A/N. Yet again, I had stuff happen lol! So, new chapter!

I don't own Avatar the Last Airbender.

Watching Aang walk towards the door of their little balcony, Katara couldn't help but think back at what Zuko had said about the play…

First, they mock you. Then they will make us the bad guys… And finally, we will be vanquished.

Was that how the Fire Nation propaganda worked when it concerned them? Were they the… Bad guys… in the Fire National thinking? Did all those people below them really think that what they saw on the stage was… true?

Sokka was a genius, and they made him out for some idiotic meat-loving freak. Sure, her brother had his moments, and she had to do all in her power not to hit him in those instances. But most of the time, he was caring, sweet and intelligent!

And Aang wasn't like that either! He was portrayed as a carefree, go with the flow kind of person, and maybe, for some people… That was true. Sure, some people who had met him would think that, seeing him riding the Unagi or trying to catch a hog monkey! But underneath that all was a devastated young man, who would do anything in his power to protect the people he loved!

And she herself! Tui and La, she wasn't like that! She didn't wear that kind of clothes! That was one way to get frostbite in… undesirable places… in the South! Spirits, if she had worn such things, her Gran Gran would have smacked her around quite a bit. And she didn't flirt with every guy she met! Sure, Jet… Well, she had been very relieved Aang was still angry about his portrayal as they watched that particular scene.

"Alright?" Suki wiggled her way over to the first row, sitting down next to her.

"I hate it." Katara answered truthfully, blowing away a strand of hair and crossing her arms over her stomach.

"Yeah, I get it. Not very fun to see yourself as your enemies see you…" The Kyoshi Warrior sighed, nodding.

"Not very fun? They are trying to make us out for some group of hooligans!" She protested, before being interrupted by the soft laugh coming from the second row. Turning her head towards the sound, she saw Toph shaking her head.

"That is the goal, Sugar Queen. Don't take it too personally." The blind girl spoke, surpringsly gentle. Katara, raising an eyebrow at the display of kindness, rolled her eyes.

"Let's see how personal you are going to be when they portray you as a helpless little girl who needs help from everybody." That was the way they were going to show Toph off, the waterbender was sure of it. Up to this point, the Fire Nation had been quite on the nose with the characters. They were all the polar opposite of them.

"Oh, I'm going to hate it. But I know it isn't true… so, remember that next time your actress suggests sucking a guy off." Toph laughed, back at her normal sharp voice. Ah… Katara had kind of missed her teasing.

"Yeah, yeah." She waved a hand towards the earthbender, rolling her eyes once more.

But still, it kind of hurt. Katara didn't know what the next couple of days would bring… And to be honest… She would like to be remembered for something else than flirting and telling Aang off. Because she had seen it.. The play was clearly setting up that the airbender had some crush on her, while her character was totally unaware… or rather, was choosing not to see it. And sure… There had been instances before the North Pole where, looking back, Katara knew now that Aang had tried to make his feelings clear…

But no! She wouldn't permit it that their relationship would be made a joke! Seriously, if she had to, she would march to the stage and beat the living shit out of the directors for making their lives such a mess in the play.

She heard the door open, and, looking back, she saw her brother, Zuko and Aang enter the balcony once more. Sokka looked rather irritated, probably still pissed at their butt joke and the Kyoshi Warrior uniform. Zuko just looked bored, while Aang had managed to put up the fakest smile she had ever seen on his face.

"Did it begin again?" The airbender asked her as he fell down on the bench next to her. Sokka, choosing not to be an ass this time apparently, chose to sit down on the third row, joined by Suki. And for some reason, the firebender sat down next to Aang, with a snarl on his face, looking at the stage.

"No… It didn't. It will probably take up again at the moment we got to the Earth Kingdom…" Spirits, she dreaded that part, to be honest. The spring had been a few difficult months, even though it had been the beginning of something… Something beautiful. But it had been the time where Appa had been stolen, where they had been spied on by the Dai Li… So, it had its ups and downs.

