Chapter 12: The Lower Class

The next day I woke up early, dressed, and hurried downstairs into the palace kitchen to see about breakfast. The metal doors into the massive kitchen were blocked by the bustling bodies of many cooks and servants. A maid about a year younger than me, whose white cap was sliding over one eye, came through the door carrying a laden tray. Half-blinded and over-burdened, she nearly collided with me. Hot rice spilled out of the bowl, but I bended it back in place.

"Oh!" the maid exclaimed, brushing the tipping cap off her eye. "I'm sorry, Lady! I was coming to bring you breakfast, but I didn't think you were coming down!"

"Don't worry about it," I said, taking the tray and putting it down on a little table. I then pulled up a chair and began to eat. "Do you always bring people their breakfasts?" I asked, glancing over at the staring maid.

"Well—yes, Lady Katara. U-unless it bothers you," she stammered.

"So who are you?" I inquired, inviting her with a motion to sit with me.

She blinked, perplexed. "Well, I-I'm to be your lady-in-waiting."

"I meant your name."

"Oh!" The maid smiled, pleased to be addressed on such friendly terms. "My name is Beka Oshun. How's the rice?"

"Spicy, for a breakfast dish. But it's good," I added, seeing her despondent look. "Beka. That's an unusual name. Where are you from?"

"Town," she answered, shallowly. "Many of my family members work for the Royalty, but working for the Avatar's Lady is even better!"

"Thanks, but I don't really need you to work for me."

Beka gasped and drew back. "I'm sorry! Did I offend you? Are you gonna fire me?"

I slapped myself in the face, annoyed with myself and the maid. "That's not what I meant! You're fine, Beka. I just like doing things myself." This remark surprised her even more. Apparently it just wasn't proper for a member of the Royal Circle to act independently.

This was just the first of many such surprises I would encounter in daily palace life. The Royal Circle, which included me and Aang, were waited upon hand and foot. There were other things I'd have to get used to—different meals, different social etiquette, and simply the navigation of the huge fortress. Another thing I didn't like was the constant presence of armed guards and soldiers. They were everywhere, in every hallway of the palace. It would take me several weeks to adjust, and until I did, I would need a lot of help. Beka gave me that help, and I was grateful. But still, during all the time I would spend at the palace, I would never allow her or anyone else to wait on me entirely.

Beka led me to an office filled with papers and scrolls, where Zuko and a few scholarly-looking gentlemen were meeting around a high table. The office had huge windows, and it was a bright day, so candles and lanterns were unnecessary.

Zuko looked up. "Where's Aang?"

"Nice to see you too. And he's still sleeping. Now, show me what needs to be done. I want to know and see and be part of everything."

The other two men stared at me from behind their glistening spectacles. They were middle-aged adults, and they were rather intimidating. I steeled myself against their stern and puzzled stares. "She's a demanding one, isn't she?" one of them asked.

"To say the least," replied Zuko, with a smile. He stood up and pointed to a desk by the window, where a stack of papers was gathering dust. "Come on, Katara," he beckoned.

"Lady," I said, quietly.

Zuko didn't understand. "Huh?"

"Come on, Lady Katara," I said, correcting him. I wasn't going to allow his joking disrespect of me anymore. I was the Avatar's wife, and he had no business addressing me so causally.

Zuko stiffened up, obviously offended. "Well then, you can forget calling me Zuko anymore. I'm the Fire Lord." He scowled. "The council scribe wrote these papers. They contain all the dialogue from the meetings of the past six months."

"What am I supposed to do with them?"

He raised an eyebrow cynically. "Read them. Get familiar with the lords of the Circle. And keep yours eyes peeled for any suggestive statements. We need to find out who left that threat last night."

"And then what?" I asked, already troubled by the enormous stack of papers.

"Then you need to go and be a lady," Zuko answered. "You have a responsibility to meet and mingle with all the important people. Go on a visit. Throw a party. It's your call." The Fire Lord indicated the other two office workers. "These men will show you the records of anyone you want to see."

"And where are you going?"

"To council, of course. We meet three times a week, not counting special conferences. We've gotta deal with all the complaints from the people, and then talk about the upper class's arguments. Then it's off to make an appearance at the Trial Hall. That's where the criminals are examined and tried."

"Will you be eating lunch with me and Aang?" I hoped he would say no.

But "no" was an understatement. "Are you kidding?" he demanded. "The council takes all afternoon on a good day. Today it might not be over till dinner. The Circle eats during council anyway."

