AN: Hey everyone! Sorry this is late, but you're getting an extra long chapter next to compensate for the wait : ) Hope you're liking the story so far

KATARA

"Do you honestly think it's safe? Being this close? I know what the readings said but…"

Katara glanced back at Sokka.

Her brother squinted at the distant horizon on their left, where moonlit clouds hung low over invisible land.

"Well, it's been more than seventy years now. I reckon I do," he murmured, one hand behind him on the tiller, steering their small boat slowly through the ice. Something caught his eye and he smiled softly. "Look."

Katara glanced over the edge at where he pointed. Down in the dark blue water, past the chunks of ice, a few small dark shapes were flitting in and out of sight.

A smile lifted her lips too as a blanket of comfort wrapped around her shoulders at the sight.

She took off her glove out of habit, yearning to experience this more intimately. A deep breath and a smooth flick of her wrist had one of the dark shapes gently rising up and breaking the surface in its own private tank. The orb was her smoothest yet, almost perfectly spherical. The fish twisting inside it was at least a metre long, with beautiful, fan-shaped fins glistening in the pale moonlight.

The moment was broken by a loud, exaggerated groan.

"Urgh. Great. Of course, now is the time to show-off. Thought we were having a lil' moment, but nooo… "

She clenched her jaw.

"I thought you'd like to see them, Mr Scientific," she snapped, hoping the irritation was enough to mask her hurt. She dropped the wriggling fish back where it belonged, the wonderful surprise of its presence suddenly soured. "It's not like I've been bending every second you've been back."

Sokka raised his eyebrows and leaned back, and Katara rolled her eyes and turned to look out to sea, already knowing she didn't want to hear it.

"You might as well have been, Katara," he began, though not unkindly. "All I've been hearing from Mum ever since I got back has come down to two things. 'Decided on college?' and 'Your baby sister topped Pakku's class again'. I mean, yeah, I'm happy for you, sis. 'Course I am. But," he chuckled, "I didn't have to deal with this when I was -"

"Where?" she asked, voice colder than the air around them.

An ancient poison was breaking through a barrier deep inside her and right now she didn't care enough to stop it from seeping to the surface.

"With them? With your other family- your true family?" She laughed bracingly. "I guess we don't need to ask about your plans anymore, big guy."

She heard him splutter behind her but she kept her eyes trained on the larger boulders of ice they were slowly approaching. She hoped the ship wasn't too far behind, she already wanted to be alone. So much for their bonding excursion.

"Okay. Missy, that is way out of line. The Ansongs are your cousins too, in case you've forgotten-

"Oh, how could I, the way you go on-"

"What! I don't 'go on'-"

"Like you're not going on now?"

"You brought them up!"

"Lucky you. Must have made your day–"

"Okay, no," he said, holding a palm up to stop her. "We're getting to the bottom of this right now. Why are you so mad at them? You don't know shit about them Katara, so what's your fucking problem?"

She whipped around, eyes blazing, control becoming a thing of the past as the pain burst forth.

"My problem is that you think that that's where you belong!" Her heart thundered, muscles in her cheek twitched madly, but all that mattered was getting her brother to listen. "Dad's so afraid of asking you that he's been hiding behind work. Mum is scared to death for both of you that it's driving me crazy how she's been trying to beat around the bush without asking you head on. And Gran? Gran's already given up, saying you're old enough to follow your heart and make your own decisions– but you know what? I think that's bullshit."

"Katara…" Sokka tried to placate with one hand outstretched from where he sat steering, helpless.

"Bullshit, you hear me?" She stabbed a finger in his direction, not caring that her brother's eyes were now uncharacteristically wide. "I'm sorry I can't - I can't change what I am, but just because I'm a bender doesn't mean this whole family is- no, shut up!" she yelled as he tried interrupting her again. Everything was spilling out now- words and tears, both furious.

"They'll be lost without you, you absolute moron. I know you find life great there, but we can't lose you to the Normals! This is where you belong, Sokka- with us! We're your family! What is it going to take for you to see that?!"

"Katara!"

His voice, strangely pitchier than usual, finally broke in after her crescendo. The reason for his fear became obvious almost immediately. She'd been expecting only to hear the whine of the motor and the slosh of the waves once her voice died out. But a new sound was jarring the peace of the Southern Ocean.

She followed her brother's panicked gaze over her shoulder.

Oh no.

In her wrath, she'd forgotten all about the approaching glaciers.

The boat was rocking from side to side amid dying waves- waves that she'd caused- and the white wall of ice closest to them, barely fifty feet away, was emitting a cracking, thunderous groaning sound. Alarmingly, a large rift was splitting its ten foot side all the way up to the top, growing larger and larger with every second they both sat gaping.

"Shoot..." she breathed. "Did I do that?"

"You think?!" Sokka asked, sounding a little hysterical.

And then the boat began to tip sideways.

"Hey, stop it!" Sokka yelled as he desperately fought for control.

"I'm not doing anything!"

She grabbed the side of the boat with one arm and steadied her brother with her other hand.

A roaring sound filled her ears, Sokka's other arm joined hers on the side of the boat, apparently having decided that steering was pointless if they couldn't even remain on board.

