A/N. So, a little preparation for what is to come next!
Sokka managed to reach the chair next to the long table, and fell down on it, sighing in relief as he could finally settle his leg, which was becoming a nuisance. It had been a rather… difficult half hour.
After Aang's outburst… Tui and La, the panic on the plaza had been palpable. Most of the crowd had fled the square in horror at the words of the Avatar.
"We are going. Now."
Aang had ordered that after making that the horrifying promise. The dockworkers and the soldiers, apparently terrified enough to listen to someone they considered a degenerate, had pushed themselves to do their job as fast as possible.
The airbender himself had just marched, without a word, towards the ships. Sokka had watched him go and could only agree with the sentiment. If that bitch had done anything to his sister, he would gladly help Aang skin every inch of that monster. He would listen and savour the shouts of pain and the tears of agony. Sokka would make sure the airbender made good on the promise to visit the Spirit World, so that Azula's spirit would wander aimlessly around for all eternity.
But as Suki had helped him to the ships, Sokka had begun to think more calmly… Yes, it was bad news that Katara was captured, but if Azula possessed an ounce of common sense, she would know not to hurt her. She would use his sister as a bargaining chip. Azula knew that the only way to keep Aang from fighting on Zuko's side was by threatening Katara. So, she had probably not hurt his sister.
But in case she had, Sokka would unleash Aang.
Fuck the Fire Nation. Zuko could reign over the ashes the Avatar left for him.
But the most horrifying part of Aang's promise… If anyone hurt my wife, I will do the same to them… Tui and La, he hoped that the airbender had just misspoken. If… Spirits, if those idiots had really done that, that would be so bad for them. Aang wouldn't stop, wouldn't care what he did. How was he, Sokka, a simple warrior, supposed to stop a vengeful Avatar?
Sighing, he put his forehead against the table. The room was on the flagship of Zuko's fleet. A small part of the navy had disappeared, but most captains had stayed loyal, thanks to the fact that apparently, the captain of Zuko's ship during his banishment had been promoted to admiral after the death of Zhao, and he had convinced the captains to stay loyal.
Small mercy.
He heard the door open, footsteps as people entered the room, and the door closed. The Water Tribe warrior didn't need to lift his head to know that it was his friends, entering in stunned silence. Four pairs of feet walked in, and there were four chairs scrapping over the metal floor. The sighs and groans were clear, and he knew that it was Zuko, Suki and Toph. The fourth sounded older, so he supposed it was Iroh or Pakku.
"Agni… We are fucked." Zuko's voice broke the silence, and Sokka looked up from his comfortable place on the table. Indeed, his friends were there, and Iroh too.
"No shit Sparky. What the fuck was that?" Toph turned to him suddenly, "Telling him Katara was missing in front of the whole population? We need them on our side Meathead!"
"Aang had to know!" Sokka protested, hitting his forehead back against the table. Yeah, it had been the worst possible timing, but how was he supposed to know that Aang would suddenly appear during the preparations? Air Head had been supposed to be searching for Katara.
"Yeah, so instead of telling him gently and in private, you thought Let's give the peasants something to talk about?" Toph bit back, irritated at him. And Sokka didn't like that tone, and the fact she called the people peasants.
"Well, sorry, I may also be slightly affected by the fact that my sister is held prisoner!" He nearly shouted back, clenching a fist on his knee.
"Youngsters, it doesn't help fighting about what has already happened. We need to plan what to do now." Iroh put in softly, but Sokka ignored him.
"You think it is easy?" He nearly spat at Toph, "You heard what Azula had threatened to do during the Invasion! You don't know what Katara means to me! You know nothing about how difficult it was when we only had each other after my dad left!" He hit his fist on the table, "It has always been my job to protect her! Always! My mother gave me that job when I was three years old! Ever since, I have done that!"
You have to protect her sweetie. She is starting to walk around, so you can't let her out of your sight when going out to play.
"Even when it became clear she didn't need me for protection, I still did my job. Because that is what a sibling is supposed to do. Even if it isn't needed." He finished, through gritted teeth. None of them understood. None of them, even Aang.
Aang hadn't been there during the first winter after the warriors left. He had been just thirteen years old, and he had been tasked at taking care of the village, of his sister and of everyone inside the boundaries of their home. None of them understood how afraid he had been to fail his mother's task, or his father's.
And now, even though Katara could take care of herself… he had failed that one job. The only one his parents had given him. Protect your sister.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, and looking up, realized Toph had stood up and walked around the table to pad his shoulder, with a grim look on her face.
