Chapter 13

"Are we going to have a problem my friend? I assure you, we are but humble travelers in want of no trouble," Iroh said calmly, a steely look in his eyes as Feng frowned, clenching his fists.

The Fire Nation General and the Fire Nation prince, symbols of what he hated the most in this world, the Fire Nation Nobility, were right in fornt of him. But if he could act rationally in the face of Shui, he could act rationally here. So with a sigh, he allowed the tension to flow out of his body, breathing out a column of air that Iroh seemed unsurprised at.

"No, Iroh, I will not start a fight, not if you will."

"Excellent." Iroh clapped, a smile once more appearing. "I hope that the discovery of our identities has not put a damper on this conversation, as I was quite enjoying it. I'd continue to enjoy it if you were open to the idea."

"Uncle!" Zuko exclaimed, stepping forward only to be pinned in place by Iroh raising his hand. The teen gave off a frustrated growl as he stormed off, seeking to be alone.

"So Feng…these two aren't who I think they are, are they? We didn't just randomly encounter the Firelord's brother and the Firelord's son on a ship to Ba Sing Se, attempting to go inside the very walls the brother almost made it through, did we?"

"I'm afraid they are, Toph. They are exactly who you think they are." Feng sighed, scanning Iroh's body for any sign of threat as was a habit for him in dangerous situations.

Before Iroh's appearance had seemed normal, but now Feng's gaze was poisoned by his knowledge of his princely roots. His clothes turned from passable to downright squalid for what he was sure the elder man was used to, as was the poor of state of his hair.

It didn't give the man any less of a presence, however, as despite his appearance he was still the second deadliest Firebender in the world which…was a parallel Feng could admit about himself.

Huh.

There may be more Airbenders out there, but there was only the one Master who Feng was currenetly learning under, so he actually would be the second deadliest. Wasn't that a weird thought?

"So, what do you want to discuss? And would you mind answering a few questions of my own at the same time? I have to admit that finding you here is quite the surprise, and I'm curious."

"Yeah," Toph nodded, "me too old man."

"That sounds only fair, my two young friends." Iroh chuckled genially, stroking his beard again. "How about this, I will answer a question, and in return you will answer a question of my own, continuing the back and forth action until both of us are satisfied. Do we have a deal?"

That was probably the best they were going to get, Feng admitted to himself. While he clearly hadn't done so recentely, Iroh had decades of experience with the political maneuverings of the court, and was well experienced in the sort of double talk that entailed.

Feng knew himself well enough to admit that he was lacking in such abilities, and was well aware Toph was the same. Really, none of their group had any experience in that, which was part of the reason he wasn't calling them over right now.

While he believed Aang would be willing to hear the man out, Feng was unsure of what reactions the two water tribe siblings might have. What he did know was that they wouldn't be any better at getting information than he would. Yes, they would help if a fight broke out, but Feng didn't want that to happen.

There were too many civilians on board to even consider it.

"Deal. I'll even be so generous to give you the first move."

"Thank you." Iroh smiled as a mischievous look passed his eyes. "My first question for you is this, Feng. Are you an Airbender like the Avatar?"

"No ones like the Aang." Feng snorted as he twirled his hand forward, realeasing a small whirlwind that ruffled Iroh's beard, making the man's eyes twinkle. "But yes, I am, and we both know you already knew that. Makes me curious as to why you would waste a question like that, but I'm not that curious. No, my question is this, why are you and your nephew traveling to the Earth Kingdom's Capital disquised as refugees?"

"Because we are refugees, young Feng. News of my actions against Admiral Zhao reached my brother's ears and being the man that he is, we were both immediately declared to be traitors, and have been dodging Fire Nation Pursuit ever since. Ba Sing Se is one of the few places we can escape such pursuit and potentially pursue a new life for ourselves with how it has sucessfull repelled Fire Nation Assualt for 100 years. It is my hope that it will continue to do so for 100 more."

