Chapter 25: Escape With a Cost
-.-.-.-.-.-
Fighting continued for a long while. Amidst the chaos, Sokka noticed Lin running into the fray with a large bucket strapped to her back.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Saving you strangers who scare me," she deadpanned. Then she reached back and pulled out two sets of metal chopsticks.
"We don't need chopsticks, thank you," Sokka said. If this really was Mai, he hoped she'd start being useful soon.
"These aren't for you. They're for me." Lin threw the chopsticks, sending two earthbenders who'd been attacking Topekaia into the wall behind them. She then used two pairs of kitchen knives to pin two firebenders' sleeves to the wall. Her eyes lit up with a hint of manic pleasure.
"Lin!" The governor was shocked. How could this part of her have remained intact? Her weapons had been taken from her. "I thought I told you to go to the kitchen!"
"I did," Lin shot back, "and I brought back some friends!" She then pinned the governor to the wall.
Zuko wanted to run over and hug her. Mai seemed back in full force. What more could she do to prove her mind was intact? She'd found herself weapons and was fighting at his side. "Mai! I missed you so much." He walked toward her.
Lin studied the man approaching her with a measured gaze. He was calling her that other name again. Frankly, it was starting to get annoying. Now that she'd chosen not to be afraid, Lin had decided to act indifferent. Indifference was easy. "I still don't know you," she said coldly, before pinning another earthbender and a firebender.
Zuko recoiled and shot fire at an oncoming earthbender, sending him away. "Mai, please just wake up. You have to remember me; I'm your husband!" His last statement was choked off at the end, and he looked pleadingly at her.
"Sir, I am very sorry I look so much like your wife. Now—" Lin's words were cut off when her feet were pulled into the ground. She let out a gasp, but looked around for someone to attack.
"Take her downstairs," the governor yelled over the chaos. "She needs discipline. No servant of mine is allowed to be a traitor."
Zuko turned on the governor. "Mai is not a traitor. She's just the opposite. She doesn't even know who we are and she's helping us!"
"Because you don't torture her every night," the governor commented casually as one of his guards came by and freed him.
"Every night?" Zuko wavered. "What do you—"
-.-.-.-.-.-
Lin was out of ammunition, but she still had the bucket. She swung it around to hit the faces of the men who'd surrounded her, hoping to drag her off. "You're not taking me to the dark room again," she stated calmly. "You're going to let me go. Understand?"
"Make us," one of the guards said, wrenching the bucket away.
"Sure." Lin shrugged, and when they let her feet out to drag her off, she lashed out at them, and sent them falling against each other. She hadn't counted on how much energy that would take from her. Nor had she expected just how slack her stomach muscles were. She wasn't as quick as she should have been.
Zuko was caught between a set of earthbenders sporting ripped sleeves, courtesy of Lin, and the governor, yet Zuko still saw someone strike Lin on the back of her head, causing her to crumple onto the floor like a broken kite.
"Mai!" Zuko fell to his knees, synchronized with Mai, the wind knocked out of him. "How could you—" He looked from Mai to the governor, and then back again, suddenly realizing that there was no time to talk. He gathered his strength and charged over to the earthbenders. "Get away!" he roared, striking with fists of fire, sending the men reeling away. When there was enough space, Zuko scooped Mai up. Zuko was backed up by Suki and Sokka, who wielded their fans and sword, respectively, threateningly regarding the firebenders and earthbenders nearby.
Zuko shook Mai. "Please wake up, Mai. Please?" His voice was ragged. He knelt with Mai draped over his knees, an arm around her waist and the other behind her neck.
Something moved against Zuko's arm, and he looked down in shock. That movement hadn't been Mai's. She had remained completely motionless. The movement occurred again, not too strong, but definitely there.
Mai twitched.
Suki spared a look down when she felt Mai's arm jerk against her leg. "She's waking up!" she said.
Zuko's face was paler than usual. He'd figured out just then what he'd felt. "My son or daughter just kicked me," he breathed.
