The moon hangs high overhead when they reach the next island. "Tomorrow's the full moon," Katara says, looking up at the sky. She can feel it's power already. For a moment the feel of blood and muscle under her grip flashes through her mind before she shakes it away, pretending it never happened. It's safer to pretend.
Toph yelps the moment her feet touch the ground, quickly scrambling back up Appa's side. "What the hell! There are people screaming in the m;ountain!"
"What! What do you mean?"
"I mean exactly what I just said, there are people screaming inside of the mountain!" Toph snaps.
"I don't know how that's possible," Katara says, looking apprehensively at the earth under her feet.
"I don't either, but it is." Toph cautiously sets her foot down, wincing before a look of confusion crosses her face. "That's weird, they just stopped."
The water bender shudders at the idea of being trapped like that. "You're sure that's what you heard?"
"Yeah," Toph shivers.
"We need to find out what's going on and help them then!" Katara decides. No one argues. A twig snaps behind them. Everyone jumps.
"Who's there!" Sokka shouts.
"Oh, only little ole Hama. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you." An old stopped woman with white hair and long, crooked fingers steps towards them out from under the shadow of the trees. She looks Appa over before turning her gaze to everyone else. Her eyes finally settle on Katara and she smiles. "I'm the inn keeper in town. I was just out gathering some herbs. Why don't you all come back for some warm beds and spiced tea?"
Sokka and Aang are more than willing to join her. Toph follows, still off kilter from the screaming earlier. Zuko grabs Katara's arm, "I don't trust her. Did you see the way she was looking at you?"
"It's only for one night, Lee. We'll be fine. Besides, she's a little old lady."
Zuko scoffs, "Yes, and Uncle is a little old man."
Katara gives him a peck on the cheek. "We'll be okay." She looks forward only to see Hama watching her curiously. Her stomach flips. We'll be fine, she reminds herself.
The inn is warm and cozy with a cheery fire blazing in the hearth near their table. "The inn's packed tonight but there's a room upstairs you can take. Everyone's asleep though thankfully."
"Thanks for letting us stay." Aang smiles at the woman as she fetches tea for them.
"Of course, it's what any member of the Water Tribe would do for another in foreign lands." Hama grins at the avatar and his team who all sit in stunned silence.
"What!" Sokka chokes out. "How – what?"
"Come now child, anyone who knows the Water Tribes knows you're from them. And you," she nods to Katara, "I'm willing to bet you're a water bender. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe." With a flick of her wrist the tea in Hama's kettle neatly shoots through the air, landing in each person's teacup.
"You're a water bender, too!" Katara crows before quieting down, not wanting to wake anyone. "I've never met another bender form the Southern Water Tribe. It's an honor to meet you!" she gushes. "How did you end up here?"
Hama looks away. "I've never had the chance to talk about it." She looks at Zuko, her eyes carefully guarded before she turns her attention back to Katara. "The Fire Nation stole me from my home." Again she glances at Zuko who shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "It was over sixty years ago when the raids started. They came time and time again, each time rounding up more of our benders and taking them captive."
The old woman grips her own cup of tea, staring into the fire. "We did our best to hold them off but our numbers dwindled as the raids continued. Finally, I too was captured. They led me away in chains." She sighs, "I was the last water bender of the Southern Water Tribe. They put us in terrible prisons and I was the only one who managed to escape."
Zuko knows of the bender's prisons. Earth benders are stuck out in the middle of the sea. Water benders were suspended in cells far away from any water with dry air even pumped in. They were chained up when eating or drinking. There was something about the water bender's prison he was told in school, something important. As quickly as it comes, the thought flees, taking with it whatever important story he should remember.
"How did you manage to escape?" Katara asks softly, her eyes wide.
Hama shakes her head, "No, it's too painful. I can't talk about it!"
Katara jumps to her side, previous misgivings abandoned, her arms around the shaking woman's shoulders. "We understand. Sokka and I lost our mother in a raid."
"Yeah, and Katara was captured by –" Zuko hits Sokka under the table, hard, shooting him a look. Katara glares at her brother too. He has the decency to look sheepish.
Hama pats the other water bender's arm, all too able to imagine an end to that sentence. "You poor things."
"I can't tell you what an honor it is to meet you, Hama. You're a hero."
"I never thought I'd meet another Southern water bender. I'd like to teach you what I know so you can carry on the Southern tradition when I'm gone."
Katara's smile could light up the whole room. "Yes! Yes, of course! To learn about my heritage, it would mean everything to me!"
"Well then, your training will begin in the morning."
"Thank you, Hama." Katara bows.
The old crone slowly gets to her feet. "Oh, you should know to be careful in those woods I found you all in. People have been disappearing from them."
Toph's eyes grow wide. "The screaming," she whispers.
There aren't any beds in the extra room they were given so everyone is sprawled out in sleeping bags the same as if they were camping. Zuko holds Katara close, his body curving with hers. Into her ear, low enough for no one to hear, he murmurs his concerns. "Be careful, I have a bad feeling about her."
