Chapter Seven: Tree House Hideaway

The island of Kyoshi was small. Hakoda and Bato took four of the young men with them ashore. These boys were only a year older than Sokka. Hakoda thought back to the day they all left. True Sokka was old enough to come along, but he wanted his son to take care of Katara.

They reached the town shortly after securing their longboats. It was a small town, and most of the villagers were a little wary about the visitors. Hakoda saw a man walking up to them with an unsure smile.

"Hello, I'm Chief Oyaji." he said warmly once he saw the water tribe symbols on their clothes.

"I'm Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe, and these are a few of my men."

"Southern Water Tribe you say." Oyaji beamed. "I've had the pleasure of meeting two young people from there. Sokka even trained with our warriors."

"Ah, yes. Sokka sent me actually. He and Katara are my children." Hakoda stated proudly. "He said your warriors would be valuable in an invasion we are planning."

Oyaji blanched. "I can show you to our warriors, but a few of them have had a run in with the fire princess." he said sadly. "I'm not sure if the leader will allow them to go."

Hakoda nodded his understanding as Oyaji lead them through the town. He knocked on the door to a rather large building in the center of the town. A white painted face poked out surveying the crowd.

"Suki, there are men out here in water tribe..."

The door was retched open quickly, revealing a room full of women in green robes, white painted faces, and armed with fans. One of the boys behind Hakoda snickered.

Suki narrowed her eyes. "Find something funny?" she snapped.

"Just that Sokka thought a bunch of girls could help us in an invasion. He must have just wanted you lot around to look at." a lanky boy smirked.

Hakoda and Bato cringed and stepped away from the four young men. They knew that a woman's scorn was dangerous, but a lady warrior would be three times as bad. These boys needed a dose of humility.

Sokka and Aang stared dumbly at Toph for a moment, before Sokka turned and knelt down beside his so called sister. When he tried to get a better look at her face, she smacked him away.

"Not now Sokka! I'll explain later." she snapped. "Someone get me more water!"

Aang scrambled to bring her water while Iroh explained the situation to Toph. Toph, for the first time in her life, wished she wasn't blind. To be able to see the 'mother' of their little family dressed as a boy, and to see Sokka's indignant expression. And poor little Aang, his crush choosing to dress as a boy and run around with the exiled prince causing havoc. She snickered to herself as Iroh himself said she had him fooled for awhile.

Aang came back and sat down two buckets of water, followed by Sokka. She didn't acknowledge them, she just kept working on keeping Zuko alive.

"The lightning nearly reached his heart." she stated as she pulled a knife from her boot. "His blood is clotting inside his chest. All that electricity boiled it." She poised the knife over his chest. "Sokka, hold his arms down. Aang, get his legs."

"Please Sweetness." Toph scoffed. "I'll get his legs. You ladies get his arms."

Aang and Sokka were about to replied, but were silenced when Iroh knelt down next to his nephew's head with a cold rag in his hand. He pulled out another and poised it just above Zuko's mouth.

"Nephew." he said calmly as Aang and Sokka each grabbed an arm to hold him. Zuko's eye's barely opened and he couldn't speak. "Nephew, I need you to bite down on this. Do not scream." he cooed brushing the dark locks out of his eyes.

Zuko opened his mouth and bit down on the cloth, before trying to look around. He heard Katara's voice. He couldn't see her, but he heard her whisper something. And then pain shot through him. His entire chest felt like it was exploding, buring, and freezing all at the same time. His arms and legs wouldn't move when he told them to.

No matter how much he tried move to fight the pain, they wouldn't budge. He bit down hard on the cloth his uncle placed in his mouth, and raised his eyes to see his uncle hovering above his face.

"Be still nephew." Iroh said choking back a sob, refusing to look at what Katara was doing. "It'll be over soon. And then you can rest."

Aang and Sokka stared in horrified awe as Katara sliced down his chest and used water to heal the blood. She wiped the sweat from her brow smearing blood across her face. It was a long two hours, and when she healed the hole in his chest she had made she sighed in relief.