Sokka and Suki looked at each other with goofily wide smiles. "That's great!" they yelled.
Mai shifted as the baby kicked again. "Zuko?" she asked.
Zuko thought he would be overwhelmed with how happy he suddenly was. "Now you're back!" He hugged her tightly. "Are you all right?"
"I have a headache. And I think something's wrong…" She lifted her hand to feel her stomach.
"Nothing's wrong," Zuko said gently. He gripped her hand. "That's our kid."
Mai's face twitched. "Already moving? How long have I been here?"
"Almost two weeks." Zuko still clung to her. "I missed you so much."
"Yes." Mai knit her brow and winced. "I think I remember. I'm very sorry, sir." She said the last sentence in Lin's voice.
Zuko laughed and jostled her. "Please, don't ever say that again."
"You never want me to apologize to you again?" Mai tried to sit up, or at least roll out of Zuko's arms.
Zuko would have none of that. "What are you doing?" he asked, an irrational fear that she'd disappear if he wasn't holding her overcoming his thought process.
"I'm not going to apologize," Mai replied, giving Zuko a twisted smile.
Zuko pouted and gathered her against his chest again. "All right. That's not what I meant. But I guess you don't have to. Do you think you can stand? I need to get you out of here."
Mai blinked. The thought of leaving hadn't really occurred to her. "Wait—"
Zuko had been in the process of trying to stand her up, and the word "wait" made him antsy. "Wait for what?" he asked, looking over at the governor warily.
"I made a friend here. Sura." Mai squeezed her eyes shut. "I think I remember that she pushed me in to serve tea this morning, and then pushed me out here when I was too scared to have done it myself. They'll try to punish her, Zuko!" Mai's eyes shot open to lock with Zuko's.
"You want me to save her, too, don't you?" Zuko mocked irritation.
"Please?" Mai pouted.
"How can you possibly say no to a look like that?" Sokka asked.
Zuko sighed. "I obviously can't. Where would she be?"
-.-.-.-.-.-
As the fighting began to die down, Topekaia suddenly found herself attacking no one; she looked around to see Toph dealing with the rest of the foes. Aang was cornering the governor and Sokka and Suki had surrounded Zuko and Mai.
All at once, she remembered how during the fighting it had occurred to her that if most of the guard was attacking them, the complex would be mostly unprotected. Now was the perfect opportunity to find out how Mai was brainwashed, as well as how to reverse it. She glanced around cautiously. She should probably tell someone her plan, but this could be her only chance, and she didn't want to risk delay.
She slipped behind an open door and began to make her way in a direction she hoped would lead to a dungeon. Where there was a dungeon, there was an interrogation room, and an interrogation would hopefully contain what she was looking for.
It took her about ten minutes to find the staircase down to the dungeon, a couple seconds to take out the guards, and two minutes to find the interrogation room. As she looked over the dusty interrogation room she sighed; the place obviously hadn't been used in ages. But she knew that Mai had to have been someplace down here.
Topekaia backed out of the door. Noticing several guards down the hallway, she quickly slipped into the next room, gently closing the door behind her.
"Who's there?" a gruff voice shouted from up the hallway.
Topekaia pressed her ear against the door.
"What are you shouting at?" a different voice asked.
"I saw something down that hallway. I know I did."
"You mean like you saw the creepy ghost last week and the floating head below the stairs the week before?"
"But—"
"You didn't see anything. Let's go."
Topekaia waited until the footsteps receded before taking in her surroundings. She was in a library of some kind. A library, in a dungeon, seemed suspicious. She walked over to the desk in the center of the room and flipped open the large book lying on it. The book contained a list of names, some crossed off.
Opening the book to its first page, Topekaia read the title: "Brainwashed People." Now intensely interested, she began skimming the list of names. Inadvertently, Topekaia covered her mouth when she read the last entry: "Fire Lady Mai."
Aware of her vulnerable position, Topekaia listened for several moments, trying to make sure that there was no one nearby. Once she was certain that she was alone, she began to traverse the shelves, searching for information, although she was not sure what kind of information she would find.
