The weather was cool, the skies were white with a thick layer of clouds, and it would have been the perfect day for penguin sledding, Aang thought, if only they weren't busy fishing instead. Surely he should have been doing something more productive, like practicing his waterbending forms with Katara, who became more skilled at the art every day… but for the time being, fishing it was. He couldn't help but think of his waterbending instructor, almost hearing Toki's voice reprimanding him for loafing around instead of working hard to polish his skills. The middle-aged waterbender's heavy frown could be a little scary whenever he told Aang he had to remember his role in the world instead of playing around so much…
The Avatar had no trouble imagining what Toki might say if he could see him now, sitting around a small fire with two other people, a few feet away from a crack in the ice that had been carved for the purpose of fishing. He smiled, knowing Toki wouldn't approve: this sort of reckless behavior wasn't advisable, especially the part that included bonding with a Fire Nation enemy, but there was no way to obtain information from their ally if not through these fishing trips.
It wasn't the first time they had taken Kino on a fishing trip, for they'd spent several months doing it by now, but it was the first time in over two weeks that they had a chance for it. The Fire Nation soldier had been elated about it, as he always was, yet after sitting for hours hopelessly, failing to ensnare a single fish, he always grew a lot less enthusiastic.
"… Fishing with fishhooks is actually just a very boring exercise in patience, huh?" Kino growled, with a small pout.
"I warned you about it plenty of times before," replied Katara, simply, staring into their small fire with displeasure. "But you kept insisting this was what you wanted to do, didn't you?"
"Well, come on, I have every right to try and eat something decent for once, while I'm in this wasteland of yours!" Kino complained, earning himself a glare from Katara that Aang quickly identified as a very bad omen.
"Uh, say, Kino, did you get more information for us today or not?" he asked, with a weak grin, and the Fire Nation soldier pouted.
"Maybe I did, but until I catch a fish, you're not going to hear…!"
"Ugh, quit being an idiot or I'll freeze you for it!" Katara snapped, and Kino gulped. "Either you talk now, or we'll just call it quits and…!"
"No, no, no! Jeez, no need to be so drastic!" Kino squeaked, gulping. "I can tell you, then, but… ah, I just really want to catch one! At least for once!"
Katara rolled her eyes and looked at him skeptically. Kino sighed and nodded, setting down the fishing rod as he realized he wasn't going to get his way. Protesting further wouldn't be too helpful, it wasn't wise to anger this particular waterbender, after all…
"I'm sure you'll get one eventually," Katara said. "But in case you forgot, the deal was that we'd take you fishing for information. Whether you would fish successfully or not wasn't part of the deal at all."
"I know, I know. Jeez, you're cranky today," he whispered, and Aang cleared his throat.
"So?" he said, and Kino nodded.
"Well, I went to our new headquarters in Whaletail Island, which is actually our old headquarters, but it's new for our squad because we'll be positioned there starting tomorrow…"
"Tomorrow already?" said Aang, raising his eyebrows. "Time flew, huh? Then you really will be transferred?"
"Yeah, it's happening at last. But anyways, I got sidetracked here!" said Kino, lifting a finger and frowning for a moment as he focused on what he'd been saying. "We reached the island, and there we were, and that was cool, but as usual, they didn't pay any attention to me and didn't give me any tasks, so I had a chance to sneak out to the Southern Coliseum!"
"The Southern what, now?" Aang asked, confused, and Kino smiled.
"It's the professional Gladiator Arena in the island," he said, proudly. Katara stiffened.
"Wait, so you… did you finally confirm my brother is actually a gladiator?!" she asked, and Kino gulped and shrugged.
"I confirmed the Princess's gladiator is, in fact, from the Water Tribe," he said, with a dry grin. "But they don't have enough information about him in the Coliseum. It seems the Princess has never taken him to fight there. They might one day, though, it seems the Princess travels for fights often…"
"But then… this is as good as nothing!" said Katara, and Kino pouted.
"Hey, it's not as good as nothing!" he said, folding his arms over his chest. "I can list you the weapons he has used in battle! I was granted that much information, thank you very much!"
"His weapons, then?" Aang asked, surprised. "Well, then, let's hear it!"
"Uh, there's a sword," said Kino, frowning as he counted with his fingers. "A black jian. Ring any bells?"
"Not at all," said Katara, raising an eyebrow. Kino grimaced.
"I think there was another sword, yeah," he whispered, softly. "One he's only used in one fight so far, a white…"
"My brother didn't fight with swords," she growled. "We don't have jian swords in the Water Tribe."
"W-well, there was, uh, a… a club?" he said, and Katara frowned "Also a, uh, what's the name of those thingies? Those things that you throw, and they come back, and you…?"
"Karma?" Aang asked, smiling and earning himself a pout from Kino as well.
"Hey, you're the one who's supposed to be nice, remember?" he grumbled as Aang laughed. Katara frowned, though.
"A boomerang, you mean?"
"Oh, yes! That!" Kino shouted, nodding affirmatively. Katara gritted her teeth. "That, and I think a knife too. And, uh… bombs. I think"
"What kind of…? Oh, never mind, it's got to be him, or if anything it's someone who took his weapons," said Katara, flexing her legs and surrounding her knees with her arms. Aang looked at her worriedly.
"You think so because of that boomerang?" he asked, and she nodded.
"It was one of his favorite weapons. Granted, other Water Tribe slaves might have boomerangs too, but how many of them would there be? I mean… it's likely him. It's him, and he's… he's sponsored by the Princess. Of all horrible things that could have happened to him…"
"Now, now, he can't be that badly off," said Kino, lifting a finger. "She may not have the nicest reputation, but if anything, she has made a pretty great fighter out of him. He's one of the best non-benders in the League, you know? That's not something any random someone could achieve, Katara!"
"Oh, nonsense. There should be no such League and he shouldn't be fighting in it at all!" she growled, punching the ice with anger. "Yet you said that… that the Princess might come to Whaletail Island? Really?"
"Uh, maybe. I don't know," said Kino, insecure. "If she ever schedules a fight there I might be able to give you guys a heads-up about it. You probably should see the gladiator yourselves to know if it's your brother or not, right?"
"Right. And if it is, we're going to take him with us," Katara declared, and Kino's jaw dropped as Aang looked at Katara in confusion.
"Woah… do you think it'd be that easy?" he asked, blinking blankly, as Katara shrugged.
"Why not? If we snatch him away in the middle of a fight and take him home on Appa, she won't be able to do anything…"
"I'm not so sure about that," said Kino, biting his lower lip. "Word is she has tamed a dragon, you know. So even if that weird shaggy beast of yours could lift him, she would catch up to you and set you all on fire if she wants the gladiator back…"
"Well, why would she want him back that badly? He may have done well, or whatever, in that disgusting League, but I'm sure she could find someone better than my brother if she just tries," Katara grunted, lowering her legs again.