She looked up to see everyone staring at her, even Mai who had woken up half way through. As Katara looked at Mai and went to finish healing her, the girl back away.

"You should heal that leg of yours." Mai stated.

Sokka let go of Zuko's arm and flew at his sister, hugging her tightly. "When dad sees your hair, he'll kill me." he sobbed.

Katara shook her head tiredly as she pulled the wig off. "Shut up Sokka." She heard Mai gasp, and turned to see the girl frowning.

"I don't believe it. You of all people healed me. I've tried to take your life several times." Mai said in shock. She stiffened as Katara limped over to her to look at her back.

"This should only take me a few minutes." She mused.

"No." Mai stated. "You fix your leg and get out of here. Azula will wake up and see you healing me."

Katara tilted her head. "Oh, so you're still going to stick with her. Very well. I'll heal you enough to be able to get her back to the ship."

Mai nodded and allowed her to heal her just enough. To Mai, this would be her reminder of the life debt she now owed the water bender. She heard the girl say she was done and turned to watch as she healed her own injuries and the rest of the small group. How she envied the way they got along. She helped them load the bison and watched them fly off into the night sky, before turning to Azula.

Smellerbee and a few other women freedom fighters managed to get various jobs in the palace, just as Katara had planned. She managed to secure a job in the kitchens along with another of the fighters, Qua Lin.

"So, just small doses of this every other day." Smellerbee whispered.

Qua Lin nodded. "In small doses it attacks the blood slower. It won't start effecting him until he uses a large amount of fire bending, or for at least two weeks."

Smellerbee smiled. "Katara's a genius."

They had done their homework. They found which servants were safe and which were not. They managed to find secret servant entrances into the palace and several of the rooms. This would be helpful. Not to mention, only three of the actual servants were loyal to the fire lord. A few of the servants who were loyal to General Iroh, volunteered to distract the Ozai fans during the invasion. Everything was going as planned.

When they reached the forest surrounding the capitol city, Katara was exhausted. She refused to go to sleep until she found the freedom fighter camp. In her 'brother' attire, she took out her hooked swords and jumped into the trees.

She was relieved when she found the tree top houses. "Hello?" She landed on one of the porches. A door opened and Longshot stepped out. "Longshot! Thank god! We need a place to stay until the invasion. Azula found Aang and the others, we had to move them."

Longshot bowed his head and whistled. A group of men came out of their homes. "Help Katara bring the others up. Prepare homes for their stay. Find a place to hide a flying bison."

It was the most she'd ever heard Longshot speak. She waited until five of the men followed her before jumping down and swinging through the trees. She could hear Sokka's whining already. She was just glad Zuko was still asleep. At least Sokka couldn't threaten him.

"Why are we waiting here? Where did Katara go? When did she start..."

"Snoozles, I swear if you don't shut up, I'll bury you alive." Toph growled.

Katara dropped down in front of them. "I've found us a place to stay. You'll have to wait to practice your fire bending. Sorry Aang." she said tiredly as she waved to the five men dropping down behind her.

Sokka took up a fighting stance drawing his sword. "Katara, move."

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "They are giving us a place to stay. Just be nice, and get on Appa."

The five men lead them to the tree top houses and found a large enough platform for Appa to rest. Longshot met them as they dismounted Appa.

"Aang will need a place to practice his fire bending." Katara stated. "This is General Iroh, Aang's fire bending master."

Longshot nodded and motioned for one of the others to come forward. He was around the same age as Zuko and Sokka, with pale skin and brown eyes.

"I'm Xin. I'll show you to your homes for the time being." he smiled. "And we'll find a place for the avatar to practice, but tonight you should rest."

They followed him to three different houses. Aang and Sokka shared the first house. As he stopped at the second house, Zuko looked torn between staying with his uncle or with Katara. It was Toph who made the decision by pushing him out of the way.

"Come on Sparky, some of us are tired." she smirked. "Do you have any tea, Dragon?"

