Gladiator

by Seyary-Minamoto

In a world where the Avatar wasn't found, the Fire Nation took over two nations and they strive to overcome the last one. Water Tribe warrior Sokka seeks to fight for his people's rights, but he's captured by his enemies. His life is no longer in his hands as he fights as a Gladiator, and his fate will eventually depend on the Fire Nation Princess, who needs him for her own ends...

269. Chapter 269: Hatching plans-Niece Wen 4

Hatching plans/Niece Wen

4

A turtle-duck pond… Rei couldn't help the melancholic sigh that slipped past her lips. Renkai, walking beside her through the Palace's dark corridors, didn't fail to identify something was amiss with the young woman.

"Is something the matter?" the guard asked, systematically. Rei shook her head, though she glanced at him wistfully.

"I… I don't mind seeing these turtle-ducks," she said. "But… do you know of any dragon moose stables?"

"In the Capital? Not personally, but some are bound to exist," he responded, promptly. "I can investigate them for you, if you wish."

"Oh. Thank you," Rei said, grinning. Maybe people in the Palace were scary, all in all… but she had been quite lucky to come across kind ones during her time living among them.

Just as that thought crossed her mind, one other person she'd come across so far, during her time in the Palace, stepped into view. It was that physician… the one Princess Azula was so uncomfortable around. Rei crooked an eyebrow as the man glanced about himself hastily, until his eyes fell upon them: without another moment's hesitation, he rushed towards Renkai.

"Is the midwife already here? Do you know if the meeting has gone well?" he asked. "I… I don't want to interfere, I know the Princess would have my head if I tried, but…"

"Is something wrong?" Renkai asked, frowning under his helmet. "Is the midwife any cause for concern?"

"Well, not really? I hope not, anyway," Fei Rou said, grunting as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his fingertips. "But she's not who I wanted to summon. Lo and Li sent a letter a few days ago, rejecting the offer to serve as the Princess's midwives because they're far too old these days, or so. They sent their niece instead, I didn't even know they had a… uh, wait. You probably don't know Lo and Li to begin with, do you?"

"I… I have heard of them," Renkai said, his voice unusually dry suddenly. Rei raised an eyebrow: Renkai's voice had always been unexpectedly melodious… "You said… they sent their niece?"

"So I've been told. The girl was called, uh… Wei, Wen, Lan, I don't know," Fei Rou said, dismissively. "Either way, do you know if it went well? Or will I have to find another potential midwife for…?"

"I'm afraid we don't know," Renkai said, lowering his head apologetically. "The Princess has sent us on a walk today. We should not tarry."

"Oh, huh. Very busy, I see," Fei Rou said, making no efforts to hide his obvious judgement. "I'll go ask someone else then. Have a nice… walk."

The physician stormed off without another word… though Renkai glanced after him once he was gone. Rei blinked blankly, standing beside him… though she frowned upon noticing the guard's fists trembled at either side of his body.

"Renkai…?" she called, softly. He seemed to return to his senses upon hearing her voice.

"We were… on our way out," he said, grimacing. "Right. I… sorry. It's only… I got distracted."

"Oh, it's okay," Rei smiled. "It happens to me often, too."

Renkai nodded at her gracious words, leading the way outside. The turtle-duck pond waited not too far away, and Rei was immediately taken by the small, fragile-looking creatures. So distracted she was, it would be hours yet before she noticed Renkai's anxiety… before he excused himself, claiming he had to check whether the Princess's lunch had been delivered properly.

By then, Rei watched him leave, perplexed. Would he find lunch for them, too? Or, as she had grown to suspect since they bumped into Fei Rou, was Renkai hiding something she couldn't quite fathom…?

---

The underground tunnels had never seemed longer, or more difficult to traverse, than they did that day. Azula reached the basement successfully and, after rummaging through some of the discarded pieces of furniture, she finally scrounged up a simple enough soldier uniform with its proper helmet. Dressing up in the basement proved awkward, and the armor felt heavier than it should have been… than it would have felt months ago. Her shoulder, as much as it had improved, still wasn't in the best of shapes. Paired with that, her latest sedentary life, mainly comprised of lying down in bed or sitting at the privy or, at most, walking through her room once in a while, had seen to the slow decay of her resistance and physical strength… when she had scarcely regained a minimal amount of them after the incident with the Bloodlust Spear, too.

She tired quickly, dressed in the uncomfortable armor, walking across the complex tunnels that shifted in many ways, forcing her to make considerable efforts to surmount the frequent uphill climbs. She needed breaks often, during which she panted heavily and clung to the walls… her exhaustion, no doubt, was worsened by the latest of her health conditions, too.

"I don't want to blame you for my weaknesses… but maybe you're taking a bigger toll on me than just by making me throw up everything I eat, huh?" Azula said, a hand on her lower belly. "Come on… work with me for a bit, will you? We've made it this far… we have to go the last stretch of the way, for Song's sake. Alright?"

Perhaps she ought to think herself mad for speaking to her unborn child, but the notion of having someone with her, even if someone quite so small, soothed her somehow. She breathed deeply, resting against a wall before restarting the journey through the complicated earthen tunnels that kept arching upwards… the Temple stood tall on a suspended hill past the Palace, after that long flight of stairs. Surely, if she kept going this way, she'd find a trapdoor sooner than later…

Though she frowned upon happening into a dead end first, instead: it was a tall, ornate doorway, meant to be powered by multiple firebenders.

"The Dragonbone Catacombs…?" Azula guessed, before scoffing in disappointment.

She had never quite entered the place, despite knowing of its existence. Under other circumstances she might have been thrilled to trick the door somehow and break into the location, to learn whatever she could about the secret scrolls and texts hidden below ground… today, though, she sought a much more immediate knowledge, pertaining her current circumstances rather than the mysterious deaths of her ancestors.

She returned, choosing another fork down the road: another passage into the Dragonbone Catacombs, blocked just as well. On the third time she backtracked, she finally found a small set of steps that led to a normal trapdoor: she sighed in relief and, after taking another brief break, she stepped up to the trapdoor and opened it only slightly.

It was a courtyard… curses, the courtyard where the feast of her wedding to Zhao had taken place, no less. The mere thought of being there again… she snarled but forced herself to focus anew, scrutinizing her surroundings through her stolen helmet. It seemed there was no one around… no, one sage was brushing dust and dirt off the courtyard. She'd have to wait until he was gone.

Ten minutes later, Azula glanced out again: after a group of younger sages crossed the courtyard and entered the Temple's main building, Azula shoved the trapdoor out of the way and climbed out of the tunnel quickly. The time she'd spent waiting for the area to clear up had allowed her to rest a little more, fortunately. She set the trapdoor in place once again before walking, head held high, across the courtyard and into the Temple's main building.

She still moved cautiously, though with confidence she didn't feel, for the sake of persuading everyone that she was a disciplined soldier with every right to be here, if they even noticed her. She entered the Temple through a side corridor, but instead of marching towards the main halls, she continued to move through the interconnected smaller hallways on her way to the Head Sage's office.

A few sages glimpsed her, and she ignored the one who tried to ask her if she required any help finding her way to the meditative chambers for soldiers. Her fists remained clenched until she finally used one of them to knock on the Head Sage's door, firmly.

She felt the eyes of other sages upon her: they had followed her from a distance, no doubt worried that their leader might be in any sort of trouble. Her low-rank outfit should reassure them: there was no way the Fire Lord would send a regular soldier, alone, to find the Head Sage for any reason. If only the men watching her weren't quick to fright, they might just notice that.

The Head Sage finally opened the door, and his brow furrowed upon seeing a soldier on the other side. His immediate distrust almost made Azula smile.

"Yes? What is it?" he asked. Azula cleared her throat before talking softly.

"May we speak in private?"

The Head Sage's expression changed immediately: he did not expect to hear a female voice speaking through that helmet, let alone for that voice to belong to the Princess. He nodded quickly and stepped away from the door so she might enter the room. Then, he gestured reassuringly at the other sages, conveying he was in no danger from this visitor.

Azula only removed the helmet after the Head Sage had closed and locked the door. He turned quickly towards her, as her hair tumbled out of the helmet, her chest heaving after the gargantuan efforts she'd made not only to keep herself in character thus far, but to pretend she wasn't exhausted, just as well…

"Oh, dear… are you alright?" the Head Sage stepped closer, placing a hand on her forearm. "Do you need anything? Water…?"

"I… yes. That's… a good idea," Azula admitted, nodding as the Head Sage led her, once more, to his office's adjacent sitting room.

He gathered cushions for her to rest on, first, and once Azula had taken her seat, he scrambled off to fill a clean cup with water. He brought the whole jug with him in the end, guessing the Princess might need more than one drink to feel better.

"Are you in trouble?" the Head Sage asked when Azula started draining the cup quickly. "You've found a disguise… do you need anything from me, Princess? Whatever it may be…!"

