Chapter 22: The Princess's Keeper

As he had no other friend to confide in with regard to how overwhelmed he felt, Arnook relied on the company of the Southern prince as well as Piandao, Gyatso, and a bitter-looking man with wild white hair who Sokka later learned was Jeong Jeong. The man, in spite of his not-so-tidy appearance, was a master firebender of impressive history in his prowess and humanitarian efforts, hence his honored position in the White Lotus. As a disciplined man, he didn't seem to tolerate impatience or clumsiness very well given that he addressed Sokka as "an oaf of a prince" when the warrior accidentally tripped his way into the throne room. In spite of his initial annoyance, however, Jeong Jeong invited Sokka to take the seat between him and Piandao, taking a second— and only a second— to smile a rare smile at him, even promoting him from an ordinary oaf to the oaf who "bagged a White Lotus position" in his youth and somehow "had the guts" to stand up to the Fire Lord's "manchild of a younger brother."

The three older men, being esteemed members of the Order of the White Lotus, currently offered moral support for Arnook in however way they could, but they simply could not fathom why the Northern chieftain refused to have the organization use its influence to drive Khasiq behind bars. This was something the Northern princess herself was trying to do after all, albeit through the small amount of influence she had cultivated so far through her Black Lotus Project. Why couldn't Arnook, being the actual chieftain of the Northern Water Tribe, take advantage of that project, too, and opt for the aid of a powerful coalition of world leaders? Was the chieftain really suffering from such crippling fear? Nevertheless, as prominent members of such a powerful organization with intentions of closely supporting the Black Lotus Project, Piandao, Gyatso, and Jeong Jeong felt it was crucial to get Arnook to agree to their interference one way or another.

Sokka, meanwhile, remained quiet for the most part, the princess's observations looping through his head. "I saw the way the chief looked at you. He really likes you. And I'm going to be super honest with you. My instincts tell me he's even going to talk to you about marriage. If you'd like to be my potential suitor." It made him feel flattered, of course, but also anxious. Like in really a happy way. Like, in a really really happy way. He nearly jumped with anticipation every time the chief looked to him, but not a single remark was made over the course of the first hour of the meeting.

Apart from being overly alert in case Arnook decided to finally make the announcement, Sokka also listened and observed and mentally took notes with regard to all that they did talk about, all while being repeatedly attracted to a silk tapestry of Tui that hung from the wall of Arnook's study. The Yue-esque Tui was all beauty as she floated over the ocean, her long white hair billowing in the sky and mingling with the whiteness of the clouds. She was smiling serenely below her at the many hands and waves that reached out to her, telling them with her smile that they had nothing to fear. Sokka, forgetting that he was in an audience with very important people, smiled dreamily, taken by nostalgia, going back in time until the person sitting between Piandao and Jeong Jeong wasn't a twenty-three-year-old prince but a five-year-old tribesboy with wild hopes and a fascination for the fairytale that was Tui. In the back of his mind were Lady's words— pervasive and thrilling— from a written speech that had burrowed into his mind and made it its home.

Some of the sisters in the mission find that they are repulsed by the ever-sanguine image of Tui. Clearly La, the Angry One, is the doer here, they say, and it is about time that the Goddess is depicted as being overcome by rage rather than be robbed of all other expressions. That may be true to an extent, and yet I say to them that it is only a matter of perspective. Can it not be that La prepares for the battles that he is yet to fight, but Tui has already won the battles that are yet to come? Perhaps that is why La is stern and focused and Tui is calm and smiling. Perhaps La is the one who is really smiling, for he is defined by his whitened soul, while Tui is the one who is really raging, for she is defined by her blackened soul. It could be that the smiling Tui fights La's battles and that the agitated La is the smile on Tui's face. Or perhaps our dark La is the shade of peace, and our bright Tui, scorching effort. Discussions, discussions.

But let it be remembered that this pleasing moon and this brawling ocean are only outward images, my friends. If we are to accept that Tui and La are but one Beloved that is seated in all beings, we must accept that it is not bound by dualities. The Beloved is both the struggle of the cosmos and the promises of life and victory that come with it. It is both a smiling face that is enraged by injustice and an angry face yearning for love.

"Sokka? Sokka, can you hear me?"

"Huh? What?" he snapped out of his thinking and blinked, feeling everyone's stares on him.

"I was asking you if the princess was really coming from the Spirit Oasis when you saw her," Arnook said.

"Oh...no doubt about it, Chief, she was the only one there."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I didn't see anyone else there."

Arnook sighed, rubbing his head.

"I half-expected your advisor to be here, Brother Arnook," Jeong Jeong said. "He doesn't seem to leave you alone except for when you're meeting with guests."

"He's caught up with something. A few tensions regarding Kinji."

"Kinji? What does Khasiq have to do with Kinji's case?"

"The man's his ally, so he has to do something to safeguard his reputation."

"Kinji is his ally?" Gyatso seemed surprised. "After everything we've been hearing about him in just these past few hours? That man is no spiritual leader. A total of fifty reports have been filed against him in the last three hours alone."

"There's a lot to hear about people like Kinji, but Khasiq always made sure they were either not heard or ignored as rumors. Until now, that is. All thanks to that woman who suddenly went missing." The Northern chief held a degree of caution on his face. "No one has ever dared to report on Kinji this blatantly before, but she was quite bold for tainting his reputation so quickly. And the people have taken her as their inspiration. Whoever she is…"

"Chief Arnook, wouldn't it be easier if instead of worrying about dangers, you officially conveyed the issues here to the White Lotus?" Jeong Jeong suggested. "We are willing to stand by you—"

"No," he shook his head fervently. "No, Master Jeong Jeong. This is an internal issue, and it will stay that way. Khasiq...Khasiq can be very ruthless. The things he has done in his past…"

"I hope you are not doubting the White Lotus, my friend," Gyatso said.

"No, Brother, not at all. Call me a coward, for all I care, but I won't take any risks. I don't want anything happening to the princess."

Piandao, who had been looking through a few scrolls, mused aloud, "I wonder if the princess and that woman are allies. If so, they definitely picked the right time to have Kinji exposed like this, considering the princess's orders include dispatching the authorities to take Kinji into custody for his crimes."

"What makes you think they could be allies?" Arnook asked, alarmed.

"You mentioned to me before that with Khasiq's influence and propaganda, it is near impossible for anyone to have action taken against him and his allies. Well how convenient is it that right when the princess decided to take action, there was an actual report filed against Kinji for the first time in years?"

Sokka widened his eyes.

"And now, there is an overnight revolution of sorts taking place," Jeong Jeong said, "and the justice headquarters are being overwhelmed by complaints and reports—"

"Saying the princess has an ally out there is a bit of a stretch, I think," the prince interrupted quickly. "It could be a coincidence. Either that, or...or maybe someone informed Her Highness of all that's happening. And when they learned she was going to do what she can to stop Kinji, they finally got the confidence to file a report…" He took a deep breath, trying to maintain his cool, "I think these possibilities make more sense because Her Highness hasn't set foot outside the palace. She never had a significant amount of contact with anyone, from what I understand."

"She has contact with Lady Sayen," Arnook pointed out. "Sayen is a part of her council."

"But the Revivalists don't need a reason to be anonymous if they're already blatantly against Khasiq, don't you think?" Sokka asked.

"Maybe they don't need to be anonymous, but Lady does. Who knows if she's the one who filed the report. She didn't reveal her face, did she?"

"Even if Lady revealed her face, I'm assuming you wouldn't recognize her? Since no one has ever seen her face before?"

