Sam

We all arrived at the palace stables and everyone dismounted. Jok and Shen took Buzi to an interrogation room at the palace. Zuko would be going with them. I would remain with Shira. She and I went to the room I worked with my patients in. She sat down at the table and I sat on the other side. I looked up at the servant who had accompanied us.

"Shira, would you like some tea?" I asked. She still looked like a deer in headlights but she accepted. "Belna, please bring me one as well." She bowed and walked out. "I know this is difficult for you, Shira. Tell me, what do you know about your husband?" She looked surprised and didn't seem to know where to start.

"Buzi, he is a good man. Sometimes Chang or myself anger him but he loves us. I know what you must think of him." she said.

"Shira, what do you know of his…extracurricular activities?"

"What do you mean? He works and comes home."

"What does he do?"

"He works for a foreign trader." she said. I bet he does. I thought sardonically. It was then that Belna returned with our tea. We both thanked her and continued with our conversation.

"Shira, some very disturbing news has come to light about your husband. If you know something, you need to tell us. If we find out you're hiding something, you could also become liable." I said. She sighed.

"Well, I know he sometimes…seeks the entertainment of…prostitutes. I don't really make him happy in…that area." she said, not comfortable saying it.

"So you do know that he enjoys the company of other women."

"Oh, yes. He's been doing that since before we got married." This surprised me. I never understood why people stayed in relationships like that.

"Are you aware that many of these 'women' that he escorts are children?"

"What?! Oh, no, you must be mistaken. He has a daughter, for Agni's sake! He would never!" she shouted at me. I sat back and let her work through her emotions, "He would never do anything like that to a child. He has a daughter." she repeated. She paused for a few moments. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, we had someone identify him. Not only is he seeking escorts but…he is selling them." I said. Shira mouth dropped open.

"I…I…"

"I know this is a lot to take in."

"I always wondered where he got the extra money. I never dared to ask because-" she cut herself short.

"Because you are afraid of him?" I ventured. She looked at me and nodded.

"You know, his abuse isn't your fault. And it isn't Chang's either. It's Buzi's fault. Abusers are good at manipulating their family into telling themselves it's their own fault. You're the victim here. And so is your daughter. Not Buzi."

"So, what now?"

"Well, he will be arrested and kept in prison until Fire Lord Zuko sentences him. Knowing him, your husband won't be seeing the light of day for quite a while." to my surprise, Shira looked relieved.

"I'm a little surprised that YOU aren't surprised."

"Well, I always had my suspicion that he was doing something illegal but I never knew and was too afraid to confront him about it." she said. Then she looked up at me, "Can you give me any details of what he was doing?"

Although I understood her curiosity of her husbands undertakings, I wasn't ready to reveal everything yet. "I'm afraid I can't. There is an active investigation going on. Once we can, you'll be the first to know." I said. At that, I heard the door open and I saw Zuko enter in. He came over to me and sat down next to me. He looked angry.

"Zuko, are you ok?" I asked. Usually I addressed him as Fire Lord in front of our subjects but his face jarred me and I inadvertently dropped the formality.

"Buzi had some very interesting things to say, Shira." he said. I looked at him and placed me hand on his arm. He looked over at me, still angry.

"Zuko, what's going on?" He looked at Shira.

"You tell me." he challenged her.

"What do you mean, Fire Lord?"

"Buzi tells me that you knew about everything. About the girls. About the trafficking. Everything." At this declaration, Shira looked scared but not surprised.

"Zuko, can I talk to you for a moment?" I asked. He looked at me, anger still on his face, but he agreed. I turned to Shira, "Give us a moment." Zuko and I stood and we walked to a far corner of the room.

"What is going on, Zuko? You can't just barge in like that."

"Sam, Buzi told me that she knew everything. That she even helped him drawing the girls in. Making them interested and then turning against them."

I was shocked. My head was spinning. I needed to work these things out. I walked to the door of the room, popped my head out and told Belna to fetch a guard and bring him here.

"Sam, what are you doing?"

"I think we need to corroborate this story before we start accusing her. I think she should go to the prison as well, nowhere near Buzi. They must be completely separate until we can figure this out."

"I think that makes sense." Zuko said. Then his brow furrowed and his eyes widened, "What about Chang?"

"She will come back with Geshna and Izumi. I think we need to keep her here until we figure things out. I want to make sure that whoever we send her with, presumably family, is safe and we aren't sending her from the frying pan and into the fire."

"Ok, I like your plan." The guard came in and Zuko turned to Shira. "Shira, we are going to keep you in the Capital City prison until we figure this out." He turned to the guard, "I don't care what cell you put her into but I want it maximum security, like Buzi, and I don't want them anywhere near each other where they can communicate."

"I'll personally make sure of it, your majesty. In fact, I'll put her on a different floor." he said.

"Thank you, Hen." He bowed to us and gathered Shira.