"I need… answers. You must remember what I asked of you, back when we first met upon my return to the Capital," Azula finally said, setting down the cup – the Head Sage refilled it right away. "Renkai… I need to know if you've been able to gain any information on him, his intentions, anything…"

"Oh? That was it?" the Head Sage asked, handing Azula the cup again. "You could have summoned me to the Palace instead of coming here to…"

"My father's already suspecting our alliance," Azula said, shaking her head. The Head Sage scowled. "He's asked people to spy on me, as you may have imagined… and, in particular, he wants them to pay attention to any interactions you and I might have. He knows there's a connection between us, but… he can't be certain that it's dangerous yet. He may be looking for evidence of our alliance… so he can accuse me of taking advantage of Zhao for my own ends, I suppose…"

"Ironic, if so: you wouldn't have the chance to take advantage of anything or anyone at all if he hadn't forced you into this situation in the first place," the Head Sage snarled, shaking his head. "But he will never acknowledge his own fault and blame in any of his misfortunes, of course not. Then… you meant to come here in disguise to warn me about this, and to ask about Captain Renkai too? Was he the one who was asked to spy on us, by any chance?"

"No, it's… it's someone else," Azula said, unwilling to reveal Song… at least, not for now. "Renkai may be a threat, though, if he truly is attempting to spy on me for Shaofeng, even now. Have you tried to bait him yet into joining any groups to support me, as you said you would? Or…?"

"Well… I have, yes. He hasn't responded yet, though," the Head Sage grimaced. Azula frowned. "I've been in touch with a few people who are fiercely loyal to you, people who are distraught over the strange, unwanted changes in the Fire Nation as of late. There's a whole underground movement now…"

"That's…" Azula gasped, looking at the Head Sage in chagrin, but he raised a hand to ease her concerns.

"They're mainly in grieving, Princess. They miss so much of what has been lost… and they ache to understand why any of it has been lost at all," the Head Sage said. "While some may yet wish to fight back against the Fire Lord, they're also terrified of attempting it. The Domestic Forces had long seemed allies to the Fire Nation people, never had any of us expected that they would be so quick to turn against us if the Fire Lord commanded it…"

"Then… they're not planning on doing anything dangerous? These people…?" Azula asked, nervous. The Head Sage shook his head.

"I've made certain that their leaders know any overt rebellions in your name will only worsen matters. So far, all they want is to ensure that they can have a safe place to express their support for you. Doing so anywhere public is… ill-advised, as of late."

Azula gritted her teeth but nodded. Unsurprising as the information was, it still stung her.

"Regarding Captain Renkai… I've had some people watching him, Princess," the Head Sage admitted, and Azula frowned anew. "It's much harder in the Palace, but he did venture outside several times over the last weeks. It may be he merely meant to trick us, perhaps he could tell he was being followed and watched… or perhaps he's up to something more sinister than what it seems on plain sight."

"What did your spies see?" Azula asked, directly. She hadn't known for sure that the Head Sage had any sort of spy network at his disposal, but it came as no surprise to confirm as much.

"He frequented… marketplaces," the Head Sage said, with a grimace. "Book stores. At one point, one of my spies actually entered the store just to ensure he wasn't collecting information, perhaps, or doing anything nefarious… the books he requested might have been suspicious, though. No man of his standing would require books on learning how to read and write, so perhaps it means something… Princess?"

Azula's expression had changed as the Head Sage's explanation progressed. The man crooked an eyebrow at the chagrin he now identified upon her features.

"Did… did he buy anything other than that?" she asked, softly. The Head Sage shook his head.

"Is this meaningful? If so…"

"It's meaningful simply because… because I asked him to get those books," Azula admitted, almost bashfully. "He took a long time to succeed at it, so I thought perhaps he was doing something murky on the side, but… perhaps he was simply being thorough."

"You asked him to…?" the Head Sage frowned, perplexed. Azula sighed.

"I've been helping someone learn how to read and write. I didn't wish to set out of the Palace myself, I didn't even know if I'd be allowed, to begin with… I'm not even supposed to blow my nose without express permission from my father, so I asked Renkai to do it for me. But… he truly only looked for books? There was never anything else?"

"No… not that my people reported," the Head Sage grimaced. Azula bit her lip before reaching for the cup, still full, that the Head Sage had poured for her moments ago. "You were… testing him, to a fault? If I'm allowed to ask…"

"Somewhat, though I did want those books," Azula clarified, gritting her teeth. "He still hasn't done anything worrisome, not as of late, but… a new factor has come up that may just put us all at risk. If Renkai isn't trustworthy after all, he might reveal to my father a new deceit I've become part of, starting today. If he does… there's no telling what will happen, not to me, to you or to the new ally I've found…"

"A new ally, then? Good," the Head Sage smiled, nodding approvingly. "Whether you intend to fight back or not… it did worry me quite a bit that you'd be in this dreadful situation by your lonesome. I suppose, little by little, things might fall into place?"

"If we're lucky, yes… but the threat Renkai represents would need to be either disproven or done away with, to see to it that they do," Azula said, rubbing her forehead with her fingertips.

"Truthfully, Princess…" the Head Sage stroked his beard gently, brow furrowed anew. "If Captain Renkai is supposed to seek out any movements to support you, he certainly is doing that job quite poorly. Said movements exist, I've seen to it myself… and he has made no efforts to uncover them. He hasn't approached the people who were close to you before all this mess happened, so…"

"Wait… people I'm close to are involved in this?" Azula asked, frowning. "Who, exactly…?"

"It may be for the best, both for their sake and yours, if I don't share their identities," the Head Sage said, grimacing. "Though, suffice to say, some of them knew you personally. I don't know if any of them could have been counted among your closest friends… but they would certainly commit treason against the Fire Lord for your sake if you ever asked it of them. Either way, they're not difficult to track down. Investigating these people would even be a matter of protocol for someone spying on you, I believe… so that Captain Renkai has made no moves to look them up, in the first place, suggests he's either a terrible spy or not looking into this at all. One of my spies even admitted to having dropped an incriminating paper near him, during one of his market outings, hoping that he would read about an upcoming meeting… he ignored it, outright, and continued on his way."

"Which… doesn't entirely confirm anything, does it?" Azula said, softly. "He might just have failed to notice it, or assumed it was none of his business. I suppose he should have paid more attention if he's a spy, but… it's possible that pretending he's not interested in anything about these movements is part of how he attempts to play that role. Avoiding and deflecting everything until we lower our guard, assuming blindly that he can be trusted…"

"And then he'll strike? It's not impossible," the Head Sage said, breathing deeply and shaking his head. "I may, perhaps, attempt to meet with him personally, if you deem it a good idea, or a necessary one…"

"That might just get us into further trouble if he's truly a spy," Azula said, shaking her head, but the Head Sage appeared adamant.

"Then I could simply not meet him myself, perhaps. Offering him a more direct invitation, something a spy would struggle to resist, could be the final test. If he refuses the invitation, even so… then he may just be blatantly refusing to fulfill his duties to spy on you, if he still is expected to do so. And if that's the case… you might at least be able to trust he will remain neutral to you, if nothing else."

"Neutrality isn't enough in this case, I'm afraid," Azula said, grimacing. "Even if he didn't intend to do any further harm, by the time he sees who my new ally is, he'll be duty-bound to take action if he's still loyal to my father and the General of the Guards."

"So… what you require is his absolute, genuine loyalty?" the Head Sage asked, puzzled. Azula sighed in defeat.

"How likely is it that he'd be loyal to me, or that I could possibly buy his loyalty now, when I've never attempted to hide my contempt for him?" Azula said. "I probably shouldn't have come here at all… the more I ponder it, the clearer it becomes that there's no way Renkai would be on our side."

"You're so certain of this… but Princess, you have achieved unthinkable results with countless people so far," the Head Sage said, earnestly. "For starters, I thought you'd be nothing but the Fire Lord's pampered child when he first demanded for you to perform the ceremony…"

"And I did a grand job of proving otherwise, didn't I?" Azula said, with a curt, sarcastic tone. "I stormed out on you on the very first day, hardly listened to anything you'd say…"

"Well… I didn't say anything all that useful that day, did I?" the Head Sage said, with a small smile. "But you didn't simply abandon your duty, you sought a way to fulfill it. You found answers… and when you showed them to me for the first time, I knew I was witnessing something extraordinary. So many others must have felt that way too, Princess… goodness, forgive me for saying so, but weren't you the one who turned your gladiator into a slave, personally?"

Azula flinched at the last question, tensing up immediately. One of the worst decisions of her life, or one of the best: whichever it had been, it definitely stung to remember it… and to remember every sorrowful day and night she'd inflicted upon Sokka, unknowingly, uncaringly, back then.