"We don't. But we understand that you are angry. Just don't be angry at yourself. Use that anger for something productive. Like planning on destroying that bitch." Toph punched his arm suddenly, and Sokka understood what she meant. There was no use in wallowing in self-pity, for having failed his duty. No, there was something far more important to do. Iroh had been right. It was no use on crying about what had happened. Only one way forward.
"Yes." He looked up, at the map that lay on the table, "So, do we know anything about Azula's forces?" He looked at the old prince, who had been rather intimidating with the amount of knowledge he had, things no one should have known. He had estimated without any problem how many soldiers Zuko had…
"She doesn't have access to the domestic army, which is loyal to Hezu. That means she has to count on the garrisons further in the territory she seems to control. Fire Fountain had, in my days, a garrison of around three thousand. And she will have the levies from the clans who declared for her." Iroh began to speak, with that iron voice Sokka had come to associate with the firebender when he was being the general instead of being the caring uncle.
"That means how many?" Suki asked, folding her arms over her chest.
"Roughly, the levies will be ten thousand men. But they will be poorly trained, even worse than the domestic army. No, her only hope is the garrisons. Three thousand for Fire Fountain, and Ozai has been building fortifications since the invasion last month. Kirashi has been named a fortress city, meaning a garrison of around two thousand. Let's say, another five to six thousand. So, at most, my niece has sixteen thousand soldiers."
That was bad. They had only four thousand more, and the garrisons of the colonies at the field armies had not replied… They had the hope the garrisons would declare for Zuko when they heard how Iroh had spared the garrison of Ba Sing Se… But that was all.
"We have the navy, however." Zuko spoke up, putting a miniature boat on the map, roughly where they were, "A hundred ships, and more making their way towards the Fire Nation as we speak. Azula won't be able to transport troops from one island to the next."
"Which means that her troops are going to be separated, unable to support each other. We need to destroy them before she build ships. Remember, Kirashi is where the dry docks are situated, those who provide the royal navy with their ships. Give her two months, and she will have enough to ferry soldiers." Iroh sighed.
"And the airships?" Sokka had to ask.
"Most were destroyed by you and your friends, and the factories making them are on Capital Island. She won't have air power."
"Good… That is a relief" The Water Tribe warrior didn't have the wish to fight those things ever again to be honest, he still remembered the inferno underneath them as they had fought to destroy the air fleet a week ago…
"And we have the White Lotus, which will support a moderate ruler. Meaning Zuko. There are the three hundred warriors from the invasion that were freed, and we have the Avatar." Iroh added. Indeed, the old prince had informed them that the White Lotus would fight for Zuko if needed, and Bato had already promised the help of the warriors from the Invasion. He had become their effective commander, because Sokka's father was still missing for the moment.
And well… The Avatar…
"Aang won't fight." He sighed, feeling the hope die in his chest.
"He just promised he would!" Zuko objected with a groan.
"He promised he would kill Azula if she did anything to Katara. And let's be honest, would she?" A silence settled around the table, "If I were her, I would keep my sister safe and under constant surveillance. I suppose Azula has studied the Avatars and their power in detail before chasing us around in the spring. She knows what Aang is capable of if he wants to. She will also know he managed to defeat your father without too much difficulty."
"Sokka, it is Azula! She doesn't care! You did not see how she acted during the Agni Kai! She was totally unhinged!" Zuko throw back, falling into the chair at the head of the table.
"Yes, but she knows she is holding a perfect weapon. Aang will not risk Katara, so she is betting on the fact he will not fight. And to get that, she needs Katara, safe and sound. Because, as he said… If she is hurt, he will break." Sokka shuddered at the thought. He had caught glimpses of just how powerful Aang was, and those had been terrifying. The time in the Southern Air Temple, then again at the fortress in the Earth Kingdom…
"He will be like… when he fought Ozai?" Suki whispered the question to him.
"Oh no… No, when he fought Ozai, that was the restrained Avatar State. Precise and powerful, but still with all of Aang's principles of nonviolence. No… If Azula hurt my sister, I think we can assume the Fire Nation will be wiped off the map. Permanently." Silence fell between his friends as they let that sink in. Sokka knew that most people who knew Aang considered him to be too weak, too soft and too forgiving. Even though he had never understood why the airbender didn't feel the slightest amount of anger towards the Fire Nation for what they had done to his people…
But he knew that it wasn't weakness what was holding Aang back from revenge. It was discipline.
