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The sweltering sun stands high in the sky when Rayla arrives in the Earth Kingdom town, that is the scene of her current mission. Yu Dao lies on the coast, that bends inwards from the west to the south, as if in a move away from the Fire Nation islands that lie in close proximity. It hadn’t worked, Rayla knows; Yu Dao became the first Fire Nation colony under the rule of Fire Lord Sozin.
Its position on a rocky coastline still has its advantages, though. Under the cover of darkness the night before, Rayla had arrived in a bay a little ways from the town, where she’d hidden her dinghy, folding the sail carefully and covering the whole boat with twigs and leaves. She’s left her Northern Water Tribe dress behind, too.
Now she’s sauntering around Yu Dao in a dark green Earth Kingdom tunic, not attempting to find her target just yet, but opting to take in the layout of the town and the people that live in it. Rayla supposes she shouldn’t be surprised to see an equal mix of Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation dress and people from both nations coexisting peacefully in this town, considering its colonial history. It’s almost like the war never reached this place at all, with how peaceful it seems, even after being one of the first places to be reached. Rayla will never understand how anyone can tolerate living with the oppressor, the enemy that’s killed and pillaged the other nations for a hundred years. Then again, the war will make people do strange things. She averts her eyes and keeps walking down the main road.
The General’s house comes into view. It’s a stately place on the outskirts of town, a true Fire Nation building with dark red wood paneling and with a large, open garden behind it. The garden reaches the street and Rayla allows herself to look at the fire lilies, roses and moon flowers, as well as several mango and pear trees that color the garden. Her mission doesn’t start until twilight and it couldn’t hurt scoping out the terrain she’d only read about in her mission report, so Rayla keeps walking, until she can see around the house and to the very back part of the garden—
On the grass, in the shade of the tall oak tree in the center of the garden sits a girl in a simple red and black dress, with long, straight black hair and a thick book in her lap. Instinctively, Rayla knows who she’s looking at. This is Claudia, daughter of General Viren, part of Ozai’s inner circle. In order not to draw any attention to herself, Rayla keeps walking until she finds herself a narrow alley to hide in. She keeps in those shadows, that allow her to observe the General’s daughter without giving herself away.
Nothing much happens. Claudia keeps reading, cracking smiles as she turns the pages, her long hair dancing in the breeze. She’s interrupted once by two Earth Kingdom boys, one of which is holding a rather big badgerfrog. Rayla watches with interest as she watches the three of them play with it, talk, and sit together in the partial shade as if nothing that’s wrong in the world could ever reach them. Though the air is rife with rumors of the avatar resurfacing and the hope of peace, Rayla knows the Fire Nation is at the height of its power and peace has never been further away.
The sun is setting now, creeping lower and lower towards the horizon with every passing minute. It’s almost time. Most people have gone indoors, meaning it’s the perfect time for Rayla to get closer. She checks her waterskin, heaves a deep breath and climbs up the side of the General’s house. General Viren and his son aren’t here, stationed somewhere near Ba Sing Se in the interior of the Earth Kingdom, but there are still guards stationed outside the front door and no doubt within the house, as well. Rayla disregards them; chances are they’ve grown slow in this illusion of peace that this entire town seems to have fallen under.
Eventually, Rayla finds a place that gives her a prime view of the dining room, where Claudia is eating dinner all by herself. There’s no one around. Twilight has descended onto Yu Dao and in the soft light of the rising moon that gives her power, Rayla decides to act.
Her water breaks the glass easily and as she dives through the rain of shards, Rayla catches herself on the wooden floor and rolls to break her fall. She’s on her feet in an instant and directs her water at the General’s daughter, freezing it into threatening sharp shards of ice that look like the glass on the ground. “Claudia of Yu Dao,” Rayla says in a commanding tone, “you’re coming with me.” To her credit, Claudia doesn’t look too shocked, though the spoon she’d been holding falls out of her hand, clattering into the bowl and splashing soup all over her dress.
“What?” Her voice is squeaky and raspy, but sounds more confused than scared. Rayla’s brow furrows.
“Stand up,” Rayla says as she approaches Claudia slowly. “I’m taking you, the easy or the hard way.”
“Hold on,” Claudia says, as she picks up a napkin and dabs at her wet clothes. “Take a seat, please. I’m sure we can talk this out.” At Rayla’s confused look, she continues. “You can have whatever you’re after. Money, food, land…just, take a seat, please.”
“Those mean nothing to me,” Rayla murmurs, but she takes a seat at the table anyways, never once taking her eyes off the girl. “I’m here for you. And there’s nothing you can say that will make me give up on the mission from my chieftain.” Claudia’s gaze slides from her to the shards of ice still floating in the air and, unprompted, she taps at one of them.
“Ah,” she says. “So that’s what this is.” Rayla nods silently. “Then, let me ask you something,” Claudia continues. “Tell me, what have I done to you, or your tribe? Did I steal something from you? Did I hurt you in some way? Did I look at you funny when passing you on the street?” She looks at her intently.
“It’s not personal,” Rayla responds, her voice silent instead of strong now, quelled by the fire she sees in the jade eyes of the other girl. “It’s a mission. And I didn’t ask to be drafted into the war. I never wanted to get involved.” Claudia hold her gaze for another few seconds, before slumping in her chair and looking away, at the broken window.
“Neither did I,” she says. It occurs to Rayla that she might have been better off having killed Claudia, instead of taking her alive. It’s getting more difficult to see her as an enemy by the minute. Claudia looks sad, beautiful, and she’s not at all unlike Rayla, apparently. Fire Nation people are cruel and dangerous, her mind helpfully supplies. It’s been like that for a hundred years. But this girl in front of her seems the opposite: open, kind, and understanding. “My mother was killed,” Claudia suddenly continues, and Rayla thinks about the fate of her own parents. “My father hasn’t been home in years. My brother is at the front lines, throwing his life away.” Soft green eyes find Rayla’s, again. “You’re right to hate me, my people. I understand. But this war is hurting everyone it touches. On all sides.” Rayla thinks of Runaan, whom she hasn’t seen in months. She doesn’t even know if he’s alive.
“Yeah,” she speaks, voice barely above a whisper. “You’re right.” It seems like the weight of the world settles on her shoulders in that second, probably brought about by the fact that her mission is a sure failure, and the sheer hopelessness of their situation. The ice shards that had still been floating around them return fall, and return to their fluid state the moment they touch the wooden floor. The war is bigger than the both of them, than anyone really, so what can they really do to stop it? Despite always having written them off as tall tales, Rayla suddenly hopes the rumors about the avatar are true, more than she’s ever hoped for anything in her life.
A cool hand touches her shoulder and Rayla is returned to her current situation, the weight dissipating at the contact. She looks up and into Claudia’s kind eyes, and for some reason it does make her feel better. Rayla decides not to think about it too deeply.
“So,” Claudia says, softly, “are you still going to kidnap me? Or kill me?” Rayla sighs, deeply, and accepts her fate. She shakes her head and Claudia smiles, tentatively. The hand on her shoulder squeezes in a gesture of comfort. “Then come with me, into the garden. We’re not so different, you and I.” She helps Rayla up and links her fingers together as she pulls her through the corridors of the house, until they’re standing on the soft grass, staring at the night sky through the branches of the oak tree. “We see the same stars here, down south.” Rayla’s eyes fall on familiar constellations and, for the first time that day, she smiles.