"Yet… by the time I first met him, yours was a unique bond, so powerful you could even bend indirectly, together," the Head Sage continued. "Everything he did to help you, as many times as he did… he was the true embodiment of everything a gladiator was expected to be. Loyal beyond reason, representing his sponsor on every battlefield, proud of serving you, standing in anguish and agony as he waited to know whether you'd live or die, sitting by your bedside every day in hopes to see you recover from your wounds… if he could grow to love you as much as he did, should you give up so readily on the challenge of eliciting such loyalty from others?"

"Well, as you may have already noticed, he wasn't… he wasn't like anyone else," Azula said: pushing the words through her choked throat proved quite difficult. Curses, she'd already wept enough for one day, hadn't she? It was enough, and yet the damn tears sprang in her eyes all the same… "Maybe I did persuade others to trust me, to a fault… maybe I could earn the loyalty of some just with my feats and choices, but if that's the case, wouldn't my latest choices result in the exact opposite outcome? My father has made it starkly clear that I'm a disgrace these days. Who would want to defend someone who's earned the Fire Lord's scorn to the extent that I have…?"

"Someone who recognizes an injustice when it's inflicted upon another," the Head Sage said, immediately. "Someone who, upon seeing you when you shone at your brightest, realized there was another path the Fire Nation could take. A new path, away from that which your forefathers had chosen so far. Not everyone would immediately know this is the right choice, it's true… but as soon as I saw your potential, I found myself questioning countless things I'd never allowed myself to question before. I cannot say for certain this has happened to Captain Renkai as well… it might not have, not yet. But I wouldn't be surprised, not entirely, if it did."

Azula swallowed hard, uncertain of what to make of the Head Sage's words so far. Deep down, she knew he was right: other people who had every right and reason to despise her had changed their minds about her, it wasn't only Sokka. Aonu, for one, came to mind… Rui Shi himself, for all his warnings and his obfuscation with her persistent ways of making his life more difficult. Even Song, someone who had been kind and helpful throughout all those years, no matter if Azula had taken her efforts and hard work for granted, initially. Hell, even her brother… he had hugged her of his own volition when they last met, he had spoken to her throughout that night at the tavern in Whaletail Island, he had seemed to want her to do better in life, no matter if their relationship had been contentious and chaotic for as long as she could remember. How many people had changed their minds about her? How many had chosen to give her a chance, and she, somehow, hadn't disappointed them?

Wouldn't they be disappointed to see her as she was now, though?

She gritted her teeth, releasing slow breaths as the Head Sage, as well, sighed.

"It's something to think about, at least," he said, though his tone certainly sounded defeated.

"What do you propose, though?" Azula asked, uncertain. "That I… give it more time? That I wait until Renkai does or says something that clears up which side he's on? Unfortunately… I don't have the luxury of time. That's why I came here in such a rush."

"I understand…" the Head Sage said, biting his lip. "Unfortunately, I can't give you a more definitive answer yet. Perhaps you could attempt, as best you can, to keep this new ally away from him until you know for sure that he can be trusted? Or disguise them…"

"We've thought of that, but… I'm not quite sure how to alter someone's features beyond recognition," Azula confessed. "I thought of make-up, but it's not a guaranteed success."

"I can't say I have much experience in altering someone's physical appearance this way," the Head Sage admitted, with a grimace. "But I suppose wearing a mask at all times wouldn't be all that suitable… well, not unless your new ally is another soldier?"

"No, it's not a soldier," Azula shook her head. The Head Sage sighed.

"If so, I'm afraid we may need to take quicker action to determine where Captain Renkai's loyalty lies," he said. "I may be able to contact him through a spy of my own tonight. Do you expect that will be quick enough?"

"I hope so," Azula said, raising her eyes to meet the Head Sage's.

"Keep your new friend hidden for the rest of the day, and night, if you can afford to," the Head Sage said, softly. "I understand it may be challenging… but if I can persuade Captain Renkai to come to us, I may be able to learn the truth about him at last. You needn't handle this yourself, not when you already have enough of a challenging situation to deal with, what with the child… would you like another chi reading, perhaps?"

"Well… I won't reject the offer. Better to know if everything's flowing the right way so far," Azula admitted. She hadn't sensed any sudden changes in her body recently – if anything, Song's reappearance had relieved her heart so much that it felt as though half of her anxiety regarding how she'd face the ordeal of pregnancy was gone.

"Then we'll get to it once you're ready," the Head Sage offered, with a kind smile. "Was that enough water yet?"

Azula reached for the jug once more as a response: after a third cup, she waited briefly before lying down on the cushions the Head Sage provided: the man could read her chi regardless of how thick the armor might be, so Azula simply relaxed and waited for his verdict: when she heard a soft chuckle and opened her eyes, the old man greeted her with a smile.

"The child is growing," he said. Her heart somersaulted in her chest upon hearing those words. "Of course, it's still quite small… but it's growing at a good rate, I believe. Your chi paths are channeling energy properly towards it."

"Have I…?" Azula asked, softly. The Sage's smile faded quickly, an unequivocal bad sign that saw her stopping on her tracks even before posing her question. "Never mind."

"If… if you've regenerated any chi lately, it has been at a slow rate, I'm afraid. Too slow for me to detect it," he said.

"No need to be so distraught about it… at least I'm not getting any worse," Azula said, releasing a breath before sitting up again. "Thank you for the reading, and for the water. For seeing me, too… and more than anything, for being so willing to help me with Renkai."

"You're sure you wish to leave right away?" the Head Sage asked, eyeing her with concern. "If you haven't recovered your energies fully just yet…"

"I can't leave my new ally alone for a whole afternoon. I'd do best to stay close and ensure Renkai won't do anything he shouldn't," Azula said. She offered the Head Sage an apologetic grimace before picking up the helmet she'd removed earlier. "Please… be careful. If you do this…"

"You needn't worry. I've taken care of myself for years, I'll be fine tonight as well," the Head Sage said, smiling confidently at her. "Be careful on your way back… and the best of luck protecting all your secrets, Princess."

"I certainly will need it," Azula sighed, nodding in his direction before setting the helmet in place. "Good luck to you as well. Thank you… and goodbye."

The Head Sage smiled kindly as he made for the door. He unlocked it quickly, glancing outside to confirm the corridor was empty. Azula stepped through the room's threshold and the man bowed his head in her direction.

"Farewell," he spoke, softly. Azula appreciated that he wouldn't speak her name or title aloud, even if it seemed the corridor was empty. Lurkers and spies, of all varieties and allegiances, could be hiding anywhere.

Azula marched carefully back to the trapdoor: she waited a few moments after confirming no one was around before rushing to the tunnels' entrance, pouring orange fire into the trapdoor's device quickly. She moved as smoothly as possible as she climbed in, setting the trapdoor back in place afterwards, and then she sat on the steps that led out of the tunnel, releasing an anxious breath. Now it was just a matter of returning to Song, as fast as her feet might carry her… though, yet again, she knew her body wasn't in the best of shapes for rushing through the tunnels. She continued to breathe heavily, patting her lower belly gently once more:

"Go easy on me now, alright? Should be faster if we're going down rather than up…" she said with a grim, dishonest smile. "I can assure you, it's much easier to fall than to rise. A lesson for you to keep in mind for the future, once you're old enough to grasp it."

Again, her conscience chided her for talking to herself, to a child who couldn't hear or understand her yet. Just so, her heart seemed placid, calmer for it: allowing herself a more honest smile at the unusual smidge of peace she felt now, upon attempting to communicate with her child, Azula took a step forward, deeper into the darkness of the tunnels, on her way back home.

---

News of Sokka's plans spread like wildfire across the Water Tribe: reactions rained on him the minute he stepped out of his family's igloo, a few hours after the meeting had ended. Some of the older warriors congratulated him, encouraging him to do his best: just so, the older women in the Tribe had groaned and whimpered, begging him to take good care of himself, despite complaining persistently about the stubbornness of their warriors, who couldn't seem to stay put and stop fighting wars and battles. Then, there were mixed opinions just as well: while Yuro seemed to understand Sokka's need to travel with a small group, content to stay behind with his wife, Kattan and Hakka couldn't have been more outraged by the notion of remaining in the Water Tribe, even if Sokka impressed upon them that they needed to protect and defend their people as fiercely as possible. Their initial enthusiasm about Sokka's new venture receded quickly upon realizing they wouldn't be joining him. They still seemed willing to encourage Sokka to fight the Fire Lord, but they remained adamant about standing beside him once he did.

Before leaving the igloo, Sokka worked with his father, Kino, Katara, Aang and the other warriors to craft the seemingly perfect letter to send the Fire Lord, reassuring him of his demise just as it had been commanded. To strengthen the deceit, Hakoda picked out an old knife of his, cracked and dented, intended to be strapped on the messenger hawk's container. It reassured Sokka in one regard that had been, so far, the only thorn that stuck out in this particular plan: if Ozai dared reveal the contents of the letter to Azula, she would be able to take one look at that knife and realize it wasn't his. That is, if Ozai would bother revealing anything to his daughter, to begin with… after the massive rift that had surged between the two of them, Sokka could only hope that Ozai's willingness to shove his daughter away would also mean he wouldn't convey any news to Azula about Sokka's presumed fate.

