Momo! Holy crap, poor lemur! He fell down a plot hole! I didn't realize how little he's been mentioned. Thank you Moonsheep for pointing it out, so here's some Momo in this chapter!

Ba Sing Se was, admittedly, just as grand as was promised. The city was huge. Kyuri felt so small and insignificant in the town, even with Sang beside her, attracting looks. They'd never stayed in a town this big. Not even Omashu came close to this scale. Momo was nearly run over by a cart within five minutes. Aang kept him safely on his shoulder after that.

It was easy to get passage on a train into the city. General Tsao gave them passes that got them through customs without any hassles. On the other side, they found an almost eerily happy woman named Joo Dee, who was to be their guide. She directed them to a carriage that took them through the city to a house in the upper ring that they were being given use of. On the way, she told them about the history of the city and its traditions, which were protected by the Dai Li, a secret force of Earthbenders.

The house itself was amazing. It was a house a nobleman or high official might have. There was a beautiful, big backyard where Sangilak could spread his wings and lounge in the sun, snapping at mouse koi fish in the pond. The inside was richly furnished with pillows and silks.

But despite it all, Kyuri couldn't help but have a bad feeling about Ba Sing Se. Everything from Joo Dee steering the conversation away from the Earth King and their news, to her even knowing to meet them, to having a house ready and waiting for them, was unnerving her. It was almost as if people here were utterly unconcerned by the war.

They weren't being allowed much freedom either. Joo Dee went with them as they checked pet shops and the University for information about where Appa might be held. They were informed that they should enjoy their home and that dinner would be brought to them. Even the man, Pong, across the street from them seemed nervous and edgy, and refused to say anything when they asked about the war. The only thing he told them was to keep mum on the war and avoid the Dai Li.

"I can't believe we have to stay here for a month," Sokka said as they ate. Kyuri was in the center of the living room, running through forms.

"Kyuri, come have some more to eat," Katara offered, poking a slice of apple to Momo. "You barely touched your food."

"I don't like this city," Kyuri said tensely. She twisted her head from side to side, cracking her neck, a gesture Katara hadn't seen since they met Kyuri anew. Tons of little quirks and habits she'd abandoned were coming back now that Kyuri had loosened up. Katara noticed now how she held her back less stiffly, how she slumped over her meals slightly and ate quickly, just like she used to. The Kyuri that had flown into the village on Sang had been controlled and measured in everything she did. Now some of the old, energetic Kyuri was coming through.

"A month," Sokka continued. "What are we going to do during all that time?"

"I actually had an idea about that," Kyuri said slowly.

"What?" Toph asked interestedly. "Go nuts and create anarchy? Oh wait, this is The Iceberg I'm talking to."

"I was thinking of getting a job in the lower ring," Kyuri suggested.

"Huh?" Aang said blankly, adding another apple slice to Momo's hoard. The lemur chattered happily.

"Think about it," Kyuri pressed, sitting down in the middle of the floor and stretching her legs up, hooking her foot behind her head. "The lower ring is full of refugees from all over. They'll have news about what's going on out there. If I could get a job in, say, a restaurant or shop, I could listen in on their conversations. We don't have to do nothing while we're here."

"That's a really good idea!" Katara complimented. "But… it's pretty rough around there. I don't think you should go alone. And what about Joo Dee? She clearly wants us to stay here."

"I can go in disguise, cover this with coal dust," she said, tugging at her white chunk of hair. "Wear normal Earth Kingdom clothes, maybe fix my hair differently and wear makeup. And I can take care of myself Katara," she added pointedly, gesturing to the large pile of weapons by the wall that she had discarded for her stretches. "I'd carry knives."

"I like this plan," Sokka grinned. "Maybe I should get a job too!"

"I don't think so," Aang disagreed. "We can't be all split up during the day. What if one of us finds out something important about Appa or what's going on here? We need to have a base of operations. Besides, Kyuri's definitely the best at observing things, and it's easier to sneak around if you're on your own."