Another point made.

"Besides, the woman claimed to be a nonbender...a-according to what I heard," Sokka added, trying to maintain a confident look. "How can a nonbender be Lady if Lady is a powerful bender?"

"She could be lying to protect her identity," Gyatso said. "I can see how it is difficult for a nonbender to pretend to be a bender, but it is quite easy for a bender to pretend to be a nonbender."

"Maybe, but Lady is not the only person who's seeking justice out there," Sokka pointed out, having told himself that he wasn't going to stop until he was sure any and all suspicions that could possibly catch up to the princess were deemed null and void. "Lady is not the only woman in the tribe who is starting to speak up. From what I've heard, the North is actually a mess right now and desperately in need of supervision by human rights advocates."

But Arnook said nothing of the comment, nothing of the social crises at hand, not even when the White Lotus trio looked to him knowingly. He only shook his head, pupils wavering in terror. "The princess...she can't...she can't be allies with Lady…"

"There's no way, Chief," Sokka said again, calm and confident. "You said so yourself. The princess has never been beyond the Forbidden Chamber until the past few weeks, and even now, she has never been outside the palace, much less the inner ring. Lady is the people's weapon. I would highly doubt she'd concern herself with the bigotry in the palace as opposed to feeding the thousands of people who look up to her mission past the inner ring."

It seemed like he was complimenting Lady, in a way. Jeong Jeong gave him a dubious look.

"At least, that's what she would probably think if we consider her perspective," the Southern prince covered. "I'm only saying that the princess can't possibly know so much about Lady. Or even if she did, she could never interact with her." He turned back to the chief, "Your Majesty, you would have a reason to be worried for her life if she was openly favoring only the Revivalists, but she's keeping everyone in her circle. Nationalists, Neo-Nationalists, Revivalists, the politically ambiguous."

"Yes…" Arnook said, leaning back against the pelts cushioning his ice chair, "Yes…that's very true… But whether the woman and Lady are the same person or different people, whether it's possible or not possible for my daughter to be involved in this, no matter what the situation is like, Khasiq must never get the suspicion that my daughter might potentially be allies with Lady or the Revivalists or any of their supporters. Khasiq is not going to back out or be lenient on Lady's supporters. Lady is currently his main target, and the man's going crazy from not being able to get a hold of her. The woman who filed the report could be Lady, for all we know or don't know. In the very least, she's connected to Sayen's group, isn't she?"

"Lady is currently his main target, and the man's going crazy from not being able to get a hold of her." Sokka began to feel queasy. "Well Lady hasn't been seen for the past year. Who knows if she's still involved with the group? She could be anywhere. Who knows, maybe she's no longer even in the city."

"And how do you know that she hasn't been seen lately, Prince?" Jeong Jeong asked him intensely.

"I...I just happened to hear a group of Revivalists discussing this when I was out exploring the palace. I didn't know what it meant until I learned more about the situation here... f-from assistants Zhi and Ping..."

As the Northern chief became preoccupied with other thoughts, Gyatso responded with a slow nod of contemplation. Jeong Jeong seemed to be a bit more on the suspicious side. The master firebender, keeping a raised eye on the Southern warrior, spoke anyway, "I've organized a few underground relief missions myself, Brother Arnook." Having been an opponent of the elites during the Fire Nation civil war several years ago, Jeong Jeong had been involved with supporting the commoners in the Peasant Rebellions. The result was that he was honored as a hero of the people, earning the title, "The Deserter" for abandoning his aristocratic roots to seek enlightenment and for later siding with the hungry. "This Lady you mention might not be out in the open, but she could be in hiding or be working her influence underground in a similar fashion," Jeong Jeong said. "We cannot be too confident; even if there is the smallest chance that she can get through to your daughter without any of us knowing, she won't refuse the chance. She already turned her organization into a political party. Who knows if she's up for power grabs next—"

"Lady is not like that."

That certainly earned more of the men's attention. Sokka swallowed the panic that crept in his throat, "Not that I'm defending her or anything. It's just that... I've heard that part of the reason why Lady's not involved in her organization as much is because she's not happy with how politicized it has become, too. It was intended to be a mission for social work…" And when they were looking at him with increased curiosity, he added, "According to my research."

"You sure did a lot of research for your first time here, young isumataq," Arnook said, and Sokka did everything he could in his power to appear as stoic as possible.

"I would have to agree with Prince Sokka," Gyatso said, surprising the others. "If she wanted the throne, she would target you as well, Brother Arnook, but that is not the case, is it?"

Arnook shook his head.

"Then power is not really her concern."

"It could also be that I'm not much of a threat for her," the chief said. "I don't have an assertive bone in my body. Not anymore anyway. Maybe her mission is to get rid of Khasiq? And then assert herself on the throne easily since I won't be able to put up a fight?"

"You are the chieftain," Gyatso said. "And you said the people still have immense respect for your decision given your lineage. You are also an ally of the White Lotus. It is for that reason that Khasiq still hasn't completely taken the throne yet. It is for that reason that he demands you to be loyal to him and personally hand over the throne to him. If Khasiq did not have any feeling of intimidation at all, why would he waste all this time simply resorting to being your advisor?"

It never ceased to amaze Arnook how Gyatso, though a monk and a bit more removed from politics more than the other nations could ever be, was nevertheless highly knowledgeable in these matters.

"I can see that Lady is thinking like an airbender," Gyatso went on. "She is approaching the issues here from a different angle, knowing fully well the dangers that Khasiq might present if her efforts were direct."

"What do you mean?"

"We see that she is very careful about what she is doing. To this day, nearly nine years into the formation of the Revivalist Mission, no one knows what she looks like. No one has been able to track down any information about her other than her professional relations with the members of her mission. Even the Revivalists themselves have no knowledge about her apart from her abilities and her training." Gyatso held up a few scrolls. "I have looked at several statistics. Lady's fighting style is not really combat, and it seems to me that she has never put up much of a direct fight because she always found a way to restrain her opponents. Some have been chi-blocked, some have been temporarily paralyzed, either waist-down or neck-down. Some were rendered and unconscious and others subdued through sleep-inducing herbs. But all of these are temporary means of restraint. No lives were taken, no harm was caused."

Yue is a pacifist, Sokka knew, and the details from his earlier conversation with his friends confirmed it. "She could not stand other forms of life being harmed or abused. She claimed we would be hurting the Spirits inside of them." "Master Gyatso, can I see those statistics?"

Gyatso smiled and handed him the documents, and the prince sieved through them. Piandao and Jeong Jeong peeked over his shoulders and also took a look at the information.

"Her strategy is transformative," Gyatso concluded, "And her strikes are more internalizing."

"Internalizing?" Jeong Jeong asked.

"Yes. You see, my friends, you mentioned that Lady has reached out to the public through her mission's social work and her speeches. By offering help and encouraging conversations, she is utilizing methods that transform people's understandings rather than physically attacking adherents of extremism. Our records show that of all of the criminals that she had tracked down, she has never harmed them. She has never taken a life. The most she has ever done is render her opponents unconscious or immobile while the Revivalist Association worked to bring them to the justice authorities and imprison them."

"Just because she has not killed anyone does not mean she isn't a threat, Sifu Gyatso," Arnook said. "If people like her go about terrorizing the place—"

"Do you really think she's a terrorist, Chief?" Sokka asked. "She hasn't taken a single life. She isn't endangering the public. She is essentially doing what the justice system should be doing. Anyone, regardless of supporting or opposing her, can see this."

