"I should probably fill you in on who we're meeting, shouldn't I," Toph said, breaking the moderately comfortable silence that had reigned for the better part of their journey as she stated the question like an affirmation. Aang knew that was just how she spoke though.

He shrugged. His sense of urgency had faded as the reality of just how stuck he was sunk in. Toph wasn't going to rush there and nothing he did would change his circumstances at the moment. "I guess that would be kind of nice," he said after a moment's pause. He'd learned over the past two days' travel that Toph did things at her own pace.

She would tell him when she told him and not a moment before. They would stop for lunch when she was hungry and pack up camp when she wanted to leave. It had irritated him at first, but now he understood that while she was completely immovable in her stance, she moved with determination. They didn't take unneeded breaks and she set a brisk pace.

"Well, before we get there, I need your word that you won't report anything you see here to any wandering Earth Kingdom envoys."

Aang hesitated. What kind of illegal activity were her friends involved in? Drug trafficking? Porcelain smuggling? An illegal silk operation? Untaxed gold? Come to think of it, a band of smugglers would probably be perfect for-

"Would you stop that, Twinkletoes? I can promise you its nothing quite so exciting."

He resisted the urge to tell her to get out of his head. She'd explained how she saw through earthbending earlier, but it still disconcerted him how she read him so well (in spite of her complaints that he walked like he was tiptoeing).

"Then... what are they doing?" he queried after a moment.

A slight smile lit her face. "You'll find out when we get there. Hey, can you tell me what time it is?"

Aang looked up, approximating the position of the sun and mentally dividing the sky into segments for each hour. It was much easier to do this in a plane, where the sky was wide open. Trees and forests made telling time an annoying chore.

"Um... its midway through the... nineteenth hour," he said, finally.

"Hm, you may be in luck, Twinkletoes. We should be there before dark. It should make for a nice view (you know, for you seeing people). Plus if they trust you and you lend a hand, you may be on your way tonight."

Aang grinned and impulsively seized the short girl in a one-armed hug. "That;s fantastic! Thank you so much Toph!"

She shoved at him and struggled to throw him off in return. "Gerroff Twinkletoes! When did I say I liked lanky bald kids hanging on me?"

He laughed and hung on until she hit his bad arm and he yelped, letting go. She gave him one last push and stomped ahead, but he could have sworn he detected a faint blush on her cheeks as she grumbled about clingy airbenders and disrespect of personal space.

Clouds and tree cover drew back after another half hour's walk as they entered a wide clearing in the forest. Aang glanced up, absorbing the clear sight of the sky for the first time that day. There was still a good deal of light at this time of day in the summer and the sky was a light cerulean that reminded him of his tattoos.

"Stand back Twinkletoes. You'd probably just float down, but I don't have the patience to deal with you if that other arm breaks."

"Yes ma'am!" He hurriedly backed up from the clearing to the woods where Toph was, making sure to stand well behind her. She took a strong stance and dug her feet into the ground before making a series of movements with her arms. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen.

Then the ground started to shake.

Aang jumped in surprise and resisted the urge to grab Toph's shoulder and ask what was going on. It was probably best not to interrupt an earthbender who was doing something obviously important. Then there was a shift of movement out of the corner of his eye and he turned back to the clearing in time to see the ground pulling apart as a pair of hidden metal doors opened, lifting up the grass and layer of ground on top. He took several tentative steps forward. Slowly, the doors drew back into a pair of accordion-like folds.

Toph appeared at his side silently, a satisfied smile on her face. "The mechanism will take over once I've got them moving. Anyway, why don't you take a look inside." She walked to the edge of the newly-revealed pit, gesturing to him that he should follow, then cupped her hands around her mouth and bellowed down, her voice echoing several times.

"Oi! Teo! Suki! I've got a visitor for you!"

Aang moved forward after her, standing carefully once he was near the edge. A slow grin spread over his face even as his eyebrows shot up.

They had a sky-ship.

x x x

Sokka wasn't exactly sure how long he'd been traveling. Between the handful of half-hour naps he'd taken and the confusion as he left the boundaries of the midnight-sun into areas with a "normal" sky he'd lost track of whether he'd been traveling for two days or four. He rubbed his eyes blearily and tried not to think of how Katara would lecture him for pushing himself like this.

Of course, he'd point out that he was doing this to save her from a life of slavery in the Fire Nation or on some filthy pirate or merchant ship, but she probably wouldn't listen to him.

He splashed a little water onto his face from one of Katara's waterskins she'd left on the ship. That's why he was going after her. He needed to rescue her so he could bring her back so she could ignore him properly.

He bit back a yawn. That made perfect sense. He'd be sure to explain that very important point to her later.

Maybe when he was a little less lost.

Sokka glared at the map he'd tacked to the railing near the wheel. Running the entire ship by himself was hard enough without needing to keep track of where his main chart was.

Another yawn. He fought the urge to close his eyes. Surely a short nap wouldn't hurt. Its what Katara would want him to do. Plus it wasn't like he was going to get off course.

