Ipomoeas In His Sheath

by WaterLily95

Everyone else figured it out when his boomerang started smelling like moonflowers instead of hoarded seal jerky. AU. Slowburn Sokka/Yue *two-chapter update*

13. Hey Mister, That's My Sister!

Chapter 13: Hey Mister, That's My Sister!

Sokka was standing in the middle of an empty courtyard. Before him was a large platform with numerous stairs leading up to an icy throne. Seated on the cushioning pelts atop the throne was the North's princess. No, goddess. Whoever she is. She was clad in pristine white robes. A pack of giant wolves was seated around her, and she was petting an eager wolf and looking down to where Sokka was standing below. She wasn't smiling, necessarily, but her demeanor was gentle as she studied him. Perhaps in...intrigue? The silver light fell perfectly over her form, alighting on her glittering white hair, which was let down, billowing from the Arctic winds and falling down past her knees. Her face glistened brighter than the stars and moon put together.

Sokka smiled at her, his face colored in a wild blush, eyes soft and lost in a dreamy gaze, all sense of reason exiled from his thoughts. He may have had many questions and suspicions. Possible reasonings behind why her hair was white, hypotheses which circled around dramatic narratives of how she might have somehow dressed up as Tui— weren't there bound to be other people who dressed up as Spirits? Especially her since she supported his idea earlier?— to evade danger the moment she was recognized or something. Contrary to his values, he even contemplated the potential existence of Spirits because he could've sworn that the image of Tui on the many sacred tapestries that he'd seen in his life was of a beautiful woman with white hair and moonlight skin. Who knew, what if Arnook hid her from the world because he wouldn't know how to explain that he was raising the literal moon somehow?

But none of these thoughts, which had circled his dumbstruck brain the first few seconds of seeing her, made any impact on him now. Seeing her for the first time was a strangely intense experience for him. The joy that had snuck up on him out of nowhere and had taken over, the feeling of the entire universe around him becoming brighter because of her presence alone. He was a simple man with simple intentions, and he was at present given the chance to look at the epitome of all beauty, so he was going to appreciate it. He might even be at the point where he wouldn't mind if the lady standing before him was the revered Tui, sent by the universe to prove his entire frame of mortal thought was an utter lie, to send the world into disarray by presenting herself as a truth transcending science, his one true god. But oh universe, what did he ever do to deserve this moment?

"Tui! Tui!" the echoing voice belonged to Kohana. Sokka didn't see his little brother anywhere, but the boy's words rang loud and clear and disrupted the prince's adoration. "Goddess Tui! Sokka says you don't exist!"

He glanced at her wide-eyed. She blinked at him, and as the wolves near her growled at him and showed their teeth, she calmed them with soft pats on top of their heads. Eventually she stood up. His heart rate went crazy when she made her way down towards him, and he found that he couldn't think straight again.

"Sokka said the Spirits are stupid! He said people who believe in Spirits are stupid, too!" Kohana went on.

Sokka shook his head fervently, his mouth bobbing up and down in futility since no words really left his lips. I never said they were stupid! Though he might as well have with all he did say over the years.

Her snowy eyebrows quirked in amusement. To his relief, she began to smile, then laugh, her gaze warm, her baby blue eyes wavering. Her laughter rang sweetly in his ears, extracting a content sigh from him, and all of his nervousness came melting down and flowing into streams of fascination.

His grin couldn't get any wider without splitting his face open.

---

"He's been like this ever since he woke up, Healer Yugoda."

Sokka was wandering aimlessly through the estate and smiling goofily to himself, completely ignoring the fact that a healer had stared at him straight in the face a few minutes before and took note of his expression. He had been awfully quiet since he'd woken up and had kept to himself, too distracted by the tapestries of Tui on the walls to fully be considered "conscious" or "present." The rational part of his brain had been shut down for a while, and he basked only in the warmth and fuzziness that coursed inside of him. He tucked his hands into his pockets, holding onto the princess's scarf and veil, which he'd finally managed to untangle from his pendant.

"He appears to be fine from what I can tell," Yugoda said, writing something down in her notes. "Though his heartbeat seemed a little faster than normal..."

Yugoda's assistant followed Sokka around and snapped his fingers in front of him. "Hello…? Earth to Prince Sokka?"

But no response came. The attendant looked back at Yugoda. "He's not high, ma'am. Not on any substances, at least."

Kya frowned worriedly at her son. It was almost as if he'd gone mad. Even for someone who appeared happy, what reason would he have for fainting? Why was he so disoriented? Why wasn't he responding to people at times?

"If he wasn't smiling so much, then I would have suggested that he saw something horrifying and fainted as a result," Yugoda said. "But it might be the opposite."

"What do you mean?" Kya asked.

"Seems to me like it's an afterglow of a pleasant experience. An unusually long one, too," Yugoda said.

They turned to look at him again and saw him cast his gaze over a particularly large tapestry of Tui that was hanging on the wall. Tui was in the form of a beautiful woman who was floating in the night sky and looking downward at the hundreds of figures, humans and animals alike, that looked up at her and reached for her, her complexion bright, arms stretched forward and palms up and open— a gesture of giving, as Kya used to tell him. Tui's hair was long and white, rippling behind her as if the Ocean Spirit had melted from her beauty and became one with her, manifesting as the milky waves in her tresses. The goddess was smiling down in compassion at the people reaching for her, and her eyes and glow in the center of her chest were a stark black, resembling the Ocean Spirit's darkness. Instead of seeing the woven face of Tui, however, Sokka saw the goddess-like face of the princess.

"He must have seen something very pleasant, or he had to have been intensely excited about something and is still winding down from that." Yugoda raised her eyebrows. "Is our North really that beautiful, Prince Sokka?"

"Yeah…" She is… The Southerner sighed deeply and smiled as he stepped into the courtyard, instantly bathed in the light of the early morning sun. Everyone else looked out of the window and watched him splash his hand in the fountain and grin to himself.

Kya's anxiety was abundant considering Sokka's performance at the temple earlier. Katara, though, was secretly amused. She didn't need to be told twice to figure out that something was up since she had seen the face veil and scarf that were stuck to his pendant earlier. Her suspicion doubled with how her brother was holding onto them. She didn't mention anything, of course, knowing her parents would freak out and jump on the matchmaking wagon immediately, and there was no way on earth that Sokka could've fallen that easily for someone in the very few hours they'd been here, right? Well, unless if he was having his way with a woman, but Sokka was not that kind of guy. His awkwardness around women was ridiculous but was fueled by his lack of trying given the economic destitution of the South and Hakoda's injury, which had forced the prince of fourteen years to accept responsibilities beyond his age. Here he was now, acting as if he'd just entered his adolescence after jumping straight into adulthood.

And anyhow, how would falling for a girl make him faint? Unless if he straight up swooned. How unmanly that would be. Katara chuckled to herself. What a blow to his ego that would be.

"Sokka! Sokka!" Kohana ran up to his brother. "I wanna show you what I can do now!" He waved his arms clumsily and managed to bend a jagged icicle.

"That's great, sport!" Sokka grinned, ruffling the kid's hair before going back to his wandering.

"This is really strange," Kya murmured.

He should be back to normal in a few hours," Yugoda said. "Please let us know if he's still like this, Your Highness." And with a bow, the healer and her attendant left. In the meantime, Hakoda stepped into the room with Ivaneq.

"How is the prince, Sister Katara?"

"Smiley," she said, watching Kohana splash in the fountain while her older brother balanced himself and walked around the fountain's rim.

Ivaneq stepped into the courtyard, shaking his head at the prince's predicament. "Prince Sokka? Are you doing alright?"

Sokka waved at the Northern official, still sporting an idiotic grin as he gazed at his reflection in the water.

"I heard from your father that you collapsed. Did something happen?"

He simply shrugged.

"Everyone is worried about you. Your mother is freaking out. Your father wouldn't stop talking about you... Brother Sokka? Sokka?"

"Eh, they'll be fine." He jumped off of the rim and sat next to the fountain, and the official joined him. "Tell me something, Ivaneq. Is it possible for someone to have white hair?"

"White hair?" Ivaneq blinked at him. "Why yes, of course. Older people—"

"No, not old. Young. Like...like my age."

"Why? You have grey hairs growing in?"

"No—"

"So you fainted because you saw a grey streak in your hair or something—?"

"No! I just want to know. Do people my age have white hair?"

"Yes, it's common. Sometimes, grey hairs grow in for young people due to stress—"

"No, not grey. White. Fully white."

"Fully white? Like bleached?"

"I...I don't think so…" And now that he thought about it... "Her eyebrows were white, too—"

"Whose?"

"Alright, what's this about, Sokka?" Katara's hands settled on her hips. Kya and Hakoda followed her outside, relieved to see that their son was talking now.

"Sokka, what happened to you, son? Why are you like this?"

"Nothing, Dad, it's just…"

"Who is this 'she' you were talking about?" Katara pressed.

"'She?'" Kya said. "Is she your age—?"

"Alright, quit it, all of you!" The smile was wiped off of his face now, replaced by the usual annoyance, and that's when they knew he'd gotten back to normal. "I had a dream, that's all."

"A dream?" Katara said, still skeptical.

"Yes. In my dream, I…I saw a woman with white hair. Long white hair past her knees," he held his hand down next to his leg to illustrate. "She had a very light complexion, too. She wasn't old at all. She was young...young and beautiful…"

Kya exchanged a look with Hakoda.

"Young and beautiful, huh?" Katara raised her eyebrows, seeing the flush take over her brother's face.

"Well, yeah...she was easy on the eyes, I guess... but anyway," he tried to gain composure again, puffing out his chest. "She was, uh... wearing white robes and...she was sitting on a throne somewhere outside. It was at night, and she had a lot of wolves sitting around her…"

"Is it not obvious yet, sir?" Ivaneq's hands flew to the prince's shoulders and shook him excitedly.

"That's Tui, that's Tui!" Kohana said, climbing out of the fountain and into Hakoda's arms. "Tui wears a pretty white dress and has wolves! Mom, I saw Tui in my dream, too! Yesterday, I had a nightmare that a cave was falling on me, but then Tui came and got me out!"

The boy's confession made everyone, especially Kya, briefly freeze in place, and it was obvious that the Southern chieftess considered the possibility of Tui actually appearing "in the form of the caretaker" or something, but even she waved it off after a moment. "Kohana's probably confused because the caretaker was wearing a white head scarf," she said.