Iroh beamed at the blind girl. "Of course! And I can finish that story I was telling you before we turn in."

Katara yawned and swayed slightly. Zuko scooped her up and carried her the rest of the way. She was too tired to fight him to put her down.

Xin smirked. "She seems tired." he chuckled.

"We had a very long night. She spent most of it healing people." Zuko said in a hushed voice as Xin opened the door to the house.

"I'll have someone bring your meals here then." Xin said shutting the door as he left as Zuko nodded.

Hakoda stood at the bow of the ship watching the next destination slowly appear on the horizon. They would reach Goa-ling by mid afternoon, and there they'd find a tea shop like Sokka had said.

"Sir." he turned to see one of the female warriors standing behind him.

"Suki, am I right?"

She nodded. "I was wondering... the last time I saw Sokka ..."

"Sokka said nothing but good things about you. In fact, he had hoped you would deny coming." Hakoda stated and interrupted before she could start. "He didn't want you to get hurt."

Suki felt tears come to her eyes. "He knows I'm a failure as a warrior." she mumbled so low Hakoda almost missed it.

Hakoda pulled her into a hug. "No no. You are not a failure! Sokka said you were the one to prove him wrong that women were just as strong as men, if not better." He said trying to sooth her shattered self esteem.

She pulled away and stood taller than she had in weeks. "Thank you Chief Hakoda." She finally realized that she was the only one that had given up on herself.

Hakoda watched her disappear below deck and smiled sadly. He had seen how broken she was. He had been expecting the young woman to be the spit fire Sokka had talked about so fervently. But he saw even as she attacked the young man, he saw the fear of failing in her eyes. He looked up to the moon sadly before turning to head to bed.

Katara slept for three days. Everyone was surprised when Zuko refused to leave her side. On the second day, Iroh and Aang had to restrain Sokka from hurting the banished prince. So, on the third day Katara woke to Zuko and Toph speaking quietly in the corner.

She tilted her head to look at them as she listened.

"So, you can't see at all up here?" Zuko asked quietly.

"Well, I can but it's harder." Toph's reply came out barely above a whisper. "What about you? They said you have a scar on the side of your face."

To Katara's surprise, Zuko didn't get mad. "I can see, just not as well as everyone else." he sighed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Katara's voice came out in a croak.

Zuko and Toph jumped up and walked over to her bed. Zuko handed her water to drink and Toph sat on the edge of her bed.

"Bout time Sweetness." She smiled in relief." I don't know how much longer I could have held Snoozles off. He thought Sparky was trying to take advantage of you while you slept."

Katara choked on her water and Zuko patted her on the back. "How long was I out?" She tried to sit up and flinched as her body protested.

"Three days." Zuko smiled weakly. "You were running on adrenaline from the time we boarded Azula's ship."

Katara pushed the blankets back in a hurry. "Three days? That means the fighters should be heading this way!" she panicked. "How long until the invasion? Did you tell Sokka?"

Zuko and Toph pushed her back on the bed. "Relax Sugar queen, Snoozles is with Twinkle Toes and the Dragon." she cooed. "We were just waiting for you to wake up before we headed out."

She turned to Zuko. "Where are we going?"

"You got a message from the palace Lady Rivlyin." Zuko smirked.

"Yeah, mom." Toph snickered. "It seems your cousin Pokey invited you and your daughter to the palace. She's needs company until Princess Nutso returns with Gloomy. Sparky's dad agreed to it."

Katara felt her heart stop. "We could sneak more people in that way."

Zuko raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean more people?"

"Toph, does Sokka know?"

Toph shook her head. "No, that quiet guy took him out on some mission a few days ago. Don't worry, we'll only be in the palace for a day or so. Besides, Snoozles is too busy planning the invasion."

Zuko snorted. "If he was so busy planning, he wouldn't have tried to kill me every time he came in here."

"Relax Sparky, he's not going to get anywhere near you while I'm here. Even Sugar Queen would kill him first."

