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Chapter Text

The moon was absent from the sky, and the parakeets were quiet. Amka panted as she ran through the secluded garden, strands of her hair whipping across her face as she steadfastly refused to look back. She was finally at the sequestered servant’s entrance tucked away at the side of a storage room. She paused to take a breath. Suddenly she heard whispered voices from behind the storage room.

“Where did she go?” There was a mumbled reply she didn’t bother to listen to. She just ran.

It was a quiet chase of a priestess and imperial soldiers. Amka was breathing heavily. Her eyesight was starting to blur, and her legs were turning numb. As she skidded around the corner, she slipped on some loose pebbles and hit the ground hard. The whispers were getting closer. Amka closed her eyes.

A hand suddenly gripped her arm. “Come with me.”

It was a woman’s voice. Amka opened her eyes to a heavily pregnant woman. Her hair was bound at the base of her neck, and Amka noted her Water Tribe complexion. The woman tugged her arm harder. “Come on!”

Amka stumbled to her feet and allowed herself to be dragged by the woman into an enclosed compound.

Her mind, once clouded by the moon’s absence, curiously cleared, and for the first time in the night, she Saw.

She Saw the black armor of the secret soldiers round the corner where she had fallen, one soldier slipping the same way she had but not falling. She Saw them run past the gate of the compound swift as a mongoose lizard.

She returned to herself and saw the Water Tribe woman looking at her. Amka glanced at her stomach and realized where the Sight had come from.

“What is your name?” Amka asked.

“I’m Kya,” the woman replied. “My husband’s the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe. And you are?”

Amka nodded. “Lady Kya of the Southern Water Tribe. I am Amka, Priestess of Tui and La. For saving my life, I vow to protect your unborn child for all eternity.”

Lady Kya gasped and cradled her stomach. “That’s…”

“She has a noble fate waiting for her, my Lady.” Amka smiled tiredly. “But I would protect her nevertheless.”

Lady Kya frowned but eventually nodded. Her hand was still on her bump.

Suddenly they heard a door slide open from inside the lit house. “Kya? Where did you go?”

“That’s my husband.” Lady Kya clutched Amka’s hand and dragged her to a shaded corner where a small, wooden door was hidden. “Go. Be safe.”

Amka nodded her thanks and quietly slipped away. As she began to run back to the temple, she heard the Chief say, “Kya, my dear, if you need anything, you need only tell me.”

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The temple for Tui and La was a majestic building made of crystal and white stone. In the poles, it would have been constructed with sparkling ice, but in the heat of the Fire Nation, substitutions obviously had to be made.

It was to this luminous building that Amka ran. She was about to bolt towards the gate when she heard the same whispers she had been running from.

‘Gods,’ she thought. She was stuck. She had nowhere to go but the temple. Or did she?

She remembered Hama, hidden away for a spiritual retreat at the edge of the forest. Her good friend Hama, who learned the forbidden arts with her. Amka slowly crept back. She blended into the shadows and made for the cabin near the forest. Once or twice she was nearly caught, but in just a few minutes, she caught a glimpse of the secluded cabin. She rapped on the door twice.

“Who is it?” Hama’s voice, thick with sleep, came from inside.

“It’s me. Please let me in.”

The painted wooden door opened a crack, and a blue eye peeked out. “Amka?” The door opened wider, and there Hama stood in her flouncy blue Priestess night clothes. “What in La’s name are you doing here this late?”

“Don’t speak La’s name in that matter, Hama.” Amka reflexively replied. She hurried in and locked the door behind her. “Quickly, I haven’t got long.”

They moved to an inner chamber where Amka relayed all the night’s events to her friend. Hama listened with rapt attention and didn’t appear to be surprised. Amka questioned her about it.

“Well, with the way things were going, the succession wasn’t a sure bet for the Prince. This erases all doubt and ways to subvert the proclamation.”

Amka gapes at Hama.

Hama raises a brow at her. “What?”

Amka shakes her head. “There’s something else. Lady Kya, the Southern Tribe Chief’s wife. She saved me tonight. And…”

Amka recalled the sudden clarity, the Sight that had been up until that point of the night was as absent as the moon. She gripped Hama’s hands. “The child that she carries… I’ve sworn to protect it forever. Hama, if I–”

“Stop it, Amka.” Hama shook her off. She turned and started to walk all over the cabin, collecting clothes, a packet of dried fruits, and a purse of coins, and placing them all in a cloth bag. “You came to me for a reason, and I’m going to do my best to help you escape- alive." She stressed the last word, her tone betraying her resolve. "What are you still standing there for?”

Hama shoved the bag to her and placed a dark veil over her head. Amka tried to tie it securely, but her hands were trembling too hard; from fear of the unknown or overwhelming gratitude she wasn’t sure. Hama took over and finished the knot she had been trying to do in a second. Lastly, Hama slung a waterskin over her shoulder.