Feng was suprsied to here that, but on closer consideation it did make sense, and both Iroh and Zuko had an air of destitution to them, something that would only happen if they were trators.

"Ok, I'll believe that."

"Excellent," Iroh spoke, sounding pleased as he furrowed his brows in thought. "Then my next question for you is this. You were adamant that every element could be used to heal and to hurt, your own element included. From what I can infer, it sounds like you have experience with the latter. Is my suspicion correct?"

Oh, crap Feng thought, his eyes widening in surprise before he could control his reaction, forcing his face to still even as Iroh's eyes flashed, cataloging it as he gave a minute nod, confriming his supcision.

This was moving into territory that Feng didn't feel comfortable discussing, but he'd already given the game away, so he'll just have to keep trying and hope he got some useful information out of this.

"Yes, I do. A lot of it in fact, as it was the only way I could protect myself from my own Fire Nation pursuit. Next question, once you are inside of Ba Sing Se's Wall's, what are your plans?"

"To start a new life," Iroh smirked. "I already said that, didn't I? Allow me to elaborate. Once inside, I suspect that my Nephew and I, being no one of note, will be assigned to the lower ring of the great city, home to those who are left wanting. Once we are, the two of us will seek out work to support ourselves, and then gwe shall go from there. Personally, I am hoping to own a tea shop, even if my Nephew does not."

Sparing a glance at Toph who just nodded, confirming that Iroh was telling the truth, Feng frowned. Iroh and Zuko…were just going to live peacefully? They weren't going to, you know, act as spies inside the wall?

As if Iroh knew what he was thinking, he shook his head subtly, making Feng's gaze soften.

No, it seems not, they were just going to live peacefully. It was probably the best for everyone involved. Feng wasn't sure about Zuko, as from the sounds of it he had failed to capture Aang, Katara and Sokka even when they were inexperienced, but Iroh was a monster on the battlefield.

There were countless reports detailing his exploits during the war, how he had led the charge at multiple key points in the 600-day siege of Ba Sing Se, never sticking behind the lives of his own's soldiers to ensure the safety of his own. That kind of man…that kind of man was dangerous.

But also strangely peaceful, Feng noted as he stared at the silently waiting Master Bender.

"Alright, I'll buy that. Can I ask how you knew about my bending abilities? I haven't exactly been advertising them willy-nilly, in fact, I haven't used them at all since I got to the Full Moon Bay."

"Ah, an easy question this time," Iroh stated, reaching for his sleeve to grasp something and coming up empty, only a momentary frown crossing his face as he settled for bringing his arms together, resting his hands inside of either sleeve.

"When we were traveling to the bay, Zuko and I kept careful watch of any signs for our pursuit. For others after our arrest. This, as it so happens, including looking at the bounties posted on the community board of any towns we happened to pass through. Mostly, we looked for our own, making sure our change in appearance held up, but there was more than just ours. I'm sure you know that your friends over there have bounties of their own, one each for Aang, Sokka, and Katara." Iroh waved in their direction.

Feng nodded; he was aware of the fact. It had taken a little longer for the Water tribe siblings' papers than Aang's, but both of them had one after the Northern Water tribe siege.

"What you might not know is that the two of you also have one of your own. One for a young master earthbender, and another for a tall figure with looks resembling that of the fire nation, possessing the long thought lost gift for controlling the Air. They even managed to get your name correct, calling you Feng, even though your young companion here was left untitled."

He had a bounty poster, Feng thought in surprise. How? He had always made sure to be careful, never doing anything illegal while his face was shown to the world, so how could he have a bounty poster? It's not like he'd been going around and beating up Fire Nation Soldiers or anything. At least not until he had…fought…Azula.

"I see you understand." Iroh smiled wisely as he saw the look of comprehension appear in Feng's eyes.

"Unfortunately, yes, I do. It seems like beating Princess Azula will do that."