A head popped in the room. "Is Katara... you're awake!" Aang jumped into the room tackling her to the bed. "I... we were so worried. Sokka should be back in a few hours. You have to tell me everything that happened while you were gone."

Katara glanced at Zuko and Toph to see them sneaking out of the little house. She felt a pang of guilt watching them get pushed aside. She shook it off, she'd spend time with them later.

"What do you mean what happened while I was gone?" She said in a motherly tone. "I was sure General Iroh was keeping you all updated."

Aang's face fell. "Well, yea, but it's different coming from the actual source. I've missed you. I was so scared when Iroh said Zuko was with you..."

"Why?" she raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong with Zuko?"

"Well, he's a boy." Aang blushed.

She tilted her head. "So are you and Sokka. Haru was a boy, and so was Jet."

"But look what happened with Jet!" Aang pleaded.

Katara sighed and prepared for a long conversation, but was thankfully interrupted by Sokka. She was never so happy to see her annoying big brother.

"Aang, out." Sokka said in a warning tone.

Aang turned around and scowled. "We were talking Sokka!" he snapped. "I think you can wait."

Katara raised an eyebrow at the young monk. "No, Aang. Sokka and I have to settle something." She stood up and pulled water from her skins.

Aang stared at the two siblings before giving in sadly. "Alright, I-I'll talk to you later Katara."

Sokka waited until the door shut before charging at his sister and pinning her in a tight embrace. "You silly silly little girl!" he sighed. "If it wasn't for Zuko, I'd have come charging after you."

"But then why were you trying to kill him?" She smirked.

"He might have kept you safe while I couldn't be there, but now I fully intend to scare the fire out of him." he smiled triumphantly. "It's all in fun. He proved himself when he refused to leave your side. But that doesn't mean I can't pick at him."

She rolled her eyes. "That's great Sokka." she sighed. "I need to talk to you. Do you have your plans with you?"

He reached in his bag and pulled them out. "Always. Why?" At her smile he caught on. "So that's what dad was talking about." he smirked.

The rest of the night no one saw the water tribe siblings, except for Zuko and Toph who took food to them. They only caught a glimpse of Sokka as he grabbed the plates and shut the door, leaving the others to stand in confusion.

Ty Lee was unnerved when she received word from the White Lotus about what happened at the temple. She changed her course and was now sitting in the guest rooms of the palace. She had been surprised when the Fire Lord called an audience with her. What surprised her more was when he suggested she invited a friend to stay with her until Azula arrived back.

The only person she could think of was Katara, and when she mentioned that she hadn't seen her cousin in ages he'd welcomed the idea. Now, she was starting to wonder what had brought it on. He'd even taken to having her eat dinner with him, and asking all sorts of questions about her cousin.

So, here she was sitting at the dinner table again with the unhinged Fire Lord. She kept her usual cheery face and air headed nature in full throttle.

"So, Lady Ty Lee," Ozai smiled a sickening smile. "Did your cousin and her daughter respond to your letter?"

Ty Lee beamed. "Yes, Rivlyn said they'd arrive in the next few days."

"And what of her husband?" Ozai said as he cut into fish.

"I never met her husband." Ty smiled warily. "I was already off at the circus when she met him. I only found out about her daughter when one of my sisters came to the circus. Apparently, the little girl went blind when she was little."

Ozai seemed interested in this bit. "How so?"

"From what my sister told me, Rivlyn was traveling to the colonies to visit an old friend when it happened. I think it was pirates." Ty Lee said with a sad pout. "Too bad Azula and Mai aren't here. They haven't seen Rivlyn since the Academy."

Ozai gave her that creepy smile again. "Maybe they'll return before your cousin leaves. They sent a letter a few days ago." he said before snapping his fingers. "Well, Lady Ty Lee, it was lovely having dinner with you again. Hopefully your cousin and her daughter will arrive soon so you aren't so lonely."

He got up and left her to finish her dinner in peace. Ty Lee watched as one of the servants walked out and refilled her water glass. She was about to wave the girl away when she saw her place a white flower down.

"I was told the Lady likes flowers." The girl smiled as she left.