"Yes, there's no way a typical tribesperson can have all-white hair," Ivaneq said. "Unless if they bleached their hair, but what are the chances of that in the Poles?"

"It's not a scarf, it's her hair!" Kohana said, jumping up and down. "She has looooooong hair, Mom!"

But they didn't really listen to the boy's outbursts, noting that the medicine made his experience blurry anyway. Sokka believed it, though; even Kohana confirmed that she had white hair. Who is she? The princess, obviously, but who is the princess exactly?

"If it was a dream, then why were you asking about real people having white hair? Did you happen to see someone like that? Was she that beautiful that you swooned?" Katara teased her brother.

"I don't swoon!" he said, flustered.

"I wonder what you were doing then up until now."

"I didn't see anyone!"

"Then why did you faint?"

"How would I know? I was tired and sleepy and feeling lightheaded…" He wanted to mentally facepalm at this point. If only he'd stayed calm until they were out of earshot. So many questions shoved right in his face, and what was he to do to not give things away? If they found out what the princess looked like, wouldn't they try to find her and take in her Tui-esque appearance? And moreover, what if she really is Tui? As crazy as that was for him to think about.

"Well now we know what you're fussing about," Kya began smiling. "You secretly admire the Goddess, don't you, Sokka?"

"Mom, I—"

"And you had this vision at moonset," Hakoda noted. "That's a very auspicious time. We need to tell Priestess Osha about your vision right away—"

"It was just a dream, it wasn't a vision—!"

"The caretaker was right after all! The Goddess is smiling down upon us." Kya clasped her hands together in prayer fashion and looked up at the now sun-baked sky. "Oh, Great Spirit, please get my children hitched soon!"

Sokka grumbled to himself as his parents went back inside, chatting about the symbolism of the dream.

"Mom doesn't know about the face veils, but that doesn't mean I don't," Katara said. "What's up?"

"Face veils?" Ivaneq asked.

"A face veil and a headscarf were stuck to his pendant earlier when he passed out," Katara elaborated.

"My my," Ivaneq said, "Prince Sokka, you seem to be moving a little fast there—"

"It's not what you think!" Sokka said, exasperated. "Look, I met someone who was trying to help me get back to the estate earlier. Her scarves started flying away in the wind, and I caught them, and they got stuck to my necklace, that's all. Then she got intimidated when you started yelling after me and then left without her scarves. There's nothing else to it…"

"Yeah, nothing other than you swooning."

"For the last time, I wasn't swooning! I never swoon!" But regardless of what actually happened, Sokka was absolutely certain on how bad he felt for lying. Well, not lying all the way, at least, because he'd never had instant heart-to-hearts upon meeting someone but had been absolutely genuine within the conversation he had with her. He did claim himself to be a "friend of the prince," though, instead of admitting who he was. He felt it was a necessary step, however; judging by the frankly annoying amount of respect that he was getting from Zhi and Ivaneq and the other Northerners, he was sure that he wouldn't have had such meaningful conversations with her if she found out who he was. She did run off after knowing he was royalty, after all. Of course, they were equals as they were both royals from their respective divisions of the Water Tribe, but clearly she was trying to keep her identity a secret. Needless to say that she was playing her role as a servant super well. However she got this job while being a princess.

Sokka sighed and stood up, set on fixing things up. "I'll be back."

"Where are you going?"

"I need to give these back to her," he gestured to the scarves before slipping them back in his coat pockets. He didn't have the chance to leave the building, though, and ended up stopping in his tracks upon seeing a visitor in the lounging area. Hakoda along with Kya, who was holding Kohana in her arms, were speaking to a man of a towering build and a sharp beard. The man was presumably in his late forties, and he cast a casual look in the prince's direction, a sliver of acknowledgment crossing his expression. Ivaneq widened his eyes and took a step back; he gave the prince a look of warning.

"This is my daughter, Katara," Hakoda introduced as Katara stepped forward and bowed in greeting. "And this," he pulled the prince forward, "is my first son, Sokka."

Khasiq? Sokka stared at the man in alarm as he bowed to the prince in greeting. "Tunngasugit, isumataq." Welcome, leader.

"This is Brother Khasiq," the Southern chief said to his older children. "Right-hand advisor to Chief Arnook. He has come here personally to welcome us."

"Sokka," Kya nudged her son, wordlessly telling him to bow, but Sokka refused, his gaze narrowing with defiance. He then noticed Katara giving him a look as if asking him, What is wrong with you today? It was too bad that the Southern royals apart from Sokka weren't aware of Khasiq's identity as an extremist Nationalist and the many treacheries he had committed, the way he ruined and ended the lives of many women. Even now, Sokka could make out the glint of interest in Khasiq's gaze as he looked at the Southern princess, and the sickened warrior stepped protectively in front of his sister, giving the man a glare that annoyed his oblivious parents and alarmed Ivaneq.

"I am honored that I finally have a chance to meet the famous Prince Sokka of the South," Khasiq managed a smile that by no means reached his beady eyes, which swirled like slits of murky water.

"Katara, take Kohana out into the courtyard," Sokka said, earning confused looks from the others. Katara may be a master waterbender, and she may have the willpower and the ability to beat a pervert's ass with her water magic, as Sokka often bragged, but he was still her older brother and was about to take no chances. Katara, not wanting to argue in front of the guest, took Kohana into her arms and left the room.

"I've heard much about you, young prince," Khasiq went on, understanding everything that moment meant. "It seems you've encountered some of my attendants earlier at the Moon Temple."

"Do you mean the caretaker?" Kya asked. "Oh, she is full of compassion, I tell you! She even saved our youngest—!"

"Actually, my assistants are Nuqao and Ishuqan. The ones your son happened to brawl with."

Sokka snarled at Khasiq as if to say, Of course they'd be your cretins.

Kya and Hakoda, who hadn't been present for the brawl at the temple long enough to figure out that Nuqao and Ishuqan were Khasiq's men, dropped their smiles and instantly shot glares at their son.

"Oh goodness, we had no idea," Kya breathed.

"We are deeply sorry for the trouble my son has caused, Brother," Hakoda said. "You see, he gets carried away sometimes. He needs to practice more restraint and sensitivity to others—"

"Oh, don't you worry about that, dear brother," Khasiq assured. "I'm the one who should be apologizing. My assistants had no idea who they were disrespecting. It was a terrible misunderstanding."

Sokka was not moved. So they'd disrespect me if I'm not a prince, and that would be okay?

"It's still on our son to respect the beliefs of others," Kya said, "Our fault entirely—"

"No no, your son has the right idea. Who is to rely on blood sacrifices these days? What use will that be? We cannot possibly survive if we begin overhunting," Khasiq said. "I hear that your oldest is a brilliant strategist as well; if anything, he is most aware of the economic crisis that would befall if we went about sacrificing animals willy nilly. It's overhunting that devastated your tribe, after all."

Says the guy who uses half of the tribe's treasury for himself, Sokka huffed. Talk about economic crisis.

"I am not here to fuel the flames of a silly argument, rest assured," the official kept his attention on the prince. "I'm only here to get to know more of this gem you have for a son. And, of course, to inquire about the little one. I heard what happened."

"He accidentally froze himself. Apparently he's a bender. We did not know beforehand."

"Good for him. The fact that he's a bender, I mean. When he's trained, he will be more careful...Though I should warn you against visiting the Moon Temple."

"Why?" Hakoda asked.

"You see, that place is accursed," Khasiq said, taking a moment to look at Ivaneq, a regular Moon Temple-goer before turning back to the royals.

Sokka frowned in disbelief. Hakoda and Kya felt their stomachs drop. "Accursed?"

"Twenty-three years ago, there had been an incident at what people used to refer to as the Sacred Temple. It was made impure and unfit for services. Ever since, we've been avoiding it. There are still folks who go there, though. Unfortunate souls, really. They have no idea what they signed themselves up for." Khasiq shook his head. "I really do not want to say this, but your entry could be the reason behind this bad luck. The little one was nearly injured, and our assistants were roughed up. I understand it's your first time here and you had no idea, but to this moment, I don't understand why my assistants would take the risk of going there. They know how things can get."

"Oh no...oh Spirits…" Kya trembled.

"Now now, don't you worry," the official said. "We are affiliated with the Great Temple of La, you see. We will always keep our doors open for you. The priests there will be happy to perform protection rituals for you and ward off bad luck. Many of our followers have been satisfied with the services and are leading happy, healthy lives. The fees will be waived for you as well; normally it's one hundred gold pieces, but you are our honored guests."

Sokka scowled as his parents turned to putty thanks to the man's sweet tongue. Clearly this feud is interwoven with politics more than it did religion. Nuqao and his assistant had insulted the princess, which was the root cause of Sokka backfiring at the temple earlier, and if his parents dwelled on that point a little more, it would've been more evident that Khasiq merely plays games with those he meets.

"Prince Sokka is awfully quiet," Khasiq said.

"He's getting used to the place, still," Hakoda covered. "And for some reason, he also fainted a few hours ago."

"Oh no," Khasiq shook his head. "It's the effects of the curse, I'm telling you. That pagoda's recent history has done much damage to an otherwise compelling historic landmark. No ritual can hope to save that place now."

Ivaneq was visibly annoyed, and though Hakoda and Kya noticed this, they said nothing of it.

"Well that's too bad," Khasiq sighed. "I was hoping you would join me on a short walk, Prince Sokka. You should get your rest, then."

"Oh, no, he's doing fine. Much better than before," Hakoda urged the prince forward. "Go on, Sokka, join Brother Khasiq and show your respect."

---

Thinking he could handle another one of the many idiots he'd encountered in his life, Sokka reluctantly followed Khasiq out of the estate. They stayed within the northeastern lot, exchanging no words whatsoever. Feeling like a tiger-gorilla that was entertained by the anger of its prey, Khasiq was particularly amused by the scowl on Sokka's face. He tried to humor the prince after a few minutes, occasionally pointing out a few perks of being within the inner walls. For the man, it was always about the luxurious life, and Sokka found it abhorring to even compare the official's attempts at conversation with the endearing bliss that the princess bestowed on the Southern warrior a few hours before. Eventually, the official gave a knowing chuckle, noting the absolute stiffness of the warrior by this point.

"It appears you are still angry," he said. "My attendants were not aware that they were arguing with someone of such an esteemed position in the South. They regret their rudeness."

And at this, Sokka finally broke his silence. "Of course they would. If I didn't have such an esteemed title, then their behavior would be absolutely justified, wouldn't it?"