Katara rolls her eyes, simply snuggling closer. "I'll be fine. She's from the Southern Water Tribe. I even remember hearing stories about Hama when I was growing up, she was a hero, really." It's pointless to argue with Katara about this, Zuko realizes, instead deciding to keep a close eye on the old bender.
After a late breakfast Hama and Katara set out while Sokka, Toph, and Aang all get ready to start looking for clues as to what spirit the town upset to the point that people are being taken. "Aren't you coming?" Aang asks.
Zuko shakes his head, "No, I'm no good with spirits. I'm going to make sure Katara's safe."
"Come on," Sokka laughs, "She'll be fine. Hama's from the Southern Water Tribe, she's practically family."
"That's what worries me," Zuko replies darkly, almost reaching for his scar before strapping his swords onto his back.
. . . . .
"Oh fire lilies!" Katara exclaims, looking at the field they're alone it. "I love these! Zuko and I found a beautiful field of them just like this in the last town we stayed at."
"Zuko, you mean that Fire Nation boy?" There's a sharp edge to Hama's words that hadn't been there a moment ago.
"Yes," Katara looks away, suddenly embarrassed of Hama seeing her brazen affection now that she knows what the older bender went through. "He's not like the ones you're used to. He's helping to train the Avatar."
"You still need to be careful, you can't trust the Fire Nation or anyone in it."
"No, Zuko's kind and wants to help end the war."
Hama almost laughs but stops herself. Instead, she turns her attention back to bending. "Growing up in the South Pole, water benders are totally at home surrounded by snow and ice and seas. But as you probably noticed on your travels, that isn't the case wherever you go."
"When we crossed the desert there was no water anywhere. I felt so helpless."
"That's why you have to learn how to control water wherever it exists. You have to keep an open mind, then you'll find water in places you never think about."
Katara remembers muscles under her control before shying away from the thought. "Yeah," she mumbles in agreement.
With a smooth, fluid motion Hama pulls the liquid from the flowers around her, using it to slash cleanly through a nearby rock.
"Wow!" Katara's in awe before looking down at the now blackened, dehydrated blooms. "It's a shame about the flowers."
Hama shrugs. "They're just flowers. When you're a water bender in a strange land, you do what you must to survive." Hesitantly Katara copies the move, executing it almost perfectly before long. Hama smiles. "You'll be amazing. Tell me," she strikes again, "What did your brother mean when he said you were captured, before the Fire Nation boy hit him?"
Katara freezes. "Nothing. It's uh, I don't want to talk about it," she finishes lamely.
"Oh, I understand dear, it must have been so traumatic for you. I'm so sorry."
Katara winces, unsure of what to say. Her experience was so unlike the older bender's. She may have been hurt there, yes but how quickly was she defended? How vehemently was she protected? She learned to fight, she didn't have to cook or sew, she made her closest friend. Because of her time with Zuko, he went to the Air Temple. None of that can be said to the old woman looking at her with concern, a fiery rage burning beneath her skin. "Yeah, it was bad," Katara lies.
"So you understand then that you can't trust the Fire Nation. None of them! They will all hurt you, Katara."
Katara's heart jumps into her throat, suddenly too uncomfortable to continue the conversation. "Can you show me more techniques. I'd really prefer not to talk about it." Hama scowls but agrees.
Zuko watches the pair from a distance. Even from far away he can see the rigid set of Katara's shoulders. Hama doesn't attack her though and so Zuko continues to wait, watching over her.
. . . . .
Dinner is a quiet affair, regardless of how loud people want to be. There are Fire Nation citizens milling all about the inn. "So," Aang states, "Everyone says the spirit comes out once the full moon is up. We'll lay low until then and then we'll head up into the forest."
"Good idea, Aang. I hope we can find the spirit easily."
"Oh, Katara," Hama interjects, "Did I tell you, there's a very special bending form that I want to teach you. It can only be done under the full moon though."
"Oh," Katara momentarily deflates.
"It's okay, we can manage the spirit, Katara, don't worry!"
"Yeah, you go learn about bending."
The moon is rising when the team leaves the inn. Once again Zuko follows Katara and Hama at a distance. He frowns when they start to enter the woods. What happened to it being dangerous?
"Don't worry," Hama responds when Katara voices the same concern. "We're two master water benders under the full moon. Nothing stands a chance. Why, I was even out here harvesting herbs last night. We'll be fine."
Hama leads her deeper into the forest. A eagle owl hoots, making the young water bender jump. The old woman just laughs before shooing the bird away with a water whip. A patch of moonlight shimmers before them which Hama greedily steps into, luxuriating in it. "Can you feel the power the full moon brings? For generations it has blessed us with its glow, allowing us to do incredible things!"
She turns to face the younger woman. "What I'm about to show you, I discovered in that wretched Fire Nation prison," Hama spits. The guards were always very careful to keep any water away from us. Any sign of trouble was met with cruel retribution. Yet each month I felt the full moon enriching me with its energy. There had to be something I could do to escape."
"Then I realized that where there is life, there is water. The rats that scurried across the floor of my cage were nothing more than skins filled with liquid and I passed years developing the skill that would lead to my escape." Katara's blood runs cold. She knows what the next word will be. She knows what's going on. No! No! This isn't the heritage she wanted to learn!