She found a shelf labeled "Special Prisoners." Each scroll bore the name of a politician, general, or ambassador, many of which had mysteriously disappeared after the war.
The last scroll caught her attention in the most frightening way. It bore Mai's name.
Pulling it off the shelf, she opened it up and began to read.
Fire Lady Mai: Entries by General Chao
Day One: The Fire Lady arrived in the complex. Still unconscious from the sleeping gas. Confiscated jewelry and weapons and stored them in the Treasury Vault.
Day Two: Observed Sura take her on a tour. Fire Lady hopeful of escape. Interview with the Fire Lady disastrous. Attacked governor. Treatment ordered.
Day Three: Agreed to new name, Lin Qiang (trans. Dark Blue Jade. Log code into other files). Has forgotten the Fire Lord, the Avatar and his friends. Still rebellious. Refuses to follow orders to the letter. Second Treatment. Second round of Treatment successful. Lin now completely devoid of emotion and follows orders without a word.
Day Four: Relapse in evening. Third Treatment.
Day Five: Another relapse. Fourth Treatment.
Day Six: Treatment seems to have held. Fifth Treatment, for reinforcement.
Day Seven: Found loitering. Assigned to work in menagerie. Sixth Treatment.
Day Eight: Reportedly had an episode as a result of a thunder storm. Remembered Princess Azula, could have remembered more. Seventh Treatment.
Day Nine: Showed defiance. Seems to have remembered how to fight with knives. Eighth Treatment.
Day Ten: Lin relapsed. Twisted orders. Threatened an overseer. Exact threat: "You will either tell me where I am and how I can get to the capital of the Fire Nation, where I live with Zuko, or I will kill you and use your corpse to threaten your superiors!" Triple dose of Treatment required.
Day Eleven: Lin dressed up. Should be a showpiece from now on. Too much time doing actual work breaks her out of ideal state. Fire Lord Zuko is approaching. Termination required, but will appear natural. Servants must not know. Tenth Treatment.
Topekaia forced herself to roll the scroll closed and slip it into her bag.
The pieces of this very unreal and weird puzzle were coming together; she understood slightly more of what had occurred.
She determined to go to the Treatment room and confront the twisted people who had developed this brainwashing, which was undoubtedly what the "Treatment" was. Then she would find General Chao before the "termination" was put into action.
She peeked out of the door cautiously before exiting. She was making her way towards the next room when she heard indistinct voices, one higher and obviously female, the other lower and clearly male. Instinctively, Topekaia backed against the wall. As she did so, the voices became slightly louder and clearly. Topekaia realized that they were coming through the wall.
Moving to the door, Topekaia deftly undid the latch. She opened the door to see a girl bound to a chair, fiercely glaring at the man standing before her. Her eyes shone in the lantern glow of the room.
The girl bared her teeth in the most ladylike way possible. "I'm not going to believe anything you try to tell me, General!"
"That's what the Fire Lady said. And, as you've seen her recently, you know that she'll never disagree with me again. Now, as I was saying, you will not help Lin Qiang anymore. You are not to further assist her attempts to escape. You yourself will perform the duties assigned to you. You will not put Lin Qiang in the path of the Fire Lord."
The girl rolled her eyes. "You're a fool."
Without thinking, Topekaia ducked into the room. She slipped into the shadows in the corner of the room.
She noticed the man's face. It was Chao! More than anything, she wanted to attack him right now and save the imperturbable young woman, but something told her that acting without a plan wouldn't be wise.
She listened carefully as she formulated her plan.
"Furthermore, you will not speak to the Fire Lord, the Avatar, or their friends. You will also ignore Lin Qiang."
"Her name is Mai," the girl replied flatly. "And I don't have to talk to them. They've already found her. I wouldn't be surprised if your little trick has already worn off of Mai's brain. It was pretty weak to begin with." The girl stared right into the general's eyes, fixing him with a piercing glare that seemed to scream at him every insult known to humanity, while not breaking her dignified composure.
