Chapter 13: All Things Tender Part 1

"You thought I would never find him, didn't you?"

The hand gripping her hair dragged fiercely at her locks, reveling in her pained cries.

"For years, I've been at your heels, waiting for the day his name slips from your mouth. But you guarded his name with your life." Huffing in amusement, "Look at him now. At my mercy…"

She tried to fight back, but it was made difficult given both of her hands were occupied with shielding a wailing Ummi from the Red Fang's grip. She was further rattled by the sight of Sokka lying facedown on the ground in front of them, covered in pools of blood as he wrestled with his waning strength to pick himself up. Hahn smirked, tempted to crush the writhing man's hand with his foot. He lifted his foot to carry out the deed—

"SOKKA!" she shrieked, glaring at Hahn, "Let him go! Don't hurt him! He's not the one you want!"

"Oh? Is that right?" Hahn mused, still not letting go of the tribeswoman's hair as he leaned in and took a whiff of her scent at her neck, intoxicated by lust as he spat,

"If he means so much to you that you're willing to cry over him, of course he's the one I want, dear ukuak." Sister-in-law.

"Get your hands off of her!" Sokka roared. He managed to push himself up, utilizing a sudden burst of energy to lunge at Hahn's hovering foot, tripping him. He dragged the fallen Snake-Blood away from Yue and grasped her arm, tugging her with him in an escape attempt. Several Snake-Bloods, however, seemed to pop up from nowhere and instantly surrounded the Night Wolf, prying his hand away from Yue's grasp and pinning him down.

"Sokka, go!" Yue commanded through her tears, "Get out of here, please!"

But he only shook his head, too immersed in pain to voice his intention of taking her and Ummi with him— as if it wasn't already made obvious by the ferocious resolve in his bloodshot eyes. He struggled to break free from the Snake-Bloods' grip, but another blow to his face sent blood gushing from his mouth.

"Sokka!" Yue sobbed as one Snake-Blood kicked him to the ground, another whacking a spiked club against the fallen tribesman's shoulder, ripping a cry out of him.

"STOP HURTING HIM!" Yue flailed. "HE'S INNOCENT!"

Hahn's other hand forcibly grabbed Yue by her jaw and jerked her head in his direction, nearly wrapping his hand around her neck to silence her.

"I'm your past. I'm your present. And I'm your future," Hahn hissed. "You have nowhere else to go but to me. And anyone who tries to take you away from me…"

A Snake-Blood raised his machete, ready to slice it across Sokka's body at Hahn's bidding.

"NO! LET HIM GO! I'LL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT!"

Hahn paused, his grip slowly leaving her neck, "Hm…that is a tempting offer…" his venomous glare shifting to the screeching newborn, "Smother that tiny face for me, won't you?"

Yue screeched in rage and used every bit of her strength to push him off of her, seized by a furious glare glazed with boiling tears. Her arms persistently held Ummi away from him, sealing the flailing bundle away in the valley of her bosom.

"I knew it," the Red Fang leered, grabbing hold of her arm, "But you see, I don't know if I should be upset with you for this, ukuak. Seeing you protect my spawn with your life...It's quite a turn-on." Wearing a smirk, "If you're so invested in my seed, I'll give you the chance to bear it yourself. Your sister did her service; it's your turn now."

The Red Fang flitted his eyes to the Night Wolf, who was howling in rage and pain as he was pinned down, outnumbered, "I think your boyfriend here would enjoy the show, too, don't you think?"

A Snake-Blood reached for Ummi, trying to yank her away.

"No! GIVE ME BACK MY UMMI!" And to her horror, another Snake-Blood took it upon himself to whack at Sokka with a spiked club, "NO! SOKKA!"

Hahn reached for the tribeswoman's tunic, preparing to tear it off of her body.

"NOOOO!"

Yue tumbled awake, nearly hyperventilating as she held the sheets close to her chest in an attempt to protect her modesty. The bloodbath from seconds prior, however, was no longer in front of her, receding from memory in the presence of warmth and soothing lanternlight. She brushed away the sweat pooling at her neck. It's only a dream. She was actually nestled comfortably under the covers, filled with the scent of newborn and seal jerky. She turned to the space beside her, finding that Sokka and Ummi were not there, but she didn't swing into a panic as she could hear Sokka talking to the infant out in the hallway.