"People can't just take law and order into their hands, isumataq—"

"Well there's not much of a choice if the system in place is nowhere near being effective. It is up to the people to take matters into their own hands."

"Sokka, you are going to be a leader yourself one day," Arnook began. "You need to understand that—"

"The only thing I care to understand right now is what the best course of action is for the North. An imposter is going around claiming he has 'divine' lineage and is assaulting women and even young girls, and even though every politician and his mama know this, not a single action was taken against him. On the other hand, you have regular citizens dedicating their lives to making sure other people can sleep peacefully at night with one less criminal on the loose." He let out a huff. "Don't mistake me as supporting people in particular. I'm sympathizing with the people who are being the change the Water Tribe needs."

"We should be worried if no action is being taken considering all of this, but the princess is on it, whether she has allies or not," Piandao noted. "She is definitely going to be taking advantage of these few weeks with us and Avatar Aang being here. She fully intends on having Kinji be taken into custody, and there's not much that Khasiq can do about this."

"She might not be an ally of Lady upfront, but she is definitely taking inspiration from her technique," Jeong Jeong noted. "As Master Gyatso said, it seems to be transformative. Educational. Especially considering her requests for constructing a new school. And her list of these works," he picked up a scroll, "to be re-published and re-distributed."

"This also explains her increased focus on fine arts," Piandao added, holding up more scrolls. "These documents outline many proposals that are in favor of promoting artworks of all kinds. Plays, novels, paintings. All kinds of incentives for creating new works that enlighten audiences about current social issues through various mediums. She's also seeking to bring back the rewards system for creative works that Khasiq has dismantled."

But Arnook only shook his head. "I actually withheld all of those orders."

"I thought we agreed that you will let Her Highness do whatever she liked?" Sokka piped up again, this time with a full-fledged glare.

And for another moment, Piandao, Gyatso, Arnook, and Jeong Jeong were taken aback by the flare of his attitude that was so defensive of the princess. "So long as it's reasonable—" Arnook began.

"What's not reasonable about this, Chief?" Sokka demanded, forgetting that it was the chief he was talking to for yet another moment. "She wants a criminal locked up. She wants the public to have an ounce of common sense. How is that—?"

"It's too dangerous of a move for her. All of the things she's doing, they're too dangerous—"

"Have you considered thinking that maybe it's because you're allowing the danger to persist?" the prince stood up from his pelt. "The Code of Ethics distinguishes between crimes that are intentional and crimes that have no excuse whatsoever, and I think we all know which category assault falls under. There will never be a case where assault is deemed 'accidental' or 'for the sake of self-defense.' There is absolutely no excuse for it. If it's lack of control that's the problem, then into the insane asylums these idiots go. But if they insist they're able-minded and still can't keep it in their pants, then they're not fit to be called humans. Even animals follow set times and seasons for mating, but these heathens are running through the streets, forcing themselves on people," he gave Arnook a stern look, "pretending to be grooms so they can sell the brides in the streets. You want those people to be pardoned? You want them to run free in the tribe?"

Arnook appeared stunned for an earth-shattering moment, moisture swirling in his hardened look, but that didn't stop Sokka from saying what he felt he needed to say to make sure the princess was in the clear.

"As if locking her up from society isn't enough, you're suspecting her of having fishy allies and thinking of restricting her even more. She's having to starve herself so she can exercise her own rights as the future chieftess. You're not even letting her breathe, I tell you! Chief Arnook, there are ways to protect the princess without tying her down. There are ways of watching over her without having to support Khasiq's corrupt regime—"

"A healer without a mask and a warrior without a shield are always vulnerable, isumataq!" the chief croaked. "My daughter wants to dive right into the political battlegrounds without shields or weapons, without any knowledge of how to navigate the environment—!"

"It won't be wise to underestimate the princess, Chief," the words slipped out of Sokka's mouth, but he was then reminded of Yue's words earlier. "I still must act helpless if I want to get things done. If I want to have enough freedom to at least walk the halls by myself." So he added, "But the concern for her life is very real. I acknowledge that. That's why I'm willing to be her shield." He softened his voice, "She saved our tribe. She saved our lives. She is the reason we are thriving today. You think I wouldn't care for her life?" He pulled out his sword, ready to nick his finger again, "If you want, I can make another oqaaseq aukkut to prove it."

And it was at that moment following Sokka's intense outburst that the three White Lotus members, who had been "watching the show," so to speak, simultaneously turned to the chieftain. A wordless conversation seemed to have been exchanged among the four older men, leaving Sokka rather...confused. The men didn't say anything to each other, and yet, a kind of understanding seemed to have been reached. Among the trio, that is, for Arnook simply got up from his pelts and began storming away from his pedestal.

"Chief, wait," Piandao stood up. Gyatso and Jeong Jeong followed, calling out to the chieftain. Arnook paused before he could leave, never having looked so conflicted in his life.

"Alright, Brother Arnook, I will ask for you, then," Jeong Jeong then turned to the prince, "You apparently said you'd be willing to be the princess's bodyguard. Would you be willing to do that for the rest of your life?"

A pause settled into the room. Sokka blinked, his heart rate shooting through the icy ceiling. "You mean…?"

"Would you like to receive her hand in marriage?" Gyatso asked.

Of course, this was an expected question since Yue herself had suspected this and told him about it, and for the longest hour in his life, he'd been waiting for this moment, but it still came as a shocker to him for some reason. Perhaps it was because of how direct it was. As desperate as his folks had been to get him hitched ever since the day he turned sixteen, Sokka had still never encountered the moment where he would directly be asked to be someone's son-in-law. He'd imagine this would be unexpected, too, especially after his outburst and with the possibility of Arnook being offended. What was the logic behind them asking him about this now?

"It's not like she has a permanent bodyguard," Piandao pointed out. "And even if there's a chance at hiring someone, Chief Arnook prefers that it be someone she will call a husband. It is only proper that way, he thinks." At least, more proper than hiring one man to be her bodyguard and planning to have another be her husband. It will most definitely be a move that will not make the chieftain lose face in front of the tribe again, especially after the scandal he faced for accidentally trying to send her away with imposters.

"The chief has been hesitating to ask you this," Gyatso added. "Hopefully you both can work something out." He bowed to Arnook. "We will meet you tomorrow, Brother. Our best wishes to you both."

With the seal-cat finally out of the bag, the White Lotus trio promptly left the room, giving Arnook and Sokka the privacy they would need. Arnook did not say anything for a while, keeping his attention on the tapestry of Tui, and Sokka felt a little uncomfortable to be the one to pry for more information. He was about to say something to clear the awkwardness in the air when Arnook finally asked, "Care to join me for a walk?"

Arnook felt thankful for the chaos that was taking up Khasiq's sweet time at the justice headquarters. The incident left Khasiq's assistants occupied with providing security for an endangered Kinji rather than keeping up with what the chief was doing and who he was talking to. This incident also gave Arnook the opportunity to take in some fresh Arctic air and not have to worry about people watching his every move. Not to mention that Sokka fell under the "guest" category, which meant that having someone watch over the chief when he was spending time with guests would make the White Lotus authorities be suspicious of Khasiq, and the advisor himself knew that. Hence, this was a rare moment of freedom for the Northern chief, who had warmed up to the idea of confiding in Sokka to an extent that he never would in even his friends in the White Lotus.