Katara and Aang took off to find the seal they needed to finish the letter and to work on the walls again, rebuilding and strengthening some of them. They would work hard to rebuild the fallen chunks of the ice cliffs as well: it seemed to Sokka that he hadn't seen the pair in such good moods ever since he had woken up in the South Pole.

It came as no surprise that Zuko wouldn't show up again for hours… though whatever the firebender's final choice might be, Sokka had no intentions to wait for him forever. The opening the letter offered them would be brief, no matter if Ozai swallowed their deceit wholly: it was entirely possible that the forces stationed in Whaletail Island would one day attempt to contact the invading fleet, just for communications' sake, going by how the Fire Nation's armed forces worked. But if Sokka managed to catch the Fire Lord's attention before this could happen, he might just compel the bastard to focus and commit his forces elsewhere, leaving the Tribe alone.

Ultimately, Zuko could stay in the Tribe to help ensure its protection. The Avatar, as far as Sokka could tell, would suffice as a strong figure to stand by him once they found the White Lotus: with Aang as his ally, neither Jeong Jeong nor Iroh would dare make any serious or dangerous moves against him, or so Sokka hoped. Zuko could help matters, for sure… but as much as Sokka didn't appreciate the firebender's attempts to dissuade him from taking off on this journey, he also couldn't blame him for wanting to stay. The Tribe was a safe place with kind people, forgiving and helpful. They had given Zuko a chance to build a home and he hadn't known stability like it since his early childhood. He had a wife he loved wholeheartedly, daughters he wanted to watch grow up at every stage of their lives… taking off to fight in the war and turning away from the three girls in his life was as good as a nightmare to Zuko. He certainly had to think he had it all right now, and Sokka couldn't blame him for that: if their roles were reversed, and it were Zuko intending to fight the war while Sokka had the chance to stay home with Azula, he knew it would take a lot of persuasion for him to join the firebender in this grand venture. Not that he thought Zuko would be particularly keen on having Sokka joining him anyway, if such a situation had arisen…

But ultimately, there was no point in dwelling on imagined scenarios: this was their reality and it was Sokka who meant to bring hell to Ozai, not Zuko. If he chose to sit this out, Sokka wouldn't judge him for it.

The Gladiator sat quietly at the burning central fireplace of the Tribe, waiting for Aang and Katara to return with the seal they'd set out to find: after the letter was properly signed, the Avatar would see to the messenger hawk's safe flight. He would take him on Appa's back further north, enough that the frigid weather would ease up and the hawk would have a chance to fly more easily. Sokka waited quite impatiently for their return, talking with anyone who stopped by to ask him questions, to wish him luck or to beg him to let them join him in his next journey: he had been alone for a mere five minutes when a familiar happy, childish gasp reached his ears.

"Uncle Sokka!"

He turned quickly, already smiling at the eager Mari, rushing happily across the snow in his direction. Her mother followed, carrying Zi in her arms…

Zuko wasn't with them.

Sokka frowned at that realization: Zuko surely hadn't gone hunting after their meeting, had he? Maybe, though, he'd had a spat with Suki… the unusually somber expression on the young mother's face only convinced Sokka further of that second possibility.

"Hey there, Mari," Sokka forced himself to smile still, as the girl stopped right next to him. "Should I make a guess as to what you're about to ask of me…?"

"Storytime?" she said, wasting no time as she offered Sokka the broadest grin she could muster. He chuckled, reaching out to mess the child's hair.

"You're something else, you know?" he said, glancing back at Suki now that she'd finally reached him. "And here's Zi, too. Want me to watch them for a bit, or…?"

"No, I… I'd actually like to talk to you this time," Suki said, a downcast frown on her face. She glanced at Mari next, offering her a weak smile. "Want to build a snowman with your sister?"

Mari gaped at her mother for a moment before nodding: Suki walked with her girls towards the nearest cluster of snow, and after setting down Zi on Mari's lap, she returned to where Sokka sat, merely a few paces away. His apprehensive expression didn't fade as she took her seat beside him, still clearly distraught as her eyes fell upon her children: Zi, small as she still was, couldn't sit up properly alone, so she languished against her sister's larger frame, watching as Mari molded the snow with her gloved hands.

"I'd ask if everything's okay, but I can tell it's not," Sokka said, glancing at Suki warily. "If you're going to tell me you guys aren't coming with us, it's okay. I'm sure we can…"

"Not quite," Suki cut him off, sharply. Sokka swallowed hard but kept his silence, guessing it was better if he didn't jump to conclusions. "Zuko, as you could tell, isn't particularly big on this plan of yours. He thinks it's reckless and crazy, and that you'll get yourselves killed by the White Lotus or the Fire Nation… maybe a bit of both."

"Very confident of him, yep," Sokka said, with a grimace. "I can't say I expected him to give us more credit than that."

"He didn't expect me to disagree, though," Suki said. Sokka raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "And he certainly didn't expect me to say that, if he chose not to go, I would be the one to join you guys."

Sokka's jaw dropped, as no possible responses sprung to mind at Suki's sudden statement. Well, now he understood why Zuko wasn't here, if she'd truly said that. He might just have frozen in his igloo, much as Sokka was, if surely a thousand times more mortified…

"Y-you… are you sure about that, Suki?" Sokka finally asked, eyes wide. "I mean…"

Well, he had only just been thinking about what might have happened, if their roles had been reversed: he had a hard time imagining Azula choosing to sit back, waiting for Sokka to accompany Zuko on a journey of this sort while she did nothing. It made perfect sense that Suki would have reacted this way, too.

"I have my daughters to think about?" Suki filled in, not knowing Sokka's thoughts hadn't been anywhere close to those lines just then. "They're Zuko's daughters just as well. You'd know even better than I do that a father can raise children on his own… not to say that I'd intend to leave him alone to look after Mari and Zi forever, of course. But…"

"But you think you should come with us anyway?" Sokka asked, uncertain. "I… I get it if you feel that way, Suki. You've been through lots of hardships caused by the Fire Nation, and if you want to fight back to avenge yourself, so to speak, well…"

"You'd think it's fine? You wouldn't claim it's ridiculous, or madness?" Suki asked, raising her eyebrows.

"To be honest… anyone who's been through hell because of the Fire Nation has every right to fight back if they want to do that," Sokka said, eyeing her mournfully. "If you truly wish to do it, I won't get in your way. I didn't expect this, is all… to be honest, I was bracing myself for the possibility that neither you nor Zuko would come. You two have a family and if you wanted to protect it instead of rushing out to fight wars, I'd understand entirely."

"Well… good to know. Because we do feel that way," Suki said, leaning forward, her forearms over her knees. "I believe I have a right to fight against the Fire Nation, for all they took from us and all they'll try to take if we don't put a stop to them now. What the Fire Lord has done to you and Azula is unforgivable. If you're confident you can pull off your plan and fight back somehow, reach her once again and save her from his clutches, then I'm absolutely not going to hold you back. Just so… until you came back here, I thought my fighting days were over. As much as life here is difficult often, dangerous in thousands of ways, I was at peace with my family right here. Zuko and I had a rhythm, and he's thrived in this peace, in this stability. He spent all his life trying to be a great prince, someone worthy of the respect no one ever granted him… never realizing they were fools for not understanding his worth. He forced himself to be someone he wasn't, to the point where he had no idea who he truly was anymore… and I feel he's found himself, as well as true peace and happiness, right here. That he doesn't want to sacrifice those things… well, I hope you don't think it makes him a coward."

"I would never think something like that," Sokka whispered. He scoffed, shaking his head as his eyes drifted into the low fire. "I… didn't share much about the time I spent alone with Azula, in Shu Jing, did I?"

"Well… no, not really," Suki said, somewhat apprehensive now.

"It was… the best week of my life," Sokka said, his chest aching as he recalled the blissful memories that brought tears to his eyes. "Every pressure was gone. Every shadow that might have hung over either of us… they were out of the way, entirely. We were freer to be ourselves than we ever had been, and it was… it was a dream come true. We even talked about not going back to the Capital at all, that we'd stay in Shu Jing, living perfectly careless lives without anything to burden us. No war, no slavery, no Gladiator League, no Fire Lord… just us, spending our lives together. So… if that's what you and Zuko have felt like, for all these years, trust me when I say I can't judge either of you for not wanting to let it go. I was tempted to set aside all my ambitions for the future, all my hope to set this world on the right path, just to be with the one I loved for the rest of our days. If that's what Zuko is choosing… then I'm definitely not going to get in his way."

"That's good to know," Suki said, watching Sokka with a mix of compassion and uncertainty. "But as much as that's quite close to how we've felt… well, other than because we're constantly freezing here, that finding food in the Fire Nation is much easier, and that you guys probably didn't have to prove yourselves trustworthy to a whole community of strangers who were ready to kill us if they decided we weren't worthwhile after all…"

"Yeah, you guys definitely must have had it worse," Sokka grimaced. Suki let out a humorless laugh.