Topekaia smiled from her hiding place. Maybe she wouldn't even be needed here.
The general looked angered, and the fire from the circling lantern flared up. "How did that happen?"
The girl smirked. "When the Fire Lord found her and gave her a hug. After that it was only a matter of time. I gave her knives to fight your men with. I'll bet she's making her escape. You failed. No matter what you do to me, you've failed. I told her that if she ever got the chance to escape, she shouldn't stop for me."
"The Fire Lady is weak. Haven't you noticed her sickliness? I presume it comes from separation from the Fire Lord." The general barked a laugh. "She was frail in jail, too. Never spoke to anyone but that circus freak."
Before the young woman being interrogated could respond, the wall tapestry to the right of General Chao went up in flames.
Weak, is she? Topekaia thought, gritting her teeth to maintain her calm. "Fire Lady Mai, weak?" Topekaia snarled, advancing on the shocked general. "You don't know the half of it."
The general moved to attack, but Topekaia was too fast for him, twisting his arm behind him and forcing him to bend over.
"Who are you?" he gasped out.
"You don't even remember me, do you?" Topekaia asked. "I was Mai's lady-in-waiting at the wedding."
"I don't remember—"
"That's beside the point. You and your minions think that Mai is weak? Well then, if she is so weak, then why is it that it took you four tries to get your 'Treatment' to work? And tell me also, since she is so weak, why you even had to resort to brainwashing?" Topekaia's voice resembled that of a stern teacher grilling one of her students who had just misbehaved. "And in the prison, you say she only talked to the circus freak—whose name is Ty Lee, by the way. Well, I think that must have been because she was the only one Mai would deign to talk to, don't you agree?"
General Chao just whimpered.
Topekaia loosened her grip just enough so that she could maneuver him towards the chair where the defiant young woman was seated. Unfortunately, she underestimated him and he broke loose and ran for the door. Topekaia paused release the bindings holding the girl in place.
The panicked general tried to force the door to open outward. When that failed, he began pounding on the door. "Help me! I'm trapped in here."
Topekaia threw a fireball at him, advancing towards him; he stopped instantly. "I want you to be quiet, General. I don't think your colleagues would like to know that you displayed weak behavior."
General Chao glared at her. "What do you want?"
"I want to know how this brainwashing thing works, and how to stop it."
The general managed a wicked grin. "Nobody that I know of has ever been cured of the treatment. For all I know, it's permanent. There is a verbal trigger that will put the Fire Lady directly into the ideal state we chose for her."
-.-.-.-.-.-
Sura had been standing aloof in shock that she'd just been freed, but now she shook herself out. "Now it's time we found out the mean way, my firebending friend," she said to Topekaia, gesturing to the chair. "He'll have to tell us the truth this way."
Topekaia grinned deviously as she hoisted the incompliant general forcefully to his feet. "I couldn't agree more!"
Sura helped Topekaia stuff the general into the chair and fasten the bindings. Then, Sura led Topekaia outside the lantern's path. "You will tell us how to get the Fire Lady's memory back," Sura said coolly.
The general sneered. "Not if I don't want to."
Sura nodded to Topekaia, who stoked the lantern's flame, making it brighter.
The general blinked, trying to lessen the pain of the light passing too close to his eyes.
Sura repeated her demand.
-.-.-.-.-.-
Zuko held Mai close to his side as he left the room. "Are you sure you want to go down there?" he whispered.
"Of course I am!" Mai whispered back. "Sura deserves to be found just as much as I did."
Zuko wanted to disagree with that, but decided that it was best not to bring up his own thoughts on the subject just yet. They made their way through the complex to a staircase leading down.
Emerging from the stairway, Mai pointed to a door at the far end of the hall. The door had scratch marks around its edges.
"People have tried really hard not to be taken in there, haven't they?" Zuko asked, his grip on Mai's arm tightening.