"Okay," Sokka nodded. "So, we all agreed, Kyuri gets a job?"

They all raised their hands.

"But how do we get you a disguise without Joo Dee noticing?" Katara wondered.

"Easy," Toph shrugged. "We girls going shopping would definitely be a normal, acceptable thing for Joo Dee to see us doing."

"So tomorrow we can have Joo Dee take us to the shopping district," Katara nodded. "And Aang and Sokka can say they'll stay home, when really they go out searching for information about Appa!"

"Yeah, we're accomplishing something!" Sokka cheered. "This is great!"

The next morning, Joo Dee found Toph, Katara, and Kyuri waiting for her eagerly. She seemed happy that they wanted to go shopping, and boasted about the wide array of products the merchants of Ba Sing Se had for sale. To keep from drawing suspicion, they all bought a few items of clothes, including a set of rich robes for each of them to keep Joo Dee from noticing the amount of slightly poorer clothes they were getting. Toph and Katara were in charge of the makeup, as Kyuri was woefully unprepared for anything even mildly feminine.

They returned home by the afternoon and decided there was still time for Kyuri to go job-hunting.

"Whoa," Sokka and Aang chorused, staring blankly. Kyuri's hair was now completely black, pulled back into a loose bun and held with a pair of ornamental chopsticks. Her blue eyes were played up with brown eye shadow. Her cheeks were slightly rosier than normal. They studiously stayed away from blue in her wardrobe, going instead for a tunic the same style as Katara wore in a forest green color, highlighted in lighter green. It was slit to her hips, and under it she wore loose green pants and dainty brown slippers. Her knives were concealed under her long sleeves.

All in all, the biggest change was the Kyuri actually looked like a normal girl.

"You're so pretty," Sang cooed at her.

"I will skin you alive if you ever say that again."

"Ooh, touchy."

"I feel as if this makeup is caked on my face and my hair is about to fall into my face. This is completely impractical."

"Ah, but normal Earth Kingdom girls don't worry about their hair getting in their eyes in a fight."

"Well they should."

"Okay, one more time," Sokka encouraged. Kyuri schooled her features into an innocent expression.

"My name is Kida," she said. "I come from a small town on the coast that was recently taken by Fire Nation forces. My parents were killed in the attack and I came to Ba Sing Se to live with my aunt. I've been here a week and I'm looking for a job to help support myself and my aunt."

"Good," Katara congratulated. "I think you're ready. Off you go!"

"Bring home the bacon, Kida!" Toph called after her mockingly. Kyuri snarled as she left the house out the back and immediately took to the shadows. It took a while to get to the lower ring, dodging customs, but she managed it in pretty fair time and she was soon in the lower ring, navigating through the crowds of people.

"Excuse me?" Kyuri asked politely of a man behind a stand of fruit. "Do you know of any place that might be hiring? I'm looking for work."

The man paused thoughtfully. "Last I heard, Pao was. The tea shop, just around the corner there," he said, pointing to a street corner where a pair of musicians were busking. "Can't miss it."

"Thank you," Kyuri said with a small smile. It hurt her face slightly. It was hard for her, not to slip into her usual stony mask, but that wouldn't be wise. She couldn't raise any suspicions.

"Here, take an apple with you," the man said, tossing her a red fruit. She caught it instinctively and turned it over in her hands. "You look like you could use it."

Kyuri glanced down at herself. She knew she was skinny, but she didn't realize people thought she needed more meat on her bones.

"Thank you," Kyuri said, tucking the fruit into her sleeve. "You've been a great help."

"Anytime," the man said, waving as she walked off. Kyuri followed his directions and almost immediately found a teashop on her right. She read the sign declaring it to be Pao's House of Teas, and went inside. The place was fairly crowded, which wasn't surprising. She couldn't recall seeing many tea houses on her two trips through the lower ring. This place was probably one of a very few.

"Hello, I'm Pao," said a skinny man with a pointy moustache. "How may I help you?"