"We did. And the truth is, I love it here, but I love it despite all those dreadful, difficult factors," Suki said, earnestly. "Blizzards terrify me, at this point. I miss the sunlight constantly during dark periods. I'd forgotten what it meant to be a fighter too, until we started preparing for this battle. What I mean is… our family could thrive anywhere else too. Zuko and I… we could build a home someplace else. We intended to, at first, but things turned out the way they did. It may have been for the better, all in all… but it doesn't have to be forever. My daughters… I want them to see Kyoshi Island one day. I want them to grow up in a world where the Fire Nation is no longer the proud symbol of the very worst things in this world. I want my children to never fear their bending, to find places where they can belong, and for them to live their lives as freely as possible. But those things will only happen if you succeed and win this war."

Sokka gritted his teeth. When she put it that way, the mission before him did appear overwhelmingly large. If he succeeded, if he broke Fire Lord Ozai's hold on the world… if he pulled that off, countless lives would change forever, for the better. He wasn't fighting solely to prove he wouldn't be daunted, to avenge himself and Azula, to set her free… but for every victim to the Fire Nation's cruelty. For everyone who wanted and deserved better lots in life than they'd been given. For those who couldn't fight any longer, whether because they had been broken or killed in the process… for those who needed someone else to step in and liberate them from the chains of enslavement and dishonor the Fire Lord wielded upon them all.

"So… all this is why you want to come along, too?" Sokka said, gritting his teeth. "Zuko mustn't have taken it well."

"He tried to… well, to reason with me, if that's the right word for it," Suki said, skeptical. "And I, of course, tried to reason with him, too. Ultimately, none of us are truly free to do whatever we want, to be wherever we might want to be: if the Fire Lord goes all out to destroy the Tribe one day, it'll be the end. Zuko knows this. He wanted to find his own path, yes… but that doesn't mean he never wanted to return home. Basically, he hoped to return to the Fire Nation once his father was gone… but if a chance to put a stop to the Fire Lord has presented itself, how could any of us waste it?"

"Well… the fear of failure, I guess, is the main reason why someone might waste it," Sokka commented. "If this went wrong, Suki… not that I plan on allowing it to go wrong, but still, if something gets past me, if someone on the other side outmaneuvers us, it'll be the end. If you come with us, and we make even the smallest mistake, whether with the White Lotus or the Fire Nation…"

"My daughters might have to grow up without a mother?" Suki finished. Sokka sighed and shrugged.

"Or without a father, if Zuko somehow chose to come instead," Sokka said. Suki gritted her teeth, running her hands over her hair.

"He… he probably will, you know? Just… just to make sure I stay safe. Just to make sure Mari and Zi won't grow up without me," Suki whispered. Sokka tensed up. "I… I don't know, it's probably easier being the one jumping into the fray because you have more control over what's happening. Waiting, far away, with next to no chances of learning what's going on… it sounds like a nightmare. Maybe part of the reason why I wanted to go myself was so I wouldn't have to wake up every day wondering if Zuko… if Zuko's still alive."

Sokka grimaced but nodded. It was, after all, an acute fear of his own as well. To this moment, he wouldn't put it past Ozai to attempt to kill his own daughter in a fit of rage…

"So, I would rather not stay here, waiting forever… yet I know he'll be able to do much more than I can, if he goes with you," Suki said. Sokka scowled.

"You shouldn't sell yourself short…"

"He's the Fire Lord's exiled son. He has a claim to the throne, no matter how much his father may hate him," Suki said. "If you're right to say the White Lotus want Zuko because of his position as possible heir… then he has much more to offer in gaining that alliance than I would. I'm but a washed-up gladiator who has done nothing for them for the past four years…"

"You did a lot for them before that, though," Sokka pointed out. Suki simply shrugged.

"Probably not enough that they'd trust me blindly. Certainly not enough that whatever trust they might feel towards me would be more important than the political advantages Zuko would provide. Deep down, I… I wonder if he needs this more than he realizes he does. True closure with his family, with his father, to a fault. Yet… I can't pretend I'm comfortable, or eased, by sending him into a beast's den without standing by his side through it all. Whichever of us dares go, one of us will have to stay… and I guess it makes more sense for me to stay and help rally the troops in the Tribe, in case another attack happens. The women… they fought bravely, but they were terrified. Most the mistakes they made were caused by their fear. They weren't ready for that sort of fierce fight just yet… but if I stay and train them further, they might be, one day."

"Then… you're saying you want to go with us, but you think your place is here?" Sokka asked, puzzled. Suki shrugged.

"I don't know… not for sure, not until Zuko decides what he'd rather do," Suki said. "I've told him to choose. But… either way, we'll have to be apart for some time. It's… it's going to be hard, even if it's the right thing to do for the sake of ending this war."

"You're seriously strong if you're willing to do this, to endure this separation, for the sake of the world," Sokka said, with a sigh. "Much stronger than I feel, most days. Might be we'd be better off taking you, you'll probably tear through the Fire Nation's forces in a heartbeat if you keep that up."

"Unlikely, but if I really could, I would," Suki smiled weakly. "Ultimately, though, Sokka… I wanted you to know that either me or Zuko will join you. But if it's Zuko… I want you to promise me you'll do everything you can to ensure he'll come back home safely to his daughters… to me."

Sokka's eyes widened. This conversation with Suki had taken more confusing turns than he'd expected… yet none of them were genuinely disagreeable. As things stood, he had no intentions of letting any of his friends die in battle… though he frowned soon enough, upon realizing he wasn't the only one Suki ought to request this vow from.

"Are you planning on asking this of Aang, Katara and Kino too?" he said. "I mean, it might be better if you ask us all, not just me…"

"Right, you'll be very busy pissing off the Fire Lord, they might have a better chance at keeping Zuko safe than you will," Suki said, with a sarcastic smile. "They're not nearby right now, so I figured I'd ask you first… but yeah, I intend to ask the rest of them, too."

"Then… are you sure Zuko's going to choose to come with us?" Sokka asked, compassionately. "I know better than anyone how hard it is to say goodbye to your soulmate, so if you two really have it in you to do this… well, you're both admirable for it, for sure. I'll owe you a lot…"

"Come to think of it… no, you won't owe us anything," Suki said, curtly. Sokka raised an eyebrow. "You and Azula saved my life in the Fire Nation. She may have saved Zuko too, to an extent, by procuring his ship for him when he was exiled. Then, she saved this whole Tribe from facing worse consequences to those nightmarish blizzards last year. And by coming back here, and helping us rally our forces to prepare for the Fire Nation's assault, you saved us all, yet again: how on earth could either of you possibly be indebted to us? If anything… as far as debts are concerned, the whole world owes you two a massive one. I think this is the best way for you to collect it, if I may say so."

Suki's blunt response shouldn't have surprised Sokka, but it did. Before he knew it, he smiled to himself upon thinking of how many people he and Azula had affected with their actions and choices… how much of the world they might have changed without their awareness. They had acted impulsively often, assuming most their decisions to help others would go unrewarded… not caring for rewards, either. Even in the early days of their partnership, Azula had used the favors owed by Ty Lee and her brother for missions that, all in all, hadn't benefited her half as much as what she'd done for either her friend or Zuko. One day she'd have the chance to see that her good choices, the lives she'd saved, had circled back to help her in unexpected ways.

"Then… I guess all I can say is thanks," Sokka whispered, with a small smile. "And I'll promise that, whether it's you or him… I'll do my damnedest to bring you back to each other and your two daughters. I promise."

"Good, then. That's what I needed to hear," Suki said, smiling a little as well.

Mari's work with the snowman hadn't progressed all too well just yet. The snow was stuffy, uneven and falling apart easily, more so because her sister sat between her and her materials. Still, Mari continued to work without making any attempts to shake off Zi… though she certainly was grateful once her mother approached them again, offering to help Mari and to take her little sister off her lap for a moment. Together, they managed to craft a small snowman, merely a couple of inches shorter than Mari herself.

Sokka watched them quietly, knowing in his heart those two girls would suffer acutely over the absence of either of their parents. He knew it wasn't, completely, his fault… he hadn't pressured either of them to come, and he had conveyed as much to the two of them, both during the meeting and now, to Suki… but he should have anticipated that either one would join the battle they intended to take to Ozai. Yet… he had expected it to be Zuko rather than Suki. After everything Zuko had suffered at Ozai's hand, and after he had expressed sorrow over his sister's fate, Sokka had assumed Zuko might feel a righteous pull to be part of this initiative, to take revenge and put a stop to his father. Yet, if Sokka had been given a chance to stay in Shu Jing with Azula, if he had known the perils and horrors they would face merely a few months later, wouldn't he have chosen to stay there with her, protecting her forever and basking in their love for good? Without a doubt… he would have. He had been tempted to stay even without knowing the nightmares that would strike at them months after that glorious week… if he could have shielded Azula from all the pain she had experienced that way, he would have done so without a second thought.