A rush of adrenalin nevertheless prompted her to shuffle out of bed. She traversed the corridor that led to the hallway and saw that Sokka was slowly, rhythmically swaying and walking around, guarding Ummi in his arms. He kept a bit of distance from the collection of bright blue lotus lanterns that he had brought from Kungtuk's earlier, making sure Ummi was shielded from their intensity. Despite the extensive shopping spree earlier, the tribesman seemed to have thought little Ummi wasn't pampered enough, so he had asked Kungtuk if he could take home the lanterns that were put on display solely because Ummi had been fascinated with them and had stared at them every time they passed by them. Even now, Ummi was staring at the glowing lights from afar, sucking away at her binky.

"I know what you're thinking, kuluk," he said, gently rubbing the newborn's back, "'Now just a minute there, Ah. I know I was born less than a week ago, but even I know that the blade of Wing Fung is an inanimate object and can't haunt anybody!' And to that I say, yes, Ummikins, you're absolutely right. But…what if I told you that it's actually a spirit disguised as a sword?"

The distress on Yue's face withered away slowly; she caught her breath, letting the sight soothe her out of the parameters of her horrid nightmare.

"Yeah, apparently Spirits are a thing," Sokka continued. "Now how do I describe Spirits…Okay, so the universe has two different worlds that we know of. There's the normal world where we live. We have good ol' science and physics and all of that. And then there's a spirit world. It's not really limited by rules, and Spirits do all kinds of crazy stuff. Now, back to the story. Remember the very beginning? When the Fluffy Pentapus Spirit sneezed out a couple of magic razor blades? Well the twist here is that one of those blades grew up to be Wing Fun's sword…!" And through the corner of his eye, he caught a glimmer of white drenched in moonlight, "Hey, look, anaana's here."

Which brought a tiny smile out of the tribeswoman. "The Haunted Blade, hm?" she recognized, "But I don't remember there being a fluffy pentapus. Or any kind of spirit, really."

"Actually, I updated the story a little," he grinned, "To make it a little more interesting." But upon noting the blips of chaos in her sleepy eyes, he frowned in concern, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine." She tucked her longing away and approached them, greeting Ummi with a kiss on her forehead. "You're not sleepy, paniga?"

"I think she just wants to stare at the lanterns," he laughed.

"Keeping Sokka up all night, are you? Poor Ah needs to sleep."

Ummi winced and wailed, grasping her mother's finger, her pacifier tumbling into the tribeswoman's hand.

"Aww, it's okay, it's okay," Yue took Ummi into her arms. The infant relaxed in Yue's familiar hold.

"You should go to sleep," Yue told Sokka, noting his exhaustion, "I'll take it from here—"

"But the story's not over yet!" he protested.

"Sokka, it's three hours past midnight—"

"'Story time with Ah' doesn't have fixed timings, ikkingutima. It's all on demand."

She shook her head in amusement, taking her seat on the couch. Ummi was already getting drowsy, more so when she was laid against her mother's bosom.

"Guess you only sleep when anaana's around, huh?" Sokka dimmed the lantern flames, "Playing favorites, eh, kuluk?"

"Maybe Ah's too fun to fall asleep to," Yue smiled to which he positively glowed in response. He found that his smile widened without his knowledge as the new mother planted kisses on top of Ummi's head, basking in the infant's soft coos and little yawns. The tribeswoman's child-like wonder and fascination from their younger years had bloomed into maternal warmth and love despite the vicissitudes of bitterness and suffering.

She had only grown more beautiful over the years.

"You don't mind starting the story over, do you?" Yue asked him, pulling him out of his entranced daze, "I didn't get to hear the whole thing."

A bright spark filled his eyes, "Okay then!" He took his seat beside them, and Ummi's sleepy eyes rested on him.

"Okay, so a long, long time ago, a big purple pentapus spirit came down from the Spirit World on a top-secret mission," he narrated. "Now be warned; it might be cute and cuddly and tiny like a certain someone we know," he cast a grin at Ummi, "but we can't underestimate it 'cause it's gifted with the ancient art of swordbending…"

"Where are you two going?"

Suki and Ty Lee halted by the doorstep of the Women's Center, earning Pakku's look of scrutiny. Ty Lee quickly slipped the passes to the upper ring into the folds of her uniform skirt.

"Nowhere," Suki said. "We're just working on another case. Some lady needs our help with babysitting services—"

"You two should be focusing on more important matters at hand, not wiping children's behinds all day," Pakku spat.

