Okay, so here's chapter four.

So, I hope you liked it when I added Cabbage Man. I love him. In this chapter we see a couple more familiar faces, and things really do get interesting.

DISCLAIMER: Let's do the math, shall we? Avatar = Not mine. Niella + Tae Xing + Kongi + Lan + Yue and Kanna (Sokka's daughters) + LuTen and TaMing (Zuko's kids) = Mine.

WORD COUNT: 1577

The full moon shone through the glass windowpane, spilling its pale light on Niella's face. Her bed had been moved from Toph's house to Tae Xing's enormous bedroom. The princess lay asleep on a plush canopy bed with soft velvet hangings every shade of green imaginable, while her unwanted guest had set up her simple cot in the far corner of the room.

Niella couldn't sleep. Her mind was still focused on Tae Xing's harsh words. Wayna, a girl she'd met from the Northern Water Tribe, had said those exact words eight years ago, even though she'd been a little whinier. She was the youngest daughter in an otherwise pleasant family they'd stayed with to attend the ceremony for the ascension of the new chief, Hahn. Sokka, being the Chief of the South, stayed in Hahn's lodge with Suki and the twins. Katara and Niella roomed with his sister Naira, Wayna's mother.

Wayna wrinkled her nose in disgust as she surveyed Niella. "Mommy, I don't want that peasant sleeping in my room!"

Niella buried her face in her mother's stomach, sobbing. Why did she have to be so mean?

Niella hadn't held any grudges against Wayna. Her uncle had proven that he held great influence over her, and his crowning as chief wasn't exactly good for his people. No matter how rude she'd been as a child, Niella knew she would protect Wayna and her family; it was the right thing to do. Same went for Tae Xing. Niella would do her best to keep the princess safely out of Long Feng's clutches. Toph had explained some things on their way from her house. Long Feng had been a corrupt ex-politician who'd tried to steal the throne twenty-one years ago. She, Katara, Sokka, and Aang had been the ones to ruin his plans, even after he'd ruthlessly murdered their friend Jet as a warning. No doubt he was back for revenge. As for his partner, Xin Fu, he'd once been an acquaintance of Toph's, the host of an underground Earthbending tournament she'd championed as a young girl. He'd made a deal with the Fire Nation rebels a couple years after the war had ended. In fact, he'd openly declared his betrayal to the Earth Kingdom and was the target of an unsuccessful nationwide manhunt. Not even Aang had found him.

Sokka and Zuko had stationed their men everywhere all around the palace grounds. The palace guards were on high alert, and Toph was camped out right outside the bedroom door. Waterbenders, Earthbenders, Firebenders, and warriors kept watch over the entire Inner Ring. Niella seriously doubted Xin Fu would even make it inside, so she let herself drift off to sleep.

BOOM!

The noise echoed throughout the entire palace. Both Niella and Tae Xing shot up, terrified. Niella quickly gathered her wits – or was it Avatar instinct? – and jumped out of bed, running towards the door, while Tae Xing ducked back under her covers. Toph stood at the ready, poised in her unique Earthbending stance. She didn't even turn around when Niella burst out.

"Take Tae Xing down the hall to the basement!" she ordered, "Tom will escort you two to safety!" Niella nodded and dashed back into the room. She yanked the blankets out of Tae Xing's hands and pulled her out of bed. The princess, refusing help as usual, shrieked and tried to fight her off, but Niella managed to force her out into the hallway. Only then did Tae Xing comply. They ran past several warriors and benders, who were shouting to each other in ready stances, until they got to the basement.

A man stood waiting for them anxiously. He wore the uniform of an Imperial Firebender. Immediately, he grabbed Tae Xing's other arm, and the three ran over to the far wall. Despite her inexperience in Earthbending, Niella could feel the tunnel hidden behind it. Stomping her bare foot on the cold stone floor, she opened it up and followed the Firebender, pulling Tae Xing along with her at a quick run. "There's a ship waiting not far from the exit!" he shouted, "It will take us to safety!" More noises came from behind, getting noticeably louder. The group increased their pace considerably. Finally, after about five or ten minutes – it was amazing how far and long one could run in such circumstances – and they came out into the dockyard behind Lake Laogai. A Southern Tribe ship was sitting by the wharf. Sokka was already on board, waving frantically at them to hurry up. The Firebender led the girls up the gangplank, which fell as soon as they stepped on the deck. The boat, powered by a small team of Waterbenders, set off.