Arnook led Sokka through a secret pathway in an abandoned part of the eastern wing, where they soon approached an area of open tundra that gave way to the ruins of a demolished icy building of some sort in the distance. The ruins were accompanied by dusty, abandoned tents made of seal-hide. After making sure yet again that it was only the two of them, Arnook motioned for Sokka to follow him into one of the tents. They took their seats inside, drawing warmth from the torch that Sokka had carried through their walk. The prince made use of the fire by positioning it on a couple of spread-out pieces of log, making something that resembled a campfire. The duo huddled close to the fire, drawing out the silence between them for a few more moments.

That is, until Sokka tried to make for conversation without directly jumping into the matter. "Did you...did you first see Yue at the Moon Temple?"

The question had caught Arnook off guard a little bit, but then he seemed to relax, nodding, "Yes."

"What was it like when you first saw her?"

The man's face softened. "Awe. I was in awe…" and with his eyes glazed over with warmth, "In just a few moments, that awe turned into love." He smiled at the warrior. "You'll know when you have a child of your own one day."

And the prince found himself feeling warm and fuzzy inside, too. "What did she look like?"

The chief beamed giddily as if reliving that very moment. "She had a head full of hair. Soft, white hair. Lots of it. She had very fair skin. She still does, of course, but I remember when we noticed it for the first time. It was like she was glowing. And she was just the brightest thing. So beautiful... small, too..." He held his palms out, trying to remember, trying to estimate just how small she had been. "Maybe about this much…"

"That's...tiny," Sokka's voice barely above a soft whisper.

"Yes…" the chief stared into the fire, his peaceful reprieve proving to be only temporary. "Ahnah, my wife, was desperate to hold Yue when we first saw her. She refused to put her down or even give her to me. And in all the years I've known her...I'd never seen Ahnah cry as much as she did on that night. Yue...she was so tiny. And they just left her there."

By "they", he was likely referring to Yue's actual parents.

"So small and helpless…The priests said she was left there sometime during the night… " Arnook seemed as if he was unraveling for a moment but ended up catching himself, sinking back into silence.

"The princess is not small and helpless anymore, Chief, for you to take away even her most basic freedoms," Sokka told him. "Maybe she doesn't want to be coddled. Have you ever thought about that?"

"I've thought about the past enough times to know I shouldn't take any chances in exposing her to anyone," Arnook gulped. "You have no idea how horrible things have been here all these years."

Twenty-five years ago, people were afraid to cross their own thresholds with their newborn daughters, particularly families that worshipped Tui (which was basically the entirety of the North save for a few Nationalist aristocrats here and there because it was Tui, the patron deity alongside La). Tui worship was deemed sinful by several extremist strains of the Nationalist Party, and female infants of poor, Tui-worshipping families were expected to be offered as sacrifices to La. Families lived in fear in a time when infanticide was already becoming prevalent due to societal pressures caused by groom-price and dowry traditions. A daughter was just a financial burden for the family, which would be expected to marry her off at the age of sixteen and provide hefty amounts to the groom's family, and this "tradition", whatever its excuse was for being so staunchly practiced, was simply not feasible during the several brief bouts of economic distress caused by Khasiq's irresponsible handling of the national treasury. With both the government and society at their heels, the daughters of the tribe were heavily wounded, many innocent lives wiped off of the face of the tribe.

It was apparently during that time when Goddess Tui decided to take birth in the physical world. At least, that's how Arnook described it.

"You might not care for this part of the story," Arnook said with a dry chuckle, "but the Goddess Herself appeared to us in our visions. She told us that she has chosen us to raise her."

Indeed, the night before Ahnah and Arnook found Yue, Tui had appeared to them in their dreams and told them that she will be born the following night, that she will be waiting for them at the Moon Temple, for she had chosen them to raise her. She gave them complete freedom to raise her as they wished. The Northern leaders were elated as they had always hoped for a child— that, too, a daughter— but there were several problems at stake. For one, under Khasiq's supervision, they could never hope to step into the Moon Temple. And even if the Goddess did provide them an opportunity to sneak into the place, the leaders were still terrified of the kind of dangers that might possibly plague the child until they got to her.

Fortunately, Khasiq had been distracted by a few incidents in time for the Moon Temple priests to send word to the leaders about a child left abandoned and uncleaned— a child who had won the couple's hearts instantly. The priests had told them that she'd been in the temple for quite a while, hinting at the extended length of time in which the temple had been "contaminated" by the secretions of childbirth. They advised the chief against raising her, claiming that ritual impurity would curse the family for this blasphemy. Of course, this was expected from them because by then, those "priests" had turned into Khasiq's puppets, clinging to the man's every word out of fear. Either they failed to see the Goddess in the young child or ignored the Goddess even if they recognized her.

"How can some people be so cruel?" Arnook raved. "Giving their baby to La as a sacrifice? Just because she was born in a temple! There are so many couples in the world that would give anything to have children of their own, and apparently, there are also people who don't care a jot about their own flesh and blood."

"It makes no sense to me whatsoever," Sokka directed his flare of anger at the snow and kicked it. "Tribefolk would normally do anything and everything to have babies of their own. But with her, they're so heartless. Going around talking about curses and other nonsense."

"It's fear, I tell you," Arnook said. "The fear that associating someone who defied the laws from right at birth would contaminate their spirituality. That bad things will start happening to them. That they will be ruined or that their families will be destroyed."

"These are nothing more than fear tactics used to drill the purity laws into their heads!" Sokka said, exasperated. "Blaming misfortunes on innocent people and shit. And since the world is populated mostly by idiots, they ran with this stupidity."

The Northerner held a distant look on his face. "I'm too much of a coward to even admit to this stupidity because yes, ritual purity and cleanliness are important. But because of them, these laws shouldn't be turning people into tyrants." He gulped. "Ahnah and I thought we'd never love anyone else more than we loved each other, but then a tiny baby girl came into our lives, and we fell in love again. With her. It was a divine moment." He shook his head. "Surely the Spirits wouldn't strike us down for that."

"Of course not."

Another pause followed with the chief lost in deep thought, almost as if second-guessing his own intuition.

"You know, I'm never gonna forget that look on my parents' faces when Kohana was born," Sokka told him. "Yeah, those things seemed awkward and mushy when I was younger, but even I get it after a while." A tiny smile followed a determined look, "Chief Arnook, did you or the Chieftess care at all about your bundle of Tui being unclean when you first saw her? If those Spirits you care about so much are supposed to be seen as the origins and the parents of the tribe and whatnot…Do you think they'd care about this over-the-top ritual purity yakshit?"

An argument like that did manage to stir something of value in the older man's look.

"Anything that devalues lives is not worth its hype," Sokka said. "Laws of any kind should exist for the sake of prolonging the lives and dignities of the people. Anything otherwise, anything that stops protecting innocent people, it should be ashamed to call itself a part of justice."

"But there seems to be no more room for ethics in this place, son. What Yue is doing is trying to bring back the lost glory, but she is also supporting people who are utilizing unorthodox ideas."

"I'm sure the sorry excuses we have for traditions were unorthodox when they first started out, too."

"Say what you want, but I can't have her entertain these kinds of thoughts. Why does she need to exert herself? Can't she marry and have an heir and teach her sons to fulfill these things?"

Sokka glared. "You know, I really think our nation could've been in a better place a long time ago if we didn't have to filter out intelligent candidates on the lines of gender."

"No matter what you say or think of me, there are certain traditions I must still respect, Sokka. Besides, it's for her own good if she stays out of the way. Otherwise, she'll be exposed to the horrors that are happening out there. She"ll become a pawn in Lady's hands and be dragged into bigger political messes." A ragged breath, "As her father, I need to be sure she is cared for, provided for. That she's not abandoned."