“Hama…”

“Shh.” Hama pulled her to the back door leading to the dark forest. She paused with her hand on the sliding lock.

“Amka… May Tui and La accompany you.” And Hama gave her one last embrace before unlocking the door and ushering her out.

“Hama, promise me. That child…”

“Yes, I promise. Go now!” Hama urged her out the door.

Amka ran without looking back.

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In the end, it was all in vain. The Imperial soldiers had caught Amka as she was traversing in the dark, and her weakened waterbending was quickly overpowered by the full force of trained firebenders. She was brought in front of the white-clad new yet-uncrowned Fire Lord. She was declared guilty of treason and was scheduled to be executed in front of the citizens within the day.

As the guards dragged Amka to the raised platform, she spotted Hama at the edge of the waiting audience wearing white, just like everyone else. She was standing behind the Head Priestess with the other Priestesses. Her face was carefully blank.

‘Hama… remember what I asked of you.’

Amka walked to the slack rope and looked up at the bright Suns. Behind them, barely visible, were two moons.

And then she was no more.

Chapter Text

"In the beginning, there were two suns in heaven matched by two moons. It was far too hot during the day and far too cold at night. It was a time of chaos and distress for all creation and people. Then an extraordinary hero used arrows to shoot down one sun and one moon. And the world was finally at peace."

Ozai had his back to her as he spoke of the folktale, eyes intent on the scroll on his lap. She stayed silent.

"So you see, difficult times call for a brave hero." He raised his head and twisted his neck in her direction. "But we do not have the luxury of waiting for one. We must act now, and fast."

"My lord," Ursa started. "I–I don't understand."

Ozai hummed. He set the scroll aside and rose to his full height. He towered over the still-kneeling Ursa.

"Ursa, my lady wife. You're much smarter than that." He bent down and tipped her head up. "Do you truly not understand?"

He released her chin and walked behind her, out of sight. "The Fire Lord is cantankerous on a good day and murderous the rest of the time. Iroh abdicating his position after my sister-in-law's death was a lucky coincidence."

'A coincidence...?' Ursa repeated in her head.

Ozai continued. "My position as the heir is still on very tenuous grounds, especially with the existence of Prince Lu Ten. I know my Lord Father favors him, as he resembles my dear old mother more than Iroh or I ever did.

"And as for Zuko..." He trailed off. He didn't have to say more. Ursa knew the Fire Lord was displeased with Zuko, her sweet young son, too young to understand the disappointment in the eyes directed at him by his grandfather... and his father.

"My Lord is saying..."

"Yes." Ozai kneeled on one leg. His breath was warm against her neck, and he raised his hand to caress Ursa's cheek. "Your son will never be safe while I am not Fire Lord."

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Two gilded and beautifully painted wooden palanquins were being carried to the massive gates of the Palace. A maidservant put out her hand to stop the advance, and the wooden door to the more ornate palanquin folded open to reveal a modestly dressed woman in blue. The only sign of her nobility was the lapis lazuli stone on her betrothal necklace and the sheen of her expensive silk dress. She was straightening her skirt when she noticed that her companion had not dismounted.

"Katara! Why haven't you gotten out yet?" Lady Kya slid the small window of the other palanquin open. Inside was a young girl dressed in lighter blue holding a scroll that she scrutinized quite intensely. She raised a hand to attempt to close the window.

"Not yet, mom, I haven't memorized this form."

"Oh, give me that." Lady Kya reached in to grab the Waterbending scroll. Katara yelped. "And stop pouting!"

The door to the second palanquin finally opened and out came the young girl. Unlike her mother, she had a waterskin slung across her hips. She folded her arms in disgruntlement.

Lady Kya handed the scroll to the waiting maidservant and said, "Now, dear, you wouldn't want to miss your brother's awarding ceremony, would you? First person to ever achieve first place in both the literary and military exams! Your father was so proud."

"But I see Sokka everyday!" Katara whined. "I saw him yesterday too! What difference does today make?"

Lady Kya hummed as she herded her daughter inside the Palace gates. "Today is special because the Fire Lord will personally be there to hand the certificate."

Katara faltered. The Fire Lord. She had seen him from afar, his handsome visage enhanced by the loftiness of his golden Flame Crown. He was often flanked by Fire Sages, but once, Katara had caught a glimpse of a dark-haired beauty hidden in his shadow.

“Will the Fire Lady be there too?” Katara asked.

Lady Kya shook her head. “I’m afraid not. These tests are outside her jurisdiction, so the Fire Lady usually doesn’t attend them.”

Katara frowned in disappointment. Lady Kya smiled.