"Come back to us if you have information about the Red Fang," the Kyoshi leader huffed, eager to head to the upper ring, but Pakku was persistent.

"How can you be so delusional? Are you blind to the resource right in front of your eyes?" he demanded. "Do you really expect me to believe all the yakshit that Sokka's spinning? He thinks he can quit on me! For that woman! It's all a theatrical performance. She's the Sedna we're looking for! He's not really married to her!"

"All the evidence supports—"

"Evidence? That evidence is a lie. They're liars! All because of Mama's Boy's ethics! And no one would be so great of a fool as to believe he fell into a world of rainbows and sunshine overnight! We need to take this into our own hands!"

"We need to take this into our own hands!" "Pakku, don't do this," Suki frowned in alarm, "Even if they really aren't married…it's still not our place." Because she could never forget the unbridled adoration that Sokka held for that tribeswoman, whoever she could really be. "Just wait for a while. Maybe we might get more information in the coming days—"

"We need to find the Red Fang at any cost, and I'm not waiting around any longer," Pakku insisted. "The only way we can get her to talk is by taking her away from Sokka."

"What?" Ty Lee frowned, You expect us to take her out of the city with Sokka literally guarding her—?"

"I have a plan, obviously."

Ty Lee turned to Suki, wordlessly asking if they should tell him of their intent to visit Ba Sing Se University and conduct further inquiries, but Suki didn't appear comfortable with the idea; Pakku was taking things further than he was already. Even when he was acting on mere suspicion. Who knew what the inquiries would reveal and to what extent he would go on a rampage if he knew. "You should at least ask Jeong Jeong and Bumi before taking decisions on a whim—"

"Whatever we do, whether we consult with each other or not, is for the greater good of our mission," Pakku hissed. "Now prove your loyalty and dedication to eradicating the Red Fang. Only then will you have done something worthwhile to protect the innocent. It's either one woman or millions. Choose wisely."

Piandao struggled to carry the many bags of soft toys and baby essentials. Sokka, too, had his hands full, one arm carrying several bags of similar items and his other arm carefully cradling a box of pastries. He was balancing a large bouquet on top of the pastry box, the fragrance of the flowers wafting around them.

"You're spoiling Ummi with all of these toys," Piandao said with an amused chuckle, "She's not old enough to play with them yet."

"What if they don't have 'em the next time we go back? Ummi's gonna miss out on some cool toys!"

Indeed, Sokka had bought a wide range of baby toys, from little rattles and plushes and ringed toys and crib toys. There was even a little stuffed mushroom that danced with the turn of a lever.

"Well I'm sure she will love them," Piandao smiled, "And Yue will appreciate those flowers, too."

"Yue loves flowers," Sokka beamed, "And these little cakes. We used to have them all the time in the upper and middle rings."

When they finally reached the little home on Lotus Street, they were surprised to see that the front door was left ajar. A streak of worry zipped through him.

"Maybe she forgot to lock it," Piandao wondered.

"No, she wouldn't…She's very strict about making sure everything's locked…"

"She must have been too exhausted to get out of bed and lock the door. You did say Ummi did not sleep well last night."

Sokka took a deep breath, uncertain about the rationale but still maintaining an upbeat attitude as he stepped inside, "Yue, Ums, I'm back!" He set down his supplies and carefully placed the box of pastries on top of their kitchen table, taking a soft whiff of the flowers and smiling approvingly. He then raced eagerly around the house, looking for her, but the house was quiet. Eerily quiet. There were no coos or shrill cries, no soft whispers or sweet lullabies. Just a suffocating silence that twisted his soul with fear.

"Yue?" Sokka set the bouquet on the pelt couch, picking up speed as he raced around the house once again. They weren't in either of the rooms, and they weren't sleeping on the couches. The crib and bed were cold as were the cradle and the bassinet. There were no signs of any struggle, but there was also no sign of Yue or Ummi indoors. It didn't feel right at all.

"Sokka, there's a note…"

Sokka rushed back out of the bedroom, taking note of the look of alarm on Piandao's face. The master swordsman turned to his pupil, a look of great concern crossing over him. Sokka ran to him and grabbed the note, his heart pounding.

Sokka,

I appreciate everything you are doing for us, but it breaks my heart to be a constant burden to you. I have decided that it's best if I find my own way. Please do not look for us. Wherever I am, I will always be thinking of you.

Yours,

Yue

"Sokka?" Piandao frowned in concern, "Sokka!"