"Her Highness will never be abandoned," Sokka said resolutely. "I won't allow it. And in the meantime, you can't let your fears tie her down. She needs freedom, Chief. Like everyone else, she has dreams, hopes, expectations about her future, the future of the tribe. She loves her people and is willing to do everything she can for them. And she has amazing ideas for transforming the North. You can't just shoot them down and say you're doing what's best for her."

But Arnook seemed as fearful as ever.

"And by the way, bigotry isn't gonna get us far. Neither is supporting bigotry, by which I mean your allegiance to Khasiq," Sokka said. "If you ask me, Kinji and Khasiq and all their dangerous associates should be executed for their crimes."

"Execution?" the Northern leader widened his eyes. "You want to execute Khasiq?"

"A threat like that to society has to be gotten rid of," came the response which really alarmed Arnook. "These aren't small-scale crimes, and these aren't ordinary criminals. Imprisonment won't do. The people need to be fearful of the consequences of horrible actions. Feeding these monsters three times a day in prison doesn't sound very fear-inducing to me—"

"SHHH!" Arnook scrambled over to him and nearly clamped his hand over the prince's mouth. He looked both ways.

"Her Highness is the leader of the North," Sokka cast the chief's hand aside, "and a leader she will be. She'll open up all possibilities for the sisters in the tribe. She will make history."

"She needs to be alive, first, to make or break history! I'm telling you this because I know you understand the struggle of protecting loved ones. You need to understand that there are several kinds of things Khasiq can do to silence people."

"Nothing is going to happen to Princess Yue. I am not going to give the universe any chances. You trust me, don't you? You had to have at least a little if you considered me as her suitor."

And finally, the conversation they'd both been anticipating. The Northerner gave the warrior a long look before sighing, a burdened look in his eyes. "It has been on my mind for a while now. The possibility of you and her getting matched. Ever since I knew of your birth many years ago, ever since we found Yue. But... I just didn't think it was possible, so I didn't act on it."

"Why didn't you think it was possible?"

"Circumstances. There's the obvious one of Khasiq blocking us from reaching out to the South. And even if there had miraculously been a chance, I couldn't have possibly approached you and asked you to marry my daughter if the world didn't know of her existence. This isn't something that we could've kept a secret, besides. It would've been a high-profile alliance."

And that was why the chief felt that marrying Yue off to someone else (preferably someone who wasn't from the Water Tribe and couldn't care less about her past) was the only other option. In the very least, it would have kept her safe as she would've been far away from the Water Tribe. The imposters had posed as very trustworthy, welcoming Earth Kingdom aristocrats, and Arnook had been desperate. It was that very alliance that became the undoing of the princess's secret existence.

After the tribe's inevitable discovery of Yue's existence following some additional stints of Professor Zei, Arnook felt that he had hopes for finally reaching out and approaching the South, but that was when he learned of the South's actual situation. With what confidence would he approach the Southern royals and ask that they accept Yue as their daughter-in-law? Especially after the North spent so much of its time in ignorance and did absolutely nothing to try to reach out? It wasn't until Yue's Southern Revival Project drew widespread attention and showed success in its initial stages that Arnook felt his hopes renew again. That was when Fire Lord Iroh, who had been impressed with Yue's efforts in establishing the Black Lotus, asked Arnook to consider Yue for Lu Ten.

"I was in a position where I couldn't refuse. Khasiq insisted I marry Yue off as soon as possible. And also, refusing the Fire Nation's request did not seem like a good idea."

"I can understand that."

But thanks to the Spirits, the chief realized that he didn't need to find a way to get out of this alliance as he knew Prince Lu Ten had feelings for an Earth Kingdom lady and wouldn't go through with this anyway.

"Sokka, keep in mind that I've never seen this as a... transaction of sorts. This has nothing to do with your gratitude for her...though it does make me feel good about it, I will admit. I'm not asking you a favor in return for what she has done for your tribe. I genuinely wanted you to like her and care for her." With a sigh, he admitted, "I've heard a lot about you. I've started to get to know you. I've seen the way you stood up to Ozai to defend her honor, and I'm now seeing you stand up to me to fulfill the princess's wishes. You want her to do all that she wants...and at the same time, you want to stand by her. You respect her and see her as your equal. I don't know of many people...many tribesmen... who still do that for their partners these days."

"But there has to be a reason why you still didn't want to ask me directly," he said. "Is it because I was getting too comfortable with arguing?" With you? he could've added but chose not to as it was only obvious.

"Many fathers would hate to have someone talk back to them with regard to their daughter's safety, but with you, I find that I'm not angry at all," the man said much to the prince's bewilderment. "You were considerate of her interests and her safety. Spirits, Sokka, I could sense you judging me for being so careless. For sending her away with those imposters…" and somehow, he waved it off with a dry chuckle, "What more could I possibly want to see in a potential son-in-law?"

Sokka blinked. "So...I wasn't crossing the line back there…?"

"Perhaps you were, but that's what I appreciated. I would want you to stand up to even me if I was ever to end up being a threat to her in any way."

That certainly was an interesting way to approach the scenario, Sokka thought. Not many fathers (at least, not the ones he knew of) were willing to take such chances with their daughters' suitors the same way).

"I originally had plans of having you both spend time with each other and get to know one another more before asking you about this directly. But…"

"But you quit before you could give it a chance. You had second thoughts of considering me."

"I didn't."

"Then...why didn't you want to ask?"

"Because I was not sure how to approach your parents," the chieftain admitted. "I was not sure what your parents would say."

Sokka took a deep breath. "I have to admit they were extremely excited about the possibility, too. Of marrying me to Her Highness…" he felt his cheeks warm up for a moment, "They were actually wanting to ask you. They would have already if it wasn't for Lu Ten being in the way. They might approach you any day now, in fact."

"But they would not react the same way when they find out who Yue really is, would they?" Arnook then stood up, still staring at the fire as he slipped his gloved hands into the pockets of his fur robe. "Your family is rather conservative. Your grandfather is especially conservative. Earlier, your parents were asking me about the 'incident' that made the Moon Temple impure. No, they weren't just asking. They were panicking. I could see it on their faces, Sokka. They wanted to have nothing to do with anything that crosses the threshold of proper ritual purity."

Sokka found to his dismay that he couldn't say anything to deny or disprove Arnook's logic. He could already picture Pakku's furious face.

"It's only obvious that they...they would not easily accept Yue when they find out she was born in a temple. In a setting that is supposed to be highly sacred...in a circumstance that defies the purity laws they value so much," Arnook continued. "That's why I was torn between approaching them by telling them the truth about her past or…or hiding the fact...because she's still my daughter," his voice wobbled as he said that, "regardless of who she was born to and under what circumstances."

"My family members might consider themselves wedded to orthodox purity laws," Sokka frowned, "but they're not the ones marrying Her Highness. It's my marriage. It's ultimately my choice." He huffed, "Besides, they have no real reason to complain about orthodoxy. I'm not orthodox at all. I don't give a damn about their Spirits. At least, their versions of the Spirits."

"So... does this mean you are interested in Yue?"

Interest. Perhaps that was not enough to describe the absolute joy that always overflowed within him merely at the thought of her.

"You're smiling."