Once the snowman was done, Mari rushed towards Sokka, begging him for another story. Sokka smiled and complied, trying not to show his apprehension, his wariness, upon wondering if he'd run out of time to tell stories before running out of stories, altogether…

About half an hour into recounting the adventures to find dragons' caverns, Zuko reappeared. Sokka slowed down in his tale as Zuko approached from the direction of their house, a somber expression on his face. He nodded respectfully towards Sokka, however… before wading through the crowd that ever formed around Sokka's storytelling sessions and reaching for his wife's shoulder.

"Zuko…" Suki glanced at him warily, but the exiled Prince shook his head, urging her to come with him wordlessly.

Suki sighed, pressing a quick kiss to Mari's head before rising to her feet. Her daughter watched with uncertainty, though her mother smiled warmly at her apprehension as she handed Zi to Sokka delicately.

"Stay with Uncle Sokka and your sister just for a little while, okay, Mari? We'll be back for you both very soon," she said. Mari nodded diligently, and with that, she focused on Sokka again.

"A cave?" she chirped. "Wentai doesn't like caves!"

"Oh, no, he sure doesn't…" Sokka sighed dramatically, returning to the storytelling as quickly and smoothly as Mari had.

Suki allowed herself one more smile at her daughter's enthusiasm before stepping through the crowd, following Zuko back to their igloo. Suki reached for his hand as they walked, and she took it as a good sign that he didn't jerk his hand away upon the first brush of their fingers. Mere steps away from their igloo, his hand tightened gently around hers.

Still, he said nothing, not until they reentered their house and closed the door safely behind them once again. For the second time on that day, they stood together, alone – besides Gruff, that was – in the home they had built through their best efforts across the years of their marriage.

"You… haven't changed your mind, have you?" Zuko asked, frowning. Suki sighed, shaking her head. "You told him yet?"

"That one of us is going with them? I did," Suki said, and a rush of nervousness caused her to shudder where she stood. "He… he thinks we both could stay. That it might be better for Mari and Zi, and who knows? Maybe he's right… but I know I can't stay here and push the weight of the world on their shoulders while I do nothing."

Zuko's fists tightened at her words. His lips trembled too, once he posed his next question.

"And won't you feel that way too, if I go instead of you?" he said, stepping closer towards her. "Will it be enough for you if I join them and help them take down my father?"

"It… it might be," Suki said, guiltily. "Simply because… if I can't leave the girls with you, then I can't leave them at all. If you go, then… I have to stay. And if I go, you'd have to stay. We can't be quite so mad as to bring our daughters to a battlefield of any sort, and we can't be so self-involved as to leave all this to our friends, without making a single move to help them. Zuko…"

"I just… I don't want to go. You know I don't want to," Zuko said, looking at her desperately. Suki nodded.

"Then I will…"

"And I don't want that either!"

"Oh, Zuko, can you please…?"

"Suki: you and the girls are my whole life at this point. You have been for years," he said, urgently, with the same passion he impressed unto everything he ever did. Suki fell silent immediately, choosing to let her husband finish… and to counter him afterwards, if his intervention warranted it. "The idea of leaving with them… it means not seeing you, or them, for years, maybe. It means being torn from my true family for longer than I'll likely be able to bear. And if you go, it'll be the same thing: you are essential here, with Mari and Zi, with me. It's the four of us… nothing in my life has ever been as right as our family, as what I feel when the four of us are together. You understand that, don't you?"

"I do. I understand completely," Suki said, earnestly. "And you understand that the last thing I want to do is… is break us apart? If it were up to me, I wouldn't go a single day in my life without you, Zuko. If this could be done while bringing our daughters along, then the decision would be so simple we would already be packing our bags. But… being part of this, joining this fray, feels like the right thing to do. For the world… for your family, too, the one you're estranged from, the one that caused you no end of sorrow before. You know your father is inflicting as much pain upon your sister, if not more of it, as he did upon you: can you truly sit back and just hope Sokka will fix everything alone? I know he's a talented leader and an incredible fighter, Zuko… but if that weren't enough, and you could make up the difference, wouldn't you want to be there?"

"I…" Zuko gritted his teeth, tightening his fists. "I can't say I feel half as important as that, even if I know I am, objectively. But… to those White Lotus people, won't I just be a pawn, means to an end, a new Fire Lord to impose upon the Fire Nation once my father falls? Won't they try to use me for that purpose, when… when I've seriously given up all thoughts and even hopes of becoming Fire Lord? The mere idea right now is…"

"It's madness, Zuko, I know it must feel that way," Suki sighed, stepping close enough to cup his face in her hands. "It's not the lives we've led lately. But… you are a trueborn heir to the throne, aren't you?"

"So is she," Zuko said, softly.

"Right… but what if she can't take the throne anymore, after all this?" Suki asked. Zuko's brow furrowed. "What if… if the Fire Lord does something awful to prevent her from ever succeeding him? Whether… w-whether injuring her even more than he did you, or…"

"Or forcing her into an unwanted marriage?" Zuko said, scowling. "Her husband would be the Crown Prince by then…"

"Can you be sure he won't do anything like that to her?" Suki said, desperate. "If he does… wouldn't it make sense for the Fire Nation's leadership to fall to you? I mean… the way Sokka talks, it sounds like he and her wanted exactly what we've had, Zuko. I don't even know if… if Azula would so much as protest if you stepped forward to become Fire Lord once your father is out of the way. Not that I know her very well, but… I do know what it's like to be broken. I do know what it's like to lose everything. I've spent all these years recovering from that nightmare and the only reason why I've been able to pull through is because I was free from all the horrors, because I no longer needed to live in that world, I never fought as a gladiator again, I even took off with you and I haven't set foot in the Fire Nation ever since. Azula may be stronger than me, but…"

"No one could be," Zuko said, pressing his brow to Suki's. She swallowed hard, her throat choked up.

"All I'm saying is… being Fire Lord is no reward. It's no child's play. It's a responsibility, a duty, a heavy burden… one that not every prince or princess may be able to handle. I don't know for sure whether you or Azula would be better suited for the job… but I know, Zuko, that you could do it. You've raised this family, you've protected it, you've solved problems that plagued the Tribe altogether… yet you've lost all sight of your achievements, of everything good you've done, because all your focus on is me, Mari and Zi. But the truth is, Zuko… that you, as you are, are worthy of that throne, of that crown. If anything, I'd say the throne and crown might be the ones who aren't all that worthy of you, all things considered…"

"Then… is this why you think I should do this? Because I might need to be Fire Lord if we defeat my father?" Zuko asked, softly. "Because it might even be better for Azula not to be the one to succeed our father, after everything she's suffered at his hands? Suki…"

"I don't know anything for sure, but… yes, Zuko, I think this is possible. I know it wouldn't be easy… but you're a good man, Zuko, the very best of them," Suki said, brushing some of his hair out of his face before kissing his lips promptly. "And that's why I know that, if the reins of that nation were to fall to you, you'd do what's right. You'd make the choices that matter, and if those choices aren't what the White Lotus wants, they can fuck off just as well. Ultimately… I believe in you, Zuko. If it comes down to it, I know you could do this. But the only way you'll ever have the chance to try is… is if you go with them and fight by their side."

Zuko gritted his teeth, wrapping his arms tightly around Suki. Deep down he only wanted to stay with his family… but he did see the sense in trying to fight back, the way Suki had framed it. Reclaiming his birthright… it wasn't truly a priority, not as much as it once might have been. But the idea of giving his daughters the worthiest lives, under the glory of a new, changed Fire Nation, no longer guided by hatred but by kindness and peace… it certainly felt like a future to strive for. It might not come to pass, perhaps Azula wouldn't be impeded from becoming Fire Lord and, if that was the case, she'd likely take the throne instead… but if that didn't happen, if she wasn't up for it, it'd fall to him to become Fire Lord.

As he held Suki in his arms, his chest burning with love for her and their small family, he knew that, however complicated the reality of it might be, marching out to war to ensure a better Fire Lord sat on that throne, whether himself or his sister, was a worthy purpose.

It was no done deal, no certainty, and Zuko certainly wouldn't make a fuss if his birthright, which he had discarded enough times by now, was taken from him again. Yet… Sokka might even decide to ditch Zuko halfway through their trip in a fit of outrage if he thought Zuko's only motivation to join their group was to steal a throne that, as far as Zuko could tell, Sokka believed was rightfully Azula's. Beyond that potential conflict for the throne and crown, though… Zuko wanted to do right by his sister. It was his turn to help her after the countless times she'd helped him… and perhaps Suki was right to say that the burden of ruling a nation shouldn't fall on the shoulders of someone who might feel broken beyond compare after all the struggles she had faced.

