Hei-Won hummed to herself as she walked the near-empty halls of the temple. It was far too early in the morning for most of the population to be awake. The kitchen staff had banned her, and she was told in no uncertain terms that she was not allowed to see Teo. Not that she needed to see him, he did not fall for her seduction techniques like all the other men she's used. She had been thrown by Princess Azula's presence; her entire plan needed restructured, which is why she gambled with bringing Aang to the temple.
She was alone in the mailroom, composing her message carefully. Soon Teo would be out of the picture and all she would need is to get her cousin, Ii, who works at the front desk at the Serenity Stone Hospital, to make the Mechanist's fragile mental state public, then the temple's so-called "council" will lose all its strength. She was sure that without the geniuses, the case to keep the temple in the refugees' control is a weak one.
The acolyte finished her letter and picked up her personal messenger hawk off its perch. "You need to find Oba, my little darling." She stroked the bird's feathers and tied the message to its leg. Soon the Earth Kingdom diplomats will be informed of the latest developments. Councilman Oba would be able to get some reinforcements from the fledgling army base on the border of Air Nomad territory and the Earth Kingdom. To think that Princess Azula just flew past them without their knowledge; well, that was just more incentive to go after the most wanted war criminal in the Earth Kingdom.
All she had to do was avoid Aang a little longer. She couldn't lie to him if he never asked her any questions.
Teo felt awful. It wasn't even the guilt he felt for letting his people down; he set that particular bat-elephant aside until he physically felt better. His whole body ached and he felt chilled and he was sure he had a fever. He wasn't sure what happened to the rest of his opium, but it was gone now and he knew that his symptoms came from withdrawal. In the back of his mind, he felt he should be embarrassed; nineteen years old and he was curled up in his father's lap like a small child. If only he could travel back in time to prevent his father from leaving last year.
"I'm sure everything will work out, son. It always does." He closed his eyes, focusing on his father's presence.
"Not this time. Where… where will we go?" He gripped his blanket tighter, trying to fend off the imagined cold.
"Aang will not let us be turned out into the cold. He gave us his blessing to live here years ago. You know that. Who would challenge the Avatar?"
The Earth King, various different anti-peace rebel groups, the possibilities all flashed before his eyes. "Are you… disappointed in me?" He turned to look up at his father.
"Now why would you ask such a silly question as that?" The older man smiled, his intelligent eyes were clear and lucid.
Teo thought it might be better if he were. "Because I helped Azula. I put our people in danger by keeping her secret. I helped her escape capture and almost died."
His father helped him sit up and a wave of dizziness swept through him. "Dad careful…" He warned, threatening to be sick. The moment passed and his father's arm held him steadily.
"Teo, you helped someone that needed help, despite her past deeds. And you were willing to do so even though your friends didn't think she deserved it. I'm proud of you. And your friends will be too once they realize they were being unreasonable. Has Aang come to talk to you yet?"
"No," Teo sighed, resting his throbbing head against his father's shoulder. "Toph's been in and out. Katara spoke with me a little the first day. Zuko even helped me in the workshop. He just wanted to know if Azula was okay. But not Aang or Sokka. Not since they got here." Aang's absence hurt the worst; he finally visited the temple after five years and only because Hei-Won wrote to him. Things must be worse than he thought; maybe Aang was backing the acolyte's actions? Subtly trying to get them to move so he can keep the temples for him slowly rebuilding nation.
"He is probably feeling too conflicted. Or it just didn't occur to him. Are you hungry at all? I think I can probably get some leftovers from tonight's supper for you?"
"No thanks. I think I'll just go back to sleep." Teo managed a smile at his father and arranged himself back into bed. The chronic pain that plagued him his whole life hit him hard as soon as he'd run out of the strong medication that usually helped him. He was about to close his eyes when there was a commotion outside.
"Hey! What the heck is going on?!" Toph's outrage and the sound of stone being bent echoed into the room.
The Mechanist backed up, his hand going to the knife he kept tucked into his vest. There were more indistinct voices, but the door was opened carefully.
Aang stepped in the room first, his face solemn. "Teo, these men came with King Kuei's diplomats. They… have an official warrant for your arrest."
"What? This is preposterous! My son did nothing wrong!"
The soldier with the most tassels on his uniform stepped forward and presented a scroll to the Mechanist. Teo felt his stomach drop. He thought he'd have more time before this moment.
The four soldiers stepped past the shocked inventor and seized Teo out of bed, not even giving him the dignity of leaving under his own power.
"Commander Bao, is this really necessary?" Aang pleaded, though he kept his face neutral.
"Aiding the escape of the most wanted criminal in the country is a criminal act. No exceptions for the Avatar's friends. No exceptions for the health of the prisoner either." The commander gestured and the soldiers drug Teo away.