"My name is Kida. I'm looking for a job," Kyuri said, affecting embarrassment and awkwardness. She was helped along by the rouge on her cheeks. "I'm a refugee, you see, living with my aunt, and we can't support us both," she said, lowering her eyes. It looked like a demure, sad gesture, but in actuality she was just hoping he wouldn't read her face and know she was lying.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Pao sympathized. "Can you wait tables?"

"I never have before, but I learn quickly," Kyuri nodded.

"Ah. Good memory? Can't have you forgetting orders."

"Very good."

"Aha," Pao nodded, smiling. "I see. Then you're hired!"

"Just like that?" Kyuri blinked. She'd expected a bigger ordeal, maybe some kind of trial period or a more in-depth questioning.

"Just like that," Pao nodded. "With all the refugees pouring in I need more waiters, and it wouldn't hurt to have a pretty young face around here either!"

"Oh, er, thank you," Kyuri said, and this time she didn't have to fake her blush. No one had ever complimented her looks before. With the new clothes, so few weapons, wearing makeup, and having her hair fixed, she felt more feminine than she ever had before. She'd never really paid attention to her gender much before, but she was suddenly feeling a desire to straighten her hair or smooth the wrinkles out of her tunic.

"Go in the back," Pao said, pointing to a screen that hung on a door in the back of the room, presumably leading to the kitchen. "I've hired two other men today as well. They'll get you an apron."

"Thank you so much, sir," Kyuri said, dipping her head and bending her knees slightly in a demure approximation of a nod that she'd observed a few village girls do on their travels. She walked through the screen, knocking it aside with a hand, and promptly tripped over a small stoop. Kyuri's hand flashed out and she caught herself on the edge of a counter.

"Whoops, watch yourself little lady!" said a jovial, elderly voice. "I did the same thing when I first walked in."

Kyuri straightened up and looked around for the man. Her eyes went wide. General Iroh of the Fire Nation stood there in an apron tied with extra twine to reach around his gut. His hair and beard were loose, and he wore the green of an Earth Kingdom peasant.

Kyuri jerked out of her staring as Iroh cocked his head at her curiously. "I-I'm sorry," she said, affecting a nervous stammer. "It's just… you look a bit like someone I knew once," she said.

"Oh, who?" Iroh asked curiously.

"Oh, my grandfather," Kyuri said, lying flawlessly. It was the most realistic thing she could think of off the top of her head. "He worked in a tea shop too," she added, making this up as she went.

"Ah, well if he loved tea I'm sure he was a good man!" Iroh smiled. "What's your name?"

"Kida," Kyuri said, sticking out her hand. Iroh took it and bowed, kissing her knuckles lightly.

"A pretty name for a pretty lady!" he said with a teasing wink. Kyuri blinked. This was the great Fire Nation general, happily bouncing around in a tea shop and making playful comments to strangers.

"And who are you?" Kyuri asked rather belatedly, realizing she couldn't already now his name, and that he was, in all, likelihood, using an alias.

"My name is Mushi. My nephew, Lee, and I just came to Ba Sing Se as refugees," Iroh said.

"I've joined my aunt here after our village was decimated in a Fire Nation attack," Kyuri said. "That's why I've gotten job here, we need more money to support the both of us."

"Ah, well then you'll be needing an apron," Iroh said, pulling one off of a peg and tossing it to her. Kyuri caught it deftly and looped the top over her head, tying it behind her back deftly. "I take it you know how to wait tables?"

"More or less," Kyuri nodded.

"Alright," Iroh nodded. "Then go help my poor lonely nephew on the floor," he said, giving her a joking shove out the door.

"Uncle, we need two cups of-"

Zuko came in the door just as Iroh shoved her. The two collided, Kyuri staggering back against the counter and Zuko slamming into the door frame.

"I'm sorry," Kyuri said, slipping past him deftly and tilting her head so he couldn't see her face. She made her way out to the floor and glanced around, heart pounding.

"What can I get you?" she demanded, darting to the nearest table and trying to calm her racing heart, and trying to figure out precisely why it was racing. Could she still work here? Iroh and Zuko didn't seem to recognize her, so maybe it was safe. Who knew if she'd be able to find a job so easily elsewhere?

