In under an hour, Sokka's pulse weakened considerably. Katara grabbed him, trying to hold in whatever was trying to escape through his thin heartbeat.
tha-THUMP
She knew what a dead body felt like.
Long after the ache in her arms had caused the muscles to spasm, she held Sokka to her. His head lolled back on his neck and one arm fell to the side. Katara kept her forehead to his chest and focused on the dual quivering of his heartbeat. At the edges of her senses, she could feel the others. Whatever plant Azula had found, it was meant to incapacitate and not kill.
But it was so easy to get a dosage wrong.
tha-THUMP
When her own pulse had bottomed out all those years ago, it was Sokka who held her. Hakoda had gone to Kya and in the few short minutes before Kanna had shown up to whisk them away, they had all sat breathless.
At that moment, she couldn't even feel the cold. She couldn't feel anything. There was no sound, no movement. She couldn't recognize that it was her brother bracing her when the darkness started to edge in around her vision.
Katara had gasped when Kanna had dragged them outside of hut.
When blood started to pump through her veins, it woke up the nerves and she began to hurt. She cried, wailing, in equal parts from grief and pain. Sokka was still holding her hand as he broke apart next to her.
tha-THUMP
His heart was beating thirty-five times in one minute. It took about a minute for blood to circulate throughout the entire body, but not at this rate. It was usually faster than this even while asleep. But it was moving, flowing through his body and bringing the needed nourishment.
Katara thought of them like straws, blowing liquid through sluices from the chest outward. Reaching all the way to the soles of his feet. Without blood, his muscles would not work. Without blood, his mind would cease to function.
Feeling her throat tighten, Katara hugged him closer.
"Just keep beating." She murmured and felt heat seep through her closed lids.
Beneath her, she suddenly felt Dawa rouse. At such a size, Katara had been surprised that Azula had been able to drug her at all. The massive heart under them all pounded faster and Dawa shifted as she woke up.
Katara no longer felt Zuko hovering, and knew that he had gone to check on the Air Bison.
Death, and the outlying lands, was a territory that distilled everything to only the most important. As a child, everything was already black and white, so it wasn't until the moment she watched Aang fall in Ba Sing Se that she felt that pinpoint of mental focus.
When she had held his broken body, she knew she could save this one. She wouldn't have to fail. She could still feel his heart beating.
tha-THUMP
There was no tidal wave of water to bring her to Zuko when he fell to Azula's lightning. There was no moment of clarity that afforded her the time to think of a plan.
She saw him curl inward around his wound and all she could think of was getting to him.
Twice she reached for him, and twice Katara was rebuffed by Azula. It took everything in her to tear away from him and focus on the task of restraining the mad princess.
She had to focus on her own breathing, her own pulse timing her steps, in order to combat the overpowered Fire Bender. When she had, Katara had gone quickly to Zuko, making sure he hadn't succumbed to the attack.
He had lived. Aang had lived.
Sokka had to wake up.
tha-THUMP
"Katara." Zuko's voice was soft and low. It was enough to bring Katara back to herself and she started to cry.
"I can't lose him too." Katara's voice cracked and fell apart into heaving sobs. Zuko put his arms around her and held her.
"He'll be okay. Katara, you're not going to lose him."
"I can't, I can't, I can't." She tapped her forehead against Sokka's chest as she spoke.
"Ennnnnh." Sokka's closed eyes squeezed together and he shifted. Zuko sat back on his heels as Katara straightened and relaxed her hold on her brother. "Katara?" He whispered in a dry voice.
"Sokka." Katara coughed out a mix of a laugh and a cry. "Sokka! You're okay." She squeezed him and Sokka groaned again. He forced himself up to a partial sit, with Katara bracing him. Wincing, Sokka rubbed his head and eyed Zuko.
"Zuko, are you, are you crying?" Sokka asked. Zuko thrust forward and grabbed a fistful of Sokka's shirt. Sokka yelped as Zuko pulled him forward and embraced him.
"I thought my sister killed you." Zuko said and Sokka's breath came out in a huff.
"Okay, okay, I love you too." Sokka said and weakly patted Zuko's back. "Let me go."
A dry coughing caught Katara's attention and she rushed over to Suki. Chang let out a thin groan and Katara felt the muscles in her shoulders relax.
She hadn't lost any of them.
It took near an hour for them to recover and by then, the sky was being lit by thin streaks of pale light. Chang was the one who pieced together what had happened, and but had only known that she had been drugged too late.
"She got to the tea." Chang said, shaking her head slowly. "She must have put some leaves in Dawa's feed."
"But how?" Sokka asked. He and Suki leaned against each other and were passing a waterskin back and forth. "That would've taken a lot of leaves."
