A/N - Hey guys I am soooo sorry this took so long to update. I have had a few things going on in my life that prevented me from updating. I have a few things coming up in the next two months but hopefully i will have another update for you guys in the next couple of weeks and after these next two chapters the story should be coming along a lot quicker than normal. Also changed this story to M for future chapters and also because reasons. So hope you all enjoy. A happy thanks to my Beta - Doggi-chan. You are da Bestest!

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Su sat staring out of the carriage as it continued down the dirt road. The sounds of the little local village starting to fade behind them as they made their way deeper into a wooded area. After 4 days of travel they would be arriving at her mother's home soon. Her mother lived far from the local village, deep in the woods on the outskirts of the fire nation. As a child she never quite understood why her mother wanted to be so isolated. It wasn't until she was older that she was told why. As they pass familiar landmarks, Su continues to stroke Katara's sleeping head. She was trying to not think about her mother but the memory of their last encounter pushes its way to the front of her mind; taking her back to the day she left home for good.

-20 years earlier-

Su Chin sat in her mother's kitchen rubbing the side of her neck, frustrated again at the state of her relationship with her mother. Growing up she had a rocky relationship with her at best. Their relationship fell further apart when she decided to leave home and start a new life with her husband in the nation's capitol. Now she had returned home for a short stay in hopes of possibly reconciling with her mother by telling her the news that she was with child, that soon she would be a mother. However, as with everything with her mother ever was, what Su thought to be a great blessing, her mother deemed to be a curse.

"I didn't think I raised you to be so foolish," her mother scolded as she sat stirring her tea. "I warned you not to get involved with these Firebenders. I told you they were bad business and what did you do? You deliberately disobeyed me. Not only did you choose to marry that wretch but you actually chose to breed with him. And now that child may be the very death of you."

Su sighed, growing more agitated as their conversation continued. "I don't understand mother. You've told me my whole life that firebenders are evil, that they can't be trusted. But I've never seen any evidence of this to back it up. Firebenders are just as normal as every other person I've met. I don't see what this...evil...is that you've continuously spoken of my entire life."

"That's because you are blind. You choose not to see them."

Su's palms slammed on the table as she stood up. "No! I can't see them because they aren't there! My husband is a good man, despite what you think of firebenders. He's loving and kind and he comes from a good family. I thought that if I came here today and shared with you my good news you might have a change of heart. That maybe we could put the past behind us and act like a normal family. But you're just as cold as you've always been. I could never understand why you treated me the way you did while I was growing up. Why even now you can't look at me with one ounce of love in your eyes. It's as if you've truly hated me from the very day I was born and I guess I'll never understand your reasoning behind it."

Su turns her back then to leave and to her surprise her mother moves in close behind her and pulls her into a hug. It is one of the very few times in her life that her mother has shown any kind of emotion other than disdain for her. She damns herself for her weakness but she wants to savor the moment. She wants her mother's love so badly it hurts. "My daughter. I have never hated you." There is a moment of silence before her mother goes on to say, "I just find it impossible to love someone who is a daily reminder of so much...pain...and anguish."

Su feels as if someone has slapped her. She doesn't move as her mother leaves her embrace to walk around her to sit in a chair in her small sitting room. Su never felt her mother's love growing up but never once did her mother tell her that she hated her or that she didn't love her. Hearing her mother admit it out loud is so much harder than she imagined it would be and she feels her chest tighten a little. The back of her throat burns as she fights to hold back the tears. "You find it impossible to love me?" Her voice isn't nearly as strong as she wants it to be.

"I'm sorry, but yes. Although I chose to give life to you, I think you're old enough to know that your conception was … not my choice."

Su is temporarily distracted by her mother's admission and chooses to sit down in the chair opposite her mother. Her mother gets up for a moment to get her Tea and when she sits down she takes a long drink before setting her cup down on the table.

"I was a young woman when the fire nation first attacked my village in the southern water tribe nearly 30 years ago. They came again and again and with each visit they took more and more of our tribe's waterbenders as their prisoners. We fought as hard as we could to hold them off but eventually our numbers dwindled till I was the last waterbender left. After being lead away in chains and brought to the fire nation I was thrown in the prisons with the rest of my tribe brothers and sisters. The conditions under which they kept us in were less than humane. Always being careful to keep water away from us; suspending our cells off the ground. They even piped in dry air so that at times it was hard to breathe. If we wanted water they made sure to bind our hands and feet in chains first and any resistance was met with harsh retribution. Too many of us died in there." Hama took a sip of her Tea before continuing. "As if it wasn't enough to take us from our homes some of the male guards….the things they did to us….It didn't matter that we were an enemy or not. They only cared about what was between our legs."