"We'll take an orange spice and a ginseng," said a man as he gazed soulfully into the eyes of his female companion. They were holding hands and just staring at each other. Kyuri wondered at the point of it all. Surely if this was some sort of date they should converse and get to know each other?

"I'll have that right out," she said, shaking her head at the illogicality of romance. She may have finally submitted to her emotions and her desire for a loving husband and family, but that didn't mean she understood romance any better.

"I need a cup of ginseng and a cup of orange spice," Kyuri said, re-entering the kitchen.

"Coming right up," Iroh said chirpily, turning to a row of pots. "And Lee wanted to apologize for running into you earlier."

Kyuri raised an eyebrow at Zuko, who was washing dirty cups in a sink with his sleeves rolled up, and staring at the bubbles with far more venom than they deserved.

"Yeah. Sorry," he grunted, glancing up at her.

"Lee, introduce yourself!" Iroh encouraged. "Be friendly!"

Zuko huffed at his uncle but pulled is hands out of the water and dried them. "Hi," he said abruptly, sticking out his hand. "I'm Lee."

"Kida," Kyuri said, swallowing hard as she took his hand hesitantly. They'd met before, of course, but she'd always been wearing her face paint and she'd never looked this much like an actually girl. He didn't seem to recognize her, she thought, vaguely wondering why her palm tingled where it brushed against his, but he suddenly narrowed his eyes at her and his grip tightened.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" he wondered suspiciously.

"No," Kyuri said immediately. "I don't think so."

Zuko stared at the girl in front of him. She was tall, and skinny, and that fit. The features seemed rounder though. It was the eyes that were familiar. They were big and icy blue. His mind had immediately flashed to whirling blades and Waterbending, but these eyes had a warmth that the Dragora's had never quite managed. His eyes flicked to her hair. All black, not a white strand in sight. It couldn't be her.

"Here you go," Iroh said, bounding forwards. Kyuri released Zuko's hand abruptly to take the tray from Iroh's hand. On it were two steaming cups of tea. "One orange spice and one ginseng."

"Thanks," Kyuri said, balancing the tray on her hip as she scooted out the door.

"One orange spice and one ginseng," she said as she approached the couple at the table. The man was gone to another table, talking to a group of men with heavy tans, probably farmers from the outskirts of Ba Sing Se in town for a brief break from the heat of the day.

"I'm the jasmine," the girl said. Kyuri handed her the cup and placed the other down in front of the man's empty seat.

"Enjoy your tea," she said, turning and making for another table where a set of twins had just taken their seats. A hand caught her wrist and Kyuri turned curiously, her hand instinctively going towards the dagger at her wrist.

The girl at the table was looking up at her with big green eyes that sparkled with… something. Adoration, tenderness, happiness, comfort, safety, and a whole host of other emotions seemed to come together to form one dizzyingly-intense look.

"How do you know if you're in love?" the girl pleaded. "Do you know?"

Kyuri blinked, surprised. "I… I don't know."

"I feel strange," the girl said thoughtfully, her hand sliding away from Kyuri's wrist. "Like I could float right out of my seat. When he smiles a t me," she said, glancing at the man a few tables away, "it's like I've been blessed. I get all nervous and shaky and I can barely think straight. I just start hoping for him to smile at me more, and I try everything to make him happy, because when he's upset so am I. Do you think that's love?"

It sounded like some sort of obsessive disorder.

She had n earthly idea how to wiggle out of this. "I suppose it could be," Kyuri said slowly. "I believe that's something you have to figure out for yourself."

"I suppose you're right," the girl sighed tiredly. "But… it would be so easy if I could just know whether he felt the same way, you know? Then I wouldn't have to worry that he doesn't feel the same way I do. I just so hope he does."

"I suspect he does," Kyuri said as the man came back over. He took a sip of his tea and looked at the girl.

"Do you mind if I step outside for a moment?" he asked her. "Bao wants to show me something in his cart real fast."