And if Azula had hurt Katara, that discipline would be gone.
"Does anyone know what airbenders are actually capable of?" Zuko asked softly, and the water tribe warrior knew why he asked. I will show the world why the Air Nomads were pacifists.
Those words had scared Sokka to his core, because he had some ideas…
"The only people who know that are Aang and Katara I suspect…" Sokka bit his lip after speaking. He had seen the power of the airbender, his own raw bending power, but he had never actually thought about what he could do with his bending…
"I know too…" Iroh sighed, "Airbenders are capable of removing the air from a room… They can expand the air in your lungs, to make them burst… And much more. Contrary to other benders, the element of the Air Nomads is everywhere… If young Aang wished anyone harm, he would just have to flick a finger and that person is no more. That was why they were pacifists. And that was also why the children went to the temples, isolated from large concentration of people… Only when they understood the principle of nonviolence, and had a grasp of their bending, were they permitted to leave the temple."
Sokka felt as if his heart fell through his chest. Tui and La… That was horrifying. No one should have that much power… And Aang could kill with a look… A flash of a memory passed through his mind, a skeleton in a room filled with dead firebenders…
The monk, Gyatso… He had done that. He had just sucked out the air from a room, killing dozens, and himself, in the process… Spirits. If that was what an unrestrained airbender was capable of… Sokka didn't dare imagine what Aang, as the Avatar, was able to do.
"And then another issue… We all heard the same thing, right? Aang calling Katara… his… well, you know." Zuko spoke after that chilling statement from Iroh.
Yeah… That. That had to be a mistake. Aang had just misspoken.
"I doubt it very much to be honest." Sokka let his hand slide over his face, trying to remove the horrible feeling of dread, "You have to wait a year in the Water Tribe, and he went through the trouble of making a necklace, honouring the Water Tribe culture. No, I think he meant to say fiancée, but misspoke… The common language isn't his native tongue. Perhaps he thought it meant the same thing."
Yeah, it was far-fetched. Aang had no difficulty whatsoever to speak the common language, and to say this, Sokka felt slightly embarrassed to insult his friend's language talent. But he was grasping at whatever straw he could.
"Twinkletoes didn't misspeak." Toph answered in a gruff voice, "They are married."
Silence followed.
How… What… Why?
"You remember the night you and Suki kept us all up? They were in their room, I sensed it. I didn't know what was happening, but it felt like… well, something important. The morning after that, I teased Sugar Queen about the necklace in her pocket, and she said, and I quote We didn't get married!" the last part of the sentence was said in a voice eerily similar to his sister's.
"See! They didn't!" Sokka spoke hopefully.
"She lied Meathead. I can sense that if you remember."
Oh fuck… Oh fucking fuck.
"In that case… I have some more bad news." Iroh spoke up, sounding pained and tired, "Air Nomads… Have a rather interesting take on love. Do any of you know that?"
Again, Sokka realized that the only people knowing anything of Aang's culture were the airbender, Katara and, apparently, Iroh… So, he shook his head, feeling rather silly about knowing nothing of his friend's culture and beliefs… And to be completely honest, he dreaded to hear another piece of bad news.
"Air Nomads believed that love… Well, you all heard the stories I presume. Air Degenerates went around sleeping with anyone they could… That is not at all true. Air Nomads believed that in this world, there was a person for everyone. And if they found each other… Well, that created a bond, stronger than love, stronger than anything we could imagine. And if the Avatar married Master Katara… I would guess he feels very strongly about her. Stronger than we can imagine."
No shit. That wasn't news. Sokka had seen that from the first day. Katara had been annoyingly attached to the person they had found in the iceberg. But yeah… Iroh summarized it rather well. The Water Tribe Warrior had not known about the details of Aang's culture, but he hadn't needed to. He had eyes and ears and knew the airbender loved Katara more than life itself.
"Twinkles loves Sugar Queen. We know Iroh, that isn't new to us." Toph scoffed irritably, clearly thinking along the same lines as he did.
"But Azula knows this too, if she studied the same scrolls as I did. That is my point. The Air Nomads, once they found that person… They wouldn't change their heart. Azula will threaten to kill the Master Katara, and if she does that, the Avatar circle will be broken… As Aang won't have any children. The Air Nomads will die with Master Katara."
Hitting the back of his head against the chair, Sokka realized what that meant. Katara was not only the bargaining chip to stop Aang from fighting… It was the bargaining chip to make any Avatar away from the fight. So, no Spirit Roku that burned his own temple. No Spirit Kyoshi that would separate whole land masses.