Sokka approached the exhausted three as they tried to catch their breath. He clapped the Firebender on the shoulder. "You okay, Tom?" he asked, "That was pretty intense for your first assignment."

The Firebender – Tom – tugged off his helmet, revealing his age to be in the early twenties. "Are you kidding?" he panted, "That was nothing more than a good run. It was almost boring, really."

"Seems you're more like your sister than you thought." Sokka turned to Niella. "And how are you doing? Nobody gave you any trouble, did they?" He reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, but she edged away.

Four-year-old Niella ran down the icy road. "Unca Thokka!" she called in a childish lisp, "Unca Thokka! Wook wha' I tan do!" She saw her auntie and uncle talking with some of the local fishermen. Auntie Suki looked so funny with her big belly sticking out. The little girl skidded to a stop, accidentally turning the frost to water and soaking the grownups.

While the fisherman grumbled and wrung out their clothes, Sokka and Suki beamed and bent down to hug her, Suki rather awkwardly. "I tan – I tan..." She couldn't remember the word her mother had called her gift. It was a big one.

"Waterbend?" Auntie Suki suggested. That was it!

"Uh-huh! I tan Wathaben'! Jus' like Mommy!" To prove it, she made a few simple hand motions, just like she'd seen Katara doing, and re-froze the water on the ground, accidentally freezing the fishermen's feet to the ground. She realised her babysitter Huli would love to see this. "I'm gunna go thow Huwi!" With that, Niella ran back down the street, leaving her aunt and uncle to help out the poor fishermen.

Niella took a deep breath, and, once again avoiding eye contact, addressed him in a flat monotone. "There were several warriors and benders on guard in the hallway like they were supposed to be. The battle never reached us, and the fighters knew who we were and let us pass. Everything went smoothly."

Sokka looked taken aback at her cold response. Tom and Tae Xing watched the pair silently, as if wondering what would happen next. "We'll... we'll keep watch out here. You and the princess should get some sleep."

"Of course, my chief." She gave him a respectful bow and led the sleepy princess away.

Sokka watched as Niella led Tae Xing below deck. A few months ago, before she'd learned she was the Avatar, she never would've addressed him as chief. It was as if once she'd learned that they weren't actually related, their bond had instantly snapped apart. Sokka had often thought of her as a third daughter. She was inseparable with the twins; Yue and Kanna looked up to her as to a big sister. He didn't care that Niella wasn't a blood relative. She was his niece and always would be, no matter what.

Tom nudged Sokka's arm, bringing the chief back to the present. "You okay, sir?" he asked.

Sokka sighed. "Yeah. Niella's just been getting a little distant these days. She's probably still upset that we never told her, you know, that she was the Avatar."

"She'll understand in time. The same sort of thing often happens between me and Lu Ten or Ta Ming. But if you're ever going to get through to her, you've got to talk to her, and only when she's ready to listen."

Sokka gazed out at the lake as Tom went below deck. Looking upward, he could see the pale full moon throwing her light onto the water. Even though he couldn't see her face, he knew Yue was watching over his family. In the brief times they'd communicated, during the annual winter solstices, they had gone from torn-apart lover to dear friends. He fingered the wooden carving on a chain around his neck, the one he'd always kept hidden under his shirt. It was worn out with time, and even in its peak condition, it'd been difficult to decipher what it was supposed to be whittled into. Some thought bear, and some – meaning only him – thought fish. A couple creative minds thought it was a bear-tuna. He'd carved it for Yue his second day in the North Pole. After the princess had died, Sokka had dove down into the freezing cold canal and fished it out from the bottom, where he'd thrown it in frustration after learning of Yue's engagement to Hahn.

A sudden jolt brought Sokka out of his thoughts for the second time that night. He looked around and spotted a familiar face blocking the moonlight. His own face twisted into annoyance at the sight. "What do you want?"

I changed it to just 'Tom' because I figure 'Tom-Tom' was a nickname for him while he was a baby

Alrighty, then. I really like how Tom got deep there with Sokka. Imagine a chief being given advice by a young soldier! For anyone who's wondering, he is 22.