My head swam. Palace life was a busy life. Without saying goodbye to Zuko, I sat down at the desk and began reading the papers. There were hundreds of army commanders, but they rotated so that at a maximum of twelve would be present per meeting, not counting Zuko, his nearest relatives, and his advisors. I learned a lot about the social hierarchy and etiquette just from reading the papers. It would be hard for me to adjust to these systems since, in the water tribe, there was no enforced hierarchy. In my home we took turns at whatever tasks needed to be done, and did them without complaint; our survival depended upon our willingness to work. Here, the roles were strict, and every subject seemed to be sensitive.

After looking through a good half of the papers, I still did not find a man who showed any particular partiality to the Radicals. There was, though, a middle-aged Admiral who seemed to display a lot of knowledge concerning the Radicals. His name was Tai, and he was a staunch lobbyer for upper class benefits. I decided it might be an educational experience for me to meet him—today, if it could be arranged.

I looked out the window and noticed it was past noon. I was late for my lunch with Aang. Casting my work aside, I hurried downstairs. The cynical stares of many guards and scholars bounced off my shoulders; I didn't care about them. I wanted to see Aang. He was on a spacious balcony outside, overlooking a scrumptious garden of tall flowering plants and shrubs. From here much of the capital city was also visible, surrounded by walls of rock and sleeping volcano. Momo was munching at Aang's untouched meal.

When I came out, Aang brightened immediately. "Katara! There you are!"

I hugged him. "Aang. Is everything alright?"

"Uh—yeah," he said, in an uncertain voice, as he pulled up a chair for me. "It's just that, you didn't even say good morning today."

I cringed with remorse. "I'm sorry, Aang. You were asleep, and there wasn't time. Come on, let's eat." I dug into the spicy food with a will, but Aang's displeasure tugged heavily on my conscience. "Hey, I'll make it up to you. Let's spend the afternoon together."

"What about those social calls?"

"I'll get to them this evening. What would you like to do today?"

Aang brightened up even more, happier than a child with a box of candy. "Well," he said, "I'm visiting a lot of townspeople today. They've been complaining to the circle about poor living conditions. A lot of them lost their houses because they couldn't pay the taxes, and now they've got nowhere to stay. I'm going to do what I can to help."

"Sounds great!" I answered, energetically. There was nothing I liked better than helping. But then, you probably know that.

We left directly after eating. Riding on Appa, we were able to avoid the flocks of screaming Avatar fans as well as the flocks of violent political activists from all three classes. We flew to the outskirts of the city, where rows of low, pitiful houses and alleyways were messily built, as if the builders had just thrown them around carelessly. The dirt-streets were filthy and filled with the sounds of crying babies and groaning livestock.

We got off Appa's back and were greeted almost at once by several families of short, dirty-faced peasants in cheap, light clothes. They had scrubbed their hands and brushed their hair, trying to look presentable for their guests. They all bowed to us with the greatest respect.

"Oh, Avatar Aang and Lady Katara," said a wrinkled old lady. "You grace us with your presence! How can we be of service?"

"We're here to help you," I replied with emphasis. "Aang, get down the supplies and start handing them out."

Aang grabbed many sacks full of rice, flour, and salted fish. Each sack was perfectly rationed, thanks to my hasty organization job during the ride here. "Alright," said Aang, kneeling to be on a level with the smallest peasant children, "I need some volunteers."

The kids uncertainly raised their hands. An especially bold eight-year-old scowled and said, "Okay fine, I'll help. Mom says if we don't help the Avatar, she'll beat us out like old rugs."

Aang laughed, but it was short-lived, as he realized that the kid could be speaking quite literally. "Okay guys," he said, "see all these sacks? We're gonna bring 'em around to all your neighbors. Everybody gets food." He then displayed his glider. "If you're good, you can fly with the Avatar!"

The children's skinny little faces became pictures of delight and enthusiasm. They oohed and awed and suddenly gained hearts for volunteer work. Surrounded by the wholehearted kids, Aang ran off to deliver the charity food. He was almost as giddy as they were.

"Don't be gone too long!" I called.

Then I turned to the old woman again and asked that we gather all the housewives around. Soon there was a crowd of raggedy women, some ancient and some only a little older than me. They were all anxious at first, but my smiles reassured them and their nervousness melted away. They all became talkative, and they seemed to enjoy fawning over me as well as showing off their gardens and fields. Although I loved all the attention, I eventually had to get down to business. It was my job to give a tutorial on all things washing and cleaning. While I demonstrated how to wash floors and houses thoroughly, and the importance of washing dishes and hands, many of the women still chattered with me.