Long ago, he had treated the throne, and the position of Fire Lord, as a privilege he was entitled to claim once he was old enough, after his father had died or abdicated. He had thought it would be the best way to prove himself… to earn the respect he had long been denied. Upon reaching the Water Tribe he had known the hard life of a common man, he had understood their struggles and built a home for his family with his own strength. He had defended the Tribe as fiercely as though he had been born to it… and he would do it again, a thousand times, if he needed to.

One way to defend it was by fighting back against the tides of war. Another was by turning them into tides of peace, instead. Perhaps the latter was what Azula had intended, all along… and now she was powerless to make it so. But if Zuko tried… if the White Lotus worked with them, if it stood with them, Zuko might be able to usher new change, breathe new life into the Fire Nation after so many generations of stale and rabid Fire Lords had wringed it into a husk of the greatness they claimed to preserve.

But all of that meant he'd have to go… he'd have to go, and Suki would have to stay.

He swallowed hard, tightening his grip around her all the more, burying his face in her neck, breathing her in and feeling her every heartbeat against his chest. He didn't want to do this… but he had meant to tell Suki he'd go, anyway. She had seen more than enough destruction, lived through hardships no one should have ever faced. From the moment she had dropped that ultimatum on him, the only answer forward had been clear…

"You'll… y-you'll take care of Mari and Zi, and yourself," Zuko said, his voice marred by the tears he didn't want to shed. "You'll… you'll ask Hakoda to give you a hand, if anything's going wrong. If you need food, then…"

"I'll learn to hunt, if I have to," Suki said, her voice just as fragile as Zuko's own. "Don't worry. I can… I can handle it…"

"I know you can. You're the strongest person I know…" Zuko said, gritting his teeth. "B-but Suki, I… I'm going to miss you. You, Mari, and Zi…"

"We're going to miss you too. So much, every single day…" Suki managed to say, and the tears did rush down her cheeks by now. "But we'll… we'll make it through. We'll make you proud, Zuko…"

"As will I. I… I'll do my best. And when I come back to you… the world will have changed. I promise you that, Suki. No matter what," he vowed, finally daring to pull back from her neck, but only so he could press a powerful, passionate kiss to her lips instead.

Suki responded in kind, holding back nothing as she wept into their kiss. Just as always, she had stood by Zuko and helped him find the right path when he hadn't been sure of which fork along the road he ought to choose. She knew it was the right choice… but ensuring he picked it hurt her all the same. To think she'd face this world, this life, without the husband who had chased away the darkness that plagued her, the man who had brought her the happiness she had long thought she'd never experience again…

Perhaps her challenge now was to prove herself capable of standing on her own… of no longer needing Zuko to offer to carry her on his back. Perhaps she had learned how to walk side by side, hand-in-hand with him throughout all these years in the Water Tribe… and now it was time for her to stand on her own for some time. Their paths would converge again… their love, their marriage and their family would endure regardless of their struggles. Zuko would come home again… and Suki and their daughters would wait patiently, growing stronger every day, until he did.

---

The mix of familiarity and strangeness Song felt upon returning to Azula's room didn't fade away easily. She hadn't locked herself up in the bathroom yet, as the Princess had advised, not until she had any reason to suspect anyone was coming: instead, she had taken to inspecting the room, and its annex dining room, to ensure they were genuinely empty, that there were no strange vents or openings, perhaps even cracks on the wall, through which anyone might spy on the Princess. Perhaps there were secret passageways that led here, Lo and Li had mentioned as much when they prepared her for her mission, despite not knowing where those corridors were and warning her that they might be sealed behind firebending, like the tunnels' trapdoors… but that would be yet another possible method through which the Fire Lord might attempt to spy on his daughter, from what Song could tell.

Playing Wen's role certainly had helped matters considerably when she came face to face with the Fire Lord. A surge of fury had taken hold of her when he'd entered the room in all his regal semblance and behavior, but she had toned it down quickly, drawing strength from her pretense and lies, sticking to her performance faithfully. Who knew she actually had it in her to deceive others quite so thoroughly? She had been quite a mess so long ago, upon attempting to perform that puppet theater play for her home village, and now she was lying to the Fire Lord, blunt and directly, without getting caught…

Her time in Ember Island had been a contradictory mess: the place was peaceful, their people so distant from those of the Capital, mostly disconnected from the strife taking place there: many of them hadn't even heard of the battle where Azula had almost lost her life. It felt like another world, so removed from everything Song knew… and no better for it, this time around. She had resented it for that, even.

Sokka had saved her life upon choosing her in the market, all those years ago. Working with him had spared her from a likely world of sorrow in the service of anyone else, from dreadful nobles to unpleasant merchants to, even, dwellers of crime dens. Anything could have happened, and she knew she'd drawn the luckiest lot of the bunch, altogether. She had treasured her good fortune while wishing, deep and hopelessly, that all her friends and family from her village would have found a fate as kind as hers…

Then, her life had been turned upside down for what felt like the umpteenth time. But this time she hadn't been just another casualty in the chaos: this time, someone had saved her, protected her and sent her to people who were kind to her. Meanwhile, the one who saved her, none other than the man she had hoped to marry, was hiding in places unknown, on the run from Fire Nation law. The other man who had saved her, at the beginning of it all, was thousands of miles away, trying to protect his family from the likely wrath of the Fire Lord, were it to reach them. And the last person who had helped her, buying her off that salesman on that very first day, giving her the opportunity to reconnect with her mother directly, offering her kindness she had never expected from a royal… she was a pale shadow of the proud, strong woman Song had always known.

Never had Song seen her so fragile, not even when Azula convalesced over her shoulder's injury, or over the cold she'd caught so many years ago. Never had she felt such an acute need to protect her, for Song wasn't supposed to be strong enough to protect anyone, not even herself… but right now, she wanted to do exactly that. After everything Azula had been through, everything she'd done for everyone else… Song could only be grateful for this opportunity to help her, to finally offer support to someone who had carried the world on her shoulders for too long. Maybe Song was in danger now… but she'd accept any risk provided she could support Azula. She was tired of waiting on the sidelines, of hoping everyone else would handle the worst problems: never again would she cower and hide underground as she had while those three bravely fought against every threat that might arise. If she could do anything at all for their sake, she wouldn't hesitate to do it.

She found nothing suspicious, but there were enough things to take note of. The place appeared extremely tidy, except for a pile of papers by Azula's desk, close to the window. Song dared look through them, curious, finding inexpert handwriting depicting several different ideograms and math operations. She raised an eyebrow, thinking back on Azula's earlier explanations about her maid: she didn't know how to read or write… which meant, then, that Azula had been teaching her. The realization brought a smile to Song's face as she set down the papers: even after everything, Azula couldn't seem to break the habit of helping others, a habit she'd slowly but surely developed over the years Song had known her. She couldn't have been around this Rei girl for that long… but Song expected the Admiral's illegitimate daughter might start developing a profound sense of loyalty towards the Princess at this rate, if she hadn't developed it already.

Further lurking brought Song to Azula's dresser and closet. Everything seemed neat and orderly… but upon opening the cabinet of her armor, right beside the closet, Song flinched: the black armor stood in proper display where, she suspected, the gold one had been before. Where was it now? Had it been discarded, or…?

A casual glance at the inside of the closet revealed a subtle glint of light played with metal hidden underneath rows of robes. Song gritted her teeth, stepping forward and brushing the fabrics out of the way… to find the once glorious golden armor, discarded and broken, on the closet's floor. An unpleasant mirror upon which Azula might have felt too strongly reflected, carrying memories both too beautiful and too painful to reminisce about anymore.

Song sighed, trailing her fingers over the visible, sizable fissure of the golden breastplate, where that sword had hacked into the Princess's body. There was no fixing the broken armor, not anymore… but would there be a chance to heal Azula fully? The physical scar she'd seen earlier would likely linger on her body forever… but could the ones upon her soul be mended at all?

She rose again and closed the door to the closet, to the hidden armor, before shutting the cabinet upon which nestled the black one. Both armor sets were relics of a time long past for the Princess… she had other battles to fight, battles where physical armor wouldn't suffice to protect her. Her pregnancy, the child she carried… it was both her driving purpose and the greatest hazard to her survival. Song would see her through this ordeal, no matter the cost… and she would help her protect her child, just as well. Her child with Sokka… it should come as no surprise to Song that it had happened, but Song didn't recall them ever expressing any intent to have children someday. She knew it had to be an accident, but she rather hoped it was an accident they'd both cherish deeply, once Sokka learned of it too…

Would he, though? If he was down south, if he was expected to spend his life there, distant and hidden away so the Fire Lord would never reach him… would he ever learn about the baby? Would he know of the struggles Azula had faced, the nightmares she had lived through, all be it so she could protect their child? Song's heart clenched at the thought and she had to stop herself from crying for them, over the unjust hand the world had dealt them. She could imagine them holding their firstborn, laughing together as Sokka's arms wrapped around Azula, the child nestled between them. Surely, he would offer a silly name for the child, just to make Azula laugh… perhaps, for the sake of messing with him, Azula would humor him and horrify him simultaneously by agreeing to his idea. Whether they bore scars upon their bodies, whether the darkness of the world had attempted to overcome them… if they were together, everything that once was broken could be mended, even their very hearts and souls.