"Huh, maybe, but she is a Princess. She might not like it when people take away what she thinks is hers…" said Kino, and Katara scowled.
"Hers, like he could belong to her! He's his own person, and she's reduced him to a slave! Hell, she's likely tortured him in unimaginable ways and we're all here, just… sitting and waiting for fish to bite a hook. This is a waste of time!"
"And going to the Fire Nation to rescue Sokka might only be trouble, on the other hand," Aang whispered, gritting his teeth. "We should help him, but your first plan is likely the best so far. We should wait until she brings him to fight in the Southern Coliseum, and once she does we'll take him away as soon as we have a chance."
"And what if she never does?" Katara asked, looking at Aang skeptically. He sighed.
"Then we'll have to think of something else. Maybe an Arena in the Earth Kingdom would be a little more secure, but we'd need a back-up plan…"
"You guys are serious?" said Kino, looking at them in disbelief. "You really want to take away the Princess's gladiator? I mean… really?"
"What's the problem? We could take her on, Aang and I," said Katara, proudly. "We're both waterbenders, and everyone knows water beats fire, so…"
"Uh, yeah, but she's only the best firebender alive… if the rumors are true, anyways," said Kino, and Aang's eyebrows rose.
"Is that for real? The best firebender alive?"
"She makes fire of different colors and all," said Kino, raising his eyebrows and nodding. "… Or at least that's what the rumors say."
"Well, Kattan and Haka did say she fought with blue fire, but that makes no difference either way," said Katara, rolling her eyes. "I don't care how strong she is, not even she would hold her own against two of us. So yeah, we really think we can take her."
"Heh, fine then. If you die then that's too bad," said Kino, shrugging carelessly before actually looking sad at the thought. "Eh, it actually will be. You two are as good as my only friends, so… would be a pity to lose you."
"We're… your friends?" Katara asked, surprised. Kino blushed a little and laughed.
"Well, why not?" he said, grinning. "You don't ignore me, you take me on fishing trips and you are eager to hear what I might have to say! So yeah, I think we're friends after all, right?"
"Right," said Aang, smiling too. Katara didn't imitate them. The idea of being friends with a Fire Nation soldier didn't sit too well with her, despite their frequent encounters and the fact that she doubted Kino meant to harm them in any way. Her prejudices against his nation still ran a little too deeply.
"So yeah, I'd rather you don't die in some crazy suicide mission," he said, focusing on his fishing rod again. He was busy attaching new bait on it. "I wouldn't be able to stop you if you tried, but don't you think it'd be a waste? You're the last waterbenders down here, so if just for your Tribe's sake you should just stay safe and out of… oh, hey! I only noticed that now, no wonder you two are together! Did you get set up for marriage or something because you're both waterbenders?"
"Wait, wait, what?!" said Katara, her eyes widening as Aang blushed deeply.
"Well, it's something they always do in the Fire Nation!" said Kino, smiling "They set up marriages between people of powerful lineages or something, in hopes an even more powerful firebender will be born…!"
"Does that ever work?" Aang asked, puzzled, and Kino shrugged.
"I dunno. Maybe?" he said, smiling awkwardly. "I've heard rumors of some marriages that were made to produce powerful firebenders… though then they had non-benders and their lives fell apart. Sad stuff, of course. But I mean, the odds are that having a strong bender as your parent would have something to do with inheriting the skills, right?"
"You think bending is inherited?" Katara asked, confused. "Did… did any Fire Nation studies prove that?"
"Uh, not that I know of," said Kino, shrugging. "But maybe it's more likely for benders to have bending children than for them to have non-benders, right?"
"I'd agree, but… there were no benders in my family before me," said Katara, frowning.
"The Air Nomads were all airbenders…" Aang said, but a sharp glare from Katara silenced him as he noticed his mistake. Fortunately, Kino was too busy with his fishhook to pay them enough attention. "Or at least, that's what I've heard, haha. Yeah. They were, uh, very spiritual, apparently…"
"Heh, really?" said Kino, looking up in surprise. "If it's a matter of spirituality, then the Fire Sages should be airbenders too…"
"What sort of logic is that?" said Katara, grimacing. "If they're Fire Sages, they should be firebenders…"
"Exactly!" said Kino, grinning. "People are born with the ability to bend, and the element they bend depends on what their heritage is. You can't just become an airbender because you start praying a lot…"
"Uh, airbenders would meditate," Aang said, and Kino looked at him in surprise. Aang gulped. "I… I think as much, anyways."
"Oh, well, whatever it is they did, you can't just be an airbender out of nowhere just because you feel like it," he said, smiling. "Else anyone could become, I don't know, Avatars just because they want to. And that's not possible, is it?"
"No. Not a chance there's an Avatar anywhere, whatsoever!" Aang said, nodding. Katara rolled her eyes before giving him another significant, disapproving glare. Aang shrugged and grimaced.
"I know, right? It's almost sad, really" said Kino, with a sigh, as he moved towards the fishing hole in the ice, placing the fish hook inside and sitting to wait patiently, the rod in his gloved hands. "The idea of some super entity that keeps balance is kind of neat, isn't it?"
"Uh, aren't you Fire Nation? Don't you people want the Avatar dead?" Katara asked, and Kino blinked blankly.
"Well, we are ordered, as soldiers, to capture the Avatar on sight, but it's kind of hard to do that when there's been no sign of the Avatar for ages, right?" he said, shrugging. "I'm just saying, it would be pretty interesting to meet someone who can bend every element. I can't even bend a single one myself, so benders always have been really impressive for me…"
"Is that why you think so highly of that Princess?" Katara asked spitefully, and Kino smiled.
"Well, that and many other things. She sounds terrifying, but at the same time there are so many cool rumors about her… I mean, as I told you just now, they say she has tamed a dragon, no less!"
"I admit that's pretty unusual," Aang said, smiling with interest. "I remember that… uh, that in old books, dragons were said to be pretty hard to tame."
"I don't even know how it's done," said Kino, with a weak grin. "But it's awesome because nobody had seen dragons for, I don't know, over thirty years. I thought they were extinct or so, I'd heard as much, but I guess not!"
"Are you sure she tamed it?" Katara asked, raising an eyebrow. "Maybe she beat it up and tied it down so it would become her slave…"
"Hey…" said Kino, looking at Katara doubtfully. "I don't know anything for certain, but I'm pretty sure…! Oh… uh, ah, hey? I think… I think I got a bite!"