The tribesman lost balance, slipping down to the couch in his horrified daze, "Yue! Ummi!"

"Sokka!" Piandao held him by his shoulders, "Son—"

"She can't just leave like that!" he shrieked.

"Sokka, calm down—"

"She wouldn't! We promised we would figure things out together! We promised!" Tears welled up in his eyes, "Where will she go?! How could she just—?!"

"Don't worry, we'll find her—"

Shaking his head vehemently, "No, no, something's wrong…Something's… she wouldn't leave like that, she wouldn't! She knows it's dangerous! She wouldn't take that kind of risk with Ummi next to her!" He took another look at the note, cursing his tears and brushing them away to clear his vision. Think logically. He observed the writing on the note once more; it wasn't her handwriting as he remembered it, but even considering handwriting could change over the years, this writing didn't match the grocery list she had made last night.

"She didn't write this."

"What?"

"Someone was here! Something's wrong…!" He trailed off as he saw something glistening on the carpet beside the table where the note was found. He picked it up, recognizing it to be a gold pin — precisely the gold pin that could be found on the sleeve of Kyoshi Warrior uniforms.

The carriage rolled on, winding through a dark pathway that became less and less defined as it led them to the outskirts of Ibbein, Gansu's neighboring province. Yue was shaking the entire time, constantly drying her eyes and failing to soothe Ummi in her own devastated state. "I-Is Master Piandao with him?" she asked through her tears, "Someone's with him, right? He's not alone out there, is he—?!"

"Yes, someone's with him. Master Piandao…he went to get more healers..." And upon seeing the increasing horror on her face, "Don't worry, he just wanted to be sure. Sokka's doing better, though. He's gotten timely treatment."

"A-And you said there are no Snake-Bloods around him right now—?"

"Yes, there are no Snake-Bloods anywhere near him," she confirmed. "They got him to safety."

The tribeswoman trampled down on her bottom lip. This is all my fault. I never should've…It's my fault they found him…!

"Poor guy was only worried about you and the baby even when he was hurt that badly," the Kyoshi Warrior winced, looking to Yue with purpose, "You two must be very close for him to react like that…"

And Yue was hit with fresh sobs, her entire face drenched, his name smothered by the lump in her throat.

Suki, raided by guilt but bound by duty, assured her with, "But don't worry. Nothing's gonna happen to him, okay? He'll be fine. We have the best healers around here." And she proceeded to direct the coachman to the location Pakku had described. Suki noted that the tribeswoman never addressed herself as Sokka's wife or referred to him as her husband — though the necklace the woman wore was very similar to his from closer up. The woman was obviously invested in his well-being to a greater extent than one would be for someone they just met or was staying with simply to mask their identity. Pakku's theory never seemed more idiotic than it did at this moment.

But Suki did have her own suspicions. Perhaps she was second-guessing the obvious, but Sokka's supposed marriage to her did come out of the blue. Certainly Sokka had to have known this woman, and perhaps for a long enough time for them to form such care and concern for one another, maybe even enough to masquerade as her husband if necessary, but where was the need to say she was his friend to the public? Sure, they seemed to play the part of husband and wife, and yes, there was a baby in their arms, but why hide the truth if it was, indeed, the truth? If only Suki had the chance to visit the upper ring earlier for her inquiries; Ba Sing Se University was bound to have some explanation or at least some label for Sokka and Yue's relationship. That is, assuming Yue really was a student there.

"We're here, come on," Suki coaxed as the carriage finally came to a stop. "We need to walk a little bit from here, there's no road. Do you want me to hold your baby?"

Yue shook her head, holding Ummi closer, her level of defensiveness coming across as strange to the Kyoshi Warrior, but Suki didn't question her, simply nodding and leading her through the path through the trees. They walked for a short while before coming to a building that was heavily guarded, which caught Yue by surprise. There were so many people, though not all of them were tribefolk, necessarily. There were several women in simple green outfits, matching Suki's wardrobe.

And if there was anything else that these people all had in common, it was the fact that they were all staring at her.

"Who are these people?" Yue asked, having stopped walking.

"Oh, them? They're…they're Sokka's friends from the South. Well, the tribesmen are. The girls are my friends. We're from an Earth Kingdom town not too far from the South. We actually met Sokka through his friends. It was some time after his mother passed."

But for people who claimed to be Sokka's friends, none of them seemed to be worried about Sokka's condition. Their attention seemed to be fixed more on her. Tracing Yue's suspicion, Suki gave her fellow warriors a subtle nod before saying, "Don't be alarmed, she's not one of the Snake-Bloods. She's here to see Sokka."

