A/N: And she feels like home. If the shoe fits, walk in it, everywhere you go. Love and be loved. Read… and review!

Akola of Ember Island

[Summer 123 AG]

The coalition of garbage men in Ba Sing Se couldn't have picked a worse summer to go on strike. They came together so that they could fight for better wages and working conditions. Not a soul in the Lower Ring could blame them, even if they were the group most disproportionately impacted by it. The Middle and Upper rings were the most angry and the least impacted. They used earth benders to relocate their trash to the Lower ring, making the smell and issue all the worse.

Compounding matters is the fact that it's the worst summer heat in a generation. There aren't enough fire benders around to help incinerate the excess buildup. Everything everywhere on the lower rings smells putrid and the waste collections are becoming an eyesore on a part of Ba Sing Se that already struggled with both issues. It is in this heat, with these aromas, and these conditions that a single man walks into the open space of a marketplace and puts down a stepping stool. He stands up on it as Lower Ring residents buzz on by, not paying him an ounce of attention.

"Rejoice! For you will all be saved!" He shouts over the hustle and bustle of the early afternoon traffic. "The benders of the world will come together to protect us in this, our hour of need!"

"We are but lowly insects amongst these gods! Our mighty city, Ba Sing Se, needs more water benders for the heat of the summer. We need more fire benders to burn away our waste! We, non-benders, need to-"

At that exact moment he was struck square in the forehead by a flying cabbage. He falls off of his pedestal and onto the ground. A collection of people in the area begin laughing and pointing. While he is down on the ground, at least one person approaches and spits at him. Others shout obscenities and counter arguments.

The whole ordeal makes for an exceptional cover as a middle aged woman with very short, black hair steals fruit from a stand and quickly escapes around a corner, before the merchant is ever the wiser. She snakes her way in a hurry, paranoid that she's just one step ahead of a vengeful fruit salesman.

When she finally feels safe, she comes to a stop in a clearing of sorts. She hasn't eaten in almost two days. Her mouth salivates as she peels back the layer of the orange. The only thing that could possibly stop her is the rustling sounds that catches her ear, from just around the corner.

She quickly turns to the corner and makes eye contact with a peeping boy. Surprised by her catching him, the young boy accidentally falls forward and into plain view. She makes note of his bald head and dark skin. He stands back up and dusts himself off quickly, and when he does she notices that he's tall and thin as a rail. Seeing him nearly wasted away, with sunken cheeks and dull green eyes, she rethinks things. She looks down at her orange and then back at him. She sighs before extending it to him.

"Here, you can have it."

He's hesitant, unsure if he can trust her.

"I ate already." She lies.

He steps forward and for the first time she realizes that he's barefoot.

"Call me A." She tells him.

He reaches out and takes the orange from her slowly. He finally speaks.

"My name starts with an A too."

She guesses that he's probably a pre-teen. Maybe 9, 10, or 11. She nods at him and tells him, "My name is Akola. Akola of Ember Island."

"Akola?" He asks, incredulous. "You're lying. Besides, that's a boy's name."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is. Name one girl named 'Akola.' You can't."

"Me, and one of the old Avatars."

He sighs and shrugs. Finally, he looks down at the orange. He examines it with huge eyes before finally taking a bite. He follows that up with another quick bite, and then a third. Akola nods her head. She turns away, "Alright, I'll leave you to it."

She begins to walk away when he shouts, "Wait!"

"I'm not looking for company, kid."

He chases after her, walking in her shadows. "What are you doing stealing fruit anyway? Don't all big people like you have jobs?"

"It doesn't work like that." She dismisses him.

"It does for the big people I know!" He insists.

"We're called adults," she replies, not breaking stride. "And those people are clearly lucky."

"Maybe I can repay you?"

She stops and he nearly walks into her. She turns around and looks at him, confused. "You have coin?"

"No, but the big people I know help other big people. Get them work."

"What kind of 'big people' do you know?"

"The good kind." He says with a smile.

Rolling her eyes, Akola turns and walks away from him again.

"Like you." He shouts.

She stops and turns back.

"Like me?"

"I know you're lying about your name."

"It's not a guy's name!"

"But I can tell you are one of the good people," he says. Her stomach groans audibly. He continues, "Let me introduce you to more good people."