"I'd better have a look around to see if I can find an earthbending teacher!" The feminine voice belonging to Aang's actress suddenly sounded, and the candlelight dimmed once more… Spirits, it was going to be such a torture to sit through this act…

At least they were going to see whatever they made of Toph. That would be worth a little laugh… Hopefully.

The actress who played the airbender was carried over the crowd below them with the help of a line, and as that was happening, the blind girl behind her sighed contently.

"This is where I come in!"

Yeah, well, Katara was sure Toph wouldn't like her representation either.

"I flew all over town, but I couldn't find a single earthebending master!" Aang's actress pouted as she "landed" next to the other actors. Katara rolled her eyes. Of course not! The play made it seem like there were no masters in the whole Earth Kingdom! They made a mockery of the bending art, and it was clear that they tried to show that the people of the Earth Kingdom were… intellectually limited.

"Here it comes…" She heard the earthbender whisper behind her, gleefully.

Suddenly, a part of the set disappeared, and a trap door was revealed. The light dimmed even further, making in nearly impossible to see anything except the faces of fake Aang, Sokka and herself.

"You can't find an earthbending master in the sky! You have to look underground!" A voice boomed in the dark.

The lights lit up once more.

Katara laughed. Spirits, yes, she laughed! What else was she supposed to do. Of course, the waterbender knew that the play was everything but funny, and it made a joke of her friends and family. But Tui and La, this one… This joke was golden. If she didn't hate it so much, she would have asked for an autograph of the writer.

Toph was cast as the biggest, buffest man she had ever seen, and with that, she included all the participants of Earth Rumble VI. On the stage, next to the actress playing Aang, stood an enormous muscular man, wearing the clothes Toph had worn at the beginning of their travels. Oh spirits!

Katara wiped a tear of joy away, still snickering, and turned around. Toph was now standing behind her, having apparently been so shocked that she needed to stand.

"My name is Toph, because in sounds like tough! And that is what I am." She heard the actor say in the manliest voice she had ever heard. Grinning , Katara still looked at the blind girl.

"Wait a minute… I sound like a guy! A really buff guy!" Toph sounded astonished.

Yes! Yes! Yes! This was too good to be true!

"Well, Toph, don't take it too personally!" She tried to reassure the girl with the same advice as the earthbender had given her just moments earlier.

"Are you kidding me? I wouldn't have cast it any other way!" The girl laughed aloud, falling back into her seat. Spirits… Toph liked her actor? What?

"At least it is not a flying bald lady!"The blind girl suddenly spoke, and, quickly casting a look to her left, Katara saw that Aang had also looked back to see Toph's reaction. His ears grew red at that, probably of irritation, and he quietly turned back to the play.

The waterbender did the same, and watched in dismay as the story progressed. As the scenes went on, Katara was surprised at how little the playwriter actually knew of their travels towards ba Sing Se. He had not included the fact the Toph came from Gaoling, and neither had he put in the weeks they had spent in the canyon, with Aang beginning his earthbending training.

He had, however, put in the parts where Azula had chased them, north of Gaoling. Katara grimaced as she saw her actress flee in dismay before the Fire Nation princess. She had not done that! She had fought that bitch when Aang had been trapped underneath that wooden beam! And for some reason, they hadn't included the fact Azula had injured Iroh.

"Uncle is too respected." The firebender whispered to Aang, but Katara heard him. Bending slightly so she could talk to Zuko, she asked.

"Why is that?" Sure, she knew Iroh was the Dragon of the West, and that he had been the eldest son of Azulon… But what had made him so well respected in the Fire Nation?

"There is a part of the nobility that doesn't like my father. They feel like Uncle has been robbed of his birthright. They would take any chance to undermine my father regime, and insulting Uncle would be a great reason. Imprisoning him was already a stretch, but Ozai argued that Iroh had helped the Avatar. And the nobles hate my father… but they hate the Avatar more." Zuo explained, before turning back to the play.