"No, not at all, that is not my intention. I'm saying there's been a misunderstanding, that's all. Leave it behind, won't you?"

In no way did the man sound sincere enough to make his lies convincing. "I'm not your puppet to leave things behind so easily," Sokka retorted.

Khasiq was patient, though. "I feared this would happen," and he paused in the middle of their walk. "It is not your fault that you're speaking this way, young prince. I feared you're being manipulated, and that is actually the real reason behind why I came here...though it seems someone has already spoken against me to you."

"Manipulated, huh?"

"There are people who are trying to take advantage of you for their own ends—"

"Oh, there is no doubt about that."

"I fear the princess may be one of them," Khasiq enunciated, eyebrows raised. "Think about it. Her supporters have been nothing but overly nice to you all this time. Showering gifts and praises, uplifting your tribe at an excessive rate."

"I can see you're trying to get through to me, but saying it's wrong that she helped our tribe is not helping your case."

"You are not getting me." The official's voice nearly a hiss. "She is helping you now to harm you later, harming you now so that she can seem like she's the one helping. It was very unfortunate that your brother was in danger, but have you noticed how conveniently that cleaner rushed in to save him? And have you noticed how Ivaneq and the other supporters of the princess were conveniently there but utterly useless in helping your brother?"

If Khasiq knew this much, either he'd been spying on them, had agents who were spying on them, or had his assistants lingered long enough to witness the entire incident. All of those possibilities spiked Sokka's skepticism. And if there was anything else that Sokka picked up on, it was the observation that Khasiq didn't know the princess was the caretaker. He was also likely ignorant of the fact that the princess was disguised and working within her own palace as a servant.

"And what are you suggesting by this? That the princess's supporters, who just so happen to be your political rivals, purposefully trapped my brother and then got him out to make themselves look good in front of us and earn our trust?"

"Why not? I'm sure you've heard of the Nunalik Movement, or the Community Movement in the common tongue. Uan nunaqqatigiit, uan nunalik. 'One people, one community.'"

Despite not being born during that time, Sokka was no stranger to history. Several decades before the economic collapse, there had been a brief period of bitterness between the two divisions of the tribe. There were resurgences of original attempts from thousands of years ago to unify the tribe again. Merging the Southern community back to the North became the religio-political ideal for many zealots, and this resurgence of the idea of unity in government— despite many millennia of mutual connectivity and recognition— became a hindrance for the North and South's relations. It wasn't until Chief Anik, the great grandfather of Aklaq, dropped the initiative and took militaristic action to suppress the Nunalik Movement, which by then had begun making efforts to suppress the Southern government. The South once again became recognized as a co-division of the Water Tribe and the Face of La, the counterpart to the North's Face of Tui, and that was to be respected at all times.

"The Nunalik Movement has been gathering support once again," Khasiq said. "Of course, these kinds of things are government secrets, but I'm letting you in on them to warn you. There are troubling signs that the princess is among its supporters."

"How much more pathetic do you plan on becoming by tattle-taling, exactly?"

"How much more ignorant can you be to be skeptical of everything and everyone except for a princess who came out of nowhere?" Khasiq questioned. "You thought twice before trusting Ivaneq and the Northern battalion when they arrived at the South, and yet, you receive the princess's gifts and accept her 'compassion' without an ounce of doubt? Tell me, Prince Sokka, are you expecting her to offer you her womanly services, perhaps—?"

"Watch that tongue of yours, Khasiq," Sokka hissed, his fist flying to the man's parka, the octaves of his voice rising. "Not another word against Her Highness."

"This is exactly what I am trying to warn you about," Khasiq said calmly as if he'd been expecting this move. "When was the last time you spoke up for someone like this? You can't possibly start to care for her, can you? How idiotic that would be."

Sokka let go of him, his fists still quivering.

"Don't be fooled by the princess. She has plans of using a tactic called kindness to take over the South. Take over your position as the heir. Befriending you now only to stab you in the back later," Khasiq said. "In such a short time, you've accomplished so much for your home. You will certainly make a wonderful leader, but surely, you can't be so innocent as to not see what her motive is."

"If you were that concerned for the South, you would've responded to our pleas for help instead of trying to get rid of my letter," Sokka said. "Who are you going to blame for that? The princess? How can you adequately place the blame on someone who's been restricted all her life? How can you shift the blame to someone who's been introduced to the world only a couple of weeks ago? Oh, that's right, logic is not as necessary as demonizing the other side for political gain, is it?"

"Mock me now all you want, but that will only make you regret it, young prince," Khasiq lowered his voice. "Believe it or not, I'm looking out for you. That princess might be new to the world, but she plays political games quite well. Don't underestimate her."

"Are you saying you and your Nationalist Party are the victims of her games? Because that would indicate that your party is not as powerful as it seems, but I'm reading things quite differently in just a few hours of my stay here," Sokka said, piercing his glare at the official. "I know more than you think, Khasiq, and I know very well who is trying to manipulate who around here."

Khasiq gave a dry laugh. "Don't be deluded by false sympathies. Don't speak by knowing only one side of the story. You are a patriot of the South, so be one. Don't lose your guard and melt into a puddle by listening to the princess and her supporters. Otherwise, they'll step all over you. I am your friend, Prince Sokka. I can help you overcome the threat."

The prince may be a patriot of the South, but it was tribal blood that coursed through him. The blood of brotherhood that reminded him of his loyalties to both divisions of the country, particularly after learning of the situations in the North. The South was neither abandoned nor targeted; it had reached out after the leadership baton was finally passed to a compassionate leader.

"But politics aside," Khasiq lightened his tone again. "You're a youth. You should be living out your best life. Poor thing, wasted on trading missions. Why not join me for a drink sometime? Man to man. We have a fine nightclub that features the best adult entertainment. The only one in the North as of yet, actually, modeled after the most luxurious clubs in the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation." He slipped an arm around the prince's shoulders. "You're a traveller yourself, aren't you? I'm sure you will enjoy it. The finest ladies to satisfy your heart's desires. Foreign or local, your choice."

Sokka was not amused. He shrugged off the official's hand as if it was a prickle snake that was wrapped around him. "When Her Highness wrote her correspondence to me for the first time, she didn't go around mentioning the kinds of people that I should avoid. She genuinely wanted to help us. I was the one who was curious about her and investigated. I was the one who took the effort to learn more about what's happening here. Her Highness wanted me to have nothing to do with the issues here, so much that she did not once mention you, much less insult you the way you're insulting her."

"Those who truly care about you will warn you of dangers, not lure you in with sweets, young prince. A letter giving you praise is clearly a way to kiss up to your authority and position. Don't be swept away by it. Too much of something sweet, especially that of cheap quality, will make you very sick." He curled his lips into a forced smile. "So don't stress over her. After all, someone who is a god to his people would have no reason to pay heed to a peasant."

Sokka's glare waned just enough to let his fear for the princess pass through. That, too, at a more alarming rate than before. Does he actually know that the princess is in disguise? "A peasant? What do you mean?"

Khasiq arched an amused brow. "If you're so curious, why not meet with me once?"

---

"Someone who is a god to his people would have no reason to pay heed to a peasant."

What the fuck does he actually mean? This was the only question that surged through Sokka as he paced back and forth with his palms burrowing into his pockets and clutching the princess's scarves. He was forced to wait until Khasiq was finished inviting his parents for dinner with him at the palace; Sokka knew that leaving to go find the princess now would allow Khasiq or his assistants would follow him, and the last thing Sokka wanted to do was disrupt what she was up to. He couldn't help wondering, however, why Khasiq would refer to her as a 'peasant' if he didn't know that she was in disguise as a commoner. Then again, why would he speak of her as being different from "the cleaner," in that case?

While Sokka was lost in a corner in the company of these thoughts, Ivaneq studied Khasiq from afar, listening to the conversation that the official was having with the Southern chief and chieftess. Katara was nearby, her arms crossed as she leaned against the wall, eyeing her brother. "Sokka, what is going on with you?"

"Listen, sis," he slipped briefly out of his thinking and also garnered Ivaneq's attention, "I don't want you going anywhere near Khasiq."

"Why would I talk to him in the first place?"

"I'm just saying, don't stand in the same room as him. He can't be trusted."

"Of course you'd say that," she said. "You'll say that about every Northerner you don't know."

"That was before," he told her. "This guy's different. He has quite a bit of a history, too. Don't go near him."

Before Katara could ask what he meant, they could hear several footsteps leaving the estate. Kya eventually stepped back into the room and took a seat on the bed. Hakoda followed, and in a matter of seconds, all of them were suddenly cast by discomfort.

"Brother Ivaneq," Hakoda broke the settling silence. "Khasiq mentioned something about an 'incident' that 'defiled the purity' of the Moon Temple. Back when it was known as the Sacred Temple, I mean. Do you know what he was talking about?"

Sokka, who was looking to fill his being with the afterglow that was the princess-goddess of the North, would've rolled his eyes and thought it was just another conversation that he didn't need to hear and spoil his already rotten mood for, but he then remembered how Nuqao and his assistant had been jerk-faced yakshits and repeatedly insulted the temple and its committee. The princess did mention the problem of prejudice that spanned many different issues.

"I don't know how much of this story is true," Ivaneq began, "but supposedly, twenty-something years ago, some lady gave birth to a baby girl in the innermost sacred chamber right next to the idols."

Kya's and Hakoda's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. Katara was also intrigued. This was, after all, a blatant violation of the Water Tribe's purity laws, which dictated strict matters of menstruation and childbirth. Sokka was not a stranger to the sensitive issue of purity laws placed on tribeswomen. The tribefolk in the South, too, had separate rooms and bathhouses built next to their homes for the ladies to live in during their times of the month, Chieftess Kya and Princess Katara being no exceptions to this rule. That is, up until seven years ago when Katara publicly spoke out against the practice, deeming the Water Tribe purity laws for women as misogynistic.

Pakku, being a staunch traditionalist, was mortified by the idea of "contaminating" the purity of the home, especially since they had idols of their own, and he and his granddaughter had even sparred in public to determine the fate of the issue. The resulting tie decided no clear winner of the debate, but Pakku, hesitant as he was, ended up agreeing to lax some the rules, including getting rid of the separate rooms and bathhouses in their household. The other members of the tribe were not forced to give up the rules though they were allowed to if they wished, but many rules were still retained for menstruating women such as maintaining distance from the idols within their home during their times of the month, much to Katara's displeasure. Why would women have to be kept away from worship as if they were germs? And that, too, for a biological process that they couldn't control and relied on to carry on the family lineage?