Akola was sweating profusely, but she followed all the same. They had taken many twists and turns down back alleys and roads she was unfamiliar with yet. It was going on for almost ten minutes and she began to wonder if she was being led to a certain doom. Finally, just as she was preparing to stop, four children smaller than the 'A' boy in front of her came sprinting out from around a corner, going in the opposite direction of them.

He leads her around the corner and when she emerges, she finds herself in an oasis in the concrete jungle of Ba Sing Se. What lays before her is a small commune with people out and about, enjoying the beautiful weather and company of neighbors. Eight doors all facing the inner square, where children are playing. There's a water pump and clothes hang drying on a line. Adults stand around talking and engaging. Akola is a little stunned that such a community could exist within the rugged undertow of the Ba Sing Se Lower Ring. And that it has remained hidden from her in the couple of months she has been a vagabond in a city she once ruled.

"Come on, I'm taking you to Mama" The boy says to her, walking forward into the square.

She turns and looks at him. "'Mama?' As in your mother?"

He stops and turns back to her. With a hand on his hip he replies, "Everyone's mother."

As she falls in line behind him, Akola can't help but think she is about to meet Ba Sing Se's equivalent of The Widow. They cross the courtyard and Akola is distracted by everything going on around her. She observes everything so she can properly analyze their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The boy leads her to a doorway, and when she turns to face it she has to take a step back.

Leaving out the doorway are two figures in long, charcoal cloaks, with bowed heads. For a fraction of a second she is certain they are Kemurikage and her fight or flight senses kick in. She briefly readies a fighting stance. They raise their heads in unison and she realizes they are just civilians. Dirty, poor, cloak wearing civilians. Two of them, one a young man and the other a young woman, who look strangely alike. The man looks up and makes eye contact with her.

"Whoa." He mutters.

Akola realizes that she is still holding her fighting stance and quickly drops it. She stands up straight and looks right at them. She would have to guess they were late teens or maybe even in their early 20's by the look of them.

"Oy," the younger boy says. "Bing and Beng, say hello to my friend."

They both look slowly from the boy to Akola. After a second they shake their heads and reach out their hands in unison.

"I'm Bing." The man says.

"I'm Beng." The woman says.

"Ugh," Akola fumbles with her words before reaching a hand out to shake theirs. They oddly both reach for her hand and they engage in a strange 3-person handshake all at once. "I'm Akola, of Ember Island. Pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine," the man says, but Akola has already forgotten which one he is. "You are beautiful."

Akola removes her hand and just stares at the man. He looks a bit dense and perhaps intoxicated. She replies, "Thank you?"

He hiccups and then confesses to her, "I'm going to marry a woman like you someday."

"That's cute," she dismisses him. Lifting up her left hand to show him her ring finger she say, "But no you won't. I'm taken."

"Gah!" He groans with disappointment. "What man captured your heart!"

"None." She replies honestly.

"Ah!" The woman chimes in. "She's saying you're ugly. Come on, let's not waste this fancy ladies' time."

"It was nice meeting you, Bong and Bang."

"He's Bing."

"And she's Beng."

"Right, sorry."

The two identical young adults step away and towards the courtyard. The boy steps into the house they had just come out of, so Akola follows suit. Once inside it is instantly much cooler. Apart from ducking into stores and public buildings, Azula hasn't found much indoor shade to hide from the sun. She is bathed in the coolness.

"Mama!" The boy shouts.

Akola first sees a rather small, dark skinned boy sitting by the window on the right. He is quiet and looks fragile. Finally sees the woman named Mama. She can't help herself.

'Mother of Agni she's hotter than the heat outside.'

Akola had thought she would be some older, decrepit woman like The Widow had been. The woman before her is about the same age as Akola. She has light tan skin and thick brown hair, wearing it in a swooping ponytail, while two bangs still frame her face. She has dark olive colored eyes and breasts that are perfect for her body. Akola even feels her cheeks singe a bit just by looking at her.

"Welcome back," Mama greets the boy with a warm hug. Mama notices Akola and when she parts from the hug she motions towards the stranger. She asks him, "Whose this?"

Dispatching her momentary paralysis from the appearance of Mama, the visitor replies, "I am Akola, of Ember Island."