"She was the one to create your bounty? And you beat her?" Iroh asked in shock, his mouth falling open as a troubled frown graced his lips. "That is unfortunate, I had not believed that my brother had unleash her on the world yet. This is moist troubling news indeed. And you said you beat her?"

"Not alone." Feng denied, earning a snort from Toph.

"You got that right mister. No, it was mostly Twinkletoes over there with me who took that psycho down, but Feng did get a hit or two in between fighting off her two gal pals."

"Ty Lee and Mai, I would presume," Iroh asked, earning a nod from Feng. "Thank you for telling me this."

"Eh, no problem gramps, is there anything else you need to know?"

"Not at this time, I'm afraid." Iroh smiled at the young girl, turning his gaze to Feng as a hint of steel appeared in it.

"What about you? Have I satisfied your curiosity enough to leave us in peace, or is there anything else you want to know?"

That was a good question. Was there anything else he wanted to know? He knew enough about Iroh and Zuko for his comfort, but it wasn't every day that you could pick the mind of a former Fire Nation general.

Searching his mind, he came up with nothing at first. After a moment, however, a small niggle appeared in the back of his mind, one that gradually grew stronger.

"There is actually, just something that I hope I could get your perspective on."

"My perspective, eh? Ask ahead my friend, I am at your disposal."

"Do you have any idea why a massive amount of metal would be moved to the Ba Sing Se garrison? I came across a report about it a while ago but I could never find out just what it was about, despite looking for an answer. It's seen bugging me ever since, especially when it was quoted that about 20 warships worth of metal was being used for it."

"That amount…" Iroh breathed out in shock, the man frowning as he searched his memories. "I'm sorry, I do not have the information you are looking for. The only thing that comes to mind is a project called Project Terra, one led by War Minister Qin, but I was already on the way out by the time I even heard news of it, and by that point, I didn't have the clearance to find ouut more. I am sorry, I cannot help you."

"I figured that'd be the case, but I had to ask." Feng sighed, ignoring the momentary flicker of disappointment that originated in his chest. "Well, it was…surprisingly nice to meet you, Hong. Maybe we'll meet again someday."

"It was nice meeting you too Feng, and I hope so. It has been a long time since I have met someone with such outlandish thoughts." Iroh replied, bowing slightly as he turned to move away, only pausing at the last second as a thought hit him.

"I can't tell you what Project Terra is, but I can tell you this. It's not for any kind of refirbushment of the base, not with the amount involved. That only leaves one option in my mind…a war machine. I believe that my brother is constructing a war machine to unleash on the cities walls, one unlike anyone has ever seen. I wish you luck in dealing with it, as you will need it."

And while Feng and Toph digested the last little titbit Iroh had given them, the man in question disappeared from view, likely joining his nephew wherever he had run off to.

"…well, I liked him."

Of course, you did, Toph.

…

"Bless you! Spirits Bless you, my child." A woman thanked Katara, her eyes wide as she scarcely believed it as a nasty-looking bruise disappeared from her forearm, one that had apparently been there since she'd blocked a hit from a Fire Nation Guard two weeks prior.

"It was my pleasure, ma'am," Katara replied sincercly, wiping her brow to remove the sweat that formed across it, fatigue laced in her frame even if she did her best to hide it. Not very well apparently, as the rest of the team all looked on with concern as Katara shakily stood, staggering over the rest of them as they waited in the final hours of the cruise.

"I know what I'm doing is important, and it feels great to be helping people like this, but... I'm exhausted." Katara complained. "I don't think I could heal anyone else even if I wanted to."

"Then it is fortunate then that you don't have to heal anyone else, isn't it? You made it through everyone on board." Feng replied, crossing his arms as a proud smile crossed his lips, one that Katara returned.

"That's good and all, that everyone else is fine, but are you alright? You're looking a bit woozy there." Sokka interjected, stepping forward to place a hand on her forehead, frowning in concern at what he felt.