"It's quite tragic because the woman apparently abandoned the child," Ivaneq added. "She had supposedly placed the baby in front of the idols as an offering and left her to starve overnight."

All of them grew visibly uncomfortable. Sokka was horrified. Katara glared, "That's stupid! The poor baby!"

"What happened to the baby?" Hakoda asked.

"She was supposedly found by the priests before anything could happen to her. I'm not too sure what happened after that, no one really knows. But to this day, a majority of people say the poor baby was cursed because it contaminated the idols upon her birth. We're not allowed to talk about the incident under the orders of the chieftain. It's a very sensitive topic, you see." Ivaneq shrugged. "Whether or not this story is real, many people have used it in the past to tear down the reputation of the Moon Temple. They claim the incident contaminated the sacred ground for good. That was when Mother Osha claimed herself as a priestess and supposedly conducted several purification rituals in the building, so people slowly started to come back." Ivaneq turned to the chief and chieftess. "I assure you that no one who's ever been to the temple has been negatively affected in any way. I go there all the time, and it's thanks to the rituals I've had performed there that I got this position in the first place...but of course, I understand if you don't want to visit any further."

"That's not at all what we mean, Brother," Hakoda told him. "Though I do request you to not tell my father about the Moon Temple."

"We are truly grateful for having a chance to visit the Moon Temple, and we will certainly go back. It's just that Father Pakku will not be happy about this," Kya said. "He's a committed traditionalist; he will freak out for sure. "

"Not at all a surprise that Gramp-Gramp is a fan of this nonsense," Sokka huffed. "Stupid faith practitioners."

"Not everyone is like that," his mother defended.

But Sokka looked quite angry at this point to take note of it or care. "Who would do that to a baby?" he said, his frustration shared by his sister. "And all this time, I thought a culture like ours would find that having a baby is a good thing." Especially since they were trying to get him hitched so he can have children of his own. "I don't even get why this is a bad thing. I mean, what else was the lady supposed to do? Hold it in?"

"Well 'apparently so' thanks to some idiotic patriarch," Katara glared at the ground.

"See, this is why I'm not a believer in certain nonsense," Sokka crossed his arms. "Stupid hierarchies, arbitrary rules that make no sense whatsoever and completely deny science—"

"Just because they were heartless doesn't mean everyone is like that," Hakoda began.

"But why? I'd imagine the baby would be considered special among the 'believing' tribefolk for being born in a temple. Next to the idols, too. Isn't that supposed to be a good thing?" Sokka threw his hand in the air in exasperation. "And if you're gonna call your god a 'god of life,' then why would having new life enter the world be considered bad?"

"That, Brother Sokka, is a priceless question," Ivaneq said. "And it seems no one has the answer for that."

"Because our tribes are too afraid to ask it," Katara frowned. "Purification, huh? As if there was anything to be purified in the first place. I am sick and tired of people putting us down. Someone's gotta slap some sense into these sexists. Even Gramp-Gramp isn't this bad."

"You don't know the half of it," Hakoda sighed. "Meeting my mother changed him quite a bit, that's for sure. Otherwise, I don't think he would've taught you waterbending combat."

"Well it seems people need more of Gran-Gran's kind of wisdom," Katara said. "I need to meet Priestess Osha again; I'm sure the two of us can make something happen."

And though no one objected to that at first, it wasn't until Ivaneq excused himself to make arrangements for their meals that Kya did what she could to tone down her daughter's vehemence. "You don't need to make anything happen, Katara," she said. "This is the North."

"Mom, we can't just sit back and do nothing about this."

"This is their problem, and they will deal with it," Kya reiterated. "We're only guests."

"Your brother is already the 'roughing up the ruffians' type," Hakoda said. "And he has no restraint sometimes. I don't want you to join in, too, Katara. All we're asking from you two is to stay put."

"You know, if the princess thought that the situation in the South was our problem and not hers, then who knows where we would be right now 'cause we certainly wouldn't have gotten help from the North," Sokka told them.

"That's because we asked for help. No one here is asking for our help—"

"You used to tell me that this is home, too," Sokka said to his parents. "Yeah, I was being insensitive, I admit it, but now I understand. And I want to help. We want to help."

"There's a proper way to reach out, ask if they want help, and then offer the said help," Kya said. "No butting into people's plans in their faces, no using profanities against them," she then turned to Katara, "and no sparring against official authorities." To this moment, Kya could relive the way Katara had to fight her grandfather into getting rid of the separate bathhouse and some of the purity laws.

"And you, too, Kohana," the Southern chieftess turned to her younger son, who stuffing his face with the cakes that the caretaker had given them, trying to shove as many cakes as he could fit into his little mouth. "No telling other people what they should and shouldn't do." She rubbed her head wearily. "Though it would've been really nice if the caretaker and the priestess said a word about this to us beforehand. I wonder if this is why they're not taking fees, either..."

"Are we seriously gonna believe this blindly?" Sokka said intensely. "The caretaker looked out for Kohana without even thinking about herself. Doesn't that say something? And if that place was really cursed, I wouldn't see 'Tui' in my dream, either, would I, to go by your logic? What next, are we gonna say that the princess must be morally reprehensible because she helped us out of starvation for free?"

Everyone blinked at the warrior. Hakoda broke the settling silence, "No one said anything about the princess, Sokka—"

"Well there's something called compassion, alright? Apparently it exists, and abstract concepts claimed as spirits are not the only ones who have it."

Unless if the princess happened to be a spirit who was here to turn his world into a supernatural angle.

---

Checking his surroundings every few seconds to make sure he wasn't being followed, Sokka wandered out of the estate, refusing the company of the security guards. He retraced the path that he vaguely remembered taking yesterday from the temple to the estate, and he stayed on the lookout for anyone who might seem like the...princess? Goddess? Princess-goddess? Whoever she is. He didn't see her, though, even as he neared the Moon Temple premises.

But he did see that the temple was open and that it was bustling with workers, who were tending to the eastern chamber that had collapsed a couple of hours ago. The blazing sunlight poured in through the open doors, momentarily providing light through the dark, wet, "La-summoning" entrance. There were various women wandering in white robes inside— they had to be the priestesses-in-training— and their faces were uncovered. None of them resembled the princess, though; in fact, the only person who resembled the princess wasn't even a person but an idol. The white marble idol of Tui seated next to her dark lover, who was sculpted out of black marble just like the rest of the temple. Tui's complexion and hair and flowing dress were delightfully white.

Sokka sighed to himself, filled with a sudden sense of longing. He shook it away long enough to catch the attention of someone passing by. "Iikuluga!" Excuse me!

The lady paused, looked up, and walked over to him. "Kinauavit?" What is your name?

"Sokkaujunga." My name is Sokka.

"And…?" She didn't seem to know his name to recognize him to be the prince of the South. "Are you here to see Mother Osha?"

"Uh...aagga." No.

"Then?"

"I...Ânimiutaujunga." I'm from the South.

"Âni? The South?" she looked surprised. "You speak the North Central Tongue quite well for a Southerner. You have the accent and everything."

"My grandparents are actually from here," he said. "We grew up in a multilingual household. I know a couple of dialects from both the North and the South...but anyway…" he rubbed the back of his head, "I'm looking for the caretaker."

"The caretaker? Why?"

"She's a good friend of mine, you see. Do you happen to know where…well, I don't know her name, but…"

The lady raised her eyebrows. "So you're her friend, but you don't know her name?"

"I met her yesterday. I didn't get a chance to ask her name," he explained. "But, uh…Do you know where she is, ma'am?"

Another priestess-in-training, who'd overheard the conversation, asked the lady, "Kinuppa Tuiup paninga?" Is he asking for Tui's daughter?

"Tui's daughter"? "Wait, is her name really 'Tuiup Paninga'?" Because even though it was strange for a name, it certainly made sense.

"That's not her name, that's just what we call her," the lady told him.

"Then what's her name?"

But the lady was looking at him with more skepticism. "You know, the more I look at you, I don't trust you. Why do you care what her name is if you don't know her that well?"

Sokka didn't expect that for an answer. "Because...because...I need to ask her a question about the rituals…"

"You're looking at five angakkuit-in-training," the lady gestured to the other women, who were now looking at him, the conversation having sparked their attention. "You can ask any one of us. Or you can ask Mother Osha herself."

"The caretaker did the rituals last time, though. Under Priestess Osha's orders."

"Describe the rituals to us, and we will tell you what she did and answer any question you may have. Why do you need to see her for that?"

Sokka was annoyed at this point. "You know what? Never mind."

"Hey! Hey, you! I'm asking you a question."

"Do you ask this many questions to everyone who visits? Or is it because you're suspicious of me for some reason?"

"A man asking around for a woman? And you expect us to just throw her under your sleigh like that?"

"Throw her under...? What exactly are you trying to say?" he sputtered. "That I'm out to get her or something? I told you I'm her friend—"

"Well she would've mentioned you to us, but clearly she didn't."

"Because it was just a few hours ago! And just because I'm a guy doesn't mean I'm automatically a blubbernose! If you believe that, then you're not too different from the oppressor!" He took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "Look, I know the situation is bad and stupid and sexist, and this is a problem for the North and the South, but I'm not—"

"Yeah yeah, that's what they all say," the woman rolled her eyes.

"I'll also have you know that I'm the damn prince of the South, and I take my job seriously!"

"Oh look here, we've got the very face of bigotry standing right in front of us," the woman accused, not at all moved by Sokka's declaration. "Just as useless as Arnook. I bet that's why you've done nothing to change the issues down South and will keep doing nothing!"

"Because my tribe was starving up until…!" but he didn't finish his defense, staring at them in disbelief and exasperation.

"But if you really are the prince and if you really are an innocent sack of moonpeaches, and if you genuinely have a question about rituals, we can answer it on the caretaker's behalf," another woman told him, her tone still distrustful but not as harsh as the others. "She's not a professional, anyhow, and you're not allowed to communicate directly with us without supervision by a million security guards."

"Forget it," he huffed. "It's not about those childish tea parties you call rituals anyway."

The women gasped. The lady who spoke to him fumed. "How dare you!"

"I knew it, I knew it!" another angakkuq-in-training piped up. "Don't think we don't know your type. You're an infidel who has no respect for the Spirits!"

"How are you gonna respect a woman if you can't take the time to respect the Goddess?" chimed in another.

"Oh the horror! These heretics are ruining our society!"