"Wait, you did what?!" Katara asked and Aang grimaced.
"Oh, I did, I did!" he exclaimed, beaming wildly until the fishing rod jolted him violently towards the crack in the ice. "Ah, hey! Quit that!"
"Kino, let it go!" Aang said, standing up and staring at the Fire Nation soldier warily.
He had never told Kino as much, but he had been responsible for the lack of fish biting the young man's fishhook during all this time. While Kino got distracted he would bend the water inconspicuously, redirecting any fish that might be approaching his hook. The idea of fishing didn't really sit well with him, and he didn't want to see these creatures suffer because this was Kino's idea of fun…
"What, let it go? Right now?! It's the first time I get one of these!" he cried out, pouting. "Not a chance, Aang! Help me here!"
"Kino, please…!"
But Kino didn't listen. He clutched his rod with all his might, standing up and leaning back… and with a loud cracking noise, a tiger seal tore through the ice and hovered above them briefly, clutching the fishhook tightly between its jaws.
Kino's eyes flew open in the brief moments as the tiger seal came flying towards him. He had expected an actual fish, not a tiger seal! He let go of the rod and screamed, covering his face with his hands as gravity did its job to make the angry creature fall atop him…
But the tiger seal didn't come crashing on Kino. The soldier continued to scream and shrink in his frame, terrified of what the creature would do to him… until he noticed that, by all logic, the tiger seal should have already done its worst after a couple of seconds. Why hadn't it?
He blinked blankly before turning to see the creature was suspended in mid-air for no plausible reason, still biting on the fishhook. When its eyes met Kino's, it attempted to attack him, identifying him as the fisherman who had tricked it into taking his bait. Kino flinched and dropped back, afraid the claws might reach him, but the tiger seal started to hover away against its will, looked like.
Kino glanced behind him when he noticed one of his companions was moving behind him. Aang's arms were performing circular motions as the tiger seal hovered in the air.
"Sorry about that!" he shouted to the creature, using a little gust of air to remove the fishhook from the creature's jaws, but allowing it to keep the bait as a treat. "We won't bother you anymore!"
The tiger seal growled as a response, but once Aang had lowered it into the water it simply swum away. Aang sighed and looked at Kino with irritation as the Fire Nation soldier gulped guiltily.
"I told you to just let it go, didn't I?" Aang snapped, and Kino smiled and scratched the back of his head.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but it was my first catch! You couldn't just expect me to…!"
"Aang…"
Aang frowned upon hearing Katara call him hoarsely. Her eyes were wide as she looked at
him in disbelief. Had he not noticed what he'd done just now?
"I have to say I'm surprised you could bend the water in the air like that, though," said Kino, startling them. It was only then that Aang realized his mistake. "I'd never heard of something like that!"
The color drained from Aang's face as Kino eyed him with curiosity and confusion. Was he really too thick to realize Aang had just used his airbending? Aang turned to Katara, apologetic: she only responded with a ruthless glare. There was nothing to be done by now. Even if Kino was too naïve to understand things, he might tell his fellow guards of what he'd seen. And if the Fire Nation heard that the Avatar was hiding in the South Pole, all commands to evacuate the settlement would disappear as suddenly as they had appeared. They would come after Aang immediately, and there would be no place to hide…
"K-Kino…" said Aang, looking at him warily. Maybe they could convince him that what he had seen wasn't at all what he had thought it was…
"I've heard there's water in the air before, but this was kind of strange anyways. I guess you're that good a waterbender, huh?" he said, but it was then that he noticed the expressions on his friends' faces. "Uh, guys? What's the matter?"
"We can't just… we have to do something, Aang," said Katara, looking at Aang meaningfully. Aang gritted his teeth and looked at her sternly.
"Like what? Katara…"
"Aang, this is serious!" she exclaimed. "This is precisely what we should have known would happen if we kept doing this, and…!"
"Katara, I'm sorry! It just… came out of me by instinct, I didn't mean to," said Aang, and Katara huffed.
"You're not the problem, Aang, the problem is…" she said, looking at Kino warily…
… To find realization was dawning in his eyes now. As his gaze shifted back and forth between Aang and Katara, Kino started to frown and to step backwards warily.
"Y-you… you weren't bending the water in the air, were you?" he asked. Aang's stomach sank.
"Kino…"
"You're… a vegetarian, right? And you have weird name that doesn't sound Water Tribe at all… y-you're… oh, spirits, you're…" he said, as he reached a hand out towards his spear, the weapon he had been assigned for his rounds in the settlement. Katara glared at him.
"Don't you dare!" she shouted, unleashing a water whip towards Kino and slapping his hand hard. Kino flinched and whimpered, gritting his teeth at the pain, yet he still looked at Aang and Katara in confusion and terror.
"Stay back!" he shouted, trembling as he pulled out a pocket knife now. Katara's glare only grew fiercer.
"Katara, calm down! Just… let's talk this through!" Aang said, pleadingly, before turning to Kino. "Kino, please, this isn't what…"
"This isn't what it looks like?! S-so you're not an airbender, then?!" he asked, holding the knife at the level of his shoulders. "You're not… the Avatar?!"
Aang gritted his teeth. So much for hoping to salvage the situation. Granted, he and Katara weren't the best liars, but if only she hadn't reacted as she had, maybe they could have still misled Kino. As it was, though, the situation was hopeless. The Fire Nation soldier was fully aware of who he was now, and he seemed beyond horrified by the discovery.
"Makes… makes perfect sense now that you'd know so much about Air Nomads," he said, swallowing hard. "And that creature, that shaggy one you jumped down from when we were attacking your Tribe… it was some airbender creature, wasn't it?!"
"Kino, please, you have to listen!" Aang exclaimed "We're not your enemies, you don't have to…!"
"You're not my enemies?! Heck, that's what you've always been!" said Kino, gritting his teeth. "And even then, I figured we could be friends, but… but you're the Avatar!"
"Aang, this is useless! We have to restrain him, or he'll run back to his people and give you away! We can't just sit around a fire and try to settle things by talking!" Katara snapped, pulling forth another stream of water out of the piled snow near them. Aang's gasped.
"Katara, no!"
Kino jumped back as the water lunged towards him. He had no idea how to avoid it, knowing all too well that the waterbender had an advantage over him in this situation. Katara was in her element, and even if Aang didn't want to fight alongside her, she alone would have a nigh-guaranteed victory against a single, almost disarmed soldier.
Things only got worse for Kino when, in his attempt to evade Katara's attacks, he stumbled into the hole in which he had been fishing. He cringed as he fell into the freezing water, and to no surprise, Katara used the opportunity to freeze him and keep him place. Kino screamed, the ice seeming to burn into his skin.