"I'll be fine." Katara denied, trying to shake her brother off before another wave of dizziness hit her, making her lose her balance before Sokka caught her.

"Princess, I don't even need to use my bending to know you're not fine. For Spirit's sake, learn to take a break once in a while."

"I agree with Toph." Aang nodded as he stepped forward to place a hand on her shoulder. "Helping others is important, but only so long as it doesn't cost you can still help yourself. You have to look out for your own health, Katara."

Slowly, Katara turned her head towards Aang as a neutral expression formed appeared on her face, the girl staring at Aang until he looked away with a blush.

"Okay, I'm not the best example, but the point still stands and you know it."

"I know, Aang." Katara sighed as she leaned more heavily on her brother. "But seeing all these people…I couldn't stop, not when they still wanted my help. Besides, it's not like it matters right now, I highly doubt that'll we'll be attacked while inside Ba Sing Se's walls, so I can recover once we're in there."

You really shouldn't temp fate like that Feng thought. She could be cruel like that, he would know.

"That's true." Aang sighed before smiling as he turned back to look up at the city's towering walls, massive even as far away as they currently were. "We're finally here, in the largest city in the world."

"And the most well-defended." Feng agreed, scanning across all the defenses in place. It was more than just the wall, there were also countless other things shoring up the gaps. Small extensions that contained garrisons, squads of Earth Benders moving across the wall, and even some siege weaponry that you didn't normally see outside of the Fire Nation Military. "I could still get past it though."

Feng's boats elcited a round of groans from the other, each of them closing their eyes as if in pain as a cheerful twinkle appeared in Feng's. These past few days they had had little to do aside from talk, and while they still avoided the heaviest topics and topics that would out their identities, they still had to talk about something.

So, one thing led to another and eventually, they'd gotten onto some of their own feats.

"Yeah, well if it was an ice wall, I could make it over too." Sokka was hasty to point out, only for Aang to shake his head.

"No, I don't think so. Even if you could make it up the entire way, which I doubt considering these are reinforced stone walls, the rotating guard schedule would spot you and take you down before you could. Sorry." Aang apologized as Sokka lowered his head despondently, crossing his arms as he mumbled in complaint.

"If we're being realistic though, only Feng, Aang, and I would make it. The two of them because they'd cheat and fly over, and me because I'm awesome." Toph boasted with confidecne, her hand son her hips.

"Yes, because it's awesome to tunnel underneath something. It's a really impressive plan, I'm sure."

"Hey, why mess with what works." Toph shrugged at Katara's complaint, Feng agreeing with the statement. If it worked, why wouldn't you go with the simplest solution? More complex plans could work better, yes, but it also meant they had more failure points, more areas where they could go wrong. It was one of the reasons he had been so successful in his Oni days. Dress to impress, pretend like you belong there, and if that fails, guards never seem to look up.

Like, literally. Over fifty times he had snuck past an 'impenetrable' fortress by sneaking over the guard's heads.

"Not like there any need to sneak in though, seeing as we're just going to walk through an open gate. Everyone is." Aang replied.

Even General Iroh and Prince Zuko. Well, former General and Prince.

"True. Less fun though." Toph sighed, earning a snicker from Feng and Aang while Katara frowned. The next few hours passed quickly for the gang, ildy spending their time talking about easy subjects like opinions on food and the like.

It was no surprise that Sokka's favorite food was meat, but what was less obvious was that Katara preferred saltier food over sweet, which was likely a result of her upbringing, while Aang preferred fruit and Feng hearty bread with stew. Toph was ambivloent.

"Attention! Attention everyone!" The captain yelled, interrupting everyone's conversations as he stood in front of the door to the captain's quarters. "We will be docking momentarily, and you will be giving an interview to determine where you may best go to set up your new lives. Do not rush unless you want to be refused entry. That is all."

And like that, the man closed his door again, abruptly leaving.

"…I don't like him," Toph complained even as Feng frowned.