"What you mean to say is that without Katara, the world is fucked." Suki spoke up.
"Great. Just great." Sokka grumbled. They talked about Katara as if she was just a piece on a board… Not like she was a living, breathing being… His sister. And the Water Tribe warrior had seen the scars on Suki's arms and back. Katara wouldn't be hurt… Too badly.
"Mero mana, timro ho, mero premakura…." Iroh sighed with a hint of defeat into that soft air.
Wait… That was what Aang had said to Katara, when she had revived him on Appa while fleeing Ba Sing Se! Sokka had not dared ask his sister for a translation, but it had been quite clear what he had meant when he had followed those words with the declaration My Katara… So, he had not needed to know the translation.
"My heart belongs to you, my eternal love, my everything." A cold voice spoke from the doorway. Turning around in his chair, Sokka felt his feet and hands grow cold at the sight. Aang stood in the doorway, his mouth a grim line on a hard face. The usual twinkle in the silver eyes was replaced by the angry look the airbender had sported on the plaza. There was a shadow over his head, indicating that he had not shaven his head for at least a few days, and Sokka was surprised to see the same dark shadow on his cheeks.
And those words… Spirits, it described Aang's feelings so perfectly that it made the water tribe warrior shudder. How could anyone love someone that much?
"Avatar Aang." Iroh bowed politely in the airbender's direction, but Aang looked away, towards the map.
"You said you were going to Fire Fountain." It wasn't a question, just a statement. Sokka kept silent as the airbender walked around the table, standing in front of the map, studying it as if it was the first time he saw the Fire Nation.
"Yes, as I said… I think Azula has gone there." Zuko stood up, to come stand next to the airbender, "Aang… I'm sorry."
The dark eyes flickered towards the firebender, but as Sokka watched, Aang didn't answer, or even show he had heard the kind gesture. A statue expressed more emotions…
"Appa will be there too. He wouldn't have left her." Ah… Her. The water tribe warrior knew what the airbender was doing. He had done the same when his Sky Bison had been stolen. He was closing himself off from feeling any emotion, so that he wouldn't be torn apart by grief and anguish. And that time, he had also refrained from calling Katara by her name… As if he thought that just calling her by her name would open the flood gates.
"We will get her back, you do know that, right?" Sokka pushed himself up from the chair with one hand, letting his weight rest on his unbroken leg. Keeping the hand on the table to use as support, he hopped the three steps needed to get to the airbender. Aang didn't look at him, still staring at the map on the table.
"You have the forces to besiege it?"
What? What? Aang never encouraged war, or even fighting…
"Eh… Yes, I have. We think her own forces will be scattered over the Eastern Archipelago." Zuko answered, also confused by the airbender's change of character. But Sokka knew what this was. He was being an idiot, trying to shield his heart from the emotions.
And to be honest, he preferred Aang like this as long as they were on open waters… When the inevitable fall would come, Sokka would prefer to be able to flee.
"Buddy… Maybe you don't need to be here. Get some sleep… You look dead tired." He tried to lift a hand towards the shoulder of his friend, but Aang just stepped away, like he had done with Zuko on the Plaza…
"Don't touch me." The airbender spoke in a low voice, "I will sleep when she is safe."
"Aang… That can be wee-" Toph began, but was interrupted.
"Don't you dare. Don't say that." The low rumbling in Aang's voice made Sokka pause, as he had heard it just once before. When he had spoken to those sandbenders in the desert. Those who had stolen Appa…
Oh Tui and La…
"Avatar Aang… Your friend is right. We can't know for certain if your… wife… is there. But Master Sokka had a good point before you arrived." Iroh spoke up.
The grey eyes fixed him suddenly, anger and hope mixed in it for just a moment before settling back into the grim dark look.
"What?"
"Azula knows you love Katara." He put some emphasis on the name of his sister, trying to get through, without blowing up the ship, "I don't think she will hurt her. I rather think she will use the threat of hurting her to keep you from fighting."
There. That seemed to make some impact, as the grim gaze suddenly disappeared, to make place for impossible pain. Apparently, the airbender realized that, and quickly closed his eyes as he put his fists on the table. Bending his head towards his chest, the airbender looked far older than the seventeen or eighteens years he actually had.
"You mean…" The voice that came from his friend trembled, "That I can't do anything?"