"Katara, stop it!" Aang shouted, desperate, as Katara pulled Kino towards them, a fierce snarl on her face.
"Let me go!" Kino growled, grimacing as he squirmed. "It hurts!"
"Katara!" Aang looked at the waterbender in despair, making her resolve weaken for a moment.
"Aang, we can't let him go now! Things were fine as long as he didn't realize who you were, but now…!"
"Then, because he realized who I am, you're going to freeze him to death?!" Aang exclaimed, and Katara gritted her teeth before letting the ice melt around Kino. He fell on the ice, shivering violently as he rubbed his arms while he struggled to regain his warmth.
"Aang, please, stop thinking with your heart for a minute and use your head!" Katara snapped. "If he gets away you might be killed! The entire Tribe might end up dead! We knew we were taking a risk with this, and now we have to do something about it! I can't just…!"
"You can't just hurt him and expect him to cooperate with us! You can't take him captive for no reason and think the Fire Nation will take that well!" said Aang. "You might doom your Tribe all the same if you capture one of their soldiers for no apparent reason! So Katara, just…!"
"Aang, I'm doing this for your own good!"
"Well, you're not going to hurt him just because of me!" Aang replied, as Kino gritted his teeth and stood up.
"Oh, so then you're going to fight me because I'm trying to…!" Katara started, but she fell quiet when she noticed Kino had turned on his heels and was now stumbling his way down the ice plain. "Damn it, you're not getting away!"
"Katara, cut it out!" Aang shouted, but the waterbender had already began to bend the nearby snow, using it to catapult herself forward fast enough to reach Kino, who was shuddering as he tried to run away.
Kino heard her coming, knowing she would not let him go now, knowing she might really freeze him alive this time around. There was no escape from his discovery: he wouldn't walk away from this without retribution. He should have known. All along he had been growing too friendly towards the enemy, long before understanding which enemy he was dealing with, exactly.
The Fire Lord needed the Avatar to be caught. Kino knew that was the mission that was given to the banished Prince, so he could regain his honor. The Fire Lord wanted the Avatar behind bars, or even dead, to prevent him from getting in the way of the Fire Nation's expansion. And Kino was obligated, by his loyalty to his people and the vows he had sworn, to deliver the Avatar to the Fire Lord if he were to find him.
He gritted his teeth and turned his head, knowing that sort of thing would be folly. Not only was Aang too powerful for him to capture, but there was Katara as well, who wouldn't stand for it…
Aang and Katara. The very two people he had just referred to as his only friends barely instants earlier.
And one of those two people seemed to be about to kill him.
"Katara, stop!" Aang shouted again, as Kino turned with a panicked look on his face.
Katara was coming towards him, propelled by the avalanche-like wave of snow she had built to reach him. One of her hands reached out to him just as Kino turned around, his knife held tight on his right hand still…
It was Katara who screamed now as the blade cut the palm of her hand sharply. The wave of snow crumbled behind her, but not before it could bury Kino waist-deep inside of it. Katara collapsed only a few feet ahead of him, droplets of red staining the pristine snow.
"Katara…?" Aang said, his eyes wide as Kino dropped the knife, aghast by the thin line of blood that trickled on it. "KATARA!"
Aang rushed towards them as Kino dug himself out of the snow, his eyes still wide with panic. He wasn't even sure of what he'd done to her, but he could still see the blood that was dripping on the snow.
"K-Katara? Are you…?" he asked, reaching out to her as he finally got out of the snow, but his attempt to reach a hand towards her was slapped away.
But not by Katara. By the Avatar.
"Stay away from her!" Aang roared now, angrily, as he surrounded Katara with an arm and pulled her closer to him, fear glowing in his eyes alongside the fury. "Are you okay? Katara…"
"I-I'm fine. I'm fine," she said, breathing heavily as the pain stung her palm. She gritted her teeth as she removed her cut mitten with difficulty to find a deep gash in her hand.
Aang cringed when he saw the wound. He turned to Kino, who jumped back with fear and looked at Aang apologetically.
"I didn't mean to hurt…! I wasn't trying to harm her!" he exclaimed, but Aang's fierce scowl was enough to make him pull back.
"Kino, just…!" he said, breathing in slowly and shaking his head before glaring at him. "Just stay away from us!"
"Aang…" he said, but the Avatar didn't look at him anymore. Katara shivered in his arms, and Aang grimaced as she tried to cleanse the wound with loose snow. "… I'm sorry."
Kino turned away and started back to the settlement, almost hoping now that one of the two benders would come after him yet knowing neither would. Aang was no killer, but the anger in his eyes just now had been far more terrifying than Katara's previous attacks. He gulped as he switched to a sprint, shivering violently: how he had gotten caught up in such a mess? He had achieved the unthinkable for a Fire Nation soldier: he had found the Avatar… and he had lost his only friends ever as a consequence.
"Katara, I'm sorry, I'm really…" Aang said, as she cringed and cleansed the wound.
"Don't… you have nothing to be sorry for," she said, as she pressed some snow to her palm. "This wound is my fault. I should have… shouldn't have acted so erratically. I know I can end up hurting myself for being so reckless, but I got carried away…"
"But I… I'm the reason he even had a chance to do this to you," said Aang, grimacing. "If I hadn't forced him to meet us, and if I had just understood…"
"Understood what?" Katara asked, as Aang lowered his head.
"That… that you were probably right about the Fire Nation. I… I thought maybe Kino wouldn't want to deliver me to the Fire Lord, but you saw how he acted. It's probably the only thought in his mind now. And then he hurt you, and…! I can't believe I let him do this to you. I'm so sorry, Katara…"
"Stop feeling so bad about it, I kind of brought it on myself," said Katara, grinding her teeth as the melting snow seeped into the wound. "I lashed out at him. He only hurt me by mistake, which, well, is pretty sad if you think abo-…"
Katara stopped midsentence when her hands became a sudden, unexpected source of blueish light. Aang frowned and looked at her in confusion as Katara felt a strange, tingling sensation in her palm, where the water touched her wounded skin…
"What on earth…?" she said, as the glow disappeared, and she studied her palm:
there was no wound anymore. Her hand was back in perfect shape. She turned to Aang in confusion: she found recognition in his eyes, to her utmost surprise.
"I… I'd heard of the northern waterbenders' healing skills," he said, taking Katara's hand in his. "But I never heard of anyone having such skills in the South Pole. I mean… it has to be that, right?"
"I have no idea," said Katara, looking at Aang with confusion. "I've never healed myself like this… or anyone else, for that matter. Have you ever…?"