"He was quite rude," Katara admitted, idly rubbing her belly which must be starving by now after a couple of days of no food and copious amounts of bending.

Feng was actually less hungry than he'd thought he be. Sure, the first day and a half his stomach had rumbled at him to feed it, but after that it had gone away, leaving him feeling slightly lethargic and empty, but otherwise normal.

Maybe those monks were on to something with those fasts of theirs.

"Well, this is us," Aang said, finally seeing the line in front of them let up as he stepped forward, strolling down the gangway plank smoothly, stepping onto the earthen dock without struggle unlike a number of the other bow legged refigees.

Toph was the next to follow, also striding steadily as did Katara despite her state of weakness. Sokka stumbled for a second, but his years of experience with sailing showed through as he reasserted himself, making sure to stick close to his sister.

Finally, bringing up the rear of the pack was Feng, who strode steadily across the earth, easily keeping pace with his companions as he looked at the people around them, watching the general state of happiness and cheer, the security of Ba Sing Se's walls giving them hope.

"I hope it lasts, I really do." Feng sighed, his thoughts turning cynical. Refugees like the ones before him were quite common, especially now that Ba Sing Se was the only part of the Earth Kingdom not conquered, and all those refuges were mouths that needed to be fed.

The city wouldn't just supply them food for free, not with how many people there undoubtedly was in the city, so that meant that they would be left to fend for themselves, to hopefully find work so they could pay for the things they needed.

"Good luck," Feng murmured, purposely allowing his eyes to move away from the earth kingdom refuges as he instead looked forward, trying to keep his mind off of them. Unsuccessfully, as there was still the same refugees in front of him as there was beside him.

Off to the left however was something that he could distract himself with, the disguised form of Iroh and Zuko, disgused as Lee and Hong, who were both patiently waiting to be granted entry. They both looked tired, Feng noted, seeing how they were both slumping their shoulders.

As if he could sense his presence, Iroh looked around before setting his eyes on Feng, nodding as he locked eyes even as Feng nodded back, each acknowledging the other's presence. Zuko also noticed this but didn't otherwise react as tension filled his form, the teen purposeful staring straight forward.

If asked about it at a later time, Feng wouldn't be able to come up with a reason for his actions, to fully explain why he did what he did, but his future self would be grateful for it, as on a whim Feng withdrew a small empty sack from his travel back, filling it with 30 earth kingdom gold coins.

Tossing the bag in his hand to test the weight, Feng winked at Iroh as he threw the bag toward him, subtly boosting it with a little airbending as the elder man's hand snapped up to catch the bag, a clinking sound making itself known as Iroh hastily hid the bag in his sleeves, smiling helplessness as the others searched for the sound of wealth.

His act of generosity over, which might have just been because he'd felt guilty about not giving any money to anyone, Feng focused fully on his own teammates, hastily catching up with the others as they were granted entry into one of the interview rooms, jogging slightly to catch up to the impatient form of Aang.

This meant that he missed the grateful eyes of Iroh staring at him and the surprised ones of Zuko who had realized what happened. Anotheing thing Zuko failed to miss was the unholy gleam that appeared in Iroh's eyes as he muttered the words "This'll get us so much tea" under his breath.

…

"Look! The inner wall!" Katara gushed with excitement, pointing at the towering wall out the window of the earthen carriage they were traveling in, sitting in the monorail as they were. "I can't believe we finally made it here, and with no problems occurring or no one attacking us."

"Hey, don't jinx it! We could still be attacked by something like…Something like a Fire Nation Spoon." Sokka hastily thought up, waving his arms to provide emphasis.

"Yes, and if we are attacked by such a spoon, I'll be sure to duck in case it tries to scoop out my eyes." Feng drawled sarcastically, earning a snort from Toph and a quiet giggle from Katara and Aang. "In the meantime, how 'bout you sit down and stop overreacting? Did you forget that we still have the early warning system that is Toph with us?"

"Oh…right," Sokka stated, losing his energy as he slumped in his seat.