"You can't put me into prison! I don't belong there! I'm a victim, just like Samyah said! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!" I noticed she said nothing about concern for her daughter. I was starting to wonder if the accusations were true. To my surprise, Zuko spoke loudly.

"Hen, stop!" he walked over to them and towered over Shira, fiercely glaring at her. "That is Fire Lady Samyah to you, Shira. You will address my wife properly." He looked back at Hen, "get her out of here!"

Zuko and I went to our office to discuss what we found out. I filled him in on my conversation with Shira.

"Yes, if this is true, she is a damn good actress," Zuko said.

"Yes, she certainly is." I said, embarrassed.

"Hey, don't do that."

"Do what?" I asked, confused.

"Don't upset yourself. You didn't know."

"But I should have. I am trained to read people."

"Yes, Sam, but you can't read minds." Zuko said. He reached across the desk and took my hand, guiding me to my feet and onto his lap. He placed his arms around my body and I laid my head on his shoulder. "You are perfect, my love." I looked at him and kissed his lips. I rested my head on his shoulder again and wrapped my arms around him.

"What would I do without you?" I asked.

"You'd get along just fine." he said.

"Ha! Hardly." I scoffed. "You take such excellent care of me, my love. I'd be lost without you." I said and kissed him again. Then I got us back on track. "What else did you find out from Buzi?"

"Not much. He said that he wants a deal first."

"Are you going to give it to him?"

"I'm not sure yet. I don't know what he knows and I don't want to consent to anything until then." he said. That made a lot of sense. Why consent to a deal without knowing what the bargain is?

"So how are you going to get him to talk?"

"I'm not sure yet. I think I am going to wait until we talk to our friends to see what they have to say." he explained. I looked out the window and saw it was time to greet Izumi. And I guessed Chang too. I slid off of his lap and stood up.

"It's time to greet he-, them." I corrected.

"Yes. How are we going to explain this to Chang? And what are we going to tell Izumi?" Zuko asked.

"Well, I think the truth is usually our best option." I said.

"Well, yes, but what version of the truth? We can't exactly tell her that her father is selling and raping young girls." I flinched at his harsh choice of words.

"We will play it by ear. It's ok." Zuko didn't like flying by the seat of his pants. He liked order. We walked to the steps of the palace and Geshna, Izumi and Chang were all walking towards us. Like always, as soon as Izumi saw us, she sprinted towards us and embraced us.

"Mommy! Daddy! I missed you!" she exclaimed.

"We missed you too, Turtleduck." Zuko said, tousling her hair.

"Look who came with us!" Izumi said gesturing to Chang. Chang stayed next to Geshna. She looked confused and scared. I walked up to her and knelt down to her level.

"Hi, Chang. Welcome to our home." I said, politely. She looked at me and looked around.

"You LIVE here?" she asked, amazed. I laughed.

"Don't worry, it isn't as intimidating as it seems."

"Where are my mommy and daddy?" Chang asked. She was clearly scared out of her wits. I looked at Zuko and he shrugged. Great help, oh mighty Fire Lord. I thought, sarcastically.

"Well, they are…going to be busy for a few days and asked if we could watch over you. Do you want to stay at the palace with us?" I was hesitant at this plan. I still wasn't convinced this new found friendship was a good one but I didn't see any other solution. I couldn't send her with family without knowing it was safe to do so. If her mother and father are involved then there is a chance that other family is too. I turned to Izumi. "Zoom, why don't you show Chang around a little bit."

"Sure! Do you want to see my toys?" she asked excitedly. I stood up and called to Izumi.

"Izumi, darling. Come here, please." I said. She came over to me and I knelt down again. Zuko came over and stood next to me. "Izumi, remember what we talked about showing off what you have? It isn't nice to do that if other people don't have what you do." I explained. I didn't know what Chang had but I could only assume it was minimal. Zuko placed a hand on my shoulder and knelt down too.

"Yes, Izumi. It's ok to play with your toys but don't make her feel bad, ok?"

"Yes, Daddy." then she looked at me, "Don't worry, Mommy. I won't. I promise." she said. I knew she was telling the truth. Izumi was a very emotionally aware child.

"Good girl. Now go on and play. We will come get you when it's time for dinner." I looked at over at Geshna, "Geshna, you are relieved for the day. You will be taking Chang to and from school for the time being."

"Come early tomorrow to see me and I will fill you in on what's going on." Zuko offered.

"I will, Fire Lord. Thank you. Have a nice evening." she said bowing to us.

"You as well, Geshna." Zuko said.

It was a couple of hours later and it was time to eat. I found the girls in the Turtleduck Garden.

"Izumi," I said sternly. She looked over at me sheepishly. She knew why I spoke with such a tone. She slowly walked over to me, with Chang in tow.

"Izumi, are you allowed to be out here without supervision?" I asked her to which she looked down and shook her head. "Can you tell me why?"

"Because I can get hurted?" she said.