Another Kyoshi Warrior nodded back, claiming, "Sokka's inside. They're currently treating him. Please keep your distance. We don't want him to be overwhelmed."

Yue shoved aside her discomfort, not protesting as Suki tugged her along. The tribeswoman felt her chest pounding, an unknown dread stopping her from stepping in, but as she peered inside, she immediately saw that a wolf-tailed tribesman was lying facedown on a mat, his back to her, blood pouring from the wound in his back despite appearing to be bandaged up. He was surrounded by a few other men who were cleaning the wound in a way where she couldn't clearly see. They oddly kept his blood-soaked shirt on him, seeming to have torn only the area around the wound and bandage.

"SOKKA!" she cried, giving in and rushing inside the building. She was about to run to him contrary to the protests of the men surrounding Sokka when she jarred to a halt, recognizing the green-uniformed, long-braided woman who was waiting by the door. She was the woman who was surveying the Ibbein checkpoint a few days prior.

"She's Ty Lee," Sokka had cautioned her. "A Kyoshi Warrior. A Hound."

Yue felt her blood run cold.

"Hi, I'm Ty Lee," the woman said, approaching Yue much to the tribeswoman's horror, "Everything's gonna be fine, okay? You want me to hold your baby?"

Yue glared at her in a mixture of frustration and fear, holding Ummi to her heart to indicate a firm negative.

"Okay, okay, I won't, then," Ty Lee held up her hands and backed away. Yue found it more difficult to take a breath as she looked at the other women who were slowly, subtly encapsulating the room, concentrating near the door. One of the women had a smidge of white face paint under her chin. The tribeswoman trembled, eyeing the body that was lying facedown, grappling with the fact that she could not see the tribesman's face. Even more revealing was the fact that she caught a glimpse of the tribesman's back as the "healers" went on with "treating" him; the tribesman had absolutely no scars on his back.

That wasn't Sokka. These people were liars. This was a trap.

Pure instinct took over as Yue shoved Suki out of the way and grabbed the torch that was nearest to her.

"Hey!"

"Wait!"

"What are you doing?!"

"Careful with that!"

The Kyoshi Warriors and the other tribesmen had Yue surrounded at this point, having realized she knew of their failed efforts. Several more people were guarding the front door, persistent. It was hard for the nonbenders, however, to take control when Yue waved the torch in front of her as a shield for not the first time in her life, raw adrenalin and the horrors of the past perching upon her.

"What are you doing with that?!"

"Put it down!"

"We're only trying to help you—"

"THEN GET THE HELL OUT OF MY WAY!" she screamed, every fiber of her being shaking as she waved the torch at them, prompting them to scramble back. "Get away from the door! GET OUT OF MY WAY!"

"Yue, wait!" Suki reached for her but found herself tumbling back with the heat of the torch outstretched in front of her.

"Stay back! All of you STAY BACK!" And Yue took the chance to dart towards the front door with Ummi, keeping the torch held out in front of her.

"Stop her!"

"Where's Pakku, dammit!"

A guard, who was bold enough to take on the escaping torch-bearing tribeswoman, attempted to put out the fire by throwing a bucketful of water in the direction of the torch, but Yue swiftly moved out of the way, sending a kick to the man's belt and knocking him down. Her efforts were short-lived, however, when a water whip came crashing in the direction of the torch, quickly putting it out.

Yue was not ready to give up, ready to use the torch stick itself as a weapon if need be. She ended up whacking another guard who was in her way, making her way to the door, but she felt another tendril grab hold of her feet. The water crept up her legs, freezing her to the ground just before she could reach the doorknob. Yue held fiercely onto Ummi and struggled to break out of the ice, howling in agitation as an old tribesman stepped up in front of her, calm and unhurried despite his prominent glare.

"Where do you think you're going?" he spat, shutting the door.

"Pakku, what have you done?" Bato demanded, not at all pleased to see that the old Hound had locked the sobbing woman and her child in a room devoid of torches and adequate light, "Bringing his wife and baby here—?!"

"She's not his wife, and that kid isn't his," Pakku insisted with a growl, "That woman is the Red Fang's sister-in-law. She's the 'Sedna' we're looking for. If that's even her name. And that thing," pointing to Ummi, "Is the Red Fang's seed."