And for a second time, he was paraded in front of his friends and family as a criminal, though this time, he was taken to an Earth Kingdom branded airship.
Aang was able to send Toph with the soldiers and Teo, but that did little to make him feel good about the arrangement. His day was far from over; he now has to calm the Mechanist down, and talk to Hei-Won and of course, the Earth King's negotiations over the land that belongs to his people.
"Mechanist, please, I will get him back. I will fix this. I'm so sorry you've all had to deal with this." Though he had to wonder why no one contacted him about this before.
"Yes, Aang, you will sort this out. You will tell the Earth King that he cannot scavenge this place for his own greed. You will also keep your acolytes away." The Mechanist stepped forward, jabbing Aang in the chest with his finger. "You told us that you were fine with us living here. I didn't think I needed to get such sentiments in writing! You have three other temples to inhabit and I helped you design another!"
"I promise, no one will have to leave and Teo will be back before you know it." Though Aang felt uneasy about the whole situation; something felt off but he just couldn't put his finger on it.
He found himself wandering the temple, cataloguing the changes in architecture and feel. Even at night, the temple felt more vibrant and alive now than it did when just monks inhabited it. Families lived here, and they loved and worked and died together. Could he really force them all to find new homes? They hadn't been here as long as the oldest Fire Nation colonies, just a mere twenty years. One generation at the most.
Then, Aang caught the flutter of orange robes and he resolved to solve at least one of the nagging questions on his mind. "Hei-Won! Wait!"
The acolyte turned and smiled. "Yes Avatar Aang?"
"I'd like to know why you wanted to live here, yet disagree with all of the changes that have been made to the temple structure?"
"Because someone has to fight to preserve our culture, Avatar. If these people wish to live on Air Nomad land, shouldn't they adapt to our customs rather than destroy the architecture, artwork and landscape?" Her tone was even and controlled, but just reverent to be called respectful.
"I'm the only person that can say what is and what is not Air Nomad culture. And how can we, as a people of peace, force people from their homes? This temple provided them shelter and protection from the Fire Nation during the war. It's not like they have anywhere else to go. So many villages were destroyed during that time." He held his staff lightly as they walked past the bathhouse, which Aang had yet to see since he arrived.
"But Aang, you weren't around to advise them not to destroy priceless relics." She kept her hands folded politely inside her robes. If it weren't for her Earth Kingdom style braid and her Ba Sing Se accent, Aang might have mistaken Hei-Won for an Air Nomad nun.
"No, but neither were you. The Mechanist and Teo have done well here, making this temple a thriving community of peaceful people."
"Peaceful people that design weapons of war. I know the Mechanist's history. You saw the weapon that Teo nearly killed Appa and Katara with. These are not peaceful people."
"Weapons do not kill people, Hei-Won, people kill people."
"If you say so, Avatar. If you say so. I will be retiring now," she bowed and left him alone in the hallway.
He was even more confused than before. Is she right? Should he have come here straight after the war and told the Mechanist to change everything back? Could he really look Teo in the eye and tell him that the steam lifts had to go, which would lock him off every level of the temple except the first floor.
"Aang? Are you okay?"
He sighed and turned towards Katara. "No. Is Zuko still here?"
"No, he left yesterday once he was sure Azula hadn't hurt anyone." Katara wrapped a comforting arm around his shoulders.
"I sent Toph with Teo. I don't know what to do, Katara. Hei-Won is dead set against the modernization. It would take years and a lot of money to restore the temple back. And I'm sure that the Mechanist would not lift a finger to help." He sighed, hoping that Katara had the answers he sought.
"Why bother then? Let them have the temple." She smiled at him a little, probably to soften the blow of her disagreeing with him.
"I… I want to. I do but…" He looked down, ashamed of his own selfishness. "I still want everything to be the same."
"Aang, that's silly. Everything changes eventually." She guided him towards the room they were staying in.
"I know. I know! There has to be a decision. But hopefully we can stall these negotiations enough to get Teo out of jail. That's what's worrying me the most." He snaked his arm around Katara's waist.
"I know. I'm afraid that they're going to keep in jail even though he told us all he knew." Once inside their room, Katara sat down on the simple bed and pulled him down beside her.
He smiled a little and let her pull him down. He flopped down on the bed behind her and looked up at her profile. Then he remembered what they were talking about. "I know. Hopefully Toph could prevent anything terrible from happening to Teo.
Toph was furious. She had one task! One badger-dung task and she blew it! Keeping track of Teo while he was asleep was hard enough, but in that airship where the prison cell was so close to the loud thrumming engines somehow the soldiers had managed to swap Teo for someone else. He has to be on the ship still. Where else would they take him than Ba Sing Se?