I think one of the hardest parts about writing is giving your characters names. It's something of a lucky shot that Fire Nation names are mostly Japanese with L thrown into the mix.

So many new names... u.u

Katara runs the ship up the shore, while I find a coil of rope and use it to tie the slavers up. Serves them right!

I don't really like the idea of leaving them behind, it's entirely possible that they free themselves and escape before someone can send guards here, but we don't have much of a choice. It will be hard enough with the children only. Katara spends some time healing the worst injuries, while I take the chance to get a drink and wash the ink off my hands. I also do a headcount and come up with eight. After we're finished, Katara bends us up the fjord as far as she can, but the rest is up to the girls. Problem is that none of them seems to be older than seven.

I carry Rika on my back (and she falls right asleep). Some of the other girls complain about the unfairness, but the girl I claimed as my protegee (I find out that her name is Marisa, or just Mari) gives it her best to help maintain order. Katara walks at the front, I bring up the rear, and Mari is everywhere. She even gets another girl to join her mission.

It's good to see how they motivate each other. They haven't seen their families in a while, and most of the girls can't wait to be home. Two of them, however, are less than enthusiastic. They drag their feet and basically slow the whole group down.

"Mari!" I call out and the girl dutifully falls back to me.

"Yes?"

"Can you find out what's up with those two? Don't they want to go home as well?"

Mari lowers her gaze. "They said that their mommies and daddies are gone, and that they were taken to a new place where they ran away from."

Orphans!, flashes through my mind. Did those two run away from an orphanage? That would make them easy prey for sure. And yeah, possibly unmotivated to return, too.

I wish I could do something for them. I feel so overtaxed! Babysitting has never been my strong suit, and babysitting a bunch of little girls who just went through a traumatic experience even less so. I'm really glad to have Katara with me. While the girls seem to trust me more than her, I feel she was born for situations like this. She always seems to know the right thing to do or say to get the kids to keep moving. Give it a few more minutes and I'll be second rank again.

Yeah... Before long, the orphan girls let themselves be taken by the hand, and it's not me who reached out for them. Maybe I should have, but it just didn't occur to me. I'm so used to people not wanting to do anything with me that taking the initiative feels like intruding. Circumstances must be truly special for me to try and make contact.

"Why are we going back?" Mari snaps me out of my thoughts. "Why are we not going home?"

Good question. It would actually make more sense to go directly to the nearest village. However, we need to rendezvous with the others and plan our next steps. It would probably raise some suspicions if we resume our travels right away and leave the kids to their own devices. But neither do I want to get involved with the authorities. An unsupervised group of traveling children isn't any less suspicious. Besides, it's entirely possible that a missing report has reached this place and someone recognizes me. Not probable, but still a risk.

"Don't worry, Mari. We will go home. But we need to pick up the others first. They're waiting for us."

"I miss my mommy," she mumbles, head hanging low. I look down at her, my chest seems to constrict painfully. I suddenly have to think about my own mum. How is she doing? How is the rest doing?

I sigh, banishing the images to the back of my mind. I miss my mommy, too.

"Just a little longer, okay?"

You'd think a mile isn't all that much. And yet it's the longest mile of my life. Uphill, with children in tow. Katara is so smart and tells them halfway that they should call her Kari. It's a game. The first girl to call her Katara loses.

A pang of guilt rushes through me. I started the whole alias thing, but then I had to go ahead and blow it by calling her Katara in front of the kids. I hope none of them slips up.

I have no idea how long it takes for us to arrive back at the cave, but it certainly feels like hours. Hmm, maybe half an hour?

Once we arrive, the girls drop into the grass, and when I look around, I find that the group of teens has grown. I can tell right away who the firebenders are, they look even more beaten than the rest. There is a boy lying on his belly in the sun, torso bare and revealing a pattern of nasty bruises and cuts all over his back. It makes me think he's been whipped recently. A girl is sitting with him, tears staining her cheeks. She's whispering to him and I cringe in sympathy.

I tear my gaze away. Toph and Sokka are sitting a bit off the rest of the group, while Aang is hanging upside down on a tree branch, surrounded by a group of young admirers. He seems to have a lot of fun.

He drops to the ground once he spots us and the three of us join Sokka and Toph to discuss our situation.