"Get this heathen out of here!"

Sokka glared at them. "You know, I'd really like to know who picked you pleasant ladies as the potential angakkuit for the so-called 'temple that defies all barriers.' 'Cause if it's the great Priestess Osha, then she's got a lot to learn about breaking barriers and needs to do a better job of training."

"Oh, so it's our fault?"

"Since it's apparently my fault that the tribes are so fucked up! Since I'm an immoral existence just 'cause I choose to be rational!"

"Defending yourself will get you nowhere. Everyone here knows that the only reason you're going after the caretaker is that you have a thing for her!"

"What?! Absolutely not!" Not convincing, you idiot.

"She's too nice, so she might've spared you a few seconds of her time despite knowing you're a disbeliever, but that doesn't give you the right to strut in here and insult our practices and throw tantrums like a manchild!"

"People like you are gonna corrupt her and blow her liberality off the roof!"

"Inviting disbelievers to the temple and everything. She's gone too far!"

"Poor thing, it's not her fault she's sweet."

"You know what I think?" Sokka crossed his arms. "You're insecure because you'll think a 'disbeliever' will tear down your establishment. If your Spirits are really powerful, won't they tell you that hate just fuels more hate in response? Won't they give you the 'willpower' to keep rolling around in your fantasies or some shit like that?"

"GET OUT!"

---

It was not a surprise to be reacted to in such a negative manner. Sokka had many friends down South, yes, but none of them invited him for festivities that involved a heavy dose of traditionalism. His grandparents and friends and their families knew better than to invite him anywhere near a sacred setting (the only setting being the Central Pagoda in his village as the South was not too invested in building a pagoda around every corner like the North). Kya and Hakoda were perhaps the only ones who were stuck in the illusion that their son could be "redeemed" somehow.

Not that any of that was going to get in the way of his search. In fact, it only added to the strange feeling of longing that was sweeping through him.

"All good things belong to the universe."

"The universe, huh?"

"Why not? Your universe and my Spirits are not too different. Even more shocking, they might even be the same."

When was the last time someone talked to him like that for once? That's right, never.

He wandered through all different areas in the current sector of the inner ring that they were staying in. He even stopped several people on the way to ask them. Since she mentioned that she "worked in the palace" sometimes, he wondered if she interacted with some of the servants and ended up asking several people who looked like servants. Turned out that his fascination in describing her and the features that he was mentioning were equivalent to Tui, so many confused servants just told him to find this white-haired "Caretaker of all of humanity" in the temples. Some of the older men shook their heads in amusement. "Don't you have other things to do than run after a girl all day, boy?" Others simply laughed off his descriptions, like that one group of female servants that he ended up inquiring. A group of teenage servants, to his annoyance.

"She has really long hair... beautiful hair..." You didn't absolutely have to add that part, you know.

"Step aside, girls, he's looking for me," a girl who had to be at least fifteen strutted to the front without her head coverings, her black hair reaching down to her waist and swinging behind her. "Aren't you, Prettyboy?"

"Uh, no, kid, and please don't call me 'Prettyboy,'" and after gagging internally, he said, "Her hair is down all the way to her knees...maybe even past that, actually... and it's white. And her skin tone is really fair for a tribeswoman, too."

"It's not that common for people to have white hair that long in these parts," a girl raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, I doubt if it's common anywhere in the world," said another.

"But hey, Old Lady Chimari has decent-looking white hair," said the third girl, earning giggles from her fellow servants.

"I hear she used to be super beautiful in her youth."

"Maybe you'd like to take her out on a date, Prettyboy?"

He frowned at the laughing teens. "Do you also laugh at your Tui like this?"

To which they stopped laughing immediately. Guilt quickly settled over them.

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Young ladies, pay your respects," came a voice behind them. A middle-aged woman in a blue uniform was looking sternly at the group of girls. "You do realize you're speaking to Prince Sokka, soon-to-be prince-regent of the sister tribe."

The girls gawked at him before bowing repeatedly and quickly dispersing, save for the blushing fifteen-year-old who lingered and blinked up at him until she was pulled away by one of her friends.

"They can be a bit mischievous, isumataq. Please forgive them."

"No problem. Teenagers, am I right?"

The woman said nothing.

"Uh...anyway...I'm looking for—"

"You're looking for the caretaker of the Moon Temple, correct?"

"Yes!" Sokka said more excitedly than anyone would expect him to. He earned a look of confusion from the woman. "I-I mean...do you happen to know her?"

"Did she do something wrong? Is that why you're looking for her?"

"No, not at all. She's a really good friend of mine, and...she actually helped save my little brother from a big accident yesterday."

"If you'd like to show your appreciation, then you can send someone to intercede on your behalf. The policies here only allow for trusted, pre-approved servants to tend to members of higher authority like yourself."

Sokka had never been this formally referred to as a "member of higher authority" until he was addressed by the North's political language. It goes to show that the South has fallen quite a bit from the economic crisis and would need several helping hands to reach the same level of leadership roles. "But she's a friend. I assure you there won't be any problems."

She sighed. "Very well."

"So, uh...what did you say her name was…?"

"I don't know her name. I've only recently been shifted to the palace cooking department, so I don't know too much about her. But I've seen her around and met her once. She's really nice, and to be honest, I was very shocked when I first saw her. Not everyone looks and acts so much like the Tui in our temples."

"Y-Yeah...that's what I thought, too…" as he pictured her face, he blushed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck. The lady noticed this but said nothing of it.

"So...do you happened to know where…?"

"I don't know where she is currently, but I know she'll be one of the servers at the Multicultural Feast this afternoon. She's apparently part of the team of cooks who will be arranging the vegetarian meals for the Air Nomads for the next few weeks of their stay."

"She's a pacifist, you see. Refuses to step on even a spider-beetle."

"She's practically an airbender stuck in the body of a tribeswoman."

"She's not a fan of violence whatsoever...She doesn't even touch meat."

It certainly made sense to him somewhat...in spite of his query on how she learned cooking when she was a princess who people insist would be heavily guarded. "Oh," he blinked. "Does she usually work in the cooking department?"

"Yes. According to her schedule, she normally works the evening shifts, but today, she's working the afternoon shift to cover for a friend."

"Ah," he nodded, "I see."

"She also babysits some mornings," the woman said. "If you feel she's trustworthy and would like to appoint her as a trusted servant for the royal family, or if you feel like you need to leave Prince Kohana in her care at any time, please notify the security personnel."

"Yeah, for sure," he bowed. "Thanks so much for the information, Sister…?"

"Kameli, a humble servant of Her Highness, the princess," she bowed back. "Prince Sokka, I was actually sent to see you for an obligation."

"An obligation?"

"Yes. Do you have a moment?"

Claiming that it was a confidential matter and that she can't disclose the details for security purposes, Kameli led him to a less-populated area near one of the storage houses in the inner ring. She then asked him, "Will you and Princess Katara be free this afternoon at around three hours past midday? My boss would like to meet the two of you."

"And who is your boss?" Wait… "Are we meeting Her Highness, the princess?!"

Kameli was caught a little off guard at his enthusiasm. "Oh, um...no, sir. No one is allowed to have contact with the princess. But you will be meeting allies of the princess. My boss is Official Sayen."

Sokka recognized the name. "Are you talking about Daughter Sayen?"

"You know of her?"

"Yeah, she's the president of the Revivalist Association, isn't she?"

Kameli widened her eyes. "I was not aware that you knew about the Revivalist Association, sir."

It seemed a lot of people were surprised that he did his research. "Alright, we'll be happy to meet with her. As far as I know, we're free."

"That's great to hear. Please meet me at the West Gates of the palace this afternoon, and I will be happy to give you both an escort to Lady Sayen's estate. And another thing: please do not speak of this matter to anyone else. No one else is to know about your visit. For security purposes."

It seemed she couldn't emphasize the last part enough.

---

The rhythm of drumbeats and mimicked wolf howls melded together harmoniously and filled the air as several servants accompanied the Southern royals down the canal leading to the North's palace. They were invited to have breakfast with several ministers and politicians, who were supposedly eager to meet them, and as soon as the word got out, a literal gondola parade had been arranged. As the Southern chief, chieftess, and their children stood in their gondola, riding between artificially-crafted waterfalls and being surrounded closely by security and servants, the tribefolk stepped out of their homes and stood along the sidewalks, clapping, waving, and cheering in greeting.

"Qatanngutiit! Sisters and brothers!" boomed a voice in both the North Central and Common dialects. The announcer was none other than Eiji, one of the princess's advisory board members whom they had met a couple of hours ago upon their entry into the city. "It is with great honor that on behalf of Chief Arnook and Her Highness, the Princess of the North, that we welcome our family from the Southern Tribe! Let me introduce to you the South's esteemed angajuqqaak, Chief Hakoda and Chieftess Kya!"

Ivaneq helped support Hakoda as he and Kya waved to the cheering tribefolk.

"And we are also pleased to have with us the young and dynamic isumataat, Princes Sokka and Kohana and Princess Katara! It is an honor to serve you, young leaders!"

Kohana hid behind his mother out of shyness, holding onto her parka while Sokka and Katara also waved to the tribefolk. Well, mostly Katara. Sokka had a smile on his face, but he was actually the most distracted. He looked around at the different tribefolk, hoping to spot the familiar, unique pair of baby blue eyes peering back beneath the layers of head coverings. Maybe, just maybe, she had stepped away from her duties to see them? But no, he did not see her.

"Tunngasugitti!" Eiji said, his arms held out in greeting as the crowds went wild. "Our warmest welcome to all of you!"

With much pomp and festivity, they were escorted into the palace and were met by numerous ministers and politicians. The Southern royals, who were only expecting the sixty-something members of Arnook's ministerial board, grew surprised to see Chief Arnook himself join them in time for the breakfast preparations to begin. The man, sickly as he had appeared when he welcomed them, was still full of life and had the servants organize the royals' mats, pelts and meals in the very center inside of the traditional dinner circle.

"Will the princess be joining us, Brother Arnook?" Chieftess Kya asked, her eyes searching for the savior of the South.

"The princess usually dines privately, Sister Kya," Arnook said. "She actually prefers it that way. Maybe she will join us another time."

You don't know that, Sokka wanted to say but thought back to the likely possibility of the princess sneaking away from her confines during the hours of her privacy. Unless if she was being guarded even now. Hakoda and Kya, too, decided not to ask again. Even if the princess wanted to join them, with all the restrictions set in place, it was unlikely that Arnook would be comfortable having her here.