One of them stood out from the rest, diligently scrubbing a floor alongside me. She never stopped working, and deliberately ignored the gazes of other housewives. She was the strangest woman I had ever seen, but absolutely gorgeous in her own way: tall and yet very delicate, with pinkish cheeks and, oddest of all, hair the color of straw. I had never seen a blond before. Fire Nation citizens as well my own people had dark hair, and although people from the earth kingdom could vary between black and light brunette, not even they were blond.

"We are deeply grateful for your coming, Lady Katara," she said humbly, when I addressed her. Her face looked familiar, but it was not until she spoke that I knew who she was.

"You're Beka's mother, aren't you?"

"You know my Beka?" She looked surprised and greatly pleased.

"She's my maid," I explained.

"Well yes, I'm her mother. My name is Freda Oshun. We're not from around here, but over the past year we've been blessed by the Great Forces and acquired good jobs."

The Great Forces? I'd heard Aang mention them. I wandered if Beka's family was descended from air benders, but I thought it would be rude to ask. I turned the subject to her current situation. "But things still aren't going too well, huh?"

"Oh, I don't want to complain. We've been blessed with your presence, after all. The Light of the Lion Turtle shines upon you."

Lion Turtle? Another reference to bygone times, when such great animals were not endangered. "Aang met a Lion Turtle, you know," I ventured.

"Really?" Again Freda looked animatedly astonished and delighted. "Did he see The Lion Turtle?" she asked.

"Is there a difference?"

"Aye, Lady! Lion Turtles of the animal kind are rare or extinct. It's only The Lion Turtle that's managed to survive so long, and it's only he that speaks to your head."

"Well, something spoke to Aang's head," I mused. It was hard to believe that any animal was capable of such telepathy. Distracted, I looked around and found that many of the other women were staring my way with disgusted or perplexed expressions. I grew self-conscious.

"Oh, Lady, don't mind them. They're staring at me, not you. Being foreign and mentioning the Lion Turtle and all—it's very looked down on."

It was? "Why?" I questioned, dropping my rag into a bucket of soapy water.

"Don't you know what's been up the past year?" Freda caught herself quickly and her pink cheeks grew pinker with shame. "I'm sorry—I'm not trying to be rude. But you see, the Lion Turtle's a big issue around here. Newcomers to the Fire Nation like me and Beka have a share of strange beliefs, and they're spreading in the lower class. But not everybody likes those ideas."

"What kind of ideas are they?" My questions seemed endless. I let another woman take over the demonstration and went off to the side with Freda.

"Oh, voicing our opinion for one thing," Freda told me, pinning back her long, yellow hair. "Thanks to the activists, we're making our cries against these taxes heard. But the upper and middle class don't like it—they want to keep all their jobs and control same as always."

I was confused. I hadn't read or heard anything about the Lion Turtle until now, and I had no idea how the great animal was connected to the peasants' sudden uprising, unless these people actually had a relationship with the beast. Freda talked a little more, claiming that the Lion Turtle even had the cure for the Bender's Plague. I had not heard of such a disease before, but before I could ask what it was, Aang and the children came back.

"How did it go?" I asked, hugging Aang as he approached.

"Well, we all had glider rides!" the Avatar answered, grinning. "Let's give these hard-working ladies some cool drinks, and get going."

I nodded. "You, kids. How about getting Lady Katara the bowls and cups we just washed? Wash your hands first. Aang, get the supplies from Appa's saddlebags. Freda—help me set up a table?" Taking charge was invigorating.

When it was all over, Aang and I took off on Appa and headed back to the palace. I had promised Freda to meet with her again sometime. It was already late afternoon. "Hey," I said to Aang, "you think Admiral Tai would mind if we dropped in?"

"Well, you're the Avatar's wife. I guess you can do anything. Do you know where he lives?"

"Yeah. Give me the reins." I took them unhesitatingly and steered to the nicer parts of the city. The scholars in the office had given me Tai's records, which included his current address. Perhaps popping unannounced was rude, but I felt it had to be done. Like Aang said—I could do anything. I was confused about the Fire Nation's real state of affairs, and I still had no idea who had left the threat in my room, so it would be nice to talk to an informed, important person.

What a long day. I had done hours of office work, an afternoon of charity, and it still wasn't over. I had an evening of socializing to deal with. I quieted my anxious nerves with effort, and tried hard to focus on the job at hand.