"Of course they have." Mai decided not to mention to Zuko that she remembered making some of those scratch marks herself not more than two days earlier. "That leads to the Dark Room. I assume that's where all this mind twisting stuff happened."
Zuko nodded. They walked down the hall and pushed open the door. Two women stood with their backs to the door. General Chao was seated in a chair directly in front of a slowly circling, brightly burning lantern.
Zuko's gaze locked on the General.
"Chao! What are you doing in this place?" he demanded. He let go of Mai so he could stalk closer to the general. "Am I to understand that you were involved in this the whole time?"
The general regarded his Fire Lord with malice. "Yes. Understand that. I turned your Fire Lady into a subservient wisp of a girl. She struggled, of course, and wouldn't believe me about you not existing, but, eventually, her sad little mind broke."
The flame inside the lantern shot up to the ceiling along, matching Zuko's rage. "How dare you!" Zuko roared.
The governor wasn't fazed.
-.-.-.-.-.-
Mai stood between Topekaia and Sura, watching the scene with a growing sense of foreboding. Mai felt exposed, even standing between two benders and behind her husband. She had a sneaking suspicion that she was somehow in danger.
The governor fixed her with a look similar to how one looks at a screwdriver that one has been searching for, needing it to secure a stubborn screw. "Lin Qiang," he said in a steady voice.
Mai's body froze the moment he said "Lin." Her mind pondered how thoroughly she'd been trained.
"Time for work."
Mai bowed her head.
"No!" Zuko leaped to Mai and grabbed hold of her. "Don't listen to—"
Lin Qiang squirmed, trying to get away from this perfect stranger. "Excuse me, but I need to get out of here. It's time for me to do my chores."
"You don't have any chores!" Zuko yelled. "You're not a servant, Mai! Please, wake up! Please!"
Lin struggled more. "This is the torture room. You shouldn't stay—" Her eyes fell on the general. "Oh, no!" she cried, and tears appeared in her eyes. She looked from Zuko to Topekaia to Sura. "Sura! What are you doing here? Are they going to torture both of us?"
Sura calmly shook her head. "No, Lin. They're here to take us away."
Lin paused. "Away? Where to?"
Sura studied Zuko. "Fire Lord Zuko, where do you intend to go next?" Her eyes flicked to the general. "He hasn't told us how to cure her."
"Fire Lord?" Lin squeaked. "Oops. I should have been more respectful." She stiffened. "Are you planning on letting go, my lord?" she asked. Her voice sounded just as it once had. It was restrained, soft, and made Zuko's mind go spinning.
"I'm never going to let you go," Zuko said firmly. "Mai, whether or not you decide to wake up, I'm not leaving you."
"Too bad she's already left you," the general gloated. "She's not really there anymore."
"You be quiet. Once I get home, you'll be lucky to be banished," Zuko growled.
The general sneered but remained silent. He knew that they would not get far with the Fire Lady already poisoned and merely waiting for death.
"Come on, Mai," Zuko said, pulling her along with him.
Sura was still wavering between the general and her friend. She wanted revenge, but she wanted freedom more, so she followed Lin and the Fire Lord.
As Topekaia backed out of the room, following Sura, she whispered softly to the general, "I wouldn't smile if I were you. We may be leaving, but, I can assure you, Sura won't forget your face; neither will the Fire Lord, and neither will I."
Though he tried to restrain himself, the general gulped visibly; suddenly, he didn't feel confident anymore. But once Topekaia had vanished out the door, the smile returned, because that impudent girl would not know what had happened to her precious Fire Lady. Not to mention what would be waiting when they arrived at the Fire Nation capital.
-.-.-.-.-.-
"Are we going to pick up her things?" Sura asked. "That might help her memory along."
Zuko and Topekaia stopped. "Of course!" they exclaimed.
"Do either of you know where they are keeping her things?" Zuko asked Topekaia and Sura.
"When I was looking through their papers, I saw that her things had been stored in a treasury vault. I'm sure we could find the place easily."
"Better than easy," Sura said with a grin. "I know where it is!"