"Nice of you to remember I exist, Boomerang Guy," Toph smirked, sliding her foot on the ground to create a small series of bumps on the section of the bench Sokka was sitting on. Not enough to be visibly obvious, but enough to make it unformattable.

A fact the boy quickly noticed as he started squirming. Noticing this, Feng frowned for a second before looking at the satisfied smirk Toph was sporting, chucklingly under his breath as the events came together in his mind.

It was nice for her to act like a kid for once, she didn't often get the opportunity. Speaking of opportunities, however, there were a few things that he wanted to accomplish in the city before they had to leave.

The first was obvious, meet with the Earth King and inform him about the Solar Eclipse. That was priority number one. The second was to provide Toph her requested expeirence of gambling, hopefully without lossng too much money, but he had already budgeted the cost away, being the team's elected money guy after proving far better at it than the others.

His third priority was to get back to training his element, something he'd been a bit short on the past week, and the fourth, well his fourth priority was to relax, hopefully with a soft bed and good food, and maybe a touch of alcohol.

Who knows, maybe he could use this as an opportunity to introduce the substance to the others, they were fighting the Fire Nation after all, what's a little underage drinking to add to it? He was positive Toph would be a funny drunk, as would Aang, but confirmation would be ideal.

…

The Monorail was near silent as it departed the station, the two Earthbenders leaving Team Avatar behind in the Upper Ring. They had turned to watch it leave, as it was quite a fascinating sight, which meant that they got to watch as the leaving carriage revealed the long, billowing hair of a woman on the other side of the track, a strange-looking smile pasted across her lips.

"Hello, my name is Joo Dee! I have been given the great honor of showing the Avatar across Ba Sing Se. And you must be Sokka, Katara, Toph and Feng! Welcome to our wonderful city. Shall we get started?"

Pausing to exchange weirded-out looks, Sokka stepped forward.

"Yes. We have information about the Fire Nation Army that we need to deliver to the Earth King, immediately."

"Great." Joo Dee nodded, still smiling. "Let's begin our tour. And then I'll show you to your new home here. I think you'll like it."

She acted like she hadn't heard what Sokka said, continuing with her spiel, an action that was ot appreciated.

"Alright, listen here lady, I don't think you understand me," Sokka explained angrily, stomping towards the woman. "We need to talk to the King, it's important!"

"You're in Ba Sing Se now. Everyone is safe here." Joo Dee replied, her words coming off as well practiced as warning bells flashed in Feng's mind. Stepping forward, he placed a hand on Sokka's shoulder, subtly shaking his head as he spoke in the boy's ear.

"Something's wrong here. Pull back for now and let her give us a tour. We only just arrived and we're lacking in information. A few extra days isn't worth worrying about, not when we still have three months before the eclipse."

Hearing his opinion, Sokka nodded as he closed his mouth, simply crossing his arms.

"So, about that tour?" Feng smiled, purposively putting on a cheerful act to the still smiling woman.

…

"This is the Lower Ring." Joo Dee explained, gesturing to the hustle and bustle around them. Countless buildings, both homes, and shops crowded around the area, numerous refugees going about their way in the area, seemingly ignoring the cramped conditions.

"What's the wall for?" Katara asked intently, staring at the towering monolith.

"Oh, Ba Sing Se has many walls! There are the ones outside protecting us, and the ones inside, that help maintain order." Joo Dee said, pointing out of their carriage. "This is where our newest arrivals live, as well as our artisans and craftsman, people who work with their hands. It's so quaint and lively!"

As she said this, the carriage passed by an alleyway, where two men were conversing. One of them was holding a large sword that glistened in the light, and the pair of them glared at the passing carriage, at the passing teens.

If quaint and lively means cramped and dangerous, then yes, this place is quaint and lively Feng grumbled, hating the state of the Lower City where he suspected a good two-thirds of the population lived.

