This War of Ours: Year Two
SUMMARY: Harsh realities of war slowly seep through the Academy's walls. Old allies disappear and new ones take their place. As Katara starts her second year in the school, she is faced with secrets that are ripe to be uncovered. [Zutara AU, inspired by Harry Potter. Book Two of This War of Ours series]
A/N: Chapter title credits go to Merlinda Carullo Bobis' In Bed with Lorca: "When the whole world sleeps, save me who waits for the double somersault of the heart."
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or Harry Potter.
CHAPTER 2
save me who waits
There was a party.
There was always a party in their estate. It was how her parents asserted their position over all the other nobles.
"Feed her quickly!" She heard her mother trill. "The guests will be here soon!"
Servants crowded around her like hordes of komodo rhinos; a few shoved spoonfuls of rich, thick porridge into her mouth before she heard the ceramic bowl being whisked away on its saucer, the utensils clattering to the ground in the servants' haste. She smiled to herself and grabbed a fallen spoon with her bare toes.
"Upstairs! Hurry!"
She almost didn't have time to sneak the spoon into her sleeve before her mother ushered her into her bedroom and the rumble of dragon donkey-led carriages could be heard in front of their house. Her mother stood at the threshold for one uncertain moment.
"Remember, Toph," she told her, nerves all aflutter, "Not one word, alright? This is your future on the line."
The bedroom door clicked close, and with that, Toph was alone again.
Well, as alone as she could ever be. She snorted derisively as she felt the two guards shift restlessly outside her door— a few minutes more, and their defenses would be loosened enough by antsiness. All Toph had to do was wait.
In the meantime, she would examine the spoon she stole. She barely used them— of course servants were assigned on rotation to feed her, the poor helpless little blind girl. But there was something in the utensils that called to her like her element did, albeit a little muted and a little fuzzier, but it was still there.
Before she could get a decent analysis of the spoon, however, she felt more vibrations just outside her door. She shifted her stance and listened intently— two other servants, one hiding a jug of wine in his clothes, the other shaking a bag of Pai Sho tiles in her guards' faces.
Toph smirked to herself. She knew it was only a matter of time before she could escape.
The night was dark with the scent of summer rain blowing in from the west, and there was no moonlight to guide him, but Zuko did not mind. It made his plans easier.
He stood for a moment atop the sloping grounds on the far end of the island where the Academy stood, letting his eyes adjust to the dimness. There wasn't a single light in any of the windows of the looming building behind him, no indication that his uncle was awake to stop him. He took a deep breath and nodded grimly to himself before setting out towards the boathouse near the Academy's docks, his footsteps barely a whisper on the fine sand, the rushing sound of the waves covering his ragged breathing.
He arrived at the tall glass and wood structure, the water lapping at his feet. He paused for a moment and let flames blossom over his palm. He sized up the rowing boats stored on the wooden shelves, heart jumping in his throat. He knew next to nothing about sea vessels and sailing— after all, he'd grown up at the Caldera, serviced by palanquins, and his trips to the Academy had been made on the royal cruiser, back when he couldn't be bothered to learn how to steer or navigate. Back when his honor didn't depend on it.
He gritted his teeth and chose at random— it didn't matter, he argued to himself, he just needed one to get away from the Academy and back into the Capital City port, where he could sneak into one of Zhao's steamers.
"If Zhao thought he could get away with capturing the Avatar and taking all the glory for himself," Zuko muttered, heaving the slender boat into the water, "He thought wrong."
Lightning illuminated the boathouse for a split second, followed by rumbling thunder that shook Zuko to his bones. Any other person would take the inclement weather as a sign to quit, but they weren't Zuko; Zuko never gave up.
He plucked two oars from a nearby shelf, slung his bag over his shoulder, careful not to jostle his sheathed swords, and leapt carefully onto the boat, balancing as he set the oars into position. There was another round of lightning and thunder, and belatedly he realized he didn't even leave his uncle a note; he would wake up and find him gone, with no idea where to look. Zuko closed his eyes.
It's better this way. He thought to himself. I'm sorry, Uncle.
He pushed his boat out into the open sea, the dark silhouette of the Academy growing slowly yet steadily smaller as he rowed into the horizon.
"Princess Yue! To what do I owe the pleasure, my dear?"