Sokka blinked, realizing that his lips had indeed widened. He cleared his throat, fiddling with his fingers as he gazed into the fire, but he quickly lost his composure the flames appeared to be mimicking her secret little happy dance from before. "I can't describe it, Chief. I definitely like her. I really really like her. To be very honest, I think…I think I...well, to be honest, I've never seen anyone like her. She's so chill, you know? But she cares. A lot. And...and she's smart and...fun…" he chuckled, "she doesn't think she is, but she is. And she's...she's very sweet and...and kind...and she's not condescending at all for someone who's a believer and stuff, and...I just love…" He paused. Love?

"Love?" Arnook repeated in a state of quasi-panic and a sense of near-denial. "Love what…?"

Sokka trailed off quickly, his mind foggy, his pulse racy, his stomach in knots. Yue was beautiful, very beautiful, no doubt, but she was so much more. Her wisdom, craftiness, humor, tranquility, passion, stubbornness, rebellion. And of course, her emotion— her playfulness, kindness, embarrassment. Not to mention righteous anger. Yue was all kinds of beauty melded perfectly into one person regardless of what he knew of her so far and what he was yet to know.

So...was this it? That sacred thing called love? Sokka had never felt this way about a woman before, that's for sure. The only people he thought he'd ever feel protective towards were his family members. With Yue, he felt that, too, only this time, there was also something else. Something sweeter. That "magic" that his friends talked about and rubbed in his face. That feeling of happiness that would take over and paralyze him, that would extend beyond observing one's looks and sweet talk. That onslaught of protective feelings that would govern one's interactions with the loved one. That feeling of belonging, of a kind of fulfilled nostalgia.

"Yeah...I think so...yeah...!" Sokka was still breathless as he, too, stood up. He kicked at the snow more happily than he probably expected, watching the snow land near the fire and melt. Yes. Yes, this was love. This had to be. He couldn't believe it, of course, but that changed nothing about the fact that he was in love. Love! He of all people was in love! And as embarrassing as he expected such a realization would be, it wasn't. He was in love with Yue, oh universe, and he was so giddy from the realization that he nearly started jumping up and down.

"I think I'm in love with Yue," came a breathless response finally.

Arnook nearly choked on air. "It's only been three days since you've been here and almost three hours since you've actually seen her," he said with a simmer of annoyance in his look. "Don't mistake attraction for love, Sokka."

But Arnook wouldn't know, would he, of the time Sokka had spent with the princess? "It's not that. I don't think so. I'm sure." He then beamed for no reason at the snow. "I kind of fell for her when I learned she was the real hero of the South, and after reading the letter she addressed to me, I couldn't stop being more curious…" he looked up at Arnook, "I've been hearing a lot about all the steps she took to make sure our tribe is taken care of, and I've learned about the situation here and everything she did to help keep the Southern Revival Project intact—"

"Are you sure you're not confusing your feelings with gratitude and admiration? Because if that's the case, you might as well stop right here."

"Oh, I see. It's perfectly okay to get arranged to someone you barely know, but saying you love someone is unbelievable?" Sokka frowned. "If it was just gratitude, I wouldn't want to get to know her this much. The real Yue. Not just as a leader. For who she is, what she's like, everything she likes. 'Cause what happened to you happened to me, too, Chief. For a second, I was in awe. The next second...that awe turned into something deeper. I think that deeper thing is..." Love.

Arnook blinked, confused, very much on the verge of not buying his explanation.

"I can't describe it, but...I felt this feeling...this need to protect her, to take care of her. It's hard to explain, it really is. But one thing's for sure. Yue brings me so much joy, Chief. Thanks to her, my family, my tribe, myself...all of us are happy. Truly happy. And...I want to be the cause of her joy, too. I'll be her constant companion. I will take extremely good care of her."

And at this, Arnook felt very good, very comforted. Ecstatic, even, because this was what he'd been looking for…

"But I don't think you should expect a marriage just yet."

...only for his patience to be shattered. "What?"

"Don't get me wrong. I do want to marry her, but...Her Highness has so much that she would like to achieve, and she still doesn't want to see me as a bodyguard, much less a potential suitor."

"She's a child, what does she know?"

Sokka barely held back the urge to roll his eyes. The chief didn't seem to have learned anything from their talk. "She wants to uplift the North with her own effort. I know she'll succeed. I'll propose to her the day she's crowned the Chieftess of the North."

"You can marry her and still stand by her."

"I need her to like me, too," Sokka said. Her Highness isn't looking to worry about marriage, and I won't have her be forced into one." A moment of pause before he added, "But I would like to court her."

Court. It didn't seem like a bad idea.

"I know she's not looking for a romance, so I won't make it obvious. Heck, I don't even know what the process is like, exactly. So...I'll approach her as a friend. If she won't accept me as an actual bodyguard or suitor, I'm hoping she'll accept me as a friend. I'll be watching her back, too, that way. And when the time is right, I'll tell her how I feel. It's up to her if she wants to take our relationship to the next level or not."

Arnook nodded slowly. "I suppose that can be plausible. It is always said that best friends make the best life partners."

"Yeah, that makes sense. But, uh…until I actually propose...I'd like it if you kept this just between us. I don't want my family to be involved just yet. They'll make an extremely big deal out of it, and they'll most likely approach Her Highness and blabber everything directly to her. I don't want her feeling uncomfortable."

"What about her past?" Arnook asked. "When should I tell them that?"

Sokka thought for a moment before shaking his head. "They don't have to know."

"Sokka—"

"You said that her past doesn't change your love for her. So it doesn't matter. Not now. She should just be known as your daughter."

"Sokka, I don't want to hide something like this. For compatibility purposes, for accuracy in birth chart information—"

"Chief, that doesn't matter. This isn't something to be ashamed of, and I'm not gonna have anyone treat her differently just because of this. We'll figure something out later if we absolutely have to, but for now, I think it's best to stay quiet."

Arnook swallowed, having no other choice but to trust him with this. "It all sounds alright, but you'll only be here for a couple of weeks. You think you'll be able to court her in such a short time?"

"Schedules are subject to change."

"Sokka…"

"This isn't about a promise I'm making you. This is about protecting someone I really care about. I've considered her a member of our family ever since she saved us from the brink of starvation. But Chief, in order for me to really watch her back, I'm gonna need you to not keep secrets from me. Whether it's things about Khasiq or the political situation here, whether it's things I should know about in general…"

"We will definitely talk more, Sokka, but not now," Arnook looked around again, "It's getting late, and Khasiq will be here soon. He must never know about our conversation." He placed his hand on the prince's shoulder. "You have my blessing, son. Do what you need to do. As long as my daughter is safe and her heart isn't broken."

Sokka nodded, smiling, and Arnook smiled back in return. Keeping his hand over his future son-in-law, he led him away from the ruins. The path ahead of them would be shaky, they both knew, because they had to navigate their way through Khasiq's influences, but Sokka's brain was already churning out plans and ideas.

"Oh, and Chief?"

"Yes?"

"There's one more thing I need to talk to you about."

Hakoda and Kya paced in the estate hallway as Ivaneq chewed away at his nails. Although the trio anxiously waited for Sokka, Katara didn't stress out like them; she had a very good idea of where her brother could be right now, a little smirk forming on her face every now and then because it was about time he had something truly good happen to him.

It wasn't until well into the night, well past midnight that they finally heard his footsteps from the entrance, and the trio of older adults rushed over to him. Katara, though not understanding what the fuss was about, guessed it to be their fear of him getting into another skirmish or something. The look on his face, though, was not the aftermath of a struggle or brawl but a kind of contentment that they were starting to see more commonly in him since their advent in the North. He didn't come empty-handed, either; he was holding a sealskin sack that held a few books and scrolls.