Katara saw the slightly hurt expression in Aang's eyes, as he listened to the prince. Quickly taking his hand in her own, she shook her head ever so gently, because she understood him. Aang loved the Fire Nation… or at least, what the Fire Nation had been before the war. And to hear that the people that he didn't hate, even though he had every reason to, despised him… That would hurt…

She hadn't paid too much attention to the play, for it had, mercifully, skipped over a lot of the drama from before Ba Sing Se. Curiously, it hadn't shown Azula's defeat at the walls of the city, when she had tried to drill her way through the Outer Wall… Of course.

Of course, this play wasn't going to show every defeat. It had already shown the North Pole, and it had changed a lot of details, even though the outcome had been the same. So… The Fire Nation didn't want to show Azula's defeats. So… How were they going to show… That moment?

The moment Azula had killed Aang…

Because, sure, it had been a triumph for their enemies, and it had been a horrible time, filled with proclamations that the Avatar had been defeated, but soldiers had seen Aang at the invasion. It would be difficult to hide the fact that Azula had lied, no?

"Jet?"

Oh no… Not that.

Daring to glance at the stage, Katara saw that the light had become slightly greenish, and that in the middle of the stage, stood the actor that had played Jet in the first act. This time, however… He looked different.

"Must… serve… Earth… King…" The man whispered.

What! No! It had been Long Feng who had orchestrated everything in Ba Sing Se! Not Kuei! Sure, the king had not been the brightest of the bunch, and he had made mistakes… But to accuse him of what his minister had done, that was not fair! But of course… Of course, the Earth King had to be the bad guy. Zuko had warned them. This act was to make them the villains.

"Maybe my sister can jog his memory!" Sokka's actor suggested, and the man playing Toph grinned, a sinister sight, because like that, his face was all teeth and hair. Oh… Just as Toph. Spirits, they had really done a good job casting the blind girl.

"From what I have heard about the waterbender, she could use her mouth to make him remember her." Actor Toph boomed, laughing. As the whole crowd below burst into laughter, Katara bit her lip, trying not to be too hurt.

Aang's hand, which she was still holding, grabbed her fingers more tightly, making clear that he was there for her if she needed. Smiling at the airbender, she just shook her head. It was no use… The Fire Nation was going to insult them all.

"I'm the only one who gets to tease Sugar Queen." Toph's voice grumbled behind her, and Katara understood why the girl had said it. Toph showed love and affection through teasing and jokes, and this went too far, even for her. The waterbender didn't respond, but she was grateful for Toph's words.

Looking up once more, she saw that the scene had changed once more. Spirits, how much had she missed? Looking closely, Katara saw that the set was now filled with hay, and the greenish lights still shone, so they were probably still at Ba Sing Se…

Oh no.

No.

Not that.

"Katara!" The feminine voice of Aang's actress called out.

Oh no…

"Aang." Her actress answered, clearly not very impressed. A pile of hay moved, and the fake Aang's head popped out of the straw.

"Great Spirits, I love this woman!"

Oh no…

Aang's actress walked out of the stage, in a swaggering style that nearly made her laugh out of desperation, because it looked so much like the airbender a few days ago, the morning after sleeping together, when he had gone to his Sun Meditation. Her own actress appeared from the same pile of hay, as she put her dress back on. The woman looked from left to right, then, she turned to the crowd.

"Well… At least that made him happy…" She sighed, before walking away.

Tui and La, come on! How had the playwriter known about that! No one knew! Only she and Aang! Sure, Toph knew that it had happened in Ba Sing Se, but she didn't know the details! Quickly looking at the airbender, Katara was horrified by what she saw. Aang's eyes nearly spat fire, and he looked like he held in a rage that was not only from the insult. She knew he was not like most men, as he always thought about her and her feelings… But of course, he was still a young man with his own pride, even if it was silent most of the time.