"Lead on," Zuko said excitedly. He shot a glance at Mai, who self-consciously turned her face away. This annoyed Zuko, but he followed Sura.
-.-.-.-.-.-
Most of the guards were tied up along the walls, and the ones who weren't tied up were unconscious. Katara, Aang, Toph, Sokka, and Suki were interrogating the governor.
"How long has the Order been planning this treason?" Aang demanded.
"Since its formation, boy," the governor spat. "We formed a group to get rid of this upstart as soon as he took power. Once he got married, we had to move quicker."
"Why would you have to move any quicker?" Toph asked.
The governor sneered. "Because two are easier to take out than three or four. We had to get moving before they spawned." The governor wrinkled his nose.
"For your information," Suki fumed, hands on hips, "you were too late."
The governor gaped. "Maybe the boy is more of a man than I thought."
Zuko's friends cringed.
"We thought it would at least take more time than this."
"You don't have any power over the Fire Lady anymore," Katara said, glaring at the governor. "We're taking her home, and she's going to have a healthy baby who will take control of the nation when she and Zuko retire. You'll see."
"Or he won't see because he'll be in jail," Sokka pointed out.
"Figure of speech, Sokka!" Katara groaned.
-.-.-.-.-.-
"This is it." Sura tapped the door to the treasury room. "It beats me how you'll open it, but you are the Fire Lord."
Zuko pulled out his broadswords and hacked through the hinges. The door fell in. "Now to find Mai's things."
Lin hung back, looking around warily. "We should not be doing this," she said, hugging herself. "We should not break into the treasury to steal."
Groans emitted from those around her.
"We're going to get things they stole from you," Zuko said.
"I don't have anything." Lin crossed her arms stubbornly.
"Just come on, Lin. They can't tell us what to do any more," Sura coaxed.
Lin eyed Zuko and Topekaia. "But now they are."
Topekaia and Zuko exchanged chagrined looks.
Sura took hold of Mai's wrist. "You, inside. Now."
"All right." Lin walked into the treasury before everyone else.
Zuko and Topekaia now looked at Sura, who was proudly following Mai into the treasury.
"She'll do anything she's ordered to?" Zuko asked.
"Anything. She'd probably jump off a cliff if someone told her to," Sura laughed.
Zuko and Topekaia didn't think it was funny.
"You really think she would?" Zuko asked.
"Probably." Sura shrugged. "But it's not like she won't be cured before she sees a cliff." She turned to Mai. "Lin, go find the Fire Lady's things."
"I'll do my best, Sura." Lin began reading the labels on the drawers and shelves.
"Please don't order her around too much," Zuko said to Sura in a muted voice.
"Don't worry. I only tell her to do things she has to." Sura made her way between some stacks of paper. "This morning I ordered her to take tea to the governor's office. I believe you recall that incident?"
Zuko nodded. "I remember that." He looked over at Topekaia. "Follow Mai, please. See if you can get through to her."
Topekaia nodded solemnly. She found Mai digging through a hamper with folded robes, all tied together. "What are you looking for?"
"If the Fire Lady were here, wouldn't they have taken away her clothes?" Lin responded in a small voice.
"Well, I suppose they would have." Topekaia nodded. "You're sharp."
Lin blushed. "Thank you, miss."
Zuko rounded the corner. "Any luck?" he asked Topekaia. He saw that Lin was digging in the hampers, her legs swinging out behind her. She looked so young that way, so much like when they were little and hiding from Azula.
"Nothing that belongs to the Fire Lady," Topekaia reported solemnly. "Not even her mind is to be found."
A bundle of purple and red robes went flying through the air.
Zuko recognized the flying robes immediately and caught them. "Why did you throw these, Mai? They're your clothes!"
Lin fell all the way into the hamper. "Stop yelling at me, please. You throw me off."
Zuko walked over to the hamper. "You can put these on now and we'll go look for your jewelry." Looking down at the tangled mess Mai had made of herself, Zuko almost wanted to laugh. Mai would never have let him see her like this in her right mind.