Sokka looked at his friend, and saw the taunt muscle in his arms, the trembling of the closed fists on the table and grim line of his jaw, chin jutted out and the pursed lips. Spirits… Aang looked like one of those springs, ready to jump up and release of the pent-up energy.
"I don't think so, no…" The Water Tribe warrior sighed.
One of the fists lifted and hit the tabletop with such force Sokka saw the end of the piece of furniture move. The fist that had hit the table lifted again, only to be brought down in the same manner. And again, and again.
"Aang!" He grabbed his friend's lower arm and tried pull it up, so that the airbender didn't hurt himself, but, however, hard he tried, the airbender was stronger than he was, and the fist was brought down once again on the table.
"Air Head, that doesn't help." He whispered, as softly as possible to his friend.
"You are telling me I can't do anything." His voice came from far away, as if the sounds had trouble finding its way out of the airbender's throat… Spirits.
"I know… And I'm sorry." Sokka grabbed Aang's shoulder with his one free hand, and made his friend turn to face him. The airbender's eyes were still closed, but he thought he saw some traces of tears just underneath them.
Toph appeared beside him, taking the other arm and pulling it away from the table, in a soft manner Sokka wasn't used to see from the blind girl.
"You can't… But that doesn't mean we will do nothing. Fire Fountain won't stand a chance against the soldiers and us. We will find Katara, I promise." The earthbender spoke in a strangely grim tone, contradicting her kind gestures.
"What if… What if she isn't there..." Aang's voice sounded venerable suddenly, but still rather distant.
"I may have a solution to that." Iroh spoke up, and Sokka turned to the old prince, who seemed to be rather pleased with the idea.
"Azula will have spies in our camp, for sure. So, having you around is a threat by itself… And as you said, we can't be totally sure Master Katara, or even my niece, are in Fire Fountain. You can search towns in the Eastern Archipelago, gather information. It will make sure Azula believes you refuse to fight as long as she holds Master Katara."
And keep him away from any provocations, Sokka thought. Even if the airbender seemed somewhat calmer after the outburst, he didn't seem that stable.
"You are sending me away in case I do something stupid." Aang grumbled, having seen through the plan in an instant.
"Yes." Iroh answered without a trace of shame, "I am. You can't fight for Master Katara's safety, and this way you can still do that, from the shadows. I'm sorry Avatar Aang… But this seems to be the only way for the moment.
"I… I understand." The grim tone broke inside that voice, and his friend opened his eyes once more, revealing a tormented look… But a sane one.
"If you want, I will come with you. A siege sounds horribly boring, and this way, I may have a chance of hitting someone." Toph suggested. Sokka grimaced at that idea, as those two weren't the most… Well, calm people from their group. And yet, he couldn't help but see the advantages. Aang and Toph would be able to pass off as Fire Nation without any difficulty, and the blind girl would make sure Aang wouldn't do anything too stupid…
It wasn't perfect… But all was better than having Aang loose in the Fire Nation, alone with his imagination.
"I would appreciate that." The airbender answered thinly, clearly trying to be as nice as he could possibly muster, but it was something…
"And if we can't find her, we will come back and just burn down Fire Fountain. Agreed?"
Oh fuck… Toph… why make a joke like that, at this moment…
"Oh… Agreed."
Sokka didn't like the fact that Aang's voice was devoid of any humour. For Toph, it had been a joke. For the airbender, it was a promise.
Answers:
Handler: I like to think Aang is dancing on a little tightrope that is his sanity lol!
Kalaong: Exactly! We have seen how a airbender without the Air Nomad culture and imposed pacifism can act in LoK, and lets be honest, that is terrifying. And Aang, who is trained airbender, is probably even more capable of hurting people if he wished to. I think I like to push Aang's sanity as far as possible, and to see if he will really snap.
Jjsmith103: Indeed, the Fire Nation will think "Well, everything they told us wasn't all bullshit… help…" And oh yes, It is far more that rough lol! Poor Aang is being kicked out of every decision making, being sent out into the Fire Nation for a second time, just to make sure he isn't there to explode…
TheQuietReader23: Snapped, yes, but he hasn't done anything too drastic. That is Aang, always trying to stay restrained… But I really want to see if I can make him snap for real lol. And yes, I love to show Aang as far more powerful than people give him credit for! The Fire Nation is probably going to be freaking out "Oh god, he is going to kill us. Princess, for spirits sake, give him back his wife!"
Alyssa : Yeah, announcing that to the whole capital wasn't the smartest idea he had I think lol!