She had been ambling towards the bathroom, hoping to wash her face and rise off the tears that, despite her best efforts, had slipped through her eyelids, when she heard footsteps outside the room. She sped up, slipping through the bathroom's threshold, and making to close the door…

A soft rumbling sound below the carpet caused her to freeze where she stood.

The footsteps in the corridor were crowned by a sudden knock on the door: the trapdoor, half-open, closed once more underneath the carpet. Song gritted her teeth, unsure of what to do… until the footsteps seemed to walk away anew. She waited briefly, just for another moment, before stepping out of the bathroom again and pressing her ear to the room's front door: yes, the footsteps were moving away… whoever it had been, they were gone now. Song breathed out and rushed back to the trapdoor, yanking the carpet out of the way and knocking on the solid stonework gently.

A moment later, the trapdoor shifted again. Azula grimaced as she was faced with the brightness of daylight once more, no longer clad in the uniform she'd left safely in the basement, in case she needed it again in the future. Song breathed out in relief and helped her climb the steps, reaching down for Azula's right hand to guide her back to the surface.

"I don't know who that was," Song confessed. The exhausted Princess looked at her in chagrin. "No one had come until just now. If you clean up quickly, though…"

"I'll do that… I'm here now, so we shouldn't be in any trouble anymore," Azula said, squeezing Song's forearm as she finished crawling out of the tunnel, slipping the trapdoor back into place.

"Go, then. If they come back… well, I'll try to fend them off somehow," Song said, helping Azula to her feet. "Do you need water?"

"Yes, please," Azula said, grimacing painfully. Song nodded right away.

"Go on, then. I'll get you the water jug."

Pregnant and still unwell over her prior health condition, it was evident that Azula's former optimal physical shape was a long-gone memory… it still bothered Song, however, to see her friend struggling so badly with physical exertion. She did as promised, bringing the water jug to the bathroom with her, as Azula washed her face and attempted to chase off the sweat resulting from her strenuous adventure.

"What happened?" Song asked. "Could you talk to the Head Sage at all, or…?"

"Yeah… got there safely," Azula confirmed, nodding. "He says he'll make a move to truly test Renkai by tonight, if possible. Seems he hasn't acted on any of the bait the Head Sage has dangled in front of him so far, but… hopefully he'll finally bite."

"And what will we do if he does?" Song asked, grimacing. "I know we're hoping… well, at least I am, that he won't be willing to betray us to the Fire Lord. But if he were… what would we do?"

"I… I honestly don't know," Azula sighed, running a hand through her damp hair. She reached for the water next, hand trembling as she brought the cup to her lips, tilting it only slightly. "But I suppose, if the Head Sage truly has stirred up some movement of… of people who support me, in the shadows, whatever trap he intends to set up for Renkai could even be lethal or threatening enough that you and I wouldn't need to do a thing? Ugh, hell, I…"

"You should rest… sit down and take it easy," Song said. Azula sighed and nodded, dropping on her bathing stool, shoulders squared. "You could even clean up fully, maybe you'll feel better if you take a warm bath?"

"No idea…" Azula admitted, flinching. "To be honest, I… I've faked a lot of vomit today, but I might be about to…"

Song's hand, rubbing circles over Azula's back, pulled back when the Princess raised a hand to cover her mouth. Immediately, Azula turned towards the privy and emptied the contents of her stomach with utmost disgust.

"Fuck… ugh, I hate this…" Azula growled, hands tightened into fists. Song sighed, rubbing her back gently again before she tucked Azula's hair back, ensuring it wouldn't bother her as she relieved herself.

"It's okay… you pushed yourself too hard, but you won't have to do that anymore," Song said, reassuringly. "Don't punish yourself further as it is. Just sit down, rest, clean up when you feel like it… I'll be right here for anything you need."

"I know… I know you will be," Azula sighed, raising her head slowly. "Can't thank you enough for that."

"Well, I haven't done that much yet," Song smiled warmly, helping Azula rise to her feet once more, to the sink where she'd wash up once again, rinsing off the nauseous taste left in her mouth. "We can try to do a few exercises every day, I think… to help build up your strength again, little by little."

"Sounds… like a good plan," Azula whispered, splashing more water across her face.

Song patted her shoulder kindly once more, already pondering ideas to help Azula rebuild her resistance…

A knock on the room's door, once again, broke off her train of thought.

Azula flinched, but Song shook her head and reassured her: there would be nothing fishy about their situation right now, reporting the Princess was feeling unwell wouldn't surprise whoever stood at the other side of the door.

"I'll deal with it," she said, firmly.

"Song…"

"Wen. And I'll be careful," she said, squeezing Azula's uninjured shoulder carefully. "You're here again, we have nothing to hide. Everything's as it should be."

Azula sighed, watching her friend step out of the bathroom. Seeing her off almost made her sick again… and then it actually did: she had to switch back from the sink to the privy, cursing herself inwardly for her damn weaknesses, for the thousandth time…

"Yes?" Song's practiced, arrogant Wen voice reached Azula, even in the bathroom. "If you've come to see the Princess, she is currently in her restroom…"

"Oh, I see."

Azula's body jolted with discomfort, with panic, with fear: she knew Song had to feel the same way, right outside… for that voice belonged to no one other than Renkai.

"I hope you may be able to help her, then," the guard replied, from the other side of the door. Song gritted her teeth, glaring pointedly at the door, as though she could make Renkai disappear by doing so… "Your meals were left outside the room, however. I suppose you didn't notice the servants had brought them?"

"Oh… no, I didn't hear anything until now," Song lied, paling: the previous knocking had been a servant dropping off food, then? Curses…

"I'll bring them inside, then. Feel free to continue helping the Princess."

The doorknob turned slowly, and Song gritted her teeth: if he'd give her an out, she'd be mad not to take it.

"Oh, thank you for your diligence, then! I'll do just that!" she exclaimed, rushing back to the bathroom, turning her back to the door at haste.

Inside the bathroom, Azula glanced at Song in sheer horror once she stopped at the bathroom's threshold. Song met her eyes and shook her head ever so slightly as she stood angled in a way that would block the entrance to the bathroom. She couldn't have moved quickly enough to step inside with her before Renkai entered the room, but perhaps it was better if she didn't, for appearances sake, as she was supposed to only have met Azula for the first time that day: the Princess wasn't bound to let a stranger breach her privacy quite so blatantly right away. Renkai wouldn't be likely to recognize her from behind, anyway: as long as he didn't see her face, they should be safe.

Azula gritted her teeth, now feeling the urge to vomit out of stress and panic rather than over of having pushed her body too far. She tried to make no noise as Renkai's footsteps echoed in her room. He would carry their meals, then, as he always would… but couldn't he just have stayed with Rei, damn him, as Azula had told him to? Why did he decide to check on them just now?

The sound of the metal trays, once they were set down on the wooden table, should have been a relief, but it wasn't. Nothing would calm Azula until the guard was out of the room, and she wasn't sure she'd feel all that well even after he did leave.

Footsteps again, and Song continued to angle herself so that the guard might only see her back, her new haircut framing her face far too well for him to identify her features, if he even glimpsed them…

Yet the footsteps stopped halfway to the door. Azula flinched, eyeing Song warily. An unusually stern scowl graced the healer's face, and she seemed a moment away from stepping into the bathroom completely, rather than pretending to give the Princess some space, as she had so far.

Azula nodded in her direction, urging her to enter the room, all be damned. May Renkai report that Azula got along far too well with her new midwife, far too quickly, if that was what he needed to say… Song grimaced but followed fit with her idea, taking one step into the room…

"I hope your journey here wasn't too difficult," Renkai's voice echoed in the room, much as his footsteps had before. Song froze in place, and Azula snarled, rising to her full height as she prepared to command Renkai to abandon her room at once… though the strongest possible threat she could wield against him, right now, was the possibility of throwing up on his uniform, pathetic as that sounded.

"It… it went quite well, yes," Song said, once again using her new voice, Wen's voice.

"Good. Rui Shi would be pleased."

The words hung between them all, across the two rooms. Song winced, all attempts to mask her true self shattered to oblivion as a surge of protective fury took rise in Azula's chest:

Renkai knew the truth already. He did, the bastard…

Even if it took her last ounce of strength, if her body gave out underneath the strain she'd likely put it through next, Azula would make sure Renkai would take his knowledge to his funerary pyre, of which she intended to be the artificer right now.

She took a couple of steps towards the bathroom door, where a stricken Song still stood, her back towards the guard who had stopped right behind her to speak again, further confirming through his next words that their worst fears, the biggest hurdle to overcome in their complicated deception, had presented itself in full right now:

"It's good to see you again, Song."