Sifu Yugoda smiled at her in her warm, matronly kind of way, eyes crinkling at the corners. She set aside the book she was reading and motioned her to sit beside her, adding more kindling to the fire in the pit at the center of her home as she did so. It was such a familiar sight that Yue found herself sighing in relief as she settled by the fire, her shoulders lowering from where they were hunched to her ears for what seemed like the past four days.
"Oh, it's nothing, Sifu Yugoda. I just needed a break from wedding preparations," Yue said delicately, clutching her fur-lined shawl tighter around her as she watched Yugoda summon water into the kettle that hung over the fire. Her sifu smiled knowingly at her.
"It's just a few hours after dawn, Princess," Yugoda said wryly. "What could possibly require your attention when the day has barely started, hm?"
Yue averted her gaze and spoke to the flames.
"Hahn's family is arriving later. It just… it seems all too real, now." she replied quietly. She looked up from the flames and chuckled mirthlessly. "Isn't it ironic, Sifu? I've heard it's mostly the men that have cold feet before their wedding."
Yugoda was silent as she stood up and gathered her chipped tea service. She remained silent until she handed Yue her cup, the scent of moon peaches filling her small home.
"There is more to this visit than thawing out cold feet," Yugoda declared, her gaze penetrating. The princess took a deep breath and let it out slowly, her breath steaming before her.
"Do you have any news of Sifu Pakku's return from the South?" she blurted out. She bit her lip and set aside her tea with shaking fingers. "I know it's impertinent of me to ask, Sifu Yugoda, but there's no one else I could turn to for answers. Why would father send a waterbending master to the South Pole? I do not believe it's just about my wedding. Father's planning something, and I—"
I don't want Sokka to get hurt.
She blinked back the tears that suddenly blurred her vision.
"I just don't understand," she finished lamely. She took a deep, steadying breath. "I have seen the invitations. Father has extended his hospitality to all the warriors in the South. It troubles me."
Yue wrung her hands as her sifu sipped her tea. Finally, the older woman closed her eyes and sighed.
"I'm afraid I have no answers for you, Princess Yue," she said, and Yue deflated. Yugoda opened her eyes and looked at her apologetically. "You are right, however; it is indeed suspicious to invite the warriors alone, especially with our correspondence being monitored by the Fire Nation. And I think I know why."
"How?" Yue asked, but the older woman just smiled mysteriously.
"It is always surprising how many secrets a woman can learn by simply being 'insignificant' to the eyes of men," Yugoda replied, before taking both her hands and looking at her solemnly. "Dark and difficult times lie ahead, Princess Yue."
"What do you mean, Sifu?"
"There have been reports that the Regime of Fire is gathering troops to send to the Water Tribes." Yugoda gripped her hands tightly. "In search of the Avatar."
Yue's brows wrinkled in confusion.
"But the Avatar is simply a lost legend now, Sifu Yugoda," she murmured, as though whispering would somehow lessen the implications behind her sifu's words. "Fire Lord Sozin killed Avatar Roku; everybody knows that. And there are no Air Nomads anymore."
Yugoda smiled at her thinly, letting the situation sink in. Yue shook her head and yanked her hands out of the older woman's grasp.
"No," she breathed, still shaking her head. "They cannot plan on attacking us simply because they think the Avatar has been reincarnated as a waterbender! There have been treaties— pacts that Grandfather signed with the Fire Lord—"
Her eyes widened as another realization struck her. She stood up and placed her hands over her mouth in horror.
"The Southerners! Father can't possibly take all their warriors away! They'll be defenseless! What if the Fire Nation attacks them, too?"
What if Sokka goes with the warriors? What if Katara gets left behind?
"I'm afraid that is the part where I have no answers for you, my dear," Yugoda said, guiding her back down and massaging her knuckles soothingly. "I do not know what Chief Arnook is thinking, but I'm sure that the Southern Water Tribe chief would not agree if it would put his people in danger."
Sokka and Katara's father, Yue thought, trying to calm her heart. Of course. Chief Hakoda wouldn't agree to anything that would endanger his children.
"You sit with your back hunched like that and you'll look older than me in ten years," his mother said dryly as she plucked feathers from an arctic hen just outside their hut.
Hakoda grimaced and sat as straight as he could on the rock he was perched on. He fidgeted with the fur on his mantle and took a deep breath.