"Healed? No. I'd heard of it, but… I never managed to do it," he said, as they rose back to their feet somewhat clumsily.
"We should go after him, Aang," said Katara, gulping. "And talk things through, as you wanted us to. Maybe if we're not as rash as I was, he won't tell his people about you. Or do you think…?"
"I… I don't know what to think anymore," said Aang, sighing. "Maybe it's time they find out what they're dealing with, after all. But if they do, I… I'll have to leave the South Pole. I can't put your Tribe in danger."
"Well, then, if you go, I'm coming with you," Katara said, with determination. "I don't care where, but you're not going alone. And if we're going to save my brother one day, then…"
"We'll have to fight the Fire Nation one way or another anyhow," he said, gulping. "Even if I don't like it, we have no choice. Kino might… he might still not betray us. But he does see us as the enemy either way. We can't stay sitting around doing nothing."
"It's what I've always told you," said Katara, frowning. "It's time we do something. We can't stand by forever and wait for a signal from the spirits or so. Unless we take a stand, nothing will change. And…"
"And who's better to make things change than me," said Aang, nodding weakly.
Katara could see the hesitation in his eyes. He was scared, and rightfully so. If Kino informed his fellow soldiers that the Avatar was alive, there was no telling what sort of havoc would be wreaked on the Tribe. Was Aang powerful enough to keep the Fire Nation's forces at bay? He was a prodigious bender in both the elements he could wield, but Katara wasn't sure that would be enough. Granted the environment would be favorable for him, but even the Avatar might be outmatched if the Fire Nation navy brought all their forces to find him.
"Shouldn't we try to stop Kino anyways?" asked Katara, as Aang gazed in the direction their friend had left.
"I shouldn't have let him go. I'm sorry, I kind of lost it when he hurt you," he said, his jaw clenched as he saw the white clouds above had darkened suddenly. "But going after him now isn't a good idea. It looks like a storm is coming."
Katara had to concede Aang was right: the grey clouds were shifting dangerously. A snow storm would be upon them in no time.
"You think he'll be in his settlement before the storm hits?"
"For his sake, let's hope so," said Aang. Katara swallowed hard as a dark thought materialized in her mind: for their sake, and for Aang's sake… maybe it would be better if the storm stopped Kino from returning to his people. "We should go too."
"Yes," said Katara, nodding. "Let's go home."
Hakoda frowned as he saw the clouds swirling in the distance. It was the telltale omen of blizzard, as he knew too well, and while everyone in the Tribe was already safely tucked inside their homes, two people were still outside the village. One of them, of course, was his own daughter.
As a last desperate resort, he climbed the village's watch tower in hopes to spot them in the horizon somewhere. It wasn't easy to find them in the dark, though: the thick clouds helped little in his task of finding the two young adults who had taken up the duty of watching the settlement today.
They should have known better than to keep watch when the weather was this bleak, Hakoda thought, as he scanned the landscape with difficulty… and finally, he saw something. Two figures approaching the tribe's walls: it had to be them.
He rushed to meet them, hoping to usher them inside right away, but he didn't miss the troubled looks on their faces as they entered the town. Katara's right hand was uncovered, too, for some reason…
"Are you both alright?" he asked. "You should've noticed the blizzard was almost upon you hours ago! You shouldn't have kept watch in those conditions."
"We were just…" said Katara, as Hakoda looked at them questioningly. "Dad, I think… we need to talk."
"Do we?" he said, frowning. The look of dread on their faces brought a thousand potential possibilities to his mind, yet he hoped none of the strange scenarios he was imagining would turn out to be true. "What happened to your mitten, Katara?"
"It's part of what we need to talk about," she said, looking at Aang guiltily as he swallowed hard and nodded.
"This sounds worse by the minute. Let's get inside quickly," said Hakoda, glancing up at the sky. "It's already starting to snow."
An hour later, Hakoda's questions had been answered as they shared dinner in the Tribal chief's igloo. Yet now that everything made sense, Hakoda found he would much rather have remained in complete ignorance of the folly Katara and Aang had committed.
"So you… you had a Fire Nation soldier acting as your informant," said Hakoda, frowning as Aang and Katara finished their tale. "You were meeting him in secret, fully aware of how much danger you were getting yourselves into…?"
"We made a mistake. I made a mistake," said Aang, swallowing hard and lowering his head. "I thought Kino could be trusted… he seemed a good person, but even good people can be Fire Nation soldiers. I thought he wouldn't hurt Katara, but…"
"But he's an enemy," said Hakoda, sternly. "And as good a person as he may have seemed to be, he has a job to do, and he swears loyalty to the Fire Lord. If he didn't kill you on sight, it's merely because he knew he wouldn't be strong enough to overpower you on his own. The next thing we know, there will be a battalion of Fire Nation forces ready to take our Tribe by storm, and that will only grow worse once the Fire Lord hears of who you are and where you're hiding!"
"I know. I know," said Aang, nodding. "And I'm sorry. I never meant to put your people in danger, let alone Katara. I know what I must do now, though, and I…"
"It's not only about my people and Katara, Aang," said Hakoda, and his eyes softened now. "You've been with us for a year now, shared our home, our meals, our lifestyle… I speak out of concern for your wellbeing as well as that of everyone else. You're the world's only hope against the Fire Nation, it's true, but I never wanted to sacrifice you in some poorly executed military attempt to dethrone the Fire Lord. You are as good as part of our Tribe now. And I had meant to protect all of my Tribe."
"So did I," said Aang, looking at Hakoda remorsefully. "But my decisions… they led to Katara being hurt, and…"
"I'm fine now, Aang," she said, her eyes sad as she tried to focus on her meal. "You don't have to worry about me."
"Even so, Katara…" said Aang, glancing at her hand worriedly.
"Healing abilities aren't too common amongst waterbenders, especially in the South Pole," said Hakoda, but Kanna smiled.
"They are far more common in the North Pole, Hakoda," she said, reaching out to touch Katara's hand with one of hers. "It seems your healing skills must have been passed down through my side of the family somehow."
Katara found it in her to smile at her grandmother, despite herself. She squeezed her hand before turning her questioning gaze on her father.
"I know you're mad about this, and you have every right to be," she said. "But Kino actually gave us important information, Dad. He told us that they had stopped attacking the settlement under the Fire Lord's orders, though they had no idea why he gave that order. And not just this, but…"
Katara was choked up for a moment as she steeled herself to say the next words. Hakoda frowned, looking at his daughter with confusion.
"But what, Katara?"