"So, what now?" Katara kicks it off. "Do you think we should stay?"

"I'd rather get out of here, but I think we have to," I respond. "I'm afraid this group will fall apart if we leave them now."

"Why would you think so?" Toph asks. "Most of them are old enough to handle themselves and a few little kids."

"Old enough perhaps, but strong enough? They have a horrible time behind them. Many of them are injured and Katara can't heal them without revealing her waterbending."

"I don't think that's going to matter any longer," Katara cuts in and gestures at one of the girls we freed, I think her name was Laika? She's talking excitedly to one of the firebenders, and they're both looking our way.

"Great!" Sokka exclaims, sarcasm dripping off every single letter. "Just keep going and we'll blow our cover completely."

"I don't think so," Aang pipes up. "Look, if Fire Nation people can airbend, then Earth Kingdom people can waterbend. If push comes to shove, we can say that your grandmother is from the Northern Water Tribe. It's not even a lie!"

Katara brightens. "Good thinking, Aang."

"Someone's coming our way!" Toph suddenly warns and I sense us all switching into camouflage mode. I check that I still have everyone's cover names handy.

"Right," Sokka resumes our conversation. "We need to find out where the nearest town with a guard post is. I'm sure all those kids were reported as missing. We can leave them to the authorities and..."

"Excuse me?" a voice interrupts and I turn around to find Laika and the firebender girl. The latter is leaning onto the former for support. She's holding her side and I spot dried blood underneath her hand. I recognize her, it's the girl I've seen with the whipped boy before.

Noticing that everyone's watching her expectantly (except for Toph), she continues, "Laika said one of you is a waterbending healer." She looks away. "I normally wouldn't ask, but my brother is fatally injured." She sighs and bows deeply at Katara. "Please, save him!"

Katara blinks, then smiles. "Of course. Where is he?"

"I'll show you," the girl answers, eyes shining with gratefulness and relief. So the boy was the girl's brother, I suppose. Turning back to the group, I massage my temples.

"This is all so messed up!" I hiss and sprawl on the ground to stare at the sky.

But I barely get the chance. "You can say that again," a voice agrees which makes me jerk right back into a sitting position.

"Judai!" I cry out, then proceed to scrutinize him. It's the first time I see him in sunlight, I realize. He's darker than I thought. He's tanned, a shade similar to Aang, maybe a tad bit darker. Red markings are lining the outsides of his arms, three streaks each. I've been dimly aware of them before, but only now I'm starting to wonder what they are. They sorta remind me of Aang's tattoos, only that those switch arm sides halfway and end in Aang's armpits. The lines on Judai's arms stretch between his wrists and shoulders. So maybe they are tattoos? Hmm...

Then there is the fact that he is sopping wet. His dark brown hair is a bit longer than Sokka's and clings to his head in thick strands. Some stray ones hang into his face and he doggedly swipes them away, only for them to pop right back, the water weighing them down.

"You look like you badly need a hair tie," I remark, already pulling my braid to the front in order to remove my own.

"No thanks, I'm good on hair ties," Judai declares, swiping at the strands once more. Yeah, right, I'm sure he doesn't need a hair tie. "I just came here because I discovered a place nearby where a mountain stream is pooling. I suggest we move there, so everyone can have a drink and clean up."

"Sounds reasonable," Aang states and looks around inquisitively, waiting for approval. I nod, I'm totally in, and I'm relieved that Sokka nods as well.

"Let's get everybody moving."

"What about the slavers?" Judai stops him, visibly on edge. Sokka shrugs.

"Chained up. We can leave them here, they're not going to bother us."

I climb to my feet and slip past Aang to give Judai a hug. My nose quickly takes offense, but I bear it until the boy relaxes. I notice that he's taller than me, about half a head, but it doesn't feel like it at all. It feels like comforting a way smaller child who just woke up from a nightmare. At least I have experience with that, thanks to Mimi.

"It's over, Judai," I whisper soothingly. "It's over."

"I know," he sighs. "I'm not a baby, by the way. You can let go."

Toph starts to laugh in the background and I hastily pull back. Didn't mean to hurt his pride. "Yeah, right," I try to cover up my embarrassment. "I was about to, anyway. You smell like a dead wartpossum."