He had no idea where that damned pirate ship was anyway.

x x x

He followed Toph down a set of hidden stairs, taking in the ship as they went. I was smaller than most pirate ships he'd seen, probably only barely enough room for a plane to take off. It was a medium sized ship by his standards, though it made several notable deviations from the normal style of ships he'd seen the pirates sporting.

Despite all the Fire Nation's official denials, they couldn't cover the fact that every pirate ship had strong Fire Nation style influences and (mostly) ethnically western island sailors. This ship... it was different. As Toph reached the bottom of the stairs (and he narrowly avoided crashing into her) he reached out and brushed his hand against the wood, looking at its hue again. Even the wood was a different kind, green trim and wider bow aside. The ship's structure was different too; the mast was set farther back and he could swear there was some sort of ribbing between some of the boards.

"Teo! Suki! Where are you?" Toph shouted again. Aang looked around. Whoever these friends of hers wore, they owned a very impressive ship.

Granted, that could get you killed in the Earth Kingdom, but Aang wasn't about to report them.

"Toph?" a male voice called out.

Aang could hear what sounded like... wheels coming from a nearby corridor.

"Over here Teo," Toph replied, smiling. Aang moved away from the ship and stood by her as a young man wheeled himself out of the shadows, a lantern attached to his chair.

He had a wide, friendly smile and wore a portion of his hair in a small bun at the top of his head. "Hey Toph," he said before glancing at Aang with a slightly guarded look, "Who's your friend? You've... never brought someone to the hangar before."

Aang waved with his good arm.

"The skinny tall guy is Twinkletoes," Toph said, jabbing an elbow into his side in a friendly fashion.

Teo raised an eyebrow as an older girl with auburn hair walked out. "Strange name," she said, voiced laced with a smile.

He stepped forward and extended a hand to the older boy in the wheelchair, Toph had called him Teo. "My name's Aang."

Teo gripped his hand firmly. "Teo Mechanist."

Aang smiled. "Nice to meet you," he said.

Toph had made her way over to the older girl, which emphasized their height differences. She punched the girl lightly on the arm. "This is Suki. No putting the moves on her, Twinkletoes, or Teo will run you over."

They both blushed and Teo made awkward objections to Aang that things weren't' like that. Suki glared ineffectually at Toph and tried to step on her foot.

Aang just smiled. Despite their reactions, it was obvious this was an old joke between the three of them. He didn't really have time to spend on inside jokes however. He gestured over his shoulder.

"Did you two build this boat?"

Teo grinned, and Aang could tell it was from more than relief at the subject change. "Yep, the Kyoshi. She's beautiful, isn't she."

Aang nodded in response. "Certainly."

Suki had stopped trying to get back at Toph and was eyeing him with a certain amount of skepticism now. "Which probably has something to do with why Toph brought you here..."

"He's an Air Nomad," Toph started explaining, "Apparently he's not that great a pilot, got shot down, landed here. I'd have kicked him out with directions to the nearest port... but the embargo started the day he woke up." She shrugged. "We talked a bit and I decided to at least try and get him some help. Help being you two."

Suki crossed her arms. "He seems nice enough, but are you sure-"

"Hey," Toph interrupted, tapping a foot lightly on the ground, "my feet don't lie and neither did he. He's not Fire Nation or pirate breed."

"And I'm not a bad pilot either," he grumbled, arms crossed. Toph pushed pretty much all his buttons all the time, but there were some lines he wouldn't allow her to cross.

"Uh huh. Sure. Anyway," she continued, "he fed me a sob story and wants to get home. You two are the only ones with a sky-ship in the whole Earth Kingdom (that I know of anyway)."

Suki's eyebrows raised and Teo didn't bother to hold back an amused grin. "He fed you a sob story? And you bought it?"

He would have sworn Toph was blushing slightly as she objected, "I didn't buy it! I decided this is what I wanted to do this week." She crossed her arms, glare daring either of them to say a word.

Suki snorted, somehow making it seem feminine. Aang estimated she'd be about twenty or so. "Uh huh, sure you did, Toph." She turned to him, arms crossed loosely. "And why should we take you? Our ship is done and fully functional, but we have an important mission coming up, the whole reason we built this ship in fact. Right now we're just collecting intelligence and making our last preparations. Why should we put that at risk for you? Its going to be hard enough escaping the Earth Kingdom during this embargo, especially since its freshly into effect."

She glanced at Teo, who seemed (to Aang at least) to be the more charitable of the two. Teo shrugged. "Since we're listing difficulties, I may as well mention that the Nancheng provinces are completely out of the way of where we're going. Plus, its a fairly clear night. We were waiting for an overcast one before trying to break out of the embargo."

"Oh..." he said, feeling somewhat awkward. He hadn't really given it much thought before, but this really was a huge favor to be asking them, or anyone else. Since the Earth Kingdom had become a no-fly zone, trade between the Air Nomads and the Earth Kingdom had become limited completely to sea-ship travel, which was becoming more and more pricy and inconvenient these days.

"Um," he started hesitantly, looking to change the topic for a bit, "what's this big mission you two are doing anyway?"

Teo and Suki exchanged a look and some sort of silent exchange. Teo was the first to look away and meet Aang's eyes with a level of intensity Aang hadn't seen before.