"I… I asked him about Sokka," she said, and Hakoda's eyes widened. "He had no information about him at first, but he asked in the settlement afterwards, and he told us that the Princess didn't kill him. That she… she took him to the Fire Nation, to make him a slave."
"A… Katara, this is… is this why you two kept meeting this soldier?!" he asked, his eyes wide. "Katara, for all you know he was lying about all this! He could have simply been feeding you false information to distract you both while the rest of his squad readied themselves to attack our Tribe!"
"But… that never happened. There were no attacks," said Aang, and Hakoda glared at him.
"For all you knew, there could have been," he said, and Aang shook his head.
"Kino isn't like that at all, Hakoda, he's…!" he started, but he fell silent again as he remembered, once more, that the soldier was likely to have sold him out to the Fire Lord by now.
"Dad, he wasn't half as clever or capable of cruel things as we could have thought," said Katara, swallowing hard. "We have no evidence that his information on Sokka is real, that's true, but he's a lot less dangerous than you think he…"
"You say this after he harmed you?"
"It was a mistake! I… I lashed out precisely because I kept acting the way you are right now!" Katara exclaimed. "I was angry, and I kept attacking him, and all he wanted was to get away from me because he was scared of what I might do to him! When he hurt me, it was, well, some sort of wake-up call. He didn't want to hurt me, Dad. And… he might not want to hurt Aang either. He'd told us we were his only friends just minutes before, and…"
"And you truly believe everything this soldier told you?" Hakoda asked, skeptical.
"If you knew him, you'd understand," said Aang. "He's not the lying type. At least, he doesn't look to be."
"If he's not a liar, what guarantees that those he asked about Sokka weren't lying too? How do you know if…?" he said, breathing out and shaking his head. "You can't believe this sort of mad talk blindly, Katara. It doesn't matter how much you want your brother to be alive…!"
"Is it so bad to hope he might still be, Dad?" she asked, looking at him in disbelief. "Or is it just so much easier to think he's not because that way you don't have to feel bad over having left him in the clutches of that Fire Nation bitch for three years?!"
"Katara…!"
"Dad, he might have been lying, but what if it's true?" she asked, looking at him intensely. "What if Sokka is still out there? Should we just sit here forever and hope he'll come back to us miraculously instead of taking his fate into our own hands?!"
"Katara, if he's still alive, he wouldn't want you putting yourself in the line of fire in some attempt to steal him away from the Fire Nation Princess! That would likely only result in both of you dying!" Hakoda bellowed.
"Dad, I know you're afraid of losing me, but you can't just…!"
"If Sokka were alive, Katara…" said Hakoda, gritting his teeth. "If he's still alive after all this time, then maybe he really will return to us one day. If he has endured slavery for so long, it could only be with one purpose in mind. But if he's dead, you'll throw yourself at the Fire Nation chasing a ghost. You'll achieve the same as I would have if I'd attempted to take revenge against the bastard that killed your mother, as I wanted to at first!"
"It's different, Dad," said Katara, lowering her gaze. "Because… you couldn't get mom back no matter what. But if there's a chance Sokka is still alive, shouldn't we try to do something? At least to communicate with him somehow?"
"How, then?" said Hakoda, looking at Katara questioningly. "What's your best idea, Katara?"
"I'm the best idea we've got," said Aang, and Hakoda sighed.
"Not this again…"
"Hakoda, if the Fire Nation finds out I'm here, I have to leave to keep you all safe," said Aang. "I won't have their forces storming your Tribe because I made a stupid mistake. So… I'll leave, and if I can find a way to send a message to him, from his family, then I will."
"Or perhaps you'll be caught and enslaved just as he was" said Hakoda "That is, if they don't want you dead. Aang, this is…"
"Yes, it's not ideal, but it's the only way to keep you all safe by now," said Aang, swallowing hard. "And it's the only way to find out if Kino told us the truth about Sokka."
Hakoda's brow was deeply furrowed as he pondered the airbender's words. After a moment of silence, the chief shook his head and ran a hand over his hair, fearing this entire situation had rendered his hair far grayer in a matter of minutes.
"We'll know if the Fire Nation means to attack our village when the storm lets down," said Hakoda, standing up from the table. "If they do attack, you will leave, Aang. If they don't… we'll have to build our defenses further if just as a precaution. But as long as that soldier knows who you are, Aang, chances are Fire Nation troops will storm our Tribe whenever they see fit to do so. You need to learn from this. You can't trust everyone blindly just because you think they might be good people. Appearances are deceiving… and you can't forget we're still at war."
Aang swallowed and nodded, relieved that at least he might be able to stay a little longer. Granted he had the feeling he needed to leave, because he wasn't achieving much by staying in the South Pole… but at the same time, there was stability here. He felt welcome. He knew he wouldn't find that same stability easily anywhere else.
Hakoda retired to his room, and Kanna soon followed his lead. The two benders remained seating at the table, though. Katara reached for Aang's hand and rubbed his knuckles gently, fixing him with a determined stare.
"If you're leaving, I'm going with you," she said.
Aang took a deep breath and nodded, knowing he wouldn't be able to dissuade her about that. And knowing, also, that Hakoda would never approve of this. Yet he had said so himself: as long as Kino knew the truth, Aang was putting everyone in jeopardy. And if that was what it took to keep everyone safe from the Fire Nation…
"Stupid storm. It had to start snowing just as we're about to leave," the settlement's squad captain growled, rolling his eyes as he stepped away from the window. "And so, we have to waste one more day in this freezing hell. Just our luck."
Kino ate dinner quietly in the boisterous dining room within the settlement. Normally, he was eager to start conversations with anyone, hoping to catch someone's eye for long enough for them to at least learn his name, if nothing else. But not today. Today he was buried deep in his own thoughts as he debated internally between what he should do and what he wanted to do.
"It's not going to stop today, Cap," said one of the lieutenants, sighing. "We've been here long enough to see how the weather sucks in this wretched place."
"We have, but even so…! Agh, whatever, I guess you're right. If we set out in the middle of the storm we're probably just going to die," he said, throwing his hands in the air and storming off to the quarters he had vacated earlier. "Get some sleep, everyone. We're setting out as soon as the storm is through, and if you're not ready by then, you're staying behind alone in this hellhole!"
Kino sighed and nodded as the others replied affirmatively to the captain's orders. They would sleep for a few hours, and then wake as soon as the Captain shouted at them to get up. It was how it had been throughout Kino's time as a soldier in the settlement. He had overslept a few times and found himself out of breakfast for it, but this time, the price for oversleeping would be much steeper…
The thought of staying all alone in the cold settlement made Kino shiver unpleasantly. He didn't want to be alone… yet, he had been alone anyhow. Ever since he had been sent here he had been lonely. Always ignored by the rest of his comrades, never seen, never heard… he had gotten used to it, undeniably, but he had started to feel much better about himself after Katara and Aang had entered his life.