"You do want to watch your step though." Joo Dee added, showing her first bit of emotions outside of a smile in the form of nervousness.

"Why do they have all these poor people blocked off in one part of the city? Couldn't they be allowed to spread out more?" Katara asked, also nervously as she stared at the squalid-looking conditions most of the refugees were living in.

Because then they wouldn't be in control Feng thought sadly, his life driving him to cynicism in this instance.

"This is why I never came here before. I always heard it was so different from the ways the Monks taught us." Aang frowned, sounding simultaneously bored and sad.

Feng guessed even Aang's ever-loving optimism had its limits, but if they were ever going to be found, it would be here. This…was one of only two strongholds outside the Fire Nation's control. This meant that you could either choose to be freezing cold, if the Northern water tribe even let you in, or you could live in poverty.

If nothing else, it was a clear reason to fight the Fire Nation Feng snorted in thought. Because even if you went down, you would go down swinging, fighting for what you believe in rather than quietly dying by living like this.

The carriage swiftly moved on, continuing its tour of the city.

…

"This is the middle ring of Ba Sing Se, home to the financial district, shops, restaurants, and the university." Joo Dee orated, gesturing to the world rushing past the windows of the carriage.

By this point, both Sokka and Aang had become quite bored of the whole thing, slouching against the seats inside as they were even as the rest paid close attention.

"We met a guy from there once, an interesting fellow. He seemed quite interested in what the past may hold, you know, the secrets that could be uncovered by exploring the past." Feng stated, carefully watching as Joo Dee flinched at his words.

Okay, that was a clear sign something fishy was going on, even if her strange behavior and body language weren't.

"Isn't history fascinating? Look, here's one of the oldest buildings in the Middle Ring, Town Hall!"

As Joo Dee said this, the carriage came to a stop and the door opened, the woman in question walking out to leave the rest of team Avatar momentarily alone.

"Okay, I can't be the only one thinking she's ignoring the issue, can I? It's almost like they don't even want us to meet the Earth King." Sokka grimaced as he stood up, stretching to loosen his tight muscles.

"Probably because she doesn't." Toph huffed. "We're clearly being handled by the woman, or at least whoever the woman takes orders from. We're in high society now Snoozles, you better get used to it."

Patting the boy on the cheek, Toph left the carriage, closely followed by the others as Feng took note of the way the two Earthbenders were paying careful attention to them, their faces kept blank.

Being handled seems accurate, Feng noted, but moreso than even Toph thought.

…

"Last on our journey is the Upper Ring, home to our most important citizens. Your house isn't too far from here, in fact." Joo Dee smiled, explaining as the carriage passed by another tall wall with huge gates, an enormous building behind it. Only this time there were also three men standing on the gateway, providing an active deterrance that the walls didn't.

Or, you know, keep the peasants out Feng critiqued.

"What's inside the wall?" Katara asked curiously, staring at the clear differences between this one and the one dividing the lower and middle rings or the middle and upper. Unlike that wall, this one had people scurrying back and forth, dressed in dark robes with wide-brimmed hats covering their faces.

"And who're the mean-looking guys in robes?" Sokka asked, backing up Katara's question. Yes, Feng would like to know that as well.

"Inside is the Royal Palace. Those men are agents of the Dai Li, the cultural authority of Ba Sing Se. They are the guardians of all our traditions!" Joo Dee exclaimed with an almost rapturous tone, her smile turning even wider and more artificial.

Bingo.

"Have you ever met these Dai Li?" Feng asked curiously, staring closely at the woman's face. Close enough that he managed to catch the twitch in her eyes and stretched lips at the question, her fake persona momentarily twitching.

Looks like the Dai Li were the ones behind it. But that was an entire organization, so was it all of them, or was one of them pulling the strings?

"Hmm, is there someone who leads the Dai Li?" Feng continued, but his question was ignored as a frown actually made itself onto Joo Dee's artificial face. In conclusion, he was going to need more information.