"We're going to invade the Fire Nation and rescue my dad."

x x x

"Hm, bit scruffy isn't he?"

"Would you like us to dispose of him, Princess?"

Sokka had the strangest dreams sometimes.

"Tsk, I told you not to address me that way when we're aboard the ship; this extends to other ships you idiot."

The voices were different than his usual dream voices. More vivid too. The girl's seemed sharp enough to pierce iron.

"Sorry Pr- Captain! Captain Azula."

"Good, now don't dump him off the side yet. I want to know what kind of idiot sets off on a cross-world journey on his own."

Sokka stirred slightly and resisted the rush of adrenaline that came with the realization that there were people, no, pirates on board his ship. The captain seemed to notice him despite his efforts however.

"Ah, I see you're awake."

He stayed still and kept his eyes closed.

He heard her step closer. "Oh come now, why don't you wake up. Its not often I chat with water tribe peasants like yourself. Consider it an honor of sorts."

At that his eyes snapped open and met a pair of golden ones.

He reacted instantly, body moving before his mind fully processed what he was seeing, leaping up from his position on the deck to lunge at the pirate captain.

Despite being caught off guard, her reflexes were top notch. She grabbed his fist before it connected with her jawbone, counter to send him skidding back at the exact moment he realized the red-lipped captain in front of him was decidedly not the same one who attacked his village.

He blinked a few times as several of her crew members seized him and slammed him back against the railing, twisting his arms behind his back. She had the exact same eyes, but the boobs really should have been a give away for him.

A pirate slapped a pair of wrist irons on him and forced him to his knees. He still couldn't take his eyes off of hers. They were the same cruel eyes that belonged to the pirate who'd made that... deal with Katara.

The captain examined her nails carefully. "Well, that was certainly... interesting. It has proved to me that my crew is incompetent and you have great reaction time, but I'd like to know the root cause."

She leaned in close and Sokka looked away.

Out of the corner of his eyes he could see her eyebrows raise. "Oh? Don't want to look at me now? You seemed quite intent on my face a moment ago."

Still he kept silent. The less he told them the better off he'd be. He didn't have much money on him, if any. They could take his food, but he could see the pirates' ship now, docked to his as they floated idly over the waters. His ship looked like a lifeboat in comparison. They'd have plenty of food and water.

"Hm," the girl mused. She looked about Katara's age, though she carried herself as though she were twice that. "let's start with the basic pleasantries, see if you're even the least bit civilized. My name is Azula; what's yours?"

Something about the name caused a flicker in his mind. It was a Fire Nation name, no doubt, but he stretched his mind. Had he heard it before? In one of his dad's meetings? Maybe he could find out some more information if he cooperated, at least a little bit.

"My name is Sokka," he said cautiously.

She paced around his upper deck, examining the his chart a moment before replying, "I see. So, Sokka, you seem to be a bit out of place out here all alone in the sky. Maybe, if your story is interesting enough, we'll let you live."

Her tone was sounding more familiar to him now. His eyes narrowed as he realized who she sounded like. The accent, the haughtiness. She sounded like that golden-eyed pirate captain who'd taken Katara!

"I'm going to rescue my sister," he said quietly, eyes fixed on her back with hate.

She turned and met his gaze coolly. "Ah, a familial quest. how sweet. You're obviously lost though. The pin in your chart is almost a hundred leagues off from where we actually are right now."

She moved the pin, presumably to the proper location and smirked. "Sokka, you're obviously far from home. And an idiot. You have absolutely nothing of value to trade your life for. Why shouldn't I have you killed?"

His knees felt sore against the floorboards and the wind was blowing through his wolftail as all the pirates turned to look at him. Sokka felt his stomach turn. He'd never been that great at lying. He sighed. Only thing he could do was tell the truth.

"I'm on a quest," he started, ignoring the crew's eyerolls and Azula's slight sneer, "to get my sister back. She's the most important person in the world to me."

Azula snorted. "Is that all? I think you've wasted my time just by making me listen to that drivel."

"And," he continued over her remarks, "I'm on a quest for revenge."

The crew quieted and Azula looked at him with a marginal level of increased interest.

"There's a pirate captain with and eyepatch over his left eye. He has golden eyes identical to yours. When I find him, I'm going to take back my sister and kill him."

Sokka couldn't keep the hatred out of his voice at the end. He didn't care if he got killed now. All that mattered was finding the bastard who took his sister.

Azula's smile widened, showing her teeth, and she let out a short, amused laugh.

"Well, Sokka, you've captured my attention. I believe I know exactly who you're looking for."


This chapter was almost not brought to you by the distractions of facebook and my finding out my college roommate.

Um, I'm going on vacation starting tomorrow~ I'll find a way to update though, I swear! Don't worry. :)

I've just been wondering, is there anything that has been unclear in the story so far that you think I need to spend more time on or extrapolate on more? Granted, if I've been intentionally vague and plan on explaining it later or its some sort of plot point, I'm afraid your wish may not be granted (though I may speed it up a bit).

Also! 11:45 is TOTALLY on time! Its still Friday here on the east coast!

Kia out.