"Mother—"
"Oh, just come out and say what you have to say, Hakoda," Kanna said with a roll of her eyes.
Hakoda pouted at his mother— maybe this was why Sokka often wore the expression— and sighed.
"After the Northern delegation arrives… I will be taking Sokka and Katara… to the Academy," he said slowly, hesitantly. His mother stiffened for a moment and resumed plucking feathers with more vigor a displeased frown on her lips. He let the silence reign for a second; he knew how much his mother doted on his children, even before Kya passed, and the separation when they started school in the Fire Nation had not been easy on Kanna's part, though she never said it out loud.
"You better have a good reason for taking my grandchildren away from me earlier than necessary," his mother finally said, looking at him with a level gaze, which Hakoda met with one of his own.
"You know what the Fire Nation is planning, Mother," he said in a low voice. "I'm doing this to protect them, so they will not be caught in the crosshairs when… when the time comes."
"They should be here, with their family," Kanna replied sternly. "There is no safer place."
"There's no safer place, except perhaps the Academy," countered Hakoda. "They will be safer under Headmaster Iroh's protection, Mother. Even you cannot deny that."
The expression in his mother's eyes was as brittle as newly-formed ice.
"And what of the tribe, my son?" she asked gravely, the way she had asked him six years ago. "Wolves are strongest with their pack. You will leave your pack here, without protection from these Fire Nation soldiers who have a predilection for abusing their power?"
"The tribe will not be left defenseless, Mother," he answered wearily. "Bato's men will stay here to protect you. It will not be like the last time."
"You stubborn walrus yak," Kanna clicked her tongue and shook her head. "The Regime of Fire will brand you a traitor if you show allegiance to any other nation. Bato's men will not be able to protect the tribe then."
"We are not violating any pact by visiting the North Pole," Hakoda replied firmly. "And by doing so, we are leading the Fire Nation's troops away from the South."
"You are bait," his mother said simply, lips twisted into a dissatisfied grimace. "You have let the North convince you that you are fighting alongside them, but mark my words— you are just a pawn in their games."
"We are not. I am perfectly aware of all the possible consequences of the actions that we will take, Mother. Believe me," Hakoda retorted through gritted teeth. "This is the only way."
"No, it is not, Hakoda," his mother said sharply, wiping her hands on her dress. "You can leave the North to fend for themselves, as they have done to us during your father's time."
"Do you have any idea what will happen to the tribe if I do not agree to this?" he hissed, eyes darting around them to make sure no one would overhear. "The Fire Nation thinks we are harboring the Avatar, Mother. If I stay here, it will bolster their belief that the waterbending Avatar has been born in the South! Need I remind you what happened the last time the Fire Nation raided our village?"
Kanna's eyes softened at that, but the displeased look remained. She pursed her lips and exhaled.
"And so you think that by putting your life on the line, you are saving your tribe?" she asked wryly, a hint of mourning in her voice. "I do not understand you, my son."
"Joining the Northern Water Tribe in fighting the Regime of Fire is for the greater good," Hakoda said, even though there was a niggling feeling deep in his heart.
"The greater good," Kanna snorted and turned back to her arctic hen. "So many people die because of the greater good."
Hakoda had no reply to that. He watched his mother work silently, the biting air seemingly more bitter now against his snow-weathered skin.
"Your children will grow with or without you, you know," Kanna said quietly. "Sooner or later, they will go where you cannot protect them. And if they are anything like you, my son, you will not be able to make them stay."
"Separate the yin and the yang," said Li.
"Create the imbalance," said Lo.
"And release," they said in unison.
Azula rolled her eyes and easily shot a bolt of lightning out of one hand, smirking as it hit its mark. The wooden target dummy's chest smoldered in the distance, and Azula straightened up from her stance.
"Excellent work, Princess Azula," intoned Lo.
"You are truly a prodigy," agreed Li.
"Oh, I know," said Azula, dusting her hands off. She surveyed the line of practice targets that have sustained burn marks in several key areas in satisfaction. "I think that is enough practice for today."
"Of course, Your Highness," said the elderly twins, bowing at her as she passed by them on her way out of the bending arena.
She walked purposefully to the war room, hands behind her back and head held high. The Fire Nation palace was often a desolate, deadly silent place, but Azula had always enjoyed the sound of her footsteps echoing in the cavernous halls— there was power in owning every measured step, every deliberate stride that brought her from one spacious room to another.