Yue glared through the small window in the door, having heard every bit of their conversation. "I have no idea what you're talking about!" she kept her voice in a low, venomous hiss to not startle an already wailing Ummi. "I told you a million times by now! Ummi was born to me and Sokka!"

"Pakku! Get yourself together!" Bato yelled at the old man, "The poor woman—"

"If she really was his wife and had nothing to fear, then why would she try to escape—?!"

"Is it not enough that you're Hounds?!" she raged, "That I was attacked in Shurai by your own people?!"

"Because they knew you were the Red Fang's ukuak—!"

"No, because those assholes didn't know she's Sokka's wife!" Bato insisted. "That child is Hakoda's blood, Pakku!"

"And where's your proof?" Pakku demanded.

"THERE IS NO WAY TO PROVE THIS TO YOU, YOU PIECE OF YAKSHIT!" Bato grit his teeth, "Let her and the child go! Before Sokka decides to sever your head! Wasn't Piandao's warning enough for you?!"

Yue banged at the door, "Please, let us out of here! We're not the ones you're looking for!"

Pakku, having neither pity nor remorse, began to drag Bato away from the scene, but Bato kept looking back. Ummi's soft whimpers only tugged at his heart, and waves of sympathy tugged him away from Pakku's grip, sending him back to the door. The tribesman managed to open the door for her, but Pakku shoved him aside and quickly, harshly grabbed Yue by her wrist, shoving her against the wall of the room and jamming the door to a close behind him.

"ENOUGH! SHUT THE HELL UP!" he bellowed, his loud octaves ripping louder wails out of the vulnerable newborn, who was currently squirming atop a pelt in the back of the room.

"Shameless slut!" Pakku yelled at the tribeswoman, "I don't know of a single respectable tribeswoman who would lie in a stranger's bed to blend herself with a crowd! Because of you, he quit our mission—!"

"Because Ummi is ours! Because he's my husband!" she wheezed through her tears, "I fell in love with him! We wanted to spend the rest of our lives together! He promised he would let this all go for me!" Picking Ummi up in her arms, "And whether you believe it or not, Ummi is a symbol of our love. I don't know who the hell this Sedna woman is or who the Red Fang is…!"

"Hmph. You're certainly selling the role of his wife—"

"I AM his wife, and this is our child! The Grand Wolf's blood! Get this through your thick head!"

"I'd really have a thick head if I fell for your performance!" Pakku growled. "We're not letting you out until you admit the truth and give us the information we need. You should be ashamed of yourself. Raising the seed of the man who ruined millions of lives, including your own sister's! Had you been a real sister, you would've strangled that thing the moment it was conceived—!"

Yue slammed her hand against his face in a stinging slap, rage pouring out as burning tears. Pakku groaned from the unexpected degree of pain, shocked to see that the force of her slap sent blood pooling between his teeth. He seemed to get what he wanted, however; a reaction from her that was strong enough to suggest she was the 'Sedna' they were looking for.

"Not another word about my baby," she snarled, emphasizing her bluff with, "She is my flesh and blood! And if I ever hear any of this filth from your mouth again, I—!"

"What are you going to do about it?" Pakku barely held himself back from raising his hand against her, shackled by the fact that any information she chose to reveal would be utterly valuable, and it would be destroyed in seconds if he made one wrong, violent move. "You want to kill me? You want to slit my throat? Well I'd like to see you try. Look at you, you're nothing. You don't have what it takes to save yourself. You think you have it in you to save this thing, too?" Pointing at Ummi, "Let alone raise it?"

Yue couldn't respond out of both helplessness and the need to keep Ummi out of the old man's field of vision. Her tears drenched Ummi's tufts of hair as Pakku slammed and locked the door. He glared daggers at Bato, uttering his warnings with a look alone before wordlessly commanding him to follow.

"She's Sedna alright," he huffed, brushing away the blood that dripped from the corner of his mouth, "They think they can play me like a puppet, but I'm not having it. If she's his only motivation for quitting on us, then I'll see to it that they never see each other ever again."

"Pakku, this is wrong," Bato persisted, "This is very, very—"

"I know what I'm doing, Bato!"

Suki, who had heard the entire commotion from afar, still struggled to grasp the ethics of the situation. She's Sedna alright. And even if she was, going about this situation in this manner was not desirable. Either way, there was only one principle holding her down: It's either one woman or millions.

Pakku turned to Suki, disapproving of her conflicted state, "Talk some sense into that foolish woman. It'll only help her to comply."