"Not if it was Felleria Weed." Chang said and produced a soggy leaf. It was heart shaped and smaller than the woman's palm. "It is extremely potent and while rare, it grows in a thick clump all over this area."
"How would Azula know anything about it?" Zuko inquired and Chang shook the leaf off of her hand.
"Felleria Weed, when dried and crushed, is used as a soporific in hospitals." She answered.
"They probably gave it to her at the Institute." Zuko added.
"Well, that's good. Overdosing on soporifics are usually more benign than on sedatives." Katara mumbled to herself. Her previous debilitating fear left her in a rush and she felt strangely hollow. It was as if this new fact was trying to retroactively assert itself over what had happened. It felt, odd.
"Awesome, she didn't poison us. So where is she?" Sokka demanded and Katara saw Zuko wince.
"She ran off into the woods." He said.
"And you didn't go after her?" Sokka balked.
"We were worried you were dying!" Katara snapped. Sokka opened his mouth to retort, thought better of it, and shut his mouth, handing the waterskin back to Suki.
"So what now?" Suki interjected before taking a drink.
"Now, we wait for the spirit to show up. Katara thinks Azula is still nearby, waiting to see what we learn." Zuko explained.
"And after?" Suki pressed. Zuko sighed.
"Then we deal with what we learn. I have no idea what to do about Azula." He said.
"We'll figure it out when the time comes." Katara said, her voice surprisingly hard. She was beginning to understand why Zuko had such a vitriolic response to his sister.
"While we wait, you two should probably get some sleep." Chang stated and Katara felt fatigue begin to settle in the emptiness her fear had carved out.
"Chang's right. Let's set up camp." Zuko said.
After getting the least amount of supplies they needed, Katara shook out her bedroll close to Dawa. Zuko was closer to the lake, talking to Sokka and Suki. Chang, as always, stayed close to Katara.
"What do you think about Azula?" Katara asked suddenly as she laid down on the bedroll. Chang didn't reply right away but sat next to Katara with her back resting against one of Dawa's legs.
"I worry about the princess. I know the Fire Lord has hoped that she would recover in the hospital, but I am afraid that she might be beyond help. I am saddened to think she will not know peace." Chang replied slowly. Katara smirked and propped her head up with one arm.
"I meant with all of this." She clarified.
"My answer is the same."
"How can you have sympathy for her?" Katara asked incredulously.
"I would no sooner rebuke her for her actions than I would a pail with a hole for not holding water."
"If I had a pail with a hole in it, I would toss it."
"Good thing the princess is a person and not a pail." Katara fell silent and mulled over Chang's words. She turned onto her back and stared up at the lightening morning sky.
"Do you think your husband has returned to the palace yet?" Katara asked instead. She glanced over at the other woman and found hang also looking at the sky, a small smile on her face.
"I do." She replied as Katara turned to face the sky again.
"I bet you're excited to see him again."
"It is nice to see our loved ones again." At that, Katara had to fight the urge to look for Zuko. "When we return, I will make sure you meet Xue. I think you will like him."
"What about your son? When was the last time you saw him?"
"Oh, it's been a little while. Xue and I travelled to Kurokita for Yuu's wedding." Now Katara sat up and gaped at Chang, who continued to smile.
"He's married?"
"Indeed. In fact, I am going to be a grandmother in the next few months."
"A grandmother? You look so young." Now Chang chuckled and looked evenly at Katara.
"Being around you young people keeps me spry. Now," Chang made a shooing gesture with her sleeved hands. "Get some rest. I'm sure the spirit will arrive soon." Katara lay back down and threw her arm over her eyes in an attempt to block out the growing sunlight.
Luckily, her exhaustion was such that she managed to fall asleep quite easily.
She woke up oddly hot and disoriented.
Sokka was crouched next to her head but looking toward the lake. Katara moved her tongue around her dry mouth and tried to swallow. Rubbing her eye with the heel of her hand, she sat up and Sokka still didn't look at her. Instead, he pointed.
Katara got onto her knees and looked to where he was pointing.
A large blue wolf was lying at the edge of the lake. Right in front of them.
"The wolf!" Katara hissed in a whisper. Sokka nodded.
"She should be here soon." He replied and Katara nodded.
She felt something deep within the water lurch. The sudden push made her stand up and the wolf lazily raised its head. The water in the center of the lake started to glow.
"Look!" Katara called. The others all stood and watched as the light at the center of the lake brightened. Water droplets started to form in reverse, and each was easily the size of a man. The globs of glowing water rounded into fat drops and began to fall upward. More and more drops followed till whole, thick streams of bright water started to twist upward.