And oh, how she loved surprising unwary ministers and council members, huddled in the shadows of her expansive home, thinking they could get away with all their plotting and politicking by merely hiding away in empty corners, totally oblivious to the way their voices carried down the corridors.
"...tired of the Fire Lord playing favoritism with Zhao; he doesn't deserve the position! I'm telling you, Minister, my battalion has a better chance of flushing out the Avatar from the Northern Air Temple. We just need the right resources."
"While I agree that Zhao is a self-absorbed fool, I still maintain that the Fire Lord has no reason to believe General Iroh's information on the 'air walkers' in the Northern Air Temple. We all know the old man has lost his touch. I'd much rather funnel our funds towards Zhao's fleet."
"Good morning, Finance Minister Chen, Lieutenant Colonel Hsiang," Azula greeted, and both men jumped apart as though she bent lightning right in between them.
"Princess Azula," Minister Chen greeted with a stiff bow, and Lieutenant Hsiang followed suit a split-second later. Azula raised her brows imperiously at the two grown men, both almost twice her height, but still very much inferior to her.
"What an interesting conversation you were having, gentlemen," she said, inclining her head. Hsiang swallowed audibly as he straightened up, while Chen pressed his lips into a thin line and held his head high, his pointed beard quivering.
"I was simply explaining how the treasury could not afford Lieutenant Hsiang's request for more battleships, Your Highness," he said smoothly, though Azula noted the tremor in his hands as he clutched them into fists beneath his flowing sleeves.
"Why, yes, of course, Minister," she replied primly, studying her painted nails, "However, I do seem to recall that my father has ordered a thorough search of the Air Temples in the last war meeting, with no expenses to be spared. Am I not correct?"
She caught the triumphant look that Hsiang gave Chen before the minister bowed deeply once more.
"You are correct, Princess," he muttered to the floor.
"Lieutenant Hsiang," she said, and the military man snapped to attention. "In the same war meeting, didn't my father explicitly tell the council that Admiral Zhao was to lead the expedition to the Water Tribes, and to hinder such an important mission was tantamount to treason?"
It was Hsiang's turn to bow deeply.
"I do recall, Your Highness," he said, eyes skittering and sweat forming on his brows.
"It would be bold of me to assume this, gentlemen, but with what little I've heard of your conversation, it seems both of you are not truly honoring your Fire Lord's orders. Now, I wonder: what would my father say when he hears about this?" She walked right past them as she spoke, knowing they would still listen to every word she said. "Would he banish you, or simply strip you of your ranks?"
There was a clamor behind her, but she continued walking resolutely down the hallway, away from their stumbling apologies and excuses. She smiled to herself, wondering what her father would have to say of her accomplishment.
"Sokka! Where are you?"
Katara frowned, walking along the reinforced walls of their tribe— this used to be the shore; when did we start needing more walls? She wove in and out of Earth Kingdom merchants carrying their wares back to their ships, wondering where on earth her brother was, and why on earth he was making them late for dinner, which was definitely a first.
"Your brother's up in the main watchtower." One of the biggest warriors in their tribe, Dakkel, clambered down awkwardly from the wall. A huge chunk of snow came down with him and he groaned, slapping a mittened hand on his forehead. "Tui and La, I just finished fixing that."
"Here, let me," Katara said, bending the snow back up and solidifying it into ice. "You said Sokka was in the main watchtower?"
"Yes, the original one. Amaruk said he left him there after hunting— said we were expecting visitors soon," Dakkel replied, shaking clumps of gray snow from the hood of his parka— the snow in their village was mostly gray now, as though it had gotten used to the soot and had accepted its fate. Dakkel looked at the setting sun and nodded at Katara. "You better hurry. It's nearing curfew."
Katara thanked him before she sprinted to the other side of the village. She was not looking forward to Gran-Gran's lectures about staying out too late— or, spirits forbid, being taken into custody of the Fire Nation soldiers for violating curfew.
"Sokka!" she called, even before she entered the tower. "It's time to go, come on. Gran-Gran roasted the arctic hen you caught!"
"Really?" Her brother's head poked through the window of the watchtower, a gleeful smile on his face. "Oh man, that's awesome! But wait, Katara, I need your help with something. Come up here for a sec."