"Of course," the girl beamed at him. "I don't mind. Just hurry back," she added flirtatiously.

"Why would I delay?" the man asked, kissing her forehead tenderly and leaving the teashop with the group of farmers. Kyuri was suddenly seized with a wild urge.

"Another order?" Iroh asked as she walked into the kitchen purposefully.

"I'll be back in a minute," she said brusquely, hanging her apron on a peg and slipping out the back door. Iroh gave her a confused look but said nothing.

Kyuri slipped around the side alley of the shop and saw the man standing around a cart with the farmers, examining some burlap sacks in the back.

"Good haul!" he approved, slapping the man on the back. "That's a good harvest you had!"

'I know," one farmer said proudly. "Well, you've seen it, now get back to you're girl. She's prettier to look at then us."

"I won't deny it!" the man laughed, waving the farmers off as they departed. He turned to reenter the tea shop and Kyuri took her chance.

"Psst!" she hissed. The man looked up curiously. Kyuri emerged from the shadows and he blinked at her.

"Our waitress?" he said in confusion.

"I've just had a highly interesting conversation with your date," she said, ignoring the confused look on the man's face. "It would appear that she loves you but is hesitant to make her feelings known for fear they are unequalled. I would suggest you tell her soon, lest she lose interest," Kyuri advised, before turning and going back down the alley, leaving a grinning man behind her. She hustled back into the kitchen and tied her apron on again.

"Back so soon?" Iroh asked.

"I told you I'd only be a minute," Kyuri said irritably, untangling the strap of her apron from her chopsticks with a huff. She strode out of the kitchen and went to a table of two businessmen.

"What can I get you today?" she asked, listening with a half ear as they gave their orders (jasmine and lychee) and listening with the other half to the couple at the table (Sayuri, there's something I want to tell you)

"I'll have it right out," Kyuri said, smiling slightly as she returned to the kitchen, feeling highly proud of herself as the couple's words played in her mind.

"I love you."

Sayuri gasped. "Chang, I love you too!"

"Matchmaking isn't part of your job description," Iroh said slyly when she re-entered the kitchen. Kyuri turned away from him and busied herself with brewing tea. A small smile on her face.

It felt good to help that couple out. They were quite obviously in love and she was happy they were happy together. It was nice to see that in the midst of all this war and bloodshed that some things, like love, remained pure and innocent among the masses.

"Order up!" Iroh called. Kyuri took the tray and went out to the floor, handing out tea cups and gathering up empty ones.

Zuko watched the new girl suspiciously. He still couldn't figure it out. She looked so familiar… Not so much her features, though her eyes still reminded him of Kyuri. It was the way she moved. She moved like a Waterbenders, sliding through the tables with ease, swishing her hips back and forth to avoid tables and chairs, spinning around corners and balancing the tray flawlessly, never spilling drop of the hot liquid.

He shook his head. He was just being paranoid, he had to be.

Kyuri was acutely aware of Zuko watching her throughout the day. It made her nervous when his eyes followed her as she wound around the tea room. She was a fool to thin that removing her face paint would make it any less obvious who she was. But then, he didn't seem to have figured it out yet. He just had a vague feeling of familiarity. She could probably stay here and he would get over it in a few days. Then again he was a remarkably determined individual.

By the time she had taken off work Kyuri had decided that she was going to try and stay. If Zuko or Iroh found her out, she would leave immediately. Besides, maybe even if they found out they wouldn't say anything. She could reveal them as well, fire Benders in and Earth kingdom city. She was travelling with the Avatar. She would be fine, but if word got out about them they would probably be lynched within the hour. The ball was still in her court, she thought, relaxing as she walked in the door, only to be attacked by Katara and Toph wearing their new, expensive robes and wearing makeup.

"What's going on?" she demanded as they hustled her into one of the bedrooms. Katara began stripping her as Toph wound her hair up with sure fingers.

"We figured out a way to see the Earth King," Toph grinned. "Ever been to a royal party, Iceberg?"