Su lets the tears fall freely down her face. "How did you ever get out of there?"

"There was a girl in the cell next to mine who got it particularly bad. She couldn't take it anymore and so she hung herself by her chains. It was then that I decided I would not end up like her. I was not going to rot in my cell. It took me years but I finally found a way to escape. By that time I was alone with child and on the run for my life. I chose to have you because I refused to let the fire nation take yet another thing away from me."

She understood now why her mother treated her the way that she did. It still hurt that she couldn't love her but now it hurt a little less. She felt as if now she could move on with her life without the shadow of her mother's hatred holding her back from a love she felt she deserved. Despite her mother's inability to love her she couldn't blame her anymore.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?" Su asked quietly.

"It isn't the kind of conversation I ever wished to have with you. Nor is it an experience I like to repeat. The only reason I am even bothering to tell you now is because I do care for you and I don't wish for you to get hurt. If your child is a waterbender, you and your whole family could be in danger, myself included."

As her mother changed the subject she decided to let it go. Her mother's past was painful and she didn't want to make her relive it. "I appreciate the concern mother, but it's a risk I have to take."

"You may not have to risk it."she said almost kindly taking another sip of her tea.

"What are you talking about?" Su said looking at her questioningly.

"I'm sure in your eagerness to immerse yourself in the capitol life that you would have heard there is a new method to take care of these little accidents if you will. They are even rumored to have something as simple as a tea you can drink, that taken everyday will almost guarantee a very painless result."

Su looks at her mother horrified by her nonchalant attitude. "Of course you would suggest such a thing. I have heard of such methods. But what you are suggesting isn't something I'm willing to do and it is completely awful that you would suggest such a thing. I love my unborn child as well as my husband." Her eyes teared up a little as she continued on. "And I am so very truly sorry for the pain you and all those prisoners had to endure. It's not right. Though no matter how much I may not agree with many parts of this war I still don't believe that all firebenders are evil. Not every person in the Fire Nation is like those guards mother. I'm sorry if you can never believe that but I do."

Su stands up then and walks towards the door. "I pray to the spirits that this child is not a waterbender if only it will keep him or her safe from the firelord."

"What will you do if your child is a waterbender? Where will you go then?" Her mother sets her Tea cup down on the table and looks at Su's back. Her mother's question lingers in the air as she forces herself to think of the very real possibility that it can actually happen. "Will you flee? You said yourself you are part of a prominent family now. Your husband will search for you thinking something happened or worse he'll assume a tryst and he'll have you found before the next sunset."

"As if I would have any other option but to flee."

"There may be one other way. If you do happen to discover your child is gifted with waterbending abilities bring the child here and I may be able to bind the child's abilities for a time."

"That's impossible and unheard of." Su looked over her shoulder at her mother.

"The fire lord would say the same thing about his prisons. I pray for your sake that your child is neither firebender nor waterbender. To have any grand child of mine be a firebender would be the ultimate shame you could bring me."

After 20 years Su isn't surprised at her mother's unkindness. It makes her decision even that much easier. "Do not worry mother. If this child is a firebender, I wont bother to come see you ever again, lest you be disappointed with me a second time. I have to go now. I hope for my own sake and for yours that I never have to come see you again. I don't wish to continually be a reminder to you. Goodbye...Hama" Hama said nothing as Su left her house.

Su watched the trees as they passed by. It wasn't until she was halfway down the road in her carriage that she broke down crying. Though she didn't know who she cried more for. Her mother and those prisoners, or herself and her unborn child.

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"Mom?"

Su looked at Xiang who had a worried look on his face. "Sorry, what did you say?"

"I asked if you're sure about this. I know we're desperate but if this is going to be too much for you…"

"Don't worry Xiang. It's not too much. Its been so long since I've been back here but the truth is I've truly moved on. Your grandmother may have been cruel to me in the past but she isn't completely at fault. I think the sole fact that Katara is a waterbender will be enough for her to want to help us."