"Sokka, sweetie, where were you?" Kya asked.

"I was with the chief, Mom."

"Why were you with Chief Arnook? Did you get into another fight?" Hakoda pressed.

"No, it's nothing like that. Just for casual purposes."

"Where did you get these books?"

"A friend gave them to me. For me and Katara. She thought we'd be interested in these works." He handed the bag to Katara, who sieved through some of the scrolls.

"Keep them in my room, sis. I'm in charge of those."

She gave him a knowing look. Yue gave them to you, didn't she?

"You have a friend who's a woman?" Kya raised her eyebrows at her son.

"It's not like that. She's the friend of a member of the princess's cabinet."

Ivaneq tensed at the word "princess" but didn't say anything. "Did the chief say anything of interest to you, sir? It seems to me he doesn't casually hang out with guests like that."

"Well yeah, he told me that he needed a bodyguard for the princess."

"Why would...why would His Majesty approach someone of your esteem for that matter, sir? Unless if he was wanting your help in finding someone eligible…?"

"Actually, he asked me if I'd be willing to keep an eye on her. For as long as I'm here…" and he could see how they all grew more and more visually concerned at the mention of the princess. He didn't understand; weren't they supposed to be excited? Shouldn't they be spinning in romance with every word he was saying by now?

"What did you say?" Kya asked.

"I said yes, obviously," and the glow in his face was obvious, "She did so much for us. She took so many risks to carry out the Southern Revival Project. The least we can do is offer our support."

"But why you?"

"He apparently liked it when I stood up against the Fire Nation. He liked how I defended Her Highness. He didn't ask me to be her bodyguard directly, though; I kind of volunteered."

"Why did you volunteer?!" Kya nearly shrieked, catching Sokka off guard.

Hakoda held his wife by her shoulders and whispered something in her ear, rubbing her back to keep her calm. Katara rushed over to their mother. "Mom, are you okay?"

"Yes, yes...I'm fine…Sorry."

"There's nothing wrong with this, is there?" Sokka said, looking suspicious now. "After everything she's done for us…"

"You're right, sweetie," Kya sighed, rubbing her head. "I'm worried about you, that's all."

"Everything's gonna be fine. Just trust me." Sokka sat his mother down and took his place beside her. "Here's something that'll cheer you up. The chief also told me to help out at the Moon Temple and stuff." A small grin, "I'm sure your Spirits will be pleased with a disbeliever helping out, right?"

"Why would he tell you to do that?" Ivaneq raised his eyebrows.

"Uh...h-how should I know? He just told me to do it," Sokka shrugged, his heartbeat racing. "Don't ask him why. Don't mention any of this to him. He's in a pretty bad mood every time someone talks to him about it. He's kind of fed up with a case that's shaking up the city."

"Yes, Kinji's case is blowing up quite a bit," the Northerner nodded. But what does that have to do with...?

"Mom, Dad…" Sokka took a deep breath before asking, "I just want to say…I know you guys have been worried about my future plans and everything and...well, I kind of know about how you guys are wanting to talk to Chief Arnook about possibly getting me hitched to Her Highness…"

And at this, Ivaneq, Hakoda, and Kya were all frozen, color leaving their faces. Katara smiled widely, crossing her arms, flashing him an I-told-you-so look as the puzzle pieces slowly began to fit inside of her head.

"But, uh...I don't think you should approach the chief about this just yet. You see, the princess has certain things she wants to do, I heard, and she doesn't...she doesn't really want any distractions and…she has certain goals, ya know?"

"So you're saying you're okay with this marriage if she is?" Katara teased, earning a deeper flush from her brother in response, but everyone else didn't seem to want to entertain this possibility.

"We decided we don't want to pursue this alliance."

And at that, the Water Tribe siblings halted their silent celebrations and gawked at their parents. Sokka did his best not to openly seem disappointed but asked, "W-Why?"

And that's when they told him. Of what they knew, of everything they heard, of the fact that Ivaneq had actually followed Sokka when he was visiting the chieftain earlier in the day, of the conversation between the chief and Khasiq that he overheard. The truth was out: the princess was not really Arnook's daughter but the Akna, who they learned was the Keeper of the Moon Temple upon her birth, which was deemed as auspicious by Priestess Osha. The rest of the Water Tribe was sure to feel uncomfortable about the Akna and her past, about the blatant disregard for ritual purity when she entered this world. They also told Sokka of the possible complications that being involved with the princess would bring, particularly for their family.

And a highly disappointed Sokka could do nothing but sit there and listen to all this nonsense, observe the way his parents' initial respect and excitement for the princess dwindle into obligatory gratitude and extreme caution. Katara, too, didn't appear as if she agreed with them, and she cast a worried look at her brother, the way the glow of excitement on his face was snatched away thanks to their parents' meaningless disapproval.

None of them spoke for several minutes after that. Sokka got lost in thought, and judging by his silence, it was obvious to them that perhaps he might've liked the princess. Eventually, he did manage to find his voice as he said to them, "Do you feel the same way about me? You know, since I'm a nonbeliever? I'm inauspicious, too, aren't I?"

"No, sweetie, we would never think that," Kya held his hand and gave it a soft squeeze. "This is a different issue."

And yet, it surprised Sokka. They didn't cast him off for being a nonbeliever because he was their son, and they sought all kinds of ways to work around or ignore tradition to keep holding onto him, but in spite of the princess being so compassionate, in spite of everything she's done for them, they rejected her.

"This doesn't change our gratitude and our appreciation for her, Sokka, and we won't stop you and Katara from helping her or trying to spend time with her," Hakoda said, "But I just want you to know that we can't cross that line in particular. If your grandfather finds out…"

Pakku. Of course.

"I thought I heard Chunta saying that the princess's birth chart fits well with mine," Sokka said. "That she's the Tui you're looking for or something."

It was sweet but ironic. The fact that Sokka didn't believe in those things and yet was using them to finalize the alliance. Everyone in the room could tell that he really liked the princess. Kya responded with a sad smile. "You know how Chunta can be wrong sometimes."

So he's wrong when you want something to not be true. But Sokka kept his mouth shut. Not because he had nothing to say but because of one crucial thing that Hakoda repeatedly emphasized to him. "It's important that your mother is as stress-free as possible during this time."

"It's just a tiny crush, Sokka," Hakoda told him, his hand on his son's shoulder. "I know you'll get over it. There are many beautiful tribeswomen out there. Plenty of fish in the sea."

"You know how difficult it is for him to find someone around his age, right?" Katara interrupted. "Isn't that why we're struggling so much? He can't marry a sixteen-year-old when he's twenty-three. Who else should he marry? There are so many rules preventing the future chief from marrying just whoever, and the only other tribeswomen who are around his age are widows."

"My son isn't that hopeless," Kya smiled and turned to Sokka. "I know your love is waiting for you out there, sweetie." She reached into the folds of her robes and pulled out the container of vermillion that was given to them by Osha. "Priestess Osha said this vermillion works wonders if you want to find your true love quickly. All you need to do is smear a little bit over your white spot every night."

Hakoda gave his son a cautious look, wordlessly telling him not to dismiss this as something silly. At least, not in front of Kya. Sokka sighed and took the vermillion. "Yeah, sure. Thanks, Mom." And with that, he headed to his room. Katara looked in the direction of her retreating brother, worry churning within her. It couldn't be more obvious to her that the woman Sokka after— the woman called Yue— was most likely the princess herself. And it seemed Sokka was too far gone judging by how disappointed he became.