And now they thought he would sell them out.
It was what he had to do, no doubt. It was what everyone expected of a soldier who discovered where the Avatar had been hiding for so long. Yet his entire body rejected the notion of giving his friend away to his death. Because no doubt that was what would await Aang if Fire Lord Ozai knew he was alive, if Fire Lord Ozai ever had the Avatar in his clutches.
Kino had nothing to gain from it but glory for himself. He didn't even have a family to share that glory with, having been raised in an orphanage. He wouldn't help anyone by doing what was expected of him. Because it's not like Aang was hurting anyone, was he? He had been trying to stop Katara from hurting Kino, even, and he had only reacted against him when he had cut Katara by mistake. Aang was so gentle-mannered, the nicest guy he knew. How could Kino possibly cause him this much strife, how could he ever turn him in to Fire Nation authorities…?
But he had no choice. If he didn't reveal the truth to the Fire Lord, he was as good as a traitor. And if he was a traitor, it would be his head in a pike…
If only, though. Kino frowned, watching how everyone filed into their sleeping bunks, leaving him behind in the dining room: the truth was that they didn't notice him. He was as good as a ghost. Could a ghost be a traitor? Could an invisible man be executed for withholding information? He snorted at the thought.
"The Avatar is alive," he whispered. Nobody heard him, of course. He cleared his throat and now exclaimed. "The Avatar is alive!"
No reaction again. He took a deep breath and yelled as loudly as he could.
"THE AVATAR IS ALIVE!"
"SHUT UP, YOU IDIOT, WE'RE TRYING TO SLEEP HERE!"
Kino gulped and lowered his head. That was the first time in a few weeks someone had talked to him directly, and he had only been told to be quiet: nobody cared for what he had to say. It was beyond absurd to expect the Fire Lord to stop and listen to his claim that he had met and befriended the Avatar, wasn't it? Not even his fellow soldiers cared for what he had to say, so why would Ozai?
He wondered about that as he tucked in, sighing frequently, nestled in the bottom bed in his bunk. He had claimed the top bed on his first day, but another soldier had knocked his bag off, and by the time Kino returned he found his fellow soldier fast asleep in the bed that should have been his. His complaints were ignored, and the captain, the only one who listened to him once in a while, told him to get over it and stick to the lower bunk, that it made no difference either way.
He slipped under the covers, his eyes wide open. He was a nobody amongst his peers, and the only way to become somebody was to turn in the very people who had made him feel worth something for the first time in years. The very people who had become his friends…
Hours later, the captain shouted at everyone to wake up and get their gear immediately. The blizzard had settled down, and it was time to move out. Whaletail Island's station awaited, and none of the soldiers wanted to spend another second in the South Pole if they could help it.
"Is everyone aboard?" the captain called out, and he made a headcount as the soldiers settled on the ship. He nodded when he finished counting, satisfied, and turned to the ship's captain. "Get us moving, then! It's about time we left this blasted wasteland!"
And with that, the Fire Nation relinquished the settlement they had fought many battles for. The settlement where the Water Tribe's Chief's son had been dragged away from his home, where soldiers and warriors had died in a struggle to defend what each culture believed was rightfully theirs…
"They're… gone. That's their last ship, Dad. They… they really left."
Hakoda couldn't believe his eyes as him, Aang, Katara, Haka and Kattan watched the ship drifting away through white mist. Aang swallowed hard, uncertain if the sight was a good omen or if it only meant that the Fire Nation would leave the Pole in order to bring proper reinforcements…
"Your source told you that they would be leaving today?" Hakoda asked, and Katara nodded.
"He mentioned… that they were headed to the Whaletail Island outpost. I guess we forgot about that, though," she whispered, looking at Aang, who frowned.
"Might be they want reinforcements, this time for certain. Well, that is, unless Kino didn't tell them anything," he said, and Katara bit her lip.
"Maybe we should check the settlement," suggested Haka. "Back when Sokka led us, we learned the place's layout well enough. We should check in case that soldier left any messages for you two or something, right?"
"Do you think he would have had a chance to do that without raising any suspicions?" Hakoda asked, and Katara snorted.
"Actually, yes. If someone could do that without being noticed, it's Kino," she said, as the group moved out, headed towards the settlement.
"Is he that stealthy?" Kattan asked, looking at Aang in surprise. "Your contact sounds pretty intimidating…"
"Oh, that's the last thing he was," said Aang, smiling. "If you'd known him… well, he was actually not stealthy at all. It's just that… for some reason his fellow soldiers didn't take him into account often. At least, that's what he told us."
"That most likely changed when he told them he'd found you, though," said Hakoda, frowning heavily. Talk of this soldier only served to make his hair stand on end. He had a very hard time imagining the innocent soldier his daughter had described as anything but a fake persona.
They reached the settlement's outer gates, finding them closed but not locked. Haka and Kattan filed inside first, warily, with their boomerangs held firmly in their hands, just in case they found something dangerous within the building.
"You don't think they would have left bombs of some sort to blow up this place or something, do you?" Katara asked Aang, looking around herself warily as well. Aang bit his lip.
"I wish I knew, but I don't. At least, I don't think so…"
"Hey! Hey, who goes there?!" Kattan shouted suddenly, alerting everyone else as he lifted his boomerang and threw it at the central building's door.
"Wait, don't hurt me!" a familiar voice squeaked as the door closed again promptly, causing the boomerang to rebound against the metal. "I mean no harm! Seriously!"
"What…?" said Katara, her eyes widening.
"Kino?!" Aang exclaimed, and the door opened a little again.
"Aang?" said a weak voice now. A head with curly black hair and large brown eyes appeared at the ajar door. "Is it really…? Hey, it's you, Aang! Katara!"
"Kino, how…?" Katara said, as the soldier stumbled clumsily past the door and into the snow.
He grimaced at the cold before rushing his way towards the Water Tribe group, a relieved smile on his face until he remembered the events from the previous day. He slowed down as he approached, looking at Katara warily and apologetically.
"Is your hand okay? I didn't mean to hurt you, but…!"
"I'm fine, Kino. Completely fine," she said, smiling. "There's nothing to worry about."
"Huh, really?" he said, sighing with relief… before noticing there were three other people in this group, complete strangers that were regarding him with dangerous glowers. "U-uh, ummm… hey, Water Tribesmen! H-how's it going?"
"Is this the informant, Katara?" Hakoda asked, regarding Kino with a frown as he looked him up and down. "He… doesn't look like soldier material."