Mama looks at her boy.

"She's lying but I don't know about what yet."

"I'm not." Akola replies.

"If he says you are," Mama says while walking away to fix something, "then you are."

The quiet boy in the corner finally speaks. He's got a squeaky voice that annoys her. "What kind of name is 'Akola'?"

"And for a girl!" The 'A' boy chimes in.

Mama shakes her head as she goes about her business and adds, "It is odd."

"Who said I'm a girl? Hmm?" Akola shouts over all of them. They are odd and look at her. They try to analyze her face and her chest. The boy in the chair and Mama both mentally admit that she could pass for a man.

It is very odd for Akola because she doesn't even know any of these people, and yet they talk to her like a long time friend. She returns that feeling by being more of herself, "And screw you in particular, 'Akola' can be a man or a woman's name."

The boy in the chair makes a face at her and shouts, "Ah, fuck you!"

Shocked that a young boy would throw the 'F' word at her, Akola becomes incredulous. She shouts back at him, "Fuck you!"

"No fuck you!" The boy says, standing up.

"Yeah, fuck you!" The 'A' boy adds.

"I'm gonna come over there and kick your little scrawny asses. Both of you at the same time."

"Shut up!" Mama shouts over them.

"Spirits give me strength," she mutters to herself. After the group collectively quiets down she turns to Akola, "Alright, now. Again. What's your name?"

"I'm Akola of Ember Island."

Mama gets mad. "Alright, you know what-"

"Lying!" The skinny boy yells.

"I don't care. I don't," Mama replies, wheeling on him. "If she's lying, and she's here, that means you brought her. So why did you bring her here?"

Very plainly and simply he tells her, "She gave me an orange and said she'd eaten earlier, but she hasn't. She's a good people."

"Good person." The two women both correct him in unison. After this happens they both briefly look at each other.

"See!" He chirps. "A good people!"

"Alright listen," Mama says, walking over to the boy who brought Akola here. She puts her hands on his shoulders as she explains, "This little man right here? We call him a Lie Finder. You can't lie to him."

Akola vaguely recognizes this. She can't quite place it but something from her youth. She traces it back, as far as she can go, until the words, '400 foot tall purple platypus-bear' come roaring back into her mind. The woman is in the middle of saying something when Akola cuts her off.

"You use Seismic Sense, don't you?" Looking right at the Lie Finder.

He crosses his arms, lifts his nose up, and looks away. He replies while looking down at her, "I don't know what that means and I won't respond to it."

Akola chuckles. She shakes her head as she replies, "You all are spunky, aren't you?"

The dark skinned boy, the one who can't find lies, interjects. "Lady, don't call us spunky. We don't know what it means."

"It means you're an annoying little shit." Akola replies.

Riled up, the Not Lie Finder flails his arms around in a fist fighting motion. "Oh! Oh, so it's like that, huh? Well you're a Child of Ozai!"

"I'm a what?"

"It means you're an annoying little shit–but from the Fire Nation."

"That's it!" She yells, pushing furniture out of the way as she moves towards him. "I'd never fight a child, but I'll shake the shit out of you."

"I'm not a child, I'm 16!" He shouts back at her.

"Enough!" Mama strides between them, arms raised, voice as loud as she can make it. She turns to the lanky boy, "Siq. Sit down and shut up."

Siq sees how serious she is and does as he's told immediately. She turns to her Lie Finder. "Aiwei. Get her name or she's out. Now."

Aiwei realizes that the fun and games are over. He quickly turns his attention to Akola and strides up to her, palms outwards and raised above his head to signify he is not threatening. He stares into her eyes and she does the same. Akola tries to remember how to block out the seismic sense. It's been so many years since she had to worry about this or bother with it. Like any old habits, it comes back to her like muscle memory.

"What is your name?" He slowly asks.

She is deliberate in her answer, leaning forward as she replies, "Akola of Ember Island."

He gasps.

"What? What is it?" Siq asks.

"She's… telling the truth?"

"What the fuck, Aiwei!" Siq shouts.

"She is. But she wasn't before?" Aiwei mutters to himself.

"Spirits." Mama complains.

"I swear!" Aiwei tries to explain.

