It was late the next morning by the time the ship captain returned. Which- what was his name anyways?

"Hey!" Sokka yelled. The guy jumped, hands flying to the swords he had strapped to his back. They were out of the sheath before Sokka had time to blink which was really cool if- well. No. It wasn't scary at all.

"I was just gonna ask your name." Sokka said, sliding sideways and backwards, hands palm out in front of him. "But if that's a touchy subject…"

The fellow blinked, which looked kind of odd with his eye scarred like it was. Sokka wondered how that'd happened. Like- sure. Surrender. But how?

Why was he fighting in the first place?

The fellow shoved the blades back into the sheath. Well, he didn't shove. It was super smooth. And too practiced a motion for this world to be anywhere near fair.

"Li." He said. He cleared his throat. "My name is Li."

Sokka nodded, though he was wondering more about the swords than the fellow who carried them. Who could blame him? They were really cool swords…

"My name's Sokka." Sokka said. The fellow nodded and a look that was almost guilty flashed across his face.

"Hakoda's son." Li said.

Sokka grinned. "Yep! You met him? Well, I mean you probably had to meet him. Cause you ended up here with the letters and all."

Li rubbed a hand across his neck. "I was actually sick when we got this commission. But I've seen him before."

That was a little disappointing- Sokka'd wanted to hear from someone who'd seen him. He wanted to know how he was actually doing.

"So- who did meet him then?" Sokka asked. Probably that Jee fellow- or maybe the Uncle? The command structure on this ship seemed a bit odd.

"Riko." Li said. He scanned the area for a second, then pointed straight to one of his crew men. "She's right over there."

Sokka nodded his thanks before rushing off. It was only after he'd crossed half of the distance between him and Riko that he realized Zuko had said she.

…-…

Aang had already agreed to take Katara to the North Pole. That didn't mean the logistics were easy.

They had some Water Tribe money- but they weren't sure if it would work in the Earth Kingdom. Appa could carry them but he couldn't carry enough of his own food for it to matter- they needed places for him to set down and eat. He ate a ton and he'd basically eat anything- still, it was better to plan.

Aang didn't understand why they wouldn't just stop at the Air temples. Katara kept saying that wasn't an option but Aang didn't know why. Monks were nice. They'd help.

…-…

Zuko took a deep breath. Then he knocked on the pole in front of the tent where the Avatar was staying. He didn't exactly understand why they'd set up a tent just for him, but then again. He was the Avatar. Aang. His name was Aang. And he was a twelve-year-old boy. A boy Zuko's father would kill without a second thought.

Zuko's stomach twisted unpleasantly at the thought. Ozai was his father. And Zuko was planning on ending the war. Even though that meant he'd have to betray his father.

"Come in!" Aang yelled.

Zuko wasn't sure if that wasn't how it was supposed to work- since it wasn't actually Aang's tent… but he'd take it.

Zuko stepped in first and Iroh came in a step behind him.

"We need to talk to you about something." Zuko said.

Katara was staring at him. Or, more accurately, she was staring at the bright red mark that stretched across half of his face. Zuko felt himself blush and wished he could yell at her to stop staring.

That probably wouldn't endear him to the Avatar though.

Aang nodded eagerly. "Sure." He said.

Zuko glanced at Iroh who nodded slightly.

"What's your plan?" he asked.

Aang blinked at him. "Plan for what?"

"You're supposed to bring balance to the world, right?" Zuko asked.

"Yep."

"What are you planning on doing about the Fire Nation then? With the invasion?"

"Um…" Aang said, looking so very confused. "Invasion?"

He really has been in an iceberg for 100 years, Zuko thought. He forced in a breath, then let it out. "99 years and a bit ago- it'll be a 100 years at the next comet- Sozin used Sozin's comet to kill the Air benders. Since then, the Fire Nation had been at war with the rest of the world. As you can see they did some serious damage to the Southern Water Tribe and they are currently doing a lot of damage to the Earth Kingdom. So- what're you planning to do about it?"

Aang was gaping at him, and Zuko wondered what he'd said wrong. "They can't- they can't all be dead. That's not possible." Ah. That. "How'd the Fire Nation even get up to the temples? They didn't have Flying Bison! There's no way- no way at all…" he trailed off as Katara squeezed his shoulder, the compassion on her face serving as Zuko's second witness.

"I can't- I can't think about this right now." Aang said. "Please- just leave me alone."

Katara squeezed his shoulder again. "If that's what you want." She said. She stood, releasing his shoulder, though the compassion on her face never faded. "But if you need to talk- I'll be there." She swept out of the tent.

Iroh followed her a second later, but Zuko hesitated. "I think you should know- Sozin's comet is coming again. Soon."

Then he followed the others out of the tent.