"He's not soldier material, it's true, but still…"
"Hey!" Kino said, pouting a little, but Aang stepped towards him, a worried look on his face.
"I'm sorry about yesterday, Kino," he said. "I… got a little emotional back then, but… Kino, did you say anything to your people about me? Did they leave for reinforcements or something?"
"Uh, no, they left because they were scheduled to, as I told you guys," he said, with a smile. "And, truth is, so was I, but…"
"But you stayed for no reason?" Katara asked. "All alone in this dreadful place?"
"Eh, I always felt alone here, so it didn't make much of a difference," he said, smiling at her. "I… actually hoped to go to your Tribe, and tell you I was sorry for hurting you, and for worrying you both. I didn't mean to mess things up like that…"
"We're the ones who messed up, I think," said Katara, swallowing hard.
"You weren't in an easy position," said Aang, gritting his teeth. "But you stayed behind just to say you were sorry? Moreover, Kino, did you tell them about me?"
"Oh, that you're the Avatar?" said Kino, with a weak smile. "Not really. I mean, I did say that the Avatar was alive at random just to see if any of them reacted, but you know just how often they pay attention to me…"
"Wait, what?!" said Haka, his eyes wide. "You tried to sell Aang out after all…?!"
"Hey, I was only testing if they'd listen to me or not!" said Kino, inching away from the aggressive warrior. "And of course, they didn't listen at all. They never do… and heck, Aang and Katara always did. It just… wasn't right to do this. I couldn't do it. If someone had actually listened to me this one time when I said what I said, I would have likely told them I was just joking around."
"Really?" said Haka, glaring at Kino, who grimaced.
"This one doesn't like me," he said, as Aang smiled.
"Well, maybe he doesn't, but I… I'm really grateful, Kino," he said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "If you'd actually done everything in your power to tell on me, well… things would have gotten really ugly."
"It's fine, Aang. I didn't want to report on you anyways," he said, grinning. "You and Katara are my friends! And I'd already hurt you enough yesterday, so… I just didn't want to do it. It was wrong, and I wouldn't have succeeded at it anyways. So…"
"Heh. I don't buy it," said Haka, as Kattan chuckled.
"Yeah, this guy's kind of weird," he said, and Kino pouted.
"Well, what do you propose we do if we can't trust him?" Katara asked, amused, as she looked at Haka. The younger warrior scratched the back of his head.
"We should, uh… take him prisoner," he said, nodding. "And keep him under surveillance! That way we'll make sure he won't betray Aang to the Fire Nation."
"Heh? Wait, does that mean you'll take me to your Tribe?!" Kino asked, smiling. "Hey, that should be cool! I've heard you have ice and snow buildings but they're all warm and cozy! I want to see them!"
"Oh, dear," said Katara, chuckling before turning to her father. "Do you think he can stay? I mean… this situation made you really uneasy when we told you about it, after all. Is it okay, then, if he…?"
"Huh…" said Hakoda, raising an eyebrow and eyeing Kino judgmentally. "He seems awfully harmless, can't be denied, but he knows too much. So… we can either kill him or take him with us, I suppose."
"Kill him?!" Aang said, horrified, and the blood drained from Kino's face. When Hakoda laughed they both breathed out in relief.
"Perhaps not, then. But we can't leave him here, for enough reasons. He does know too much, and it's better to keep him on check. Also, if he stays alone in this freezing settlement he's likely to die all by himself. So… I suppose he will be our captive. A willing one, looks like…"
"I'll behave myself, sir, I promise!" Kino exclaimed, grinning. "I'll help around the town, feed the babies, play with them, build fires… anything you need, I'd gladly help!"
"And he's overly enthusiastic about it too, clearly." said Hakoda, with a crooked smile. "Well, it looks like I was wrong about this soldier. Maybe you two really knew him better than I realized."
"See, Dad, you can trust my judgment once in a while," said Katara, smiling, and Hakoda grinned at her as Kino gaped at them.
"Woah… this is your dad?"
"And Tribal Chief as well, mind you," said Hakoda, proudly, and Kino's jaw dropped.
"O-okay. That's… that's way too cool, but okay," he said, as Katara and Aang chuckled.
"There's nobody else in this settlement, then?" Hakoda asked, and Kino shook his head. Haka pouted.
"I think we should check anyhow. Just in case he's lying," he said, and Hakoda shrugged.
"Be my guest. I only hope the place isn't booby trapped," he said, and Kino shook his head.
"They didn't bother setting anything up, the place is as good as new," he said. "But feel free to check if you must."
For Haka's peace of mind, they did check the entire building thoroughly, proving that there was nothing important left behind other than Kino. Aang and Katara stayed outside with him as Hakoda checked the building with the other warriors.
"Why did you stay behind, though?" asked Katara. "You could have just left. You don't like it here, so…"
"Heh, I've gotten used to it, sort of," said Kino, smiling. "And… I just didn't think it was right to leave in bad terms with you two. As I'd said, you were my only friends and it didn't sit right with me to do that. And well, since you're my friends… making up my mind to stay behind instead of following the rest of the soldiers wasn't that hard. I'm pretty sure they didn't even notice I stayed in bed when the captain told us to get up."
"Don't you think they might notice and come find you, though?" Aang asked, and Kino snorted.
"Right. The captain told us that if we didn't get up, we'd be left behind," he said. "He's not going to come back here if he can help it, let alone for a soldier he barely ever took notice of, so… yeah. Despite it all, I think things didn't turn out that badly, right?"
"In fact, they turned out way better than expected," said Aang, smiling. "I guess I won't have to make a run for it to lead the Fire Nation away from the Pole just yet, huh?"
"You already sent most of them away," said Kino, shrugging. "The Fire Lord wanted us to leave, so we've left. You've had your way, Avatar!"
"Looks like it," said Aang, patting Kino's shoulder. "Thanks, Kino. Truly"
"No need. Thanks for the fishing trips," he said, grinning goofily. Katara chuckled.
After the inspection of the settlement was done, and they had proved there was indeed nothing else left inside the metal building, they readied themselves to return to the Tribe. And as they started on their way home, Kino showered Aang with endless questions about his airbending skills, his traditions, how he'd ended up in the South Pole when he clearly wasn't from around here and many more.
Katara couldn't hold back a smile as Aang struggled to reply, and she sighed in relief: a potential catastrophe had been averted. Kino was an idiot, clearly, but he meant well. He was Fire Nation indeed… but as she watched him smiling expectantly while Aang told him about his glider, Katara surprised herself by accepting for the first time that, despite her previous beliefs, it seemed not all Fire Nation people were inherently bad, after all.