"But I am glad that we have the company of our Southern princess," Arnook smiled at Katara. "Daughter Katara, we are honored to be in your presence. We heard much about you and your bending prowess."

While everyone else was quick to dive into conversation, the prince utilized the time of Katara's spotlight to come up with a plan for joining the Air Nomad feast somehow. Of course, he would've probably devised one if he hadn't been repeatedly bombarded with questions by the ministers and other politicians after a while, shifting the spotlight to him. He reached a point where he started directing the conversation back to Katara and pointing out his little brother's mischief to shift the spotlight in another direction, and in order to be completely ignored, he began cramming a lot of noodles into his mouth. This was all to the slight dismay of Hakoda, who had been looking to teach his older children (especially Sokka, the future chief) proper behavior and interaction within an informal but quasi-political setting.

Hakoda noticed something else as well; Arnook seemed to be taking an interest in Sokka. Perhaps the Northern chief was impressed with him. He had chosen to sit right next to him, in fact, and had asked him of his various travels over the years, which cities he liked best, what skills he enjoyed practicing, all the dialects he had picked up on, and things of that nature.

"This young isumataq has the strength of a lion-turtle," Arnook noted. "He has kept the South afloat since the tender age of fourteen. It is not an easy task to sustain a hungry tribe for so long and boost the morale of the tribefolk during desperate times. May the children of the Water Tribe look to you as an inspiration, dear Sokka."

And while everyone cheered, a smiling Hakoda subtly leaned close to his wife and whispered, "It seems Chief Arnook really likes our boy."

"He really does," Kya beamed.

Eventually, Sokka found that he had enough of maintaining overly formal posture, so when Arnook invited all of them to the leisure hall and promised a tour of the palace afterwards, Sokka found it the perfect opportunity to excuse himself and break away.

"I'm gonna find a bathroom. Maybe explore the place a bit. I'll meet you guys back here."

After quietly convincing his parents that he won't get into a fight with anyone and persuading the persistent security guards with, "Chill out, brothers", he dodged the many pairs of intrigued eyes and left the area company. He strolled through the palace, keeping himself hidden in the shadows so he wouldn't be easily recognized. He found that he was gravitating towards areas where fewer people were wandering around, and with every passing corridor and every grand archway leading to other chambers of the palace, he found that he was getting further and further away from the wandering authorities. When the presence of other people became scarce, he shifted his focus to the architecture, how the Crescent Moon Estate that they were staying in stood out in lavishness while the palace, somber as it seemed sometimes, was nevertheless fancier than anything he'd ever seen in the South, maybe even the whole world. Chandeliers made of imported gemstones, curtains matching the traditional pelts dispersed occasionally in the hallways, torch sconces crafted in the designs of Arctic animals and Water Tribe spirits, and the pristine walls— sometimes glassy-looking and sometimes resembling the thick walls of a typical igloo— which made for breath-taking effects like the reflection of the pelts upon the opposite wall, making it look like the actual spirits were lingering around in the form of shadows.

It was one such shadow of a particularly gruesome-looking La mask, accompanied by the drastic contrast presented by the gentle Tui mask next to it that distracted him and made him trip on a mop that was in the way. He ended up tumbling into a nearby empty room, knocking over a pile of pelts by the door. Blaming his karma as always, he grumbled, "stupid mop, stupid door" and began to organize the "stupid pelts" back in their "stupid order." He suddenly froze when he heard rapid sets of footsteps and the excited hollering of a couple of children.

"Guys, over here!" a little boy said, holding a few scarves in his hands. He didn't notice Sokka as he barged into the room that the warrior was currently in. He knocked over the pelts that Sokka was putting back and nearly tripped over the warrior. The other children froze instantly as they saw him.

"Hey!" Sokka caught the boy before he could fall over. "Watch where you're going, kid—mmph!"

The boy clamped his hand over Sokka's mouth. "SHHHH! We're gonna hide in here, so be quiet, okay?"

"She's coming, Agent Green!" a little girl whispered to the boy. "Sister's down the hall!"

"Copy that! Everybody hide!" said "Agent Green," who Sokka presumed was the leader, and at his word, the other children crawled into different spots in the room.

"I can't find a spot!" the girl panicked.

"Over here, Agent Yellow!" Agent Green pulled her next to him, and Sokka now had to deal with the weight of two little kids crushing each of his legs. Agent Green shushed Sokka with every breath the warrior took.

"Can't you hide somewhere else, kiddos—?"

Two other kids angrily popped out of their hiding places and plopped their hands over the warrior's mouth to keep him quiet. They ended up hiding behind him, and soon, they could all hear the set of footsteps gliding across the ice.

"I know you're here somewhere, agents," came a voice that Sokka found to be very familiar. Sokka felt his heart racing all of a sudden.

"She also babysits some mornings."

It has to be her!

"I know every inch of this palace," the princess went on. "You can't hide from me that easily."

"Wow, angaju is really good at this!" Agent Yellow whispered.

"Well she's not gonna get us this time," said Agent Green resolutely.

Angaju? Of course, it could be one of the many titles of respect that meant "older sister" but what if it was her actual name? "Hey, kiddos, is her name Angaju—?"

"Shush!" Agent Green hissed in Sokka's face. "How many times do we gotta tell you this?"

"But she gets to talk!" he pointed to Agent Yellow.

"Because she's the leader like me and you're not, so shush up!"

Ugh.

Soon enough, the princess stepped into the room cautiously given the fact that she was blindfolded. She wasn't wearing her head coverings this time, so her beautiful white hair fell freely behind her in flowing rivulets. Sokka felt his throat go dry. Heat lit his face aflame from inside.

"Guys, I already lost one of my scarves just a few hours ago," she felt her way around the area. Sunlight peeked in and concentrated on a button, which bore the number eight and was pinned to her tunic.

"If I lose this one, too, I'll be kicked out of my job…" she glided directly past a girl who was hiding in a corner, " and I can't play hide-and-freeze with you anymore."

The princess of the North being cautious so she wouldn't be kicked out of her job as a servant… Sokka didn't ever think he'd witness a situation like this. He sighed and brought his palms to his face and looked up at her, noting how gracefully she moved.

"Hey! Hey, you!"

Sokka looked down at Agent Green, who was glaring at him and whispering as loudly as he could without giving himself away, "Why are you looking at her like that?"

"At who? Sokka blinked. "Like what?"

"Our angaju!" the girl frowned.

"It's rude to stare," the boy said. "My mama says good boys don't stare at girls like that—"

"There you are!"

"Aaahhhh!" Agents Green and Yellow squealed and barely moved out of the way as the princess swooped forward in their direction and knelt to catch them. She ended up wrapping her arms around Sokka, though. "Gotcha!"

Sokka hiccupped at her touch, color racing to his face. The other kids stepped out of their hiding spots and looked on in surprise before giggling to themselves. Agent Green, though relieved for not being caught, still cast a suspicious frown at the blushing warrior.

"I told you I'd get you," the princess laughed, sounding highly confident, but a moment later, she frowned. "Hey...who's…" She moved her arm up to his shoulder, palpating his bicep. "Wait...who's arm is this?"

The children burst out laughing.

"Joke's on you, angaju!"

"Yeah, you really know your way around the palace!"

"You tagged a stranger!"

"Hey, don't be mean!" Agent Green frowned. "It's okay, Sister, you didn't know."

"A stranger? Who did I…?" She frowned and took off her blindfold in a panic, gasping as she saw the Southern prince fumble for the right words. "Your Highness, I…" she jerked backward. "I-I didn't realize…" and she bowed, "I'm so sorry—"

"No no, I'm sorry, I...I didn't think...I thought you...those kids were—"

"You were staring at our angaju all weird," Agent Yellow put her hands on her hips.

"I-I can explain!" he stammered in exasperation. "Y-You see, I...you...last night...yesterday…I was…" He took a deep breath. "I was looking for you and…I didn't mean...I came here and I was pelting the puts…" Pelting the puts? "Ugh, I was putting the pelts—"

"This is ours now!" another little boy waved the princess's headscarf in the air, but Agent Green frowned and took it from him, giving it back to her. The princess immediately put it back on to cover her face.

"Number Eight!" came a shrill voice likely belonging to another servant. "Number Eight, the moonpeach batch is looking for you!"

"I need to go, Your Highness," she bowed to Sokka. "Again, I'm really sorry." And she quickly darted out of the room.

"W-Wait! Y-Your other scarf!" He pulled the scarves out of his pocket and tried to follow her. "I just wanted to say that—"

But he was pushed back onto the pelts by an angry Agent Green, and with that, the boy and the rest of the kids followed the princess out of the hallway entirely.

"I just wanted to say I'm Sokka," he mumbled. "And I'm sorry for not telling you before."

---

He had drifted off to sleep on top of the pelts that he knocked over until Katara found him and woke him up. He assured her that he was okay and didn't get as much sleep as he should, but he might as well have swooned again. For some reason, his brain turned off entirely whenever he saw her. The hair, the eyes, the face, the laugh.

"So did you find her?" Katara ended up breaking the silence.

"Find who?"

"That girl."

"What girl?"

"The girl that made you swoon twice, smart guy."

"I did not swoon!"

"Fine, the girl who owns those scarves you've been hoarding all day."

"I'm keeping them safe so I can return them to her, thank you very much."

"Is that why you didn't want to stay for the tour? So you can personally go out of your way to look for her and return her scarves? I mean, I understand if it's something else. It's about time you ran after someone." Because it's like he became an adult first and was just now becoming a hormonal teen. It also seemed like it was just yesterday that he said he wasn't going to "make babies with a Northerner," and now here he was, proving to the tribe that he wasn't asexual after all and was actually interested in Northern women (well, at least in the princess of the North and now this mysterious scarf lady).

Sokka only flushed an entire shade of red. "It's not like that!" because he was not becoming a sap like his friends back home. Oh, but who was he kidding, the princess was beautiful and was making him feel all these warm and fuzzy feelings uggghhh.

The siblings walked through the other parts of the palace and eventually stepped through a series of doors leading outside. Sokka looked around and noted that very few people were there, so he took the chance to tell Katara about Daughter Sayen's invitation.

"But why us?"

"As if I know," Sokka said. "But it's really important that we go."

"And how would you know that?"

"I'm the oldest, so I naturally know more things than you."

But Katara wasn't buying that explanation. "You've been acting weird all day today. What's the matter with you? And why are you so worried about me?"