There was not a single Kyoshi Warrior or Hound in sight.

Sokka had been a panting, raging mess as he broke into the Women's Center, which had been closed to the public. He went to all the Hound hubs in the city but couldn't find anyone to ask. His worst fears haunted every one of his thoughts as he ran through the city, asking everyone about a beautiful white-haired tribeswoman with a baby in her arms or if they had seen any Kyoshi Warrior around. And when the answers came back in the negative, Piandao's assurances failed to be of help. The tribesman, worn out physically and in spirit beneath the blistering Ba Sing Se sun, tried to think logically through his wildest emotional rampages. He grabbed the attention of every coachman in sight, but none of them recalled a tribeswoman and a child or even a Kyoshi Warrior being their passengers for the day.

By nightfall, Sokka was bereft of confidence, fury and chaos lining his bloodshot eyes. He buckled to his knees in the middle of the road, not caring for public eyes as he broke down beneath the full moon, quivering and crying.

Piandao felt his own heart being ripped out at the sight of the distressed young man. "Sokka, we'll find them," he promised, kneeling beside him, "I'll talk to the Gansu Dai Li Department. Tell them it's the Night Wolf's orders. They'll work as fast as they can and alert the neighboring departments."

Through the glaze of his tears, "I-If anything happens to them…Spirits, I will kill myself if anything happens to them…!"

"Sokka, please—"

"I should've never left them by themselves," he wept, "I—!"

"Wang? Wang!" a shrill cry suddenly jolted him out of his thoughts, "Is that you? Wang!"

"Lady Sela?" Piandao recognized the voice as he saw the Earth Kingdom woman shouting from an approaching carriage. The carriage came to a stop as Sela and her husband jumped down and raced towards the tribesman.

"Wang, are you alright?!" Gansu asked, relieved to see the tribesman free of injury. "We were worried the worst happened to you!"

"What? What do you mean, he's perfectly fine," Piandao told them. "Gansu, you wouldn't happen to know where Yue is, would you?"

"What? But didn't you tell her to relocate to Ibbein?"

"What?" Sokka dried his eyes, "What are you talking about? I never said anything like that!"

Sela widened her eyes, confused, "But…I was with Yue this morning. One of the Kyoshi women came and told Yue that you were stabbed by a couple of people with snake tattoos and left to bleed out in the street!"

"What?!"

"Yue was devastated. Poor thing was crying for you like it was the end of the world. That Kyoshi woman said that Master Piandao sent her to take Yue and Ummi to safety somewhere in Ibbein where you would be getting healed. She said the people with the snake tattoos were coming for her."

"I never did anything like that!" Piandao said, enraged. "Yue was misled!"

"Oh Spirits!" Gansu exclaimed, "Then who was that woman? Why did she come for Yue—?!"

"Where are Yue and Ummi?!" Sokka begged, "Where in Ibbein are they?!"

"We don't know! All I know is that the woman took them in a carriage!"

Several hours later, the door opened again. Yue flinched from her efforts at trying to calm Ummi; the child wailed and refused to be pacified despite having been fed thanks to the bottles and other supplies that Yue had packed last minute.

"Yue? Is there anything she needs?"

Yue recognized it to be Suki's voice and said nothing. Suki sighed, closing the door behind her as she stepped in.

"Yue, listen to me, okay? I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk to you…and I just want the truth."

The tribeswoman refused to meet her gaze.

"I'm sorry I brought you here, but I had to," Suki began gently. "And…I know this may sound ridiculous after everything that happened, but… I don't want you to misunderstand the situation. I know you didn't have a warm welcome on your first day in Ba Sing Se. Long Feng and Fong were idiots and deserved everything bad that had happened to them. What they'd done is unspeakable behavior. And I know Pakku, too, is coming off more as a jerk than a sincere Hound… But I'll have you know that it's not at all our intention to hurt you. These men just didn't know how to present themselves and…they were being harsher than necessary. But I'm a Hound, too, and I'm not like them. I'm a Kyoshi Warrior. I'm committed to the values of compassion and justice that have been ingrained in me. I even started the Women's Center to help vulnerable women and children. Please, Yue, you have to understand…"

Yue still said nothing, beginning to pace around and brush softly at Ummi's back in an attempt to calm her. She lingered by the tiny glass window, letting the gentle light cascade over the hiccuping newborn.