"Blood bending" Hama hisses. "Controlling the water in another body, enforcing your own will over theirs. Once I had mastered the rats, I was ready for the men."
"No, I'm not going to do it," Katara snarls. "I'm never going to blood bend."
"Don't you see, Katara! You're a southern water bender, the last southern water bender once again. Use whatever you can to stay safe, to make the Fire Nation pay for what it's done to our people!"
"No! The Fire Nation has done some terrible things yes, but not all of them and to reach inside of someone and control them… I won't do it!" She remembers all too well what it felt like.
"This is about Zuko isn't it? Your foolish, childish infatuation has clouded your mind. The power exists. And it's your duty to use the gifts you've been given to win this war. Katara, they tried to wipe us out, our entire culture, your mother!"
Katara closes her eyes, tears threatening to form. "I know. I know and I still won't do it. We're winning the war without that."
"No, Katara! We have to fight these people whenever we can, wherever they are, with any means necessary!"
Katara gapes, open mouthed as the realization hits her. "It's you! You're the one who's been making people disappear!"
"They threw me in a prison to rot, along with my brothers and sisters! They deserve the same and you must carry on my work."
"No," Katara shouts, her voice thick with emotion. "I won't do it and I won't allow you to keep terrorizing the town." Her hand tingles, sharp stinging pain running through it before it twists of its own accord.
"You should've learned the technique before you turned against me! It's impossible to fight your way out of my grip! I control every muscle, every vein in your body!"
. . . . .
"Dammit," Zuko swears under his breath as he once again loses sight of the pair he's tracking. Katara trusts the woman, that should be good enough for him but no, there's something off. Hama can't be trusted.
The moon comes out from behind a cloud. Scattered moonlight, filtered through the trees, lights his path. Zuko freezes. Now he remembers what he learned about those prisons. He remember the story of the only water bender to escape, the one who ripped the blood out of a guard's body under the full moon. There's shouting ahead of him. He runs.
. . . . .
Katara screams, swinging like a ragdoll from side to side before being forced onto the ground. Her blood runs hot. Tears stream down her face. She told herself never again and she meant it. Her muscles are screaming, begging for a release from this torturous hell. The master water bender can feel her veins being manipulated. No! She can't breath. She can't think. Never again. Never.
"You're not the only one who draws power from the moon," Katara seethes. Slowly, painstakingly, she gains control again. Hama's grip doesn't loosen but instead is forced off, out of her body. "Never again!" Katara shouts! "Never again!" The master water bender rises, challenging the crone. Katara pulls water from the trees, from the air, from everything around her, slinging it in a sharp arc towards the blood bender who hurriedly blocks it. The water is returned with just as much force. Katara reaches her hand out, freezing the water in its tracks. Hama staggers back. All it takes is a moment, that second of hesitation for Katara to knock her opponent flat on the ground.
"Let it go, Hama. Please!"
"Never."
"Katara!" Zuko breaks through the trees, flames dancing dangerously in his hands. "She's dangerous! She's a-"
"A blood bender," Katara finishes. "I just found out. Give up, Hama, you're outnumbered. Don't make us hurt you."
Hama looks up at her student, her successor. "No," she cackles, "this isn't over yet."
A groan from the fire bender draws Katara's attention just as Zuko drops to the ground. Then the screaming starts, deep in his chest, low and pained, like every nerve is on fire. His body isn't his own. "What are you doing!" Katara screeches.
"His heart is going to burst. I can feel every vein, every artery and I can put as much blood into that poor muscle as I want, or if I want to, I can just squeeze." Hama's hands twitch menacingly.
Katara watches the old woman raise her hand as if in slow motion. There are only two options. Use water bending and hope Hama can't fight her and keep control of Zuko or use blood bending and make her stop. There's only one option. Hama's hand doesn't continue it's ascent. The gut wrenching sounds escaping Zuko's mouth quiet.
Hama's hands twist. Katara can feel it all. She can feel Hama fighting, struggling against her. She can feel the veins and the water in the muscles. She won't be able to hold Hama forever. "I'm sorry. I wish there was another way." Katara squeezes. She squeezes and doesn't stop until a sickening crunch echoes through the eerily silent woods. Hama cries out, cradling her now useless hands to her body as Katara lets go.
. . . . .
Katara doesn't speak while returning Hama to town and handing her over to the villagers. Zuko explains her crimes. She doesn't speak when the rest of the team returns with the missing people who had been imprisoned, starving under the mountain. She doesn't speak as they saddle Appa, everyone eager to leave that night and not spend another moment there.
No one else speaks and Zuko can't find the words to explain what happened, can't find the words to explain how his own body was turned against him. At the new campsite Zuko leads Katara away, far away from everyone else and holds her tighter than he thought possible but Katara flinches, pulling back, tears welling up in her eyes.
He goes to at least brush the hair out her face when she bats his hand away. "It wasn't just Hama," she whispers hoarsely. "I did that to your sister during the invasion."
"You did it to protect yourself."
"No, I was just angry. Angry and afraid." The damn bursts and Katara howls, collapsing in on herself.