They yelled as their feet slid along the floor, scrambled for purchase and then dangled uselessly. They were almost vertical now, and the sea was actually behind them. Before closing her eyes and preparing to bend them to safety, she received a horrifying glimpse of how fast they were being shot through the water.

Just as she began to let go and gather up a wave, the boat started levelling out. And then they were horizontal again. The waters grew quiet, and the rumble of the motor grew stronger. But the light was all wrong.

"Sokka," she gasped. "We're going west."

In the turmoil, their boat had completely switched direction and was cruising towards the rising moon.

Sokka wobbled to his knees and cut the engine.

In the resultant silence, they fought for breath and then slowly looked over the edge of the boat with trepidation.

"Oh, fuck."

That was Sokka.

Katara didn't think it even began to sum up the sight before them.

In the very spot their boat had been, bobbing serenely, was a gleaming, translucent orb the size of a small hut. Moonlight reflected off its surface and made the surrounding waves glitter in all sorts of dazzling colours. It was almost ethereal, and she found herself rendered as speechless as her brother.

That is, until something moved inside it.

KYA

Kya was in the midst of pacing in the privacy of her cabin when she received the knock on her door. She rushed out gladly, reprimands for her wayward children already on the tip of her tongue.

But she soon forgot them. The talk between the crew members she passed in the passageway was tinged with tension. And everyone was going in the same direction, towards the same thing as her…

Something was wrong.

Her feet sped up when she reached the outer deck. Her heart thumped in time with them. She didn't stop when people called her name. She had eyes only for the disturbance on the far side of the ship.

When she pushed past the small crowd gathered around her children, she could have wept.

Sokka and Katara. Huddled together in the raised boat. Safe and whole.

But when fierce blue eyes met her own over Sokka's shoulders with a protectiveness she knew only too well, it gave her pause. It made her really look. And then her son moved aside, and Kya finally understood what had everyone up in arms.

Two teenagers had gone out on the boat to explore the Southern waters. Three had returned.

AZULA

Perhaps the reason why she'd done it was because she'd been sure her brother was never going to win.

Oh, she'd always known that Father wanted her as heir and not him. That he wished he could change the line of succession somehow, and was training Azula up to take his place for whenever he inevitably figured out how to get away with it.

But then her fool of a brother had gone and made himself useful.

True, even that hadn't changed much except delay his fate. Azula was still the only child of Ozai's worthy of being his heir. They both knew it, and Grandfather had known it. Zuko though? Whether he chose to remain oblivious because he was too weak to handle the truth or whether he really was that naïve, Azula would never be certain. Because how could anyone related to her be so utterly blind?

She'd figured that this was a case in point where his suitability for the throne was concerned.

But the thing was, the sheer hopelessness of his situation – the knowledge that no matter how hard he tried, or how useful he was, he would never, ever be enough; his willful ignorance and perseverance despite that – it had all made her impatient with him. Impatient that he hadn't yet caught on.

And that impatience had made her, on rare occasions, clue him in.

She knew she shouldn't have. She knew she should have let him blunder and realise what it took to be worthy. But she had snapped and spelt it out for him because it had been so obvious. What they'd wanted from him, what had been expected of him. It had grated on her nerves when he'd missed the hint one too many times.

At first she'd laughed, of course. Then it had just become irritating. Couldn't he be just a tiny bit as perceptive as she was? Couldn't he just listen to her when she told him what to do, if not?

Like when he'd wanted to help that servant's spawn?

Like when he'd attended his first war meeting?

Like when he'd needed to just do his duty and keep his mouth shut…?

The idiot.

He really should have listened to her.

Now father was preoccupied and angry. The invasion plans were properly setback. Her immediate future was suddenly uncertain. And she hated being uncertain.

It was all Zuko's fault.

URSA

The treetops shifting languidly in the August breeze reminded her of another place, bringing with it the sounds of childish glee, spirited rebellion and what it had felt like to live without the void in her heart.

Her knuckles were white but she couldn't bring herself to ease her grip on the window sill. She hadn't known peace since the news had reached her ears three days ago. Waiting was decidedly as bad as not knowing.

"My Lady?"

She closed her eyes but didn't turn around. The tone of the voice behind her was one she'd been praying she wouldn't have to hear.

So I am to remain empty.

"Yes, tell me," she said quietly, unable to bring herself to shatter the semblance of peace.

"We lost him... Demaih. No traces. And the ship – our side blew it up before it could be taken. We don't think there are survivors. The Fire Nation has since closed its borders claiming it's on terrorist alert."

She felt her face crumple but kept her chin high.

A last golden opportunity to get at least one of them back… gone again. All because of one psychotic man. Her hands clenched into fists. When it came down to it, Ozai was the only thing standing between her and her children. He was also the very thing they needed protection from.

It was long overdue for that to change.

She didn't allow herself another second of despair, impatiently wiping at her sniffling nose. She pulled out her shades and crammed them over her damp eyes, and then turned on her heel and stalked towards the door.

She called over her shoulder as she passed the bowing man:

"Gather everyone for a full debrief. There's work to be done."

AN: The way I love that you're here, reading my lil fic. Means a lot to me! I'd also always love to hear anything you have to say about it! xxx