"Yue, I know that if we really mean no harm, we could've directly approached you instead of using all of these gymnastics, but with everything that happened with Fong and Long Feng, and with Sokka's overprotectiveness, we knew you wouldn't trust us," Suki said. "We felt there was no other way to contact you and have a chance to talk to you other than this. We need your help."

Again, nothing.

"Look, I know it may be scary to admit the truth, and I understand you're in a very difficult situation right now. Growing up in a rich family with no idea what it's like to struggle for a living, now having to rely on other people for the smallest of things. Having to live with a gang member…But this doesn't have to be the case, Yue. Why do you need to rely on others? You can be independent! You can get the justice you deserve! And you don't ever have to worry about putting Sokka in danger. We know the Red Fang is after you; just think about what could happen if he finds out Sokka's helping you."

Yue blinked her tears away, trying not to relive her nightmare from last night.

"Everything's going to be okay. I'll find you a nice home. I'll give you a job at the Women's Center. You'll be surrounded by moms like you. It'll be like a support group. And the best thing about the Women's Center is that we can babysit Ummi whenever you want us to. And… and I'll help you get into whichever institute you want so you can continue your education. And if you really think it's burdensome to study and raise a child...we can arrange for foster parents..."

A death glare crossed over the tribeswoman's face.

"O-Okay, then, fine, no foster parents. She can stay with you and only you, okay? Just forget I said that. I can...what else... I-I can teach you self-defense, then! You'll be equipped with all the techniques and resources you need to protect yourself and Ummi. All you need to do is cooperate with us. I won't let anything happen to you or your niece. You'll never do anything unsupervised. I'll protect the two of you. This is a warrior's promise… So please…let's help each other. I'm looking out for you, I am…"

Suki saw that, despite the rambling, there was not even a shred of contemplation on the tribeswoman's angry face. Only an evolving bitterness that she did not cast towards the infant, whom she was still trying to soothe in the chaos of the dark, loud environment.

Suki huffed, aggravated, "Don't even pretend for a second that you can do this on your own, Yue. You can't defend yourself and Ummi. Ever since she was born, Ummi has seen nothing but hell, and you couldn't do a single thing about it. You're going to need our help. She's not yours. Just admit to this. How long are you going to spend running from that truth?"

At the raised voice, Ummi couldn't stop wailing. Yue's heart trembled, overwhelmed by the heat of fear and fury. "She's not yours." The tribeswoman closed her eyes, trapping her welling tears.

"The world is more willing to believe you're her mom."

"If they think Ummi is Hakoda's granddaughter, they won't hurt her."

So Yue grasped onto the wisdom of their ancestors, the nurture of the aunties in the North, the practices prescribed by midwives, long interwoven with tribal motherhood. She let the compassion and strength of Tui guide her to a decision that would flood her heart with attachment and love. With firm conviction, Yue cast the daggers of her icy eyes at the Kyoshi Warrior, "If you're done, and if you can kindly find your way out, I would much appreciate it. I need to nurse her."

Suki widened her eyes, "Nurse her? Do you nurse her?"

"Just because a couple of hooligans refuse to believe me doesn't mean she stops being mine."

Suki remained dumbfounded, frozen in place as she tried to piece her predictions together, but Yue did not mind the delay, inwardly pleased to see the Kyoshi Warrior's suspicions visibly crumble. The tribeswoman retreated to the corner of the room and turned her back to her visitor, seeking some privacy. She crossed her legs and seated Ummi in her lap. She then reached up to undo the buttons of her tunic, working to free her breasts from their confines. She slowly lifted Ummi, supporting her with one arm, and she held the infant to her left breast. She used her other arm to guide her breast to the infant's mouth, softly stroking her tiny cheek. Ummi's wails descended to whimpers, and she rooted and latched on in a moment's time, beginning to suck.

Streams of overwhelmed feelings raced down Yue's already-drenched face; she might not be able to nourish, but there was nothing less spiritual to her about this moment. She leaned forward, planting soft kisses on Ummi's face, whispering sweetly, comfortingly to her in a language Suki could not understand, brushing the top of her small head. Ummi blinked, looking deep into Yue's eyes, her tiny hand splayed over her mother's breast.

So she's really not the Sedna we're looking for? A confused Suki immediately left, closing the door behind her. Yue continued to drown in waves of love, ferocity slowly bubbling inside of her.

"You can't defend yourself and Ummi. Ever since she was born, Ummi has seen nothing but hell, and you couldn't do a single thing about it."