"Dad, all this time, you and Mom wanted him to find someone and be happy. He seems to really like the Princess. Are you not going to acknowledge that? Are you not going to acknowledge everything the princess is doing for us?"

"We are grateful for the princess, Katara, and as we said, nothing is going to change that," Kya said. "But we need to be wary of certain traditions. Your grandfather will never be the same if we form an alliance with—"

"Mom, if you had no choice but to have me in a temple, would you have abandoned me, too, after the fact?"

"Katara!"

Silence followed. Ivaneq appeared the most shocked at the princess's question. The waterbending master, knowing that her question wasn't going to get a reply tonight, simply sighed and retreated to her room, shutting the door behind her. Kya took a seat on the pelts nearby, joined by her husband.

"You know how Katara can be sometimes," Hakoda told his wife.

"It's Sokka I'm worried about."

"He'll get over her, don't worry. He didn't know the princess for that long. He hasn't even seen her."

"But he's also never liked anyone so easily," Kya sighed. "Why must the Spirits test our loyalty like this?"

When Katara found her brother a few hours later, he was sitting on his bed, vermillion smeared on his bare chest, right on top of a small circular patch of highly-lightened skin contrasting against his darkness. He had a blanket wrapped messily around his shoulders, and he was leaning against the wall while reading through one of the books that he'd gotten earlier. He was quite lost in the story, not even turning to see who it was that entered.

"I got you some shaved ice," Katara said and handed him a coconut shell served with the said treat. "Mango-coconut. You should try it, it's really good."

Sokka sighed and took it, placing it on the table beside him. He mumbled a "thanks" and continued reading for another minute or two. Eventually, he put the scroll down and leaned back against the wall, briefly closing his eyes.

"What were you reading?" Katara asked.

"Aquela," came the reply as he handed her the scroll. "It's a bit intense for a tragedy. Plays with your feels and all that shit."

"What's it about?" she took the scroll from him and furled it back up, running her fingers over its title that was printed atop its canister.

"It's about a woman named Aquela. How society forced her to stay in a miserable marriage and just sat back and watched as her husband repeatedly cheated on her. She tried to run away with the guy she loved, but that didn't end well."

"That's...sad…"

"It subtly points out a lot of gender inequalities in our society. You'd really like it, too."

Katara's interest increased from there; she sieved through the other scrolls in the bag beside him.

"Do you think it's because I'm a guy, Katara?" Sokka asked her suddenly. "Is that why I'm off the hook a lot?"

"About what?"

"Why Mom and Dad are always trying to defend me even when I'm a disbeliever?" He swung his legs off the side of the bed and sat at the edge, facing his sister. "People back home say I'm deluded and feel sorry for me, but they don't directly accuse me, ya know?"

"Well yeah, it's because you're privileged like that," she said. "Being a tribesman has its benefits."

"If you were a nonbeliever, they have treated you worse, wouldn't they?"

Katara shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not, I don't know. But I know they'd be more disappointed."

There were times when Sokka had acknowledged this beforehand, and he'd asked her if she was secretly a disbeliever, but Katara did believe that Yin and Yang were out there, watching over them as Tui and La. She didn't agree with everything that was taught to tribe, of course, but these 'petty rules', as she called them, didn't influence her love for the Spirits. It was a stance much like Yue's, the only difference being that Katara still encouraged him to view the Spirits favorably and believe in them. Yue didn't seem too interested in converting him as such.

"There's always pressure on women to be very religious and dutiful," Katara said. "Part of that is because we have to do a lot of rituals for the safety of our husbands."

And the elders often justified this by saying that men run off into the battlefield and could face death anytime, so they need as many protection rituals as possible performed for them. But women are dying, too. They're dying in childbirth because they're not always physically mature at sixteen or at the age of their menarche to carry a child to full term. And yet, their husbands were not expected to do any rituals for their welfare. If the husband dies, then the wife has to be a widow all her life, but if the wife dies, widowers can always marry again and find their happiness.

"Guys need to be religious, too, of course, but that's because their faith would protect the tribe. Men are seen as the protectors of the community."

And in the question of tribal manliness, the men had to fight and beget children to prove themselves. Women had to be loyal to their husbands and give birth to children to prove themselves.

"Men have actual goals. Their ambitions are highly encouraged. That is, if they fit with what society tells them is manly," Katara told her brother. "Like if you wanted to be a healer, for example, they wouldn't allow you to do it because they think healing is a woman's job."

"But in the process, they forget that guys have needs and health problems, too, and would need healers of their own," Sokka finished. "Yue said that, too."

"Not just Yue. All enlightened women will tell you that."

It was an order that the Water Tribe nowadays labeled as "natural." The guy fights and gets hurt, the woman heals. The guy relies on the woman for emotional security and caregiving, and the girl relies on the guy for physical security. The man does not expect to be given physical protection from the woman, and the woman does not expect the man to comfort her or fulfill her emotional needs. Because women are allowed and even encouraged to be emotional, and men are encouraged to be physically stronger. No exceptions.

Katara sighed, looking away, flares of anger in her eyes. "It's not fair. It makes me sick."

"Well yeah. It seems more like a transaction than a relationship."

"That's because it is, and that's why it doesn't always work out like it's written in those stupid 'traditional' lawbooks. Anyone who's really in love with someone else would find these fixed rules pointless." Katara chuckled a little then and nudged him, "The Water Tribe is a nation of romantics. Including my big brother apparently."

Sokka grew flustered but said nothing of the last part of her comment, still wallowing in his frustration from earlier. "There was so much I wanted to say back there, but I just couldn't 'cause I didn't want to stress Mom out. They don't get it. They don't understand. They don't know all the sacrifices that Her Highness is making for the Water Tribe. I can't just...just because she was born in a temple...I can't just let go like that. The princess…"

Katara couldn't help smiling softly at her brother. "Yue is the princess, isn't she?"

And Sokka gave her a look as if the wind was knocked out of him. "W-Wh...No, that's silly! I haven't seen Her Highness to this day…"

She crossed her arms. "You're not very good at lying sometimes. I know she's the princess—"

"Katara!" He looked around before rushing to lock his bedroom door. "Shush up!"

"Everyone's asleep, you know—"

"How did you even…?! Does anyone else know this?!"

"No, calm down, but tell me this. Did you really meet the princess?"

Sokka fumbled to form some kind of excuse and babbled various incoherent things before sighing and slumping his shoulders. "Katara, no details. I promised her that I won't say anything to anyone about this!"

"I'm your sister, and if anyone's concerned about preserving the duties of the princess and shattering pointless restrictions, it's me." She stood up from her seat and approached her brother, who was now standing against the door, making sure no one was awake or walking around. "You don't have to tell me everything, Sokka. I can see you like her. And I don't want you to worry; I won't say anything. I just want to meet her one day—"

"Meet her?! Katara, I promised her that—!"

"I won't make it obvious, really! I'll act like I don't know who she is. Please? You have no idea how excited I am right now."

"But...but I don't wanna deceive her, ya know? I told her I won't tell anyone and...and even if you act like you don't know anything…She doesn't know her past, okay?"

"She doesn't?" Katara softened her eyes.

"Yeah, and I don't want you or anybody else who knows this be anywhere near her and…"

"I won't say a thing, then. I'll just meet her like I'm meeting a regular person. Please, Sokka?"

He huffed out a breath, "Fine, I'll think about it." He took a look at his Revivalist mask, ink containers, outer night robe that was hanging on the wall, and the coconut shells that rested on his bedside table. A plan began formulating in his mind. "But I need to do a few things first."