"Yes, you could hurt yourself and no one would know until it's too late."

"But I have Chang here. I have someone with me." I softly glared at her.

"Izumi, now you know we mean an adult. I expect you won't do this again?" I said.

"No, Mommy."

"Alright, it's time to eat. Come along, now." I said. The girls walked in front of me and I heard Chang speak.

"Izumi, you're daddy is going to be mad, isn't me?" Chang asked. Izumi looked at her, puzzled.

"What do you mean?" she said.

"Your mommy told you that you were. She'll tell your daddy, won't she?"

"No, she told me not to do it again. I'm not in trouble." she explained. Chang deliberated for a moment.

"So, you're daddy isn't going to hit you?"

"Hit me?! What do you mean hit me?"

"When I'm bad my daddy hits me. Really hard and a lot."

"No, my mommy and daddy never hit me." Izumi said. "Why do the-"

"Alright, girls. That's enough." I interrupted. I didn't want Izumi asking too many questions. I didn't want Chang to inadvertently scare Izumi and I didn't want Izumi upsetting Chang. We walked into the palace and headed for the dining room. We all took our places and Chang sat next to Izumi. The servants brought out the food. Chang looked confused. She looked at Izumi who picked up her chop sticks and showed her she can start eating. Chang followed Izumi's lead.

After dinner, we decided to let the girls play so we went back out to the Turtleduck Garden. Zuko and I sat down on the bench and we pulled out the bread we always fed the turtleducks. Chang's eyes lit up and she came running over, scaring the critters and they all scattered.

"Oh, wow! Turtleducks! They're my favorite!" she laid down on her belly and watched them, enamored.

"Here sweetheart. Would you like to feed them?" I asked her, handing her my bread. Her little face lit up and she took it eagerly, pulling little pieces off. They hung back, unsure of the stranger.

"Here, Turtleduck. Go ahead and feed them." Zuko handed Izumi his own bread. Izumi walked up to the pool and they came right to her. Chang looked disappointed.

"Chang, you have to be gentle with them. Go on slowly next to Izumi." I said. Chang got up and slowly walked over. They watched her wearily, but didn't scurry away this time. "No go on and slowly reach a piece of bread down and offer it to one." I instructed. She reached her hand down and the mother turtleduck swam over and ate it. She looked over at me and her face beamed. "There you go!" I said and she continued to feed them.

After a couple of hours, we sent the girls to bed. We went into Izumi's room and did our tucking in routine. Zuko bounced her up and down, tucking the blankets in tight around her, making her giggle. I stooped down and gave her lots of kisses all over her face making her giggle again.

"Mommy, is Chang going to live here?"

"No, Zoom. She is just going to stay for a while. You'll be a good hostess to her, right?" I said.

"Yes, Mommy! I'll be a good ghostest." I chuckled at her mispronunciation. We both kissed her good night and left the room. Zuko started heading to our room.

"Zuko, I think we need to go to Chang." I said. He looked at me like he almost forgot about it.

"Oh, yeah. Of course. What do we say?"

"Well, she never had loving parents. Let's tuck her in. I think she'll like that." I said. Zuko agreed.

We walked into Chang's room and she was sitting up on the bed, her legs pulled to her chest and she was crying. I walked over and sat down on the bed, caressing her face.

"Chang, darling. What's the matter?" I asked. "Why are you crying?"

"I miss my mommy and daddy." she said. I looked up at Zuko and back at Chang.

"I know, sweetheart. This will all be over soon." I didn't want to say she would be seeing her parents soon because, well, I didn't know the validity of that statement.

"I'm scared." she said. I slid myself closer to her and opened my arms. She looked surprised but slowly crawled over to me. I wrapped my arms around her and gave her a good, tight hug. She cried into my shoulder. Zuko stood next to me not knowing what to do. I looked at him and smiled wryly. He was so awkward sometimes. And I loved it. I pulled back and looked at Chang.

"Sweetie, I promise, while you are here, you are safe. Nothing is going to get you and you can treat this like your home. Ok?" I said.

"Ok. How long will I be here?"

"I don't know. But as soon as we know, we will tell you, ok?" She looked at me and nodded. Finally Zuko spoke.

"What do you say we tuck you in?" Zuko asked. She was in the room right next to Izumi's so I was sure she heard her laughter. Zuko went to her side and I went to her other. Zuko, like with Izumi, bounced Chang up and down on the bed, tucking the blankets in tightly underneath her. Chang laughed hysterically. I realized that this was probably the first time she had any type of paternal affection. After he finished, he leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Good night, Chang."

"Good night…um…" Chang stuttered. She didn't know what to call us. Zuko knelt down next to the bed.

"You can call me Zuko. And this is Sam." he said. For her sake and to make her feel more comfortable, Zuko dropped the formal titles.

"Ok. Good night Zuko and Sam." she said. I leaned down and kissed her forehead too.

"Good night, sweetheart."