"Now, now, don't you pretend to smell any better, Kami!" Judai shoots right back and I find myself looking up. There is a mischievous glint in his ash-gray eyes, and I like it much, much better than the despair and defeat. I want to see more of it. I want to see more of him.

My eye-contact problem kicks in and I turn my back at Judai, looking over the group of children instead. I also come to resent the fact that I'm wet yet again, but washing up is a good idea. The cell has been really dirty.

"Is that pool large enough for everyone? Because I think it would make more sense to move them in shifts anyway. As far as I can tell, there are less of us able to offer support than there are those who need it."

Judai hums agreement. "I think ten people can wash themselves at the same time, give or take a few, depending on height."

"Then we should move the firebenders first," Sokka suggests, arms crossed and brows furrowed in concentration. "They're worst off and it gives Kari more water to work with. After that, we'll see about the rest."

"Sounds like a plan," I nod, automatically searching for Katara in the crowd. She's easy enough to find, by now she has gathered an audience, sitting or standing in a loose circle around her.

"So I didn't imagine it. She is a waterbender," Judai remarks, causing me to turn back to him.

"Water Tribe blood," I quickly smooth things over. "Sometimes, people of one nation have the bending abilities of others. It happens."

"That's weird." Judai crosses his arms. "Why would someone from the Earth Kingdom want a child from a snow sav..." I'm seriously considering to resort to foot-stomping to get him to stop talking, only that he suddenly loses balance and cuts himself off, yelping instead. I catch him in time to break his fall, mildly amused by the incident. I'm pretty certain about what has happened.

My suspicions are confirmed when Judai glares at Toph. "What was that for?"

Toph gives a mocking shrug. "I don't know. Maybe you can figure it out for me."

Aang looks slightly troubled, while Sokka gets up from his rock and pointedly turns away. "Let's get moving."

Finally, Judai looks at me quizzically. I raise a brow at him. "Sorry to say it, but you kind of deserved that."

"But..." He shakes his head, by now confused and maybe a tad bit panicky.

I give him a flick, stunning him for a split-second. "Use that brain of yours, you big dork. Some people don't like it when you insult their ancestors. Twice."

Judai winces. While Sokka seems to brush the high-hatting off well enough, in the Fire Nation, insulting someone's ancestors is reason for a feud. It barely happens anymore, but it's still a fundamental part of our culture. You just don't do it. (Unless said ancestors happen to be Air Nomad. Then it's okay. Everybody does it.)

And that's exactly why Judai ends up looking very uncomfortable. I know fully well what's going on inside him – he wonders if he should apologize. To a lowly colonial. That would require some serious pride-swallowing, and not everyone can be as messed up as me where patriotism is concerned. Besides, Toph has attacked him, so to speak. It counts as appropriate retribution. I wouldn't wonder if Judai reaches the conclusion that he and Sokka are already even, no words needed.

I leave him to his musings and follow Sokka and the rest. Aang slips through Katara's admirers to tell her about our plan, while I pick out a girl who's sitting on the stone path, leaning against the mountainside. Her midriff-baring clothes show quite a collection of scratches and cuts. She doesn't even seem to notice me, just stares right through me with empty eyes.

"Hey!" I draw her attention. She blinks and looks up. I smile encouragingly. "I'm Kamina. What's your name?"

She hesitates. "Yulika," she replies then, sounding just the way she looks – bone-tired. I stretch out my hand.

"Okay, Yulika. My friend found a pool of water nearby and we figured we should go there to drink and wash up. How would you like that?"

"Sounds good, but..." She sighs in resignation, but then her body tenses and she grabs my hand. I pull her to her feet and put an arm around her waist to keep her upright.

"Thank you," she mumbles, and it warms my heart. Helping people – such a rewarding pastime. Maybe we should do that instead of waging war.

"No problem."

So now we know what Judai looks like. Yay!
(Right, I shouldn't fangirl about my own characters. I don't think it's healthy.)

Details, details... Didn't expect this thing to stretch out for so long. I wanted it over and done with two chapters ago, instead, it looks like I need at least two more chapters to finish this arc. And I say at least as in AT LEAST. By now, I really have no idea. It's crazy.

Hope you had just as much fun reading as I had writing. Because I had plenty. ^-^