"Right." Xiang looked out the window still not fully convinced as his mother was that everything would be alright.

His mother looked down at Katara and continued to stroke her hair. "Everything will be alright."

It was a few hours more before the carriage came to a stop. Xiang looked at his mother who smiled at him. "Well, we're here. Pay the driver and grab our things. I'll go talk to your grandmother." Su scooped Katara in her arms, throwing the cloak she had tailored for her over her back to cover her face. Katara moved a little snuggling her head further into Su's shoulder. Su took a deep breath then walked up the short path to her mother's small cottage. She stood at the door her hand in mid air ready to knock when the door opened before she had the chance.

Her mother looked at her suspiciously. Not much had changed since the last time Su had seen her. She had a few wrinkles now and her hair had grayed a bit. Su thought she looked shorter than she remembered. The expression on her mother's face changed a little, her eyes widening in surprise and recognition. "Su...Su chin is that you?"

"Uh yes Hama, it's me. It's been a long time. I'm here with...my children." Su turned to the side as Xiang walked up. He bowed respectfully. "Nice to meet you grandmother"

"And this is Katara. She's tired from the trip and sensitive to the light so perhaps you could meet her later. In fact we're all very tired from the trip and I'm sure you'll want to catch up but you wouldn't mind if we rest for a bit first would you."

Hama looked at her daughter, the suspicious look slowly returning to her face. "Yes, I suppose you would be tired. The capitol is so very far away after all. Come in. I'll put on some Tea."

"No thank you. As I said we've-"

Hama gave a half laugh. "Haven't been here 5 minutes and already you're trying to get away from me. Typical."

"Actually Tea sounds great grandmother. I'd love some." Su shot her son a look and he just looked back at her shrugging his shoulders an almost apologetic smile on his face.

"Look at that. At least your son knows how to be grateful. Doubt he is a firebender with manners like that." Hama was in the kitchen now bent over her stove rearranging the wood underneath.

"He has manners because I taught them to him. Not because he was not born a firebender!" Su snapped.

Hama waved her hand at her dismissively. "You know your way around. You and the child go get some rest. I will have a little chat here with my grandson if you do not mind."

"Fine. Xiang don't go anywhere. You need to get some rest soon too."

"Thanks mom. I'll go to sleep when I'm done with tea." His mom nodded in reply and walked down the hallway to one of the bedrooms. Xiang watched her retreat and came into the kitchen.

"Have a seat boy." Xiang did as he was told and watched as his grandmother made their tea. When she put the pot on to boil she came and sat down opposite him.

"So, Xiang is it? Let me have a look at you." His grandmother stared at him until he looked away uncomfortably. "Other than that brown hair of yours you look nothing like your mother. You might as well be a carbon copy of that father of yours."

Xiang looked back at her then. "You know my Father?"

"I know of him. He met me the day he announced he was marrying your mother whether I liked it or not. Never did like him or trust him. Firebenders like him aren't meant to be trusted. You should feel lucky you weren't born a firebender. Would have gotten you into trouble some day. Whether in this life or the next."

"Uh thanks...I think."

There was a moment of silence before Hama stood to finish preparing the Tea. It remained that way for the rest of the afternoon. Xiang didn't know what he expected but if he were being honest with himself he'd have to admit that his grandmother didn't seem all that bad. His mother wasn't very specific when she talked about Hama's cruelty and now he was curious as to the specifics. He finished up his Tea and stood from his chair. "Thank you for the Tea grandmother but I think I would like to go to bed now. It's been a long Journey."

"Yes, your mother has mentioned it already I don't know why you feel the need to repeat it. Go to bed. Your mother's room is down the Hall and I'm sure she has a mat out for you."

"Right, uh Goodnight then." Xiang gave a slight bow before hurrying off down the hall.

"Mmm-hmmm" Hama sat in her chair and inhaled the scent of her tea before taking a drink. 'Katara...such an odd name for a child of the fire nation. What are you hiding Su?' Hama sat alone with her thoughts for awhile before drinking the rest of her tea. When she finished with her tea, she put out the lights and retired to her room for the evening.

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A/N - Hope you all enjoyed! Don't forget to review and thanks for reading. Again the next update should be within a couple weeks, possibly a week. So keep a look out.