"Fine," Mama says. "I'll do it myself."

Mama comes and stands before Akola, who doesn't mind the attractive brunette getting close to her. Mama doesn't ask anything though, she just reads Akola's amber eyes. The olive eyes analyze her, making judgements and trying to know where, and who, she has been.

"Refugee from the Fire Nation," she finally says. Aiwei and Siq both stand at attention, hanging on Mama's every word. "You're probably lying about the Ember Island part, but I don't think you're originally from the Earth Kingdom either, let alone Ba Sing Se. So maybe you are Akola, but you're not from Ember Island, and you're not from around here."

Smugly, Akola just replies, "I am who I say I am."

"She's telling the truth," Aiwei marvels out loud, confused. "How?"

"Because I was telling the truth the whole time."

"How!" He demands to know, fists balled now.

Akola wears a shit eating grin without replying.

"Wait no, Mama, she said earlier, and she was lying-"

"Aiwei! Shut it! Go." She points to the door Akola had come through. She lightly touches his arm, still pointing with her other hand. "You're done. Get out."

Aiwei, resigned in defeat, moves towards the door. He stops beside Akola and tells her, "I'm going to figure you out, Akola."

"Good luck." She hisses back at him, with a wicked smile.

"Siq, you should leave too," Mama instructs. "Go tell you-know-who that we've got a situation here and I will be late."

"Yes, Mama." He replies obediently.

As he approaches, Akola finally gets a full look at him. His skin is dark as night, making her think he might be from the Water Tribe. He's petite, both in height and weight. There isn't a spec of facial hair on him, and his hair is long, held up in a ponytail. He stops in front of her, a mixture of fierceness and amusement in his blue eyes.

"I hope you can stay. This was fun. I'd like to fight you more. Even if you have the name of a 50 year old man."

"Yes, this was good fun," Akola concedes. She tacks on, "And I'd rather have a 50 year old man's name, than look like I'm stuck in an 8 year old's body."

He shakes his head, the game afoot. He smiles briefly and it might be the brightest smile Akola has ever seen in her entire life. It stuns her for a moment before it fades and then he disappears, exiting out the same door she came in from originally. Finally, the women are alone. Mama gives a stern look.

"Alright, what's the deal with your name? And no more bullshit."

Azula will allow it, but only so far. "If I told you my real name, we'd both be dead in a ditch by tomorrow."

"Okay, I've heard that one-"

"No, you haven't," Azula interrupts her. "Not like me."

Mama clicks her tongue a few times. "I see. So, if you're so bad, why give a kid you don't know your food when you're hungry?"

Azula doesn't need to think about it. She tells her, "I'm just trying to do more good than the evil I've put into the world."

This draws raised eyebrows. Mama asks her, "How long have you been living on the streets?"

"A couple of months. Had a run in with some Dai Li but talked my way out of it."

"Bender?"

"Does that matter?"

"It sure does around here."

"Maybe I am. Maybe I'm not."

"This half truths non-answers bullshit isn't gonna fly. There needs to be trust."

"You expect me to trust you when I don't even know your name?"

"You expect me to trust you when I don't even know your name?"

Azula stops and thinks about this point. Azula, Asuna, Akola. She hid behind many names, just like Mama does. She concedes, "Fair."

"Alright, well I'm putting you down as a non bender with a question mark."

"What's this? For what now?"

"Listen, if you're going to stay in the protection of the Southside, then we need to know who you are."

"Fine. But I want to know more about this benevolent all powerful 'Mama.'"

"Fine. Here's what you need to know," Mama says while gesturing. It is with these gestures that Azula finally sees Mama is wearing her own matrimony band. It is a light gold, but with a bright blue sapphire. "I'm in charge, you're not. I've spent my life on these streets, you are a refugee in my city. I can give you a roof over your head, consistent food, and a job if you have any skills. You have none of those things."

"You're fiery. I love that," Azula says with a smirk. "Do you do this all by yourself?"

"I've got a network." She replies nonchalantly.

"You're own tiny empire, where you control all the strings?"

"I'm just a woman, looking out for people that the Earth Kingdom royal family forgot about."

"Always a friend to those in need."

"Exactly."

"That makes you an idealist."

"I prefer 'romantic at heart.'"