Torrents of water began to rush upward and Katara felt like she was watching a waterfall crash skyward. An awesome amount of water created a glowing pillar in the center of the lake that towered over them. Then, the column broke.
Water rushed off the column at a terrifying speed. A massive wave surged forward and Katara ran forward to try and divert it away from the group. But just as the wave was about to hit their beach, it instead acted like it was climbing the wall of a clear bowl. It curved upward and over itself, flowing back toward the center and leaving them with only a surprising high tide.
Where the column of water had formed, a spirit stood instead.
A literal trunk of interwoven branches stood as the elongated torso of the spirit. The chest was broad and flat, with armor like spiked shoulders. The arms were almost as long as the body, and the hands ended sharply jointed claws.
The head was both sublime and terrifying. Matching delicate, feminine faces formed a ring while the eyes and upper face were obscured by the base of thick, oblong horns.
Hovering all around the spirit were translucent blue faces.
Katara shuddered hard at the dozens of empty eyes.
"I am the Mother of Faces. I am the one who has created the shape of your origin and given you form as individuals. As you have sought me out, know that I will only answer to one boon." The tall spirit said and, for a moment, no one moved.
"Mother of Faces," Zuko started as he stepped forward. Sokka suddenly darted forward, but was stopped as the Wolf slowly rose to its feet.
Sokka licked his lips and pulled his eyes away from the wolf to turn to Zuko.
"She has faces, like Koh." Sokka said and, with wide eyes, tilted his head toward the spirit. Zuko, not comprehending the look, shrugged.
"And?"
"What if she steals your face?"
"What." The Mother of Faces had a voice like falling water. If Katara thought she saw a waterfall flowing toward the sky, now she heard the sound of one falling back to earth.
"My brother means no offense good spirit." Katara said as she joined the group at the beach. "The Avatar met a spirit a few years back who stole faces."
"A spirit with the ability to take faces." The Mother of Faces now had the sound of shallow waves splashing against over sand. "Only my son has that ability." She turned her head so that one of her faces more prominently looked down at them. "No matter. You may request your boon now, and be safe in knowing that I will not take your face without giving you another in return."
Zuko, now more confused, shook his head before speaking.
"Mother of Faces, I am in search of my mother. I think she came to you some ten years past to," Zuko halted again and looked down at his hands. "To forget."
"What was her name child." The Mother of Faces replied and Zuko stared up at her. She did not ask questions, but only prompted.
"Her name wa-. Is, her name is Ursa." He answered.
"I know this name." The Mother of Faces bent over and stretched out her hand. Hovering at her palm was a blue light and it shivered. Soon, it became a bust of a woman and Katara heard Zuko suck in a sharp breath.
Katara had seen the royal portrait Zuko had kept. She recognized Ursa, though her face was free of any cosmetics and her hair had a thin braid wrapped around the sides of her head. She was still breathtakingly beautiful.
"This one came to me seeking to forget her past life and to receive a new face." The Mother of Faces continued.
"A, new face?" Zuko repeated, now looking back at the spirit.
"Yes. Much as I created each creature's face with a piece of my own self, so can I make a new one while also removing memories." The Mother of Faces explained.
"So, what does she look like now?" Zuko asked. Ursa's face rippled and was soon replaced by a new bust. Now Katara gasped, her hands flying to her mouth.
"That's," She whispered.
"Noriko." Zuko finished.
"Yes. I was angry to see such a beautiful face refused, and I tested her resolve with this plain one. She took it, and with her old face shed many painful memories." The Mother of Faces said and vanished the bust of Noriko.
"We need to go back." Katara said. Before Zuko could reply, they all heard something go crashing through the woods away from them. Zuko's eyes widened in fear.
"Azula!" He called out.
"She's going after Noriko!" Katara said as she turned to the forest.
"We're on it." Sokka said as he and Suki suddenly took off past them, running full tilt to the forest.
"Get to Dawa, we need to head her off!" Zuko yelled and Katara nodded. Before she could go, however, Chang grabbed her arm.
"You need to thank the spirit child." She said softly. Torn, Katara looked as Zuko held onto the ladder of the saddle. With a grimace, Katara turned and walked back to the spirit.
"Thank you Mother of Faces." Katara said and bowed.
"How do you know the Avatar child." The Mother of Faces said and Katara straightened.
"He's, my friend." She replied.
"And how did he come to meet this, Koh?" A genuine question and Katara took a breath.
"Aang, the Avatar, went to Koh to find the Ocean and Moon spirits. He travelled to the spirit world and was told that if he showed any emotion, that Koh would take, his, face." Katara's resolve weakened as she explained and felt very, very small under the spirit's gaze.
"Koh was not his name, at the beginning. It seems that he too spurns my gifts." The Mother of Faces said.