Curious, Katara made her way into the small room atop the tower, where her brother was peering through a rusty, battered telescope that belonged to their father.
"What's going on?"
"Look at those ships," he said, passing her the telescope. She reluctantly placed the scope close to her eyes— she wasn't comfortable knowing that her father and his men probably got the device from one of the ships they assailed— and squinted at where Sokka was pointing.
She couldn't locate the ships at first— the sun was getting low on the horizon, and its glare reflected harshly on the tundra and the sea— but then she was met with silhouettes of the vessels.
"Whose are they?" Katara said in wonder.
The ships didn't look like the Fire Nation's steamers— no soot announcing their arrival, no unnatural churns in the water, no imposing structure in the middle. Nor did they look like Earth Kingdom trading galleons— no, these were smaller, more streamlined somehow, more similar to their own sailers.
"I couldn't see the sails; they were too far away," Sokka said, gathering his things and standing up. Katara handed him the telescope and stood as well. A grim look passed between the siblings.
"Do you think they're the Northern warriors that Amaruk was talking about?" Katara asked, hand instinctively reaching for her water skin.
"They were due to arrive, but I didn't think they'd send that many ships," Sokka scratched his head with his boomerang and fidgeted with his parka. "I was at the council meeting when Dad read the letter Chief Arnook sent. It just said they were sending an 'emissary' to accompany Dad and his 'retinue' back to the North." He laughed nervously and tugged on his wolf tail. "It was so funny, how formal it was, y'know? They treated Dad like he was a king or something. I didn't even really know what retinue meant—"
Katara narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.
"You're not telling me something."
Sokka deflated and scuffed his boots on the floor, eyes downcast.
"Arnook's letter was an invitation to Yue's wedding," he admitted quietly.
"Oh, Sokka," Katara said, moving to hug him, but he just shrugged her off with a weak laugh.
"Eh, it's okay. I'm trying to move on, y'know?" He swallowed and grinned too widely that it mildly horrified Katara. "See? Just— just smiling through the pain!"
Katara crossed her arms and looked at him pitifully, and he scowled and puffed his chest up.
"Anyway," he said pointedly, "I'm pretty sure Amaruk was right; the wedding invitation was probably just an excuse for them to come and recruit our warriors. I don't really know why they'd send what looks like a whole fleet of ships, though. Do they think we're such big threats?"
"Knowing those snobby Northerners, they probably just thought we didn't have enough ships," Katara huffed and rolled her eyes. She jerked her thumb at the specks growing on the horizon. "Either way, whoever those are, you have to do your job and let the tribe know that they're arriving."
"Right!" Sokka stepped around her and unhooked the buffalo yak horn from the wall. "Ready?"
Katara plugged her ears with her mittened fingers just as her brother leaned out the window and blew the horn twice. She watched as lanterns flared in the other watchtowers— another difference she had to get used to, now that they were using wax candles from the Fire Nation instead of seal blubber— and joined her brother as he ran down to their father, who was waiting with his men at the foot of the tower.
"Northern sails!" confirmed one of the warriors atop the wall. Hakoda nodded grimly and strode toward the single archway in the wall that led to the port. The men of the tribe followed close behind, forming a line that obstructed the others from view. The Fire Nation soldiers stationed nearby moved to flank the group, an odd fringe of red and metal attached to the blue and fur.
The tribe held its breath as the ships loomed closer— Katara counted three of them in the dimming twilight, not as many as they'd thought, just larger than what they were used to. As the Northerners docked, a column of water shot up from the sea and a slim figure rode it to descend onto the snowy shore.
Katara gasped and elbowed her way through the wall of warriors. There was no mistaking the dour face that greeted her.
"Sifu Pakku?!"
A/N: And that's Chapter Two! Finally, Toph's here! I really love writing her— she's such a little brat that any scene with her is a wild ride, and I'm so excited for what's to come now that she's in the picture. Anyway, Toph was the easy part of this chapter; things are heating up in the other characters' lives and it will continue to grow until shit hits the fan.
On another note, Dakkel (which means big in our language and is actually where my name came from) was supposed to be more than a passing character here. He was supposed to have a waterbending toddler, but the more I wrote it, the more it delayed the story's timeline, so… *sigh* kill your darlings, amirite?
Anyway, tell what you guys think of this chapter! Cheers!