"Tell me your name? You seem so familiar, and yet not."

"Jin," she answers with a sly smile. "Jin of the Lower Ring. But people call me Mama."

"Jin. I like you, Jin. I'll stick with that over Mama."

"Well, Akola, will you be sticking with us in Southside?"

"That depends, Jin." She relishes saying the hot Mama's name.

"On what exactly?"

"You said something about a job?"

"If you have skills, yes. Did you have a job in mind for the skills you haven't displayed?"

With a smile, Akola replies, "Public libraries."

Suki stares at her reflection and can hardly believe she sees it. She looks into a substance that is black as the nighttime sky. By all accounts it should be opaque and nothing should be able to be distinguished in it. Yet she stares at her own eyes reflecting off the surface like some sort of black puddle. It's mesmerizing, the way that even in the darkness, there is still light. She feels that is true of life in general, but most especially her current predicament.

"Have I ever told you the story of how I got that sword?" An unseen voice speaks to her from beyond.

Suki stands up straight and turns around. Striding towards her is her husband and the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, Sokka. He is tall and handsome as ever. He smiles broadly and wears a proud look on his face. She shakes her head at him.

"Only 100 times."

"What about the story of how I recovered it?"

"Hmm," she thinks for a moment. He arrives at her location, enveloping her in a loving embrace. They share a sweet peck on the lips. When they're done she answers, "Only 99 times."

He bursts out laughing and she can't contain herself either. They hold this moment together, enjoying the hug and the moment of being reunited. After a second or two, they part and take seats together on the soft couch in his home, with the light breaking in through a high, stained glass window.

Sokka asks about how her travels were coming to the South Pole. Suki asks about current affairs and which villages are causing issues. Sokka recounts power plays by certain families, and bemoans that he never has time to visit the islands off in the northeastern quadrant. It's been a goal for years to do some outreach, but time and attention always draw him away. Nevermind that it's a lawless land out there, being guarded by some old vigilante named 'The Watchkeeper.'

"But you didn't come all this way to hear me rant about that."

"No, I don't suppose I did."

He settles into her arms, nuzzling the back of his head into her breasts. "So tell me, my dear Wife, what was so important and confidential you wouldn't risk putting it into writing."

"I have to ask you some questions," she pauses. His pulse quickens a bit. "About Republic City."

"Hmm? What about it?"

"The crime families."

"Ugh. Don't bring them up in front of Aang or Zuko, unless you want to piss them off."

"I want to go after one of them."

"Egh?"

"Not a family, but one of the mobsters who I think is controlling all the strings."

"What's the point? These mobsters all drive each other out of town all the time anyway. Kill each other off, or redraw territory lines. It's a fucking cesspool and impossible to curtail."

"I know, but this is different."

"How? I mean, no offense, but how serious can this really be? The biggest mobster ever got killed like ten, fifteen years ago-"

"Almost exactly ten years ago."

"-and it didn't stop a thing. They barely took an hour of their time before they were dividing up the city like it was a family dinner."

"And 10 years later we still don't have answers on how that all went down, because someone is being protected. The Fire Lord's own sister was killed and no one has faced punishment. Imagine what else is happening?"

Stammering over his words, Sokka replies, "I-I mean, what is this, Suki? Didn't you used to complain that Ty Lee ranted about this? Have you had a change of heart?"

"I did and I have."

"What happened?"

She pauses. "Someone in Kyoshi Village lost their friend to the violence in the city."

"Ah," he sighs in understanding. "I see."

"Technically, he may still be alive."

"So this has become personal for you now."

"Yes. Exactly."

"So now you won't rest."

"Until he comes home. Until I have answers about what happened to her. Until there is justice served for the innocent."

"All this for a cold case and a likely dead end?"

"All this to finally get the answers I've always wondered."

He rolls over to face her. Their eyes meet and he can see the resolve in them.

"Alright. Who are we going after?"

She smiles at him. She'll have his resources and influence over Toph and the rest of her metal bending police force. All the might of the Southern Water Tribe. She narrows her eyes.

"His name," she pauses for dramatic effect. "Is Yakone."

A/N: This chapter's OST is "Say My Name" by Tove Styrke.

Love always. Tyzula forever.

Notorious