"Yeah, are they the people we need to speak to so we can talk to the King? It is quite important." Sokka asked, backing up Feng who appreciated the gesture, even if it went against his request to stay quiet. In this case, though, it was appreciated.

"Oh no, one doesn't just pop in on the Earth King." Joo Dee smiled, shaking her head as her hair swayed.

Beside Feng, Aang nodded his head sadly, agreeing with the statement. One doesn't just pop in to see the King…unless the King is Bumi. Then you can pop in.

Or Hakoda, who was also kind of a King. Apparently, you could just drop in to see a king. Particularly if you were traveling with someone like the Avatar, an important figure in the eyes of literally everyone in the world. If the Earth King did hear of Aang, he'd want to see him.

According to Joo Dee though, that was impossible, which could only mean one of two things. Either the King hadn't heard of Aangs presence yet, unlikely, or he couldn't be seen. As in he was merely a puppet king, rather than an actual one.

The more Feng thought about it, the more likely that option seemed to be. It was highly troubling to hear and would likely make any future objectives with the Earth Kingdom difficult to accomplish.

Feng frowned as the city passed them by, traveling to their new abode.

This wasn't a decision he could come to by himself, not now. Maybe not even then. No, long and careful thought would have to be taken on his new theory.

…

"Here we are! You're new home." Joo Dee smiled, opening the door into the spacious, high-quality Earth Kingdom house in the middle of the Upper Ring suburbs. As the team took it in, a messenger came by with a scroll for Joo Dee, handing it to her before bowing and leaving.

"More Good News!" Joo Dee smiled as she read the scroll. "Your request to see the Earth King is being processed and should be put through in about a month. Much more quickly than normal!"

"A month?!" Aang exclaimed in shock, his eyebrow twitching.

"Six-to-eight weeks, actually." Joo Dee corrected as she closed her eyes, her grin now resembling that of a fox. "Still, isn't this nice? I think you'll like it here." She said, gesturing at the living area.

"I think we would enjoy it more if we didn't have to stay so long, can't…" Sokka trailed off as Feng made a cutting motion at his neck, signaling for silence which Sokka hastily did.

"Well…if we're going to be here so long, there are a few things we could do in the meantime," Katara suggested helplessly, shrugging at the looks the others gave her.

"Yes, actually, that's a good point." Feng nodded before focusing his gaze on Joo Dee. "Joo Dee, you said you'll be our guide right? Show us around, get us where we need to go?"

"That is correct, I'll escort you wherever you want to go." Joo Dee smiled as shre bowed.

"Excellent." Feng clapped, a mischievous smile appearing on his lips. "Then I have some homework for you."

"...Homework?" She asked hesitantly, unsure of what Feng was speaking about. Clearly, this was beyond the scope of her conditioning Feng noted, but it still didn't stop him.

"Yep, homework. It's been a long few days for the rest of us, so we're just going to relax for the evening. Tomorrow, however, there are two places I want to go."

"Ah," Joo Dee enunciated, comprehension dawning in her eyes as she nodded. "I can do that. Where would you like to go?"

"First is a gambling house, my friend here has never had the pleasure of experiencing it before and is quite eager, let me tell you," Feng smiled, pointing at the sharply grinning Toph who nodded. "Second…is there anywhere I can get some liquor?"

"Feng!" Katara yelled in shock, only to get a wave of his hand in return.

"I didn't mean for any of you," Feng replied to Katara's outrage, "but from time to time I've enjoyed the taste, and being old enough and importantly safe enough, I'd like some. Is that doable, Joo Dee."

"I…yes, it is. I will endeavor to find what you want, but for now, this is goodbye. Once again, I hope you enjoy your stay in Ba Sing Se." She bowed, closing the door behind her as the rest of Team Avatar were left alone for the first time since they got to the city.

"Guys," Feng spoke with crossed arms, all playfulness leaving his eyes, "we need to talk."

AN: And that's another chapter down. Enjoy.