And being insulted like this, while a whole crowd of people laughed at him… Spirits, that would hurt. His fingers slipped out of her hand, and he balled his fists on his knees, clearly trying not to give in to his anger.

"That happened in Ba Sing Se!?" Her brother whispered, in a rather disgusted tone, and she quickly turned around, shaking her head, glancing towards Aang. Sokka followed her gaze, and his expression changed from disgust at the oogies to concern.

"Hey buddy! It isn't true, you know that, right?" Her brother put a hand on the airbender's shoulder, but Aang didn't answer. Katara heard the controlled breathing, and knew he was trying to calm down.

"You know it isn't true." She herself repeated the words of her brother, earning a disgusted roll of Sokka's eyes, because by saying that, she actually admitted that a basis of this scene was true…

"I don't care about that." Aang answered, but for some reason, it sounded… echoey. Like… when…

Oh no. Not that not now!

"What is it then?" She murmured, trying to calm him down. Sure, they were able to hide their true identities for the moments, but Katara suspected that if someone blew up a theatre with the Avatar State, it would be noticed.

"They keep making you out for something you are not. This play, Azula, Jet… Everyone. Everyone just sees you like that, while you are so much more." The airbender muttered darkly.

Ah… So that was what made him angry. Not the insults at his own person, but how the Fire Nation portrayed her. In a way, she found it sweet that he thought about that… But on the other hand, she understood his anger. This play made her look like some harlot. And about Jet… When he had been under Long Feng's influence, he had tortured Aang with things about her, which were false, of course, but they had hurt the airbender.

And Azula… Well, Katara didn't know exactly what she had threatened Aang with, but what she did know, was that the princess had suggested doing horrible things to her… so that the airbender would surrender himself without a fight. And apparently, this play was going in the same direction.

To scare Aang.

Oh spirits… She realized now what this whole play was aimed at.

It wasn't just a way to make fun of them… It was a way to make sure Aang was afraid of the coming days. It was to make sure that the Avatar wouldn't be able to do anything against the Fire Nation during the Comet…

She quickly turned around, to catch the eye of her brother, but she saw Sokka shake his head, with wide eyes. He had probably heard what Aang had said, and had come to the same conclusion as she had done.

We need to go! She tried to convey that message through a look, but her brother shook his head, a message as clear as day in his eyes.

This doesn't have to be the worst. We need to know what this play means.

So that was why Sokka had insisted on seeing this disgusting play! It hadn't been just to have a fun night out, laughing about the completely ridiculous portrayals… But it had been so they would know what the Fire Nation planned to do against them…

And they would only learn that in the final part of the third act…

So, they needed to stay, even though it was a horrible idea, and Katara wished they hadn't taken Aang with them. This was exactly what would make the airbender doubt himself… He never said it out loud, but he loved it when people liked him. No… rather, Aang didn't want to be hated. He hated his own actions more than enough, and it made him feel slightly better about abandoning the world if he saw that the people didn't hate him.

This play would surely thrust a knife into that wound, and it would make sure Aang would be afraid, angry at himself and would try anything to make the world forgive him…

To be honest, she stopped watching the play, looking at her hands and trying to block out as much as possible. She did hear that there was a scene between her and Zuko, but she managed to block out the actual conversation. She did, however, see that Aang's knuckles were turning white out of pure anger.

"You abandoned the world. Your people have committed crimes against this world!" Suddenly, a voice boomed in the theatre. Closing her eyes, Katara recognized the voice. It was the actress playing Azula… Oh no…

Looking at the stage, the waterbender saw it was now decorated with greenish crystals… Like in the Crystal Catacombs, underneath Ba Sing Se…

"Well, airbenders have always had a tendency to… fly out of sticky situations!" Aang's actress quipped, as she "evaded" the stream of fire that was represented by long strands of blue and red silk.

