at least he might have initially.
Walking out of the bedding area she glanced upon Sokka's new attire, a brown-olive drab that she'd expect on a farmer- suitable for someone of his lowly status, although she could tell he already sorely missed his blue and white; his clothing actually well resembled his original outfit, but it was a bit looser, fitting to Yano rather than him and he had his head covered with a wide brimmed hat- if not for his eyes, you'd think he was any other Earth Kingdom peasant; Azula herself had covered her eyes with a partial fringe to disguise her identity as Fire Nation further more than the peasants clothes.
"The colours actually suit you, Princess." Sokka bluntly commented, bowing almost mockingly at her, knowing too well of her patriotic duty to the Fire Nation.
"I'll take that as an insult not a compliment." she remarked, his words reminding her of a certainly not missed member of the Royal Court- Admiral Zhao; his words always followed a pattern like Sokka's just had- insulting you with niceties.
"Hey I was being serious!" Sokka complained- before following her out of the door, to be looked up by Yano and Naiko, who nodded in approval.
"You look like fellow country-men- all it takes is the right attire." Yano admitted, smiling at the two travellers.
"Certainly- I do like how Azula wears my dress." Naiko complimented, making Azula slightly blush again, but retain her serious composure.
"We best be off, the next village awaits, and hopefully we won't meet the damned deserters again." Azula affirmed.
"If we're lucky" Sokka added, chuckling at their current day so far- he had already been in a fight and ran from angry Earth Kingdom villagers- he hadn't even had breakfast yet. Turning back to Naiko and Yano he sincerely smiled, "Thank again- for everything- we are far better off with friends than without." bowing once more at them before putting his weapons on the ostrich-horses back, Azula already sitting on the saddle- Naiko waved to them as they started to walk away, following the stream to avoid going back into the village where they knew the people would start a rampage to get them again.
"Miss One-Foot, I'll let you ride because of your injuries, not because of any sympathy on my behalf." Sokka admitted to her before grabbing the lead and beginning the long walk ahead- he had already begun walking- even with a day of 'rest' he was still tired and hopeful that whatever await them at the nearby port was better than what they had already faced.
For once, all Huang could feel was pain- unadulterated pain; his sight and sense of touch had basically been blanked out of the burning pain spread across his chest, feeling as if he had his lungs set on fire- of course he hadn't, Huang could tell that from the presence the weight of his clothes and armour over his chest. A hand held out to his shoulder- trying to shake him, but Huang couldn't respond- the pain was too much, and even then he was in such a daze. Huang thought maybe the kid had concussed him when he kicked him down- that being after he was struck by a bolt of lightning. Within a few moments he felt a rush of cold over his body- a slight relief from the pain- only to realise it wasn't for his benefit. A young man stood over him, and Huang could hear him trying to talk him down- though he couldn't decipher the words due to the ringing in his head, which had slightly calmed from the cool water shocking him.
"Are you listening!" the man shouted at him, which Huang could make out- he simply tried to tell him he was in pain, pointing awkwardly at his chest.
"I-ah..." Huang mumbled, trying to string something intelligible together, "Muh-uh jaw..."
"Oh- so the Water Tribesman broke your jaw." the man concluded, Huang nodding slightly at the man.
"So- is what Naiko said was true? Are you deserters?" the man asked him, Huang sighing slightly, unhappy he'd have to try and talk more than he already had- his mouth was in a lot of pain.
"Me an' muh bruthas- wuh ah' s-sol'iers." Huang mumbled, trying to pronounce as best he could, "A-as' d'others..." he concluded, pointing his hands around to who he presumed were his fellow men.
The man turned to Yang- who was right beside Huang, trying to lessen the pain on his own jaw by rubbing in with his hand- to no avail, "How 'bout you? You a deserter?"
Yang nearly cursed upon realising he was the one about to be interrogated, "Uh no- I's left for dead on the field- somethin' like 3 years ago, before the Comet."
"So you didn't return to fight for your country? That makes you a deserter all the same."
"M-my commander left me an' my squad to die, I's just lucky the ash-makers knocked me out an' not worse." Yang explained, trying to show the young man and the surrounding villagers his innocence.