"My lady?" Katara asked. She heard Zuko approach but didn't dare turn to look at him.
"Humans come to forget. To gain a new face. They are ignorant of the care and love I put into creating the ones they are born with." The Mother of Faces sounded bitter and Katara swallowed hard on the knot in her throat. "But it seems my own son has rebuked me and now seeks to take what I have created."
"Please, my lady Mother of Faces," Zuko spoke up. "My sister is going to kill my mother. I have not seen her in many years and I need to get to her. Surely, as a mother who is bereft of her son, you can pity me enough to aid me?" The spirit turned her sharply and her visible faces snarled.
"ONE BOON HUMAN." As quickly as her anger came, it dissipated, and her faces smoothed. "I will allow you the access to my wolf. He moves swiftly and knows how to get to the village."
"Thank you my lady." Zuko said emphatically and bowed.
"When you return him, I want you to tell me how these events have unfolded. Perhaps I should heed whatever omen you bring." The Mother of Faces said and both Katara and Zuko bowed again. As they ran to the wolf, Katara called out to Chang.
"Take Dawa! We'll meet you at the village!" She said and Chang nodded before running to the Air Bison.
With her heart pounding, Katara followed Zuko toward the wolf spirit. He jumped up onto the side of the massive beast and held out his hand. Katara ran and jumped, grabbing Zuko's hand as he swung her up. She landed on the wolf's back and Zuko quickly climbed up.
The wolf started running before they were secure in their seat.
When they had flown over the forest earlier, Katara had noticed that the trees grew thick. But as the wolf ran silently through, trees seemed to move out of the way. The spirit did run swiftly, moving as fast as a typhoon through the valley. Katara clung onto his back and tried to remember to breathe.
Soon they burst out of the woods, right at the edge of the village. Zuko and Katara jumped down, running now for the low fence that delineated the boundaries of Hira'a. They propelled themselves over and neither saw nor heard any sign of Azula.
"We probably beat them here." Zuko muttered as they ran toward Noren's hut.
"It's the middle of the day, do you think he's home?" Katara asked.
"I don't know. I just hope we get to them first." Zuko replied. They slowed as they approached the hut, trying to catch their breath.
"Come on." Katara urged and they pushed through the fence in front of the hut. Zuko went to the door and knocked. It opened a crack as Noriko peered out. When she saw them, she gasped and threw the door open.
"Fire Lord! I, I didn't think to see you again." Noriko exclaimed as Zuko walked into the hut.
"Noriko, you need to leave here. Where's Kiyi?" He said. Noriko suddenly looked nervous and glanced at Katara.
"Fire Lord?"
"Noriko, someone very dangerous from your past is coming here. We need to get you out." Katara said in way of an explanation. Noriko stilled and looked down.
"I don't understand." She murmured.
"There's no time!" Zuko yelled and Noriko flinched. Katara put her hand on Noriko's arm and the woman faced her.
"Please, we'll explain later I promise. Where is Kiyi?" She asked. Noriko sniffed and swallowed.
"She's out back." Noriko started and stopped as she watched Zuko stride through the hut toward the backyard.
"We need to go Noriko." Katara said, bringing the woman's attention back to her.
"Is there time to pack?" Noriko asked and Katara shook her head.
"We'll go get Noren and then we have to leave." Katara replied and Noriko nodded. Zuko returned, carrying Kiyi on his side.
"Let's go. Chang will probably land Dawa in the village center." He said.
"Noren will probably be at the theatre so we can grab him there." Katara added and they all rushed out of the house.
By the time they made it the short distance to the village center, Chang had just landed Dawa. Many people had come out to gawk at the flying animal, and soon Noren came walking over from the stage. Seeing Noriko and Kiyi, he quickened to a trot.
"What's happening?" Noren asked as Zuko handed him his daughter.
"Someone is coming for Noriko. We need to get you out of here." Zuko said. Noren looked at the Fire Lord for a moment and then nodded.
"Okay." Noren sighed and they moved toward Dawa. Chang threw down the ladder and as Noren reached out for it, they saw the flash of fire.
A fireball crashed in front of Dawa and the Air Bison spooked, rearing up on her back four legs with a loud bellow. Kiyi screamed and Katara turned.
Azula stood before them, panting out broken laughter.
"Thought you'd rescue mother from her murderous get?" Azula called out and Zuko stepped forward.
"I won't let you do this Azula." He said and Azula broke into wild laughter.
"You can't fix us Zuzu." Azula replied with a sigh. She flicked her wrists and brought out twin daggers of fire and her eyes narrowed. "But I can save us."
Without hesitating, Zuko glided through the steps of a dragon stance and stopped before producing any flame.
He took a breath.