"It's not just you," he sighed. "I'm worried in general."

"But why?"

Knowing that he was cornered by his sister, who was such a mom when it came to these kinds of things and would no doubt leave him alone until he told her, spilled the political details he'd learned from Zhi, Ivaneq, and others. He told her about the dangers that were waiting for the princess of the North, and he told her about the potential dangers that would befall on them if they got any more involved with Khasiq and his folks. Of course, he didn't tell Katara about his suspicions regarding the princess because no one needed to know that part. He was also not going to risk it; he could tell the princess desperately relied on the freedoms that came with whatever plans she had in mind, and while he was going to do his detective work to figure things out, he wasn't going to take her freedom away from her by revealing everything to the public. If anything, he wanted to help out in whichever way he can, even if that help was just him pretending not to know things.

"I'm only telling you about this political stuff because I expect you to be on top of your game when it comes to your bending," Sokka told his sister. "If a Nationalist comes near you, then whack! If Nuqao takes a step forward, then whapao! If Khasiq so much looks at you, then whip out your water pouches and give him a taste of that waterbending slice!"

"I kicked every butt of every tribesman back home, for your information," she crossed her arms. "I can handle these things."

"I also expect you to be within a two-foot distance from me in the event that there's an eclipse."

"Gramp-Gramp taught me combat, too, you know. I'm not a damsel in distress."

"Well as a big brother, I'll always have certain worries," he said. "That's why I think it's a good idea to be really good friends with the Avatar."

"Avatar Aang?" Katara said, taken by a train of thought. "I guess it would make sense...But we haven't even met him yet. Mom and Dad plan on having us meet him soon, though. We have to meet him at some point."

"We can't wait until Mom and Dad make the move. Remember, we don't want anyone else to know about this stuff just yet. I say we make friends with the Avatar, and when we all reach the "best-buds" status, we can tell him what's going on, and we can make something happen."

"Okay, but how are we going to meet him beforehand?"

"Sis, you know I'm a firm believer in making friendships and bonding over food. Let's have lunch with him today."

"But he's going to be in the Air Nomad division."

"Well yeah, and we need to find a way to get in and secure seats next to his. Friendship with the Avatar is sure to come in handy." And because the princess is working there, no one needed to know that part, either.

"We both know that's going to be a disaster for you. You can't be vegetarian to save your life."

His shoulders slumped. "Yes, meat is incredibly tasty and delicious and is one of the greatest forms of happiness out there in the world…but even if it kills me, a meal with just veggies is still worth it!" For the princess, at least.

"Well we still need to figure out a way to get seats next to…" she trailed off and looked to the side towards a group of steep snowy hills. She thought she heard a group of people yelling, and as the seconds passed, the yelling grew more distinct. A large black-and-white blob came into view in the distance, blurred by a cloud of mist generated by friction against the snow. "Hey, what...what is that?"

"What's what?"

"That," she pointed, "that black-and-white thing over there."

The blob was accompanied by more black-and-white specs that blazed behind it. They were all getting bigger as they got closer but still weren't clear to the eye. The yells grew louder, and a series of hollers, cackles and snorts got the siblings' attention.

"What the heck is going on?" But as the mist cleared up, Sokka knew exactly what the deal was. Crushing through the remaining mist and sliding down the slopes were very large otter-penguins, and riding on their backs were a few young men. Riding the penguin in the front were two men; one of them, seemingly an Earth Kingdomer who had his hands up in the air, wore a pair of goggles on his head and likely had bandages wrapped around his legs, peeking out from the opening between the ends of his pants and his shoes. The man was probably disabled, and Sokka confirmed this with the way a large, thick belt was wrapped around the Earth Kingdomer and his friend in front, keeping the two friends joined. The man in front was wearing a red headband and clothes that were obviously Fire Nation-esque. Both friends bore wild excitement on their faces, but their excitement quickly turned to alarm when they caught sight of the Water Tribe-looking duo standing right in their path. They were moving extremely fast, too.

"Yo!" the Fire Nationer exclaimed. "Out of the way, hotman!"

"MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" the Earth Kingdomer yelled.

"Katara, look out!" Sokka managed to push his sister out of the way before she had the chance to react, but given his own luck, he was unable to steer clear of the chaos that was sliding towards him atop a penguin. He yelled and the men kept hollering, their backs bent, and as the penguin slid underneath Sokka's feet in the inevitable crash that followed, Sokka soared into the air. The friends continued to slide past his mid-air somersault on their penguin, looking back with wide eyes at what just happened.

"AAAAHH!"

"Sokka!" Katara called.

A flailing Sokka found himself heading back down to the snow only to land on top of another penguin, his butt facing the air, his belly sliding onto the back of the penguin. The penguin gave a startled jerk at the weight of another human that plopped on top of it, and staring straight down at Sokka was another Earth Kingdomer in wild hair and green robes bearing a gold badge— he had to be someone important. He certainly didn't look the part if he was an important figure, though; in fact, he looked a little insane at first glance with his missing tooth, one eye caught in a twitching position and the other eye with its bulging socket. The man let out a howl of laughter as Sokka recovered from his fall and flailed to a sitting position with great difficulty, his back to the front view, his knuckles turning white from holding onto the penguin so hard.

"Well isn't this a twist?" the Earth Kingdomer snorted in between his rumbles. "Looks like you're along for the ride, my friend!"

"What? No!" Sokka screeched. "Get me off of this!"

"HEEHEEEEEE!" The Earth Kingdomer turned around and called, "Look at me now! I'm way ahead of ya, Mr. Bonzu Pippinpaddleopsicopolis! Wahahaha!"

The penguin skyrocketed forward. Sokka yelled, turning his head and glancing at the snowy hills that awaited them while his penguin-buddy kept laughing and snorting. The ride had somehow gotten faster as the penguin flailed its flippers and slid through the snow at increased speeds.

"This thing's wild! Penguins aren't supposed to be this crazy!" Sokka sputtered.

"That's 'cause they never tried chi-enhancing tea!"

"Chi-what now?!"

"Sokka!" Katara ran after her brother but failed to see that another penguin was darting in her direction from behind her. Hollering after her was a bald Air Nomad with airbender tattoos, his excitement taken over by fright.

"HEEEY! Move, please! Excuse me, Miss!"

"Sis, move out of the way!" Sokka shouted but squeezed his eyes shut and facepalmed in time for the bald monk and his penguin to make direct contact with his screaming sister. "Katara!"

"AAAH!"

The monk caught Katara in his arms, though, stopping her from being trampled into the snow with his airbending, and in the process of finding something to hold onto, her hands flew around him in panic, gripping his shoulders. The airbender blinked at her with his shocked grey eyes.

"I'm so sorry!"

"Who in the world are you?" Katara asked, eyes wide. "Who do you think are to just—ah!"

"Agh!" They ended up sliding over a bump that jolted Katara against the monk, her hands finding purchase around his neck. He kept his arms around her, though, and held her in place. The penguin didn't seem to be affected by the obstacle, simply flapping its flippers and making little noises.

"Oh my Spirits," Katara breathed.

"Again, I'm really sorry for all this, ma'am!" the airbender said. "We wanted to go penguin sled racing, and we didn't think anyone would be in this route!"

"Well you should've done a little more research, in my opinion!"

He chuckled nervously until another bump rocked the two of them. This time, he brought her closer to him and tightened his grip a little so she wouldn't fly out of his arms from the impact. Her wavy hair flew in his face, and he blushed and fumbled to dodge her tresses.

"Thanks...sorry, sorry," she held her hair away from his face and turned her concentration to the snowy hills, squinting to find her brother.

"Was that your friend earlier?" the Air Nomad asked, loud enough so she could hear him through the bleating winds.

"That's my brother, actually."

"Don't worry, I'll try to catch us up with him— woah!"

"Aah!"

The airbender helped steer the penguin out of the way just before they could crash into a huge glacier. "Yarp yarp! Yarp!" he rubbed the penguin's head, and they continued sliding forward.

"What was that?"

"A glacier."

"I meant that noise you were making to the penguin."

"I was talking to it! You couldn't tell?" he asked, faking offense. "I told him he did a good job. I have a way with animals, you see. Yarp yarp!"

The penguin made a little noise in its throat and slid forward even faster, and in spite of what she should logically be feeling like anger or disbelief, Katara simply giggled because the monk had quite an adorable grin on his face. He beamed and helped her sit more comfortably in front of him. "Keep your knees bent and hang on tight!"

A fumbling Katara soon found balance, and the bewilderment on her face softened into fascination and wonder. Before long, she had the biggest smile on her lips as the penguin raced ahead, and the thrill of the gushing winds knocked the breath out of her laughs.

"It's fun, isn't it?"

Katara looked up at him and saw his stormy eyes twinkling. "Yeah! It's must faster than I remember!" she exclaimed, and her response brought the excitement back to his face.

"Then you're gonna love this," his grin widened, and he blasted a gust of wind behind them. The penguin was propelled forward as it rode the wind, holding its flippers out and making an excited eeeeek!

The speed allowed the duo to quickly catch up with the other penguin sledders. The Fire Nationer and his Earth Kingdom friend, who were now in second place, turned around and waved at the monk and the tribeswoman who had warmed up to the activity. "I see you got yourself a sledding partner, too!" the Fire Nationer called.

"You know what they say! Two's better than one!" And the monk blasted another gust of wind in the opposite direction, allowing the penguin to slide forward even faster until they overtook the sledders in front of them.

"Hey, that's cheating!"

"You're not supposed to airbend!"

"I'm not in the race anymore!" the monk answered, deciding to take to the more fun side of things.

They slid forward and finally saw the penguin carrying his brother and the other Earth Kingdomer.

"Sorry! Coming through!" the Air Nomad said, and they glided past the second Earth Kingdomer, who cackled and let out a few more snorts. Sokka, who was holding onto their penguin for dear life, found himself being revived when he saw his sister, but he wasn't sure how he felt about her being immediately friendly with that bald monk.

"Hey!" the warrior cried out to the monk. "Hey, you! That's my sister— gaaaah!"

"It's okay, Sokka, I'm fine! Never better, actually!" And as Katara looked up at the airbender, he grinned back down at her and blew another gust of wind, making Katara laugh breathlessly when they passed by Sokka and disappeared into the snowy mist below.

"Katara!"

"Don't worry, my buddy's got it taken care of!" the Earth Kingdomer said, and to Sokka's utter shock, he simply unlocked his knees from around the penguin and threw himself off of the penguin. He fell into the snow but kicked his legs up, waving to a horrified Sokka. "See ya later, sledding buddy!"