Lin examined the bundle she'd thrown and that was now in the Fire Lord's hands. "I can't wear something that fine," she stated. "Those clothes look beautiful, and I'm sure I'd like them a lot but—"
"They were tailor-made for you, Mai," Zuko pleaded. He took hold of her arms and pulled her out of the hamper. "You should wear them."
Lin blushed, looking down at where Zuko had his hands on her arms. Her senses were going crazy. He smelled just like the laundry that had made her so miserable a few days ago. "I can't," she said distantly. Her mind had stopped processing the reason why she couldn't. It only seemed to want to focus on Zuko. Her whole body was bothering her, too, because she felt the urge to hug this man so tightly it would hurt both of them. Her mouth felt like it was on fire. It was ridiculous! Completely ridiculous that when confronted with the Fire Lord all she could think of was hugging him and kissing him.
"Zuko, I think she's stopped thinking about the clothes," Topekaia said with a grin.
Zuko gave Topekaia a confused look.
"Don't you see the way she's staring at you?" She let out a laugh.
"No, no!" Lin jerked away. "I'm not staring! That's impolite! I'm sorry you thought—"
"It's okay!" Zuko laughed and gave her a squeeze. "I like it," he added with a kiss.
Lin was going to fall down. It was illogical to remain standing when her knees were buckling under her. She had to leave the cause of her discomfort behind. "Excuse me," she squeaked. She hurried off.
Zuko let out a roar of frustration. He looked down at Mai's clothes. "What now?" he asked Topekaia.
"Let's just go find her jewelry," Topekaia said with a sigh.
-.-.-.-.-.-
The jewelry was organized first by the rank of the former owner, second by the nationality of the person it was seized from, and third by the date upon which it had been taken. Sura was too busy trying to locate a ladder to get to the Royalty row to notice Lin run up behind her.
"Sura."
Lin's quiet voice was enough to startle Sura. "What is it?" she asked.
"The Fire Lord still thinks I am the Fire Lady… and I just… wanted to know… would you keep me from him?"
"What?" Sura sputtered. "You want me to—"
"Sh!" Lin cautioned, looking around wildly. "I don't want him to actually hear!"
"The statement stands: what do you want me to keep you from him for? You know that'll just drive him crazy, and could possibly be bad for his health."
"He's suffering from a misconception." Lin shrugged. "I don't want him to make a choice that will cost him once he finds the real Fire Lady. Besides, touching him drives me crazy."
Sura pursed her lips. "Lin, you should be around him more. I'm sorry it makes you uncomfortable, but you should really try to get used to it—I mean, learn to like it. They won't be finding any other Fire Lady than you."
Lin leaned against the drawers that covered the entire height of the wall. "There has to be something I can put between the two of us."
"Don't do that, Lin!" Sura squeezed Lin's shoulder. "Stay with him! Listen to him! You'll remember who you are. If you remembered now, I'll bet you wouldn't want to lose sight of him, much less put something the way of his getting to you."
Lin grimaced. "Let's just look for the Fire Lady's jewelry."
Sura sighed. "I've found the place they've probably got it locked in, but I don't know how we'll get to it."
Lin frowned in thought. "One of the firebenders could melt the drawer."
Sura raised an eyebrow. "What if the jewelry is melted?"
Lin rolled her eyes. "Okay, so what else are we going to do? If we had something thin, hard and sharp, maybe we could pick the lock."
"A knife!" Sura gasped in delight. "We can get you a knife!"
Lin sighed. "Sure. I may be able to pick the lock."
"Mai needs a knife!" Sura yelled.
Zuko and Topekaia came around the corner, carrying not only Mai's clothes, but also her boots and knives.
"We can give her these," Topekaia said, holding the knives out.
Lin sighed again. "Give me something to stand on and I'll give it a try."
Zuko glanced around, and, seeing nothing, knelt near the shelf. "Climb on my shoulders."
Lin gasped. "I couldn't possibly—"
"Go on!" Topekaia pushed Lin over to Zuko.