"So what do you bastards do then?" the man asked him, his eyes curled at him in disappointment- the man was probably a soldier in the war himself, Yang thought- if he was back here and not on the field, did that make him a deserter too?
"We uh- we fight the Fire Nation our way." he mumbled.
An older man came to his side, "Fight the Fire Nation- in what way?" his eyes focused on him, as if he knew what he was going to say next.
"We kill 'em- go to their towns in our lan' and we fuckin' kill 'em."
"So you just go around killing defenceless civilians- you're no better than the Fire Nation." the older man concluded, making the younger man look at him in shock.
"How could you say that Tao?! These men fight to defend our nation- even if they're not under the Earth King's supreme command!" he shouted at the older man, making the older man spit on the ground below them; Yang looked on in shock as a war of words begun before him.
"You disgust me boy- you think this war will end by us killing every firebender and colonist that takes a foot on our lands? That's just idiotic and cruel." Tao shouted at him.
"We should let them go! They did no harm to us- they're just comrades in arms- what they do the Fire Nation isn't our problem." the younger man told Tao, making him curl his eyebrows at the deserters.
"Desertion is one thing, killing civilians because you feel like doing it is another." Tao told him, speaking louder as to make sure the other villagers heard him.
"Didn't you fight in the war, Tao? Don't you think the ash-makers deserve it?" the younger man asked him.
"I think many things boy- that peasants thrown out of their own land to live in ours should be killed, I do not. I think that the Fire Nation should pay- but not with their lives, that will not solve anything." Tao explained to him.
"Take the deserters to somewhere we can hold them, I'm sure the village elders will come up with a decision on their fate." the younger man ordered, eyeing Tao with mistrust as he walked away from the scene of their argument, clearly unwilling to deal with the issue at hand.
Tao walked down the street before turning to his house, an old stone cottage in town that his father had built- many years ago, before even Tao was born. He entered it quietly, not wanting to wake up his children. Tao searched around the house, looking under nooks and crannies to find what he needed: a pen and some paper- he had gathered information from this unwieldy turn of events in his usually quiet village. He found a pen sitting idly by his bedside, where his wife would be sleeping- but at the moment she was rushing around town to deal find their eldest son- he had joined the angry crowd that ran into the forest, and she was certain he'd get himself hurt or worse out there, even with the mass of people; there was some spare paper in the beside draw and Tao chose to sit by the dining table to write his message- he had to be quick, if someone ran in on him there would be questions.
Tao began to write "My esteemed friends of our Order, I learned that the declared missing Princess of the Fire Nation has wound up in my village Fuchang- I believe she is with a new-found ally- a Water Tribesman, unusual to say the least. She fought a group of Earth Kingdom deserters before fleeing due to my fellow villagers finding her identity as a firebender, I believe her to be on foot going towards the port town of Huangwan, a days walk from here- from there I assume she will either try to return to the Fire Nation or to Ba Sing Se. Do what you will with this information- please rewrite and resend this message to other members."
He rolled the letter up and tied in with string, before going to his messenger hawk, a gift from a Fire Nation member of the order in years gone past- he sent the message to the closest major centre for their order- in Ba Sing Se itself; Tao hoped that his allies in the city would make good use of this intel and prepare for the Princesses potential arrival. He gave the bird some feed before sending it off in the direction of the city, knowing too well of the potential outcome of this turn of events; he knew that the Princess was likely to go to the city, and that had been what was described to the order by their insiders in the Fire Nation Royal Court- Tao had only recently learned of the Princesses mission and her disappearance, assuming that a rogue member of the order had made the move 'early' against Princess Azula, incorrectly assuming that taking her Royal Barge out would save them the trouble of dealing with her in Ba Sing Se. He was certain the rest of the Order needed to know of this, because she was integral to their plan- the Grand Lotuses had agreed for endorsing the Princesses elder brother- the banished Prince Zuko- as the next Fire the situation into their own hands. Who ever it was that had tried to take the Princess out, their plan had failed, and Tao was certain that this would make their plans a whole lot more difficult- she would certainly know of the plot against her now.