"WAAAAHHHHH!" Sokka screamed his way down a hill and disappeared with the penguin into the snowy mist. "HEEEEYYYY! Somebody help! How do I stop this thing?! I don't know how to steer this thing! I'm sitting on backwards, dammit!"

Then, faintly but surely, he heard Katara and the bald monk laughing in the near distance, the sight of them a blur with the persistent mist.

"Katara!" he called. "Katara, tell me how to stop this thing!"

And even though she popped up in his view, she wasn't paying attention to him. In fact, his baby sister was paying more attention to that airbender who was teaching her how to hold her arms out and feel the wind fly through them.

"What are you two doing?!"

Katara still ignored him, lost in the airbender's charm as she held her arms out the way he demonstrated to her, and she felt the wind fly through her hair and the sleeves of her robe. She swore she had never felt this kind of feeling within her before.

"Wooo!"

"Wooohooo!"

"AAAAAAHHHH KATARAAAA!"

"It feels like I'm flying!" Katara said to which the airbender laughed.

"Real flying is even better!" he guaranteed and whipped out his glider, which had been strapped behind him. "Wanna give it a try?"

And Katara looked a little nervous. "A-Actually, I don't know about that."

"It'll be fun! I'll make sure you won't fall."

"I...o-okay…"

"Hey! I'm right here, you know!" Sokka snapped. "Guys, please, tell me how to stop this thiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnggggg—!" and the warrior ended up torpedoing off of an ice bank first while the monk opened his glider and latched onto it. Katara's arms wrapped around his neck, and both of them unlocked their knees from around the penguin just as it launched off of the ice bank. The penguin landed gracefully on the ice, and Sokka, who felt his stomach drop upon seeing that his sister and the airbender weren't seated on the penguin, looked up to see that the two of them were flying. The airbender was maneuvering his glider to control the wind currents and stay in the air while Katara was looking down in fright-turned-fascination at the snowscape below.

"Wooo!"

"Woohooo!"

"AAAAHHHH!"

"This is amazing!" Katara breathed, waving to her brother down below, and the entire time, Sokka noted that the airbender was grinning a little too much at Katara. Not that the warrior could do anything when he himself lingered in the air for a couple of seconds before traveling back downward. The penguin he was sitting on had a fairly smooth landing and continued gliding forward, and Sokka didn't know how he managed to not get knocked off of it. The penguin's rumbles vibrated through his palms, sending a light tickle through his jumpy skin.

Just ride it through, Sokka, there's nothing you can do, he told himself, heaving for breaths. Just ride it through. It's not like anyone's in the way….

But the universe was not done with Sokka. It seemed the penguin had a boost of its chi that made it hyperactive, and in its excitement, it flailed in zigzags down the icy slope. In the distance, Sokka saw a group of servants lugging a cart around. And they were right in his way.

Blubbering blobfish. "Hey! Move out of the way! HEEYYYY!"

That certainly caught some people's attention.

"Everybody move out of the way! I can't stop this thing!" he kept screeching like a hyena-bat, his neck seeming to be perpetually craned out of its comfort. Nearly everyone around him was confused to see a man with his hands wrapped near a penguin's rear and his own rear resting on top of a large sliding otter-penguin so unceremoniously. He didn't take anyone's stares to heart, though. That is, until he saw a familiar pair of baby blue eyes staring at him, eyes wide from beneath her headscarf and face veil, barely given enough of a warning as she dropped a basket of moonpeaches that she was carrying up the slope.

He froze, already feeling lightheaded again, and his heart dropped into his stomach.

"AAHHH!"

"AAAHHHH!"

"Oof!"

The bystanders witnessed the screaming servant somehow end up in an awkward position in the warrior's lap, her hands gripping the fabric of his tunic. His arms were wrapped around her, and his knees gripped the penguin resolutely, his face becoming as red as the Fire Nationer's headband as she fumbled to get off of his lap and find purchase on the penguin. She panicked and looked for something else to grab on other than him, but then her headscarf became undone yet again, her face aflush as they blinked at each other face to face.

The other servants froze at the sight. Some of them immediately pulled their carts out of the way while the others barely moved out of their path. There were other servants pulling other carts in front of them, though, and they didn't have a quick enough warning to move out of the way, so Sokka and the princess ended up screaming and sliding through the pathway, nearly running into the carts while the penguin kept surging forward. Several imported vegetables toppled into the snow, some rolling into the air and landing on top of Sokka's head. He pulled her into his grip long enough to shield her from the debris.

Everything happened so fast. He only had traces of memory after that regarding the jarring halt of the penguin, the mist that had taken over and blinded them, and the way he had plopped into the snow on the middle of the hill and felt the princess's weight fall on top him when the penguin shrugged them off and quickly waddled away. Gravity dragged them downward as they rolled down the hill together, and before long, they splashed into the water that was waiting below, startling a few fishermen and a gondolier.

When he felt like his senses were finally coming back, Sokka felt her fumble off of him. She shivered her way out of the water and didn't bother keeping her face covered this time, offering her hand to help him up. He took it and dragged himself out of the water, and he really tried his best not to notice the way the water made her clothes stick closely to her body, the way they brought out her gentle contours.

After bending the water off of him, she bowed and rushed away, putting her scarves back on. Sokka closed his eyes and sank into the snow on his belly, and for a long time, he stayed that way, face-first in the snow, contemplating the depths of his embarrassment and his place in the universe. Die. Die now, you fool, it's over. She probably wants to have nothing to do with you ever again.

No, don't think that. This isn't about her liking you. This is about you making sure the princess is safe. You are going to march into that feast, and you are going to get a seat in the Air Nomad feast.

---

He wasn't sure how much time had passed by when he was helped up by someone: the bald monk from earlier. He and Katara had finally made it back from their penguin-sledding and air soaring, and they hadn't even met.

"Thanks for the impromptu penguin sledding experience," Katara smiled at the monk, "though my brother here clearly had issues."

Sokka found his defensiveness kicking back in as he glared at the Air Nomad.

"I'm really sorry about all that," the monk said in all sincerity. "Our fault entirely. We weren't watching where we were going…"

"You sure weren't!" Sokka sputtered. "Do you even know what I went through just now?!"

But the monk hadn't really been paying attention after his apology. He had his eyes fixed on Katara, a goofy grin on his face, and Katara was grinning back at him. Sokka crossed his arms. "Over here, Airhead!"

The airbender blinked at him. Katara glared at her brother. "Sokka, stop being so rude! He said it was an accident."

"Well it must've been a good accident for you, wasn't it?" he said to his sister.

"It definitely wasn't what I expected, but it was really fun. I haven't gone penguin-sledding since I was a kid!"

"Anyone can be a kid at heart," the monk smiled before turning back to Sokka. "Again, I'm really sorry."

Sokka took another look at the monk's innocent face and sighed. "Very well, you're forgiven." His karma has lately been crazy anyway. "Besides, you weren't the one who slammed into me. Your buddy over there left me to deal with a wild penguin, and thanks to him, I ran into everything that sticks!"

"Sorry, pal. My friend Bumi's a bit adventurous. He's the more extreme one out of the two of us. Kuzon and Teo aren't nearly as bad."

"Wait...his name is Bumi? He had that gold badge on him, didn't he?"

"Yeah," the monk nodded. "He's Bumi, the prince of Omashu."

Sokka widened his eyes.

"You're telling me that I went penguin sledding with the prince of Omashu?!"

"That's right!" the airbender chuckled before clearing his throat. "But I do apologize on behalf of him until he gets here."

"You don't need to apologize, it's totally fine," Katara said to him, and he rubbed the back of his bald head, his face growing warm.

"I tell you what," Sokka wrapped his hand around the monk. "There's a way you can make it up to us."

"Sokka—"

"It's okay," the monk said and smiled at Sokka. "Anything you want, my friend."

"You happen to know where my buddy, Aang, is?"

The monk raised his eyebrows. "Aang? As in the Avatar?"

"Are there any other Aangs running around?"

"Sokka, be nice!" Katara glared.

"What? He should know. He's an Air Nomad. Aren't you, Mr. Bonzu Pippinpaddleopsicopolis?"

"Not sure if you can tell by my arrows, my friend," the monk laughed. "And actually, that's the name that Bumi—"

"Well then, Bonzu, I'll have you know that Avatar Aang and I are very close friends, and I have decided to have lunch with him today."

Katara then realized what her brother was going for. What if this monk knew who the Avatar was and called out their bluff?

"But the simpletons at the palace didn't have a spot reserved for us in the Air Nomad feast and are asking us for reservations! Can you believe that?"

"So you don't have reservations?"

Katara furiously shook her head at Sokka, but he ignored her and said, "Reservations? Pssh, the Avatar and I go waayyy back."

"Oh really?" the monk smiled.

"Of course. We're best buds."

"Sokka!" Katara nudged him with her elbow.

"My apologies," the monk said. "I wasn't aware of that."

"Well now you know, pal, so do you mind telling us where he is? We'll go see him for ourselves."

"Actually," the airbender wrapped his hand over the tribesman, "Why don't I escort you to him?"

Katara widened her eyes. Sokka shook his head, "Actually, that's not necessary. We want to surprise him, you know? We'll see him ourselves—"

"Please, good sir, Avatar Aang will be really upset with me if I don't escort you to him," the airbender grinned. "I have a feeling he's eagerly waiting for you."

---

A/N: Sorry this chapter's longer than usual. I said I'd introduce Aang, and I wanted to stand by my word.

So I've been taking the time to learn more about Inuit culture as well as some words in Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun, and related dialects to correspond with the Northern Water Tribe languages (except for Nagaran and Angkaran, those are fictional). I plan on using Kalaallisut to correspond to one of the main languages of the Southern Water Tribe. If any of you reading this knows a thing or two about any of these beautiful dialects and plan on enlightening me or giving me suggestions, feel free to PM me. I want to get this right, but unfortunately, there are not too many online resources for these dialects, and I'm not sure how reliable the ones I'm using really are. Also, I plan on using Sanskrit and/or Pali for the Air Nomad languages to correspond to Hindu/Buddhist influences. I'd say I have a pretty good idea on how to utilize those (since I'm a part of that culture myself), but if you still want to send in suggestions, feel free to PM me for that, too.

TL;DR: Sorry for the long chapter. Worked on worldbuilding, so it took a while. Thanks for reading!