Sura helped, and soon Lin was sitting on Zuko's shoulders, her legs dangling on either side of his head. Lin had tried to avoid it, but the other girls would have none of her resistance.
Zuko stood up, enjoying it when Lin wrapped her arms around his chin, leaning over him, even though it threw him off balance. "Just sit up and pick the lock." His voice was a bit strained, but he managed to laugh.
"Okay, okay." Lin squirmed uncomfortably. She reached the lock and started working on it.
"Do you think it's going to give?" Topekaia asked.
"Of course it will," Lin said irritably. "I'm working on it, so it doesn't have a chance. Do try to be logical."
Zuko chuckled. "I missed your way of talking." He squeezed her legs.
Lin let out a little whimper. "I'm almost done," she said in a high, trembling voice. There was a loud click. "Done," Lin said decisively. "Now let me down." This time, she was considerably more confident.
"Do I have to?" Zuko whined.
"No." Topekaia laughed.
"You still have to get the jewelry out of the drawer," Sura said in a sing-song tone.
Lin's hand dove into the drawer and pulled out the engagement necklace and ceremonial ring. "I hope these will make the Lady happy," she said, tossing the ring and necklace at Topekaia.
Zuko was stunned enough that he loosened his grip on Lin. He'd thought she'd be entranced by the sight of these symbols. Maybe she would have remembered something. Instead, she'd shown as little regard for them as if they were someone else's army boots.
Lin took the chance and leapt from Zuko's shoulders, landing gracefully in a warrior's stance before straightening up.
"Don't you remember these?" Topekaia held the necklace and ring out to her.
"No." Lin barely glanced at either article of jewelry.
"Just look!" Zuko snatched the jewelry from Topekaia, grabbed Lin's hand and pressed the ring into her palm. He fastened the necklace around Lin's neck. "Doesn't that feel familiar? I haven't seen this necklace off you in months." Zuko rested his hand on the skin of her neck once the necklace had been fastened there.
Lin started crying. "This is so wrong," she sobbed.
"I think we should give her a break for a little while," Sura said, touching Zuko's arm.
Zuko regarded her through frustrated eyes. "You Water Tribe women are all the same, aren't you?"
"I guess it's a cultural thing, though I don't know what you're referring to."
Zuko shook his head. "It doesn't matter. We need to get out of here."
"We're leaving?" Lin wiped her eyes. "Really?" She looked at Sura. "Sura's coming, too, right?"
"Right," Zuko confirmed.
"Good. Then let's go." Lin led the way out of the treasury.
-.-.-.-.-.-
As Lin opened the door to the chamber the battle had taken place in, she felt an enormous burden lift when she realized that she wouldn't have to clean up the mess.
"Mai!" Katara ran up and gave her a hug. "It's good to have you back!"
Lin's body stiffened. "Miss? What's your name?"
Katara heard the genuine confusion in her friend's voice. Pulling back, she asked, "What's wrong, Mai? Don't you remember—"
"Someone reactivated her brainwashing," Zuko said grimly. "She's back to where she began."
Katara looked almost sick. "I'm so sorry, Zuko. We're going to fix this."
Lin squirmed away from Katara. "Let's slow down a bit. Who are all you people?" She pointed at the gang members.
"We're your friends, Mai." Topekaia stepped to Mai's side. "I'm Topekaia, your lady-in-waiting!"
"Lady-in-waiting? That's ridiculous." Lin turned away from Topekaia. "I thought we were leaving this place."
"We are," Aang assured her. "Come on; Appa's this way."
"Appa?" Lin cocked her head. "Who's she?"
"He is a flying bison!" Aang said.
Lin stared at Aang's too-wide grin for a moment, before shrugging. "All right."
-x-x-x-x-x-
I apologize for the abominably long wait. I've been really busy for the past months, which, combined with the length of the chapter and the larger-than-usual amount of editing needed, delayed the posting of the chapter. Things have settled down for me, so hopefully this will mark the return to weekly postings.