They couldn't make Ty Lee wait any longer. Zuko agreed to go with Katara and Toph, but to keep to the shadows. Sokka convinced Aang that he needed to go with him to meet his father in the next few days. Iroh was confident that Aang had almost mastered fire bending, he just needed to learn lightning.

It was time to leave the tree top hide away, and Iroh had managed to secure a carriage to take the three to the palace. One of the freedom fighters would drive the carraige, while two more posed as servants. Once they got closer to the capitol, Zuko would slide inside one of the hollowed out seats and wait until night fall to sneak out to protect the girls.

"Toph, come on out. You don't look dreadful." Katara called outside a tree house. "We have to get going if we're going to get there in time."

"I'm not coming out! Why couldn't you dress up Sparky as your daughter?" came an irritated voice from inside. "Or even Twinkle toes!"

"I can go in her place Katara." Aang beamed. "Then I'll get a chance to talk to you."

"Not now Aang. You have to finish your training, and help Sokka." She said pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Yeah, but you shouldn't have to go alone!" Aang countered.

"She won't be alone." Zuko said stepping up behind the two. "She has Toph and me." He bent down and tapped the floor boards in an odd pattern. When he heard a response he stood up smiling. "Excuse me." He pushed past them into Toph's tree house.

"Earthworm, what's wrong?" he asked trying to get her to turn around.

"I look like a sissy dressed like this. I don't need eyes to see it." she scoffed.

Zuko smiled. "But, you're supposed to look like a young lady not a sissy." he said turning her around. "You're right, you look like a sissy."

"Hey!" she punched him in the arm.

"But think about it earthworm, they won't suspect a thing with you looking like that." he whispered as he flicked her nose.

"Does...it look bad?"

"You look bad?" Zuko scoffed. "Even covered head to toe in dirt you're gorgeous. Now, just think about all the trouble you get to give Katara since she's your 'mom' and all."

Toph smiled. "You're right as usual Sparky." she beamed. "But, if I'm supposed to be helpless, how am I going to get around?"

"We'll think of something." he said grabbing her pack. "Want a ride Earthworm?"

She ran forward and jumped on his back. "Onward Sparky. Charge!"

He evened out her weight and stepped outside. "We're ready. Aang, take Toph's stuff down to the carriage please."

Aang scowled. "You take it."

"Aang! That's enough!" Katara snapped grabbing the bag and handing a hook to Zuko. She watched him and Toph disappear down the line before turning to Aang. "I will deal with you when I get back, young man." she said dangerously, before hooking the line to follow the other two.

Iroh was just walking out of the house next to Toph's when he spotted Aang. "Something eating you, young one?"

Aang turned and sighed. "I wanted to go along. She shouldn't have to depend on... on ... HIM! He's only going to hurt her. Why can't I take his place? Every time I try to talk to her it's either him, Sokka, or you interrupting."

Iroh stepped up beside the young man. "You fail to see what she wants." Iroh stated sternly. "Did you ever think she is more focused on ending this war then to start worrying about who she likes? Did it occur to you that Miss Katara is just trying to keep everyone alive and she looks at you all as her children? No it didn't. You are being selfish."

"What do you mean I'm being selfish!" Aang growled.

"If you hadn't been so selfish when the guru told you what to do, Ba Sing Se would still be standing." Iroh snapped.

"How would you know?" Aang asked dangerously. "You're the one who told me power was not worth giving up love!"

Iroh rubbed his forehead. "That is true, I did say that. But what I meant was you can still have love, just do not let it cloud your mind. I forget how young you are sometimes."

"I'm older than you!"

"In years, but in mind you are still a twelve year old boy." Iroh said calmly. "Katara is a child of war, and she knows she won't be able to start a romance until there is peace once again. You saw her village first hand."

"Uncle!" Zuko's shout from below had the old man turning.

"Think about it." He said before grabbing the zip line and heading off toward his nephew's voice.

Momo landed on Aang's shoulder. "Momo, we have a lot to think about."