"Your crimes must be punished. The Fire Nation had to take over your duty to protect the world." Azula's actress shouted dramatically, and Katara saw how the hand of the airbender began to shake slightly on his knee.

One of the silken fires touched fake Aang, and the actress fell down to the ground, screaming. Katara's heart tightened as she watched it, trying not to relive what had actually happened… And how her own heart had seemed to stop when she had saw it. How Azula had killed Aang. How the princess had nearly taken everything away from them.

How Azula had nearly killed her love.

Just as the fake princess approached the airbender, Iroh's actor appeared onto the scene, carrying a cake. As he made his way towards his "niece", the actor tripped and blocked the way to Aang's actress.

"Oh dear!" The man spoke in a silly voice, laughing.

The actress who portrayed her ran onto the stage, grabbed the fake Aang and ran out of the set, clearly mimicking what had happened. But Katara seethed at the sight! She had not just run in and saved Aang! She had actually fought against Zuko and Azula, and she had won! It was only because of the Dai Li that they had been forced on the defensive! If they had not been there, she and Aang would have won, and this war would have gone so differently!

As Iroh's actor was carried away by two people wearing guard uniforms, Zuko's actor and the fake Azula came onto the stage together.

"Now, the Fire Nation needs to know about the Avatar's treachery!" Azula said softly.

"We should tell them that the Avatar is dead. No one could have survived your attacks!" the fake Zuko spoke, wringing his hands together in a sneaky way.

"Brother! We must not lie to our people!" Azula's actress protested.

"Why not? We should tell them the Avatar is dead, and that there is nothing to worry about anymore! And I'll go tell our glorious father what has happened here!" With that, Zuko's actor walked off the stage, leaving a conflicted looking Azula there as the curtains fell down, signalling the end of the second act.

"What the fuck!" Zuko nearly shouted, and Katara could nearly hear her own sight of relief as at the exact same moment, the crowd below began to applaud. Spirits, how could they have explained what Zuko said if someone had heard him?

And the waterbender understood him. He had just become the reason why the Fire Nation had thought the Avatar was dead, even though it had been Azula's plan to say that Aang was dead! But to shout out his protest loud and clear, for everyone to hear? That was nothing more than suicidal!

Katara looked to the airbender next to her but was surprised to see an empty seat. Searching around them, she saw the door of the balcony fall close, slammed shut by a tattooed hand. Oh spirits, he had not put on the gloves they had found for him to wear!

"Sis." Sokka's hand suddenly grabbed her arm, as she was standing up to follow the airbender.

"What?" She wanted to go after Aang.

"Let him cool off. He doesn't need to worry any more than he already does…" Her brother sighed, and, looking past him, Katara saw Suki shake her head slightly, clearly not agreeing with him.

"And what do you think cools him off?" Katara answered, irritated. From the corner of her eye, she saw Toph lift a finger with a grin, but Suki quickly put a hand against the mouth of the blind girl. Luckily.

"I know Sis! But Aang is clearly upset by this play!" Sokka waved his hand towards the stage.

"Oh, yes, we all are! But Aang is actually the one who cracked, clearly!" The waterbender spoke, still trying to hold in her anger. Sokka shouldn't have taken all of them to see this! He should have gone alone, to check it out.

But no… Now, they had to do it all together, and she doubted that leaving the theatre during the play would be permitted… So, sighing, Katara shook off her brother's hand, and began to follow the airbender.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the third act will begin in half an hour."

Answers:

Handler: Yeah, I never said Aang wasn't going to do something stupid! Certainly if you remember that Katara didn't follow the play during the scene between herself and Zuko… So, that isn't going to help a lot.

Jjsmith103: I didn't put much focus on the play, because I wanted to show how they are all trying to ignore what is being said. But of course, everyone will catch some parts, and that is going to be… interesting to say the least. And of course, reawakening Katara's fears is important, but also making Aang fear for her once more.

Bbacon: Oh… I think you'll be cringing a lot more than you are expecting next chapter lol!