“She will, however, be present in tonight’s festivities. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

“Mom!” Katara hugged her mother’s waist. “You should’ve said so earlier!”

Lady Kya just laughed. “If I didn’t know better, I’d be dying of jealousy with how much you idolize the Fire Lady.”

“Don’t worry, mom. You’ll always come first in my heart.”

They walked briskly and arrived at a courtyard full of kneeling scholars and servants standing at attention. Katara looked around the colorful (but mostly red) crowd and spotted her brother kneeling in front of the golden steps. She pointed him out to her mother, who beamed with pride.

Katara was still scanning the crowd when a golden glint caught her eye.

“Mom is that… Princess Azula?” She raised her hand to point at the lavishly dressed girl standing on the dais beside the throne. Her mother quickly blocked the ascent of her arm.

“Don’t point!” Lady Kya hissed. “And yes, that is the Princess. I wonder what she’s doing here?”

Katara didn’t have time to answer. A trumpet sounded from behind them, signaling the arrival of the Fire Lord.

All at once, the courtyard as a whole prostrated to the ground. A court musician was blowing a marching song as the leader of the Fire Nation was carried in.

The Fire Lord was sitting under a huge silk umbrella on his golden litter, servants and Fire Sages following behind. The entire procession was red– from the umbrella, to the flags, to the shoes on the servants’ feet. They cut a bloody divide between the two groups of bowing scholars. Up front, Katara’s brother Sokka had his head bent down, not a subject of the Fire Nation but not ranked high enough to look the Fire Lord in the eye. Katara and her mother were the same. Somewhere in the courtyard, her father would have his head raised.

The procession stopped just before the stairs, and Fire Lord Ozai stepped down. He gave Sokka a calculating gaze before setting his eyes higher, where Princess Azula was waiting to meet him. Out of the corner of her eye, Katara saw a pleased grin form on his face before he started to climb up the stairs. After he was seated, the ceremony began.

Katara and Lady Kya exchanged delighted grins when Sokka was called up twice, receiving the stamped scrolls from both the Minister of Literary Arts and the Minister of Domestic Defense. He waved to someone on the side, but Katara was too short to confirm if that person was her father. She assumed it was unless Sokka had some friends could tolerate him and his smelly socks.

The ceremony went on for a long time. It was fun the first 10 minutes, seeing the smattering of academic and military hopefuls get called up to accept their certificates. But Katara had underestimated the sheer number of these examinees and quickly got bored. Other people started whispering conversations behind her too, and Katara peeked at her mother to see if she was distracted enough. Lady Kya still had her eyes trained on the podium and politely clapped for every certificate given. Katara smirked.

Slowly, she inched farther and farther from her mother and closer and closer to the side entrance. A passing servant stepped in her line of sight, obscuring her from her mother. She ran.

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Prince Iroh was walking leisurely to his nephew’s rooms. He had ordered his retinue to wait out in the courtyard so he could privately assess Prince Zuko’s state and prevent another embarrassing display (that, unfortunately, happened only too often.)

“Prince Zuko~!” Iroh gave a knock on the paper door’s wooden frame. “Would the Crown Prince care to accompany his old uncle to a game of Pai Sho?”

There was no answer.

“Prince Zuko? Are you indecent?” More silence.

Iroh narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “I’m coming in!”

He pushed the door open and revealed an opulent albeit messy room, a desk with numerous books open atop. There was a silk robe draped over the glazed wooden day bed—no Prince..

Prince Iroh burst out of the Crown Prince’s quarters to the surprised but expectant eyes of his servants and guards.

“Prince Zuko has escaped!”

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The runaway Prince was in a deserted room quite far from his courtyard. At the moment, he was fastening a silver buckle around his waist. After securing the belt, he reached up to his topknot and plucked the Golden Flame crown away. He brought it close to his face and saw his smirk reflected back.

Behind him was a wooden table. Maps, a few biscuits, an embroidered pouch spilling a few gold coins, and an open canvas knapsack lay on it. After tucking the gold crown in his front pocket Zuko hurriedly swept the knickknacks into the canvas bag and went out. He was ready to explore.

He took out the map of the palace grounds and followed it to the least crowded corner; a garden near the front kitchens. There he would be making his escape.

Zuko arrived and surveyed the sparse landscape. He stopped beside a low tree with white leaves that had a branch that extended over the stone gate. He nodded in approval and began to climb.

Prince Zuko was inexperienced when it came to climbing trees. He had trouble finding hand- and footholds, and more than once, he almost lost his footing. But eventually, he was close to the shingled roof of the stone gate. He extended his foot to transfer his body and was about to shift when he heard a shout from below.

“Hey!”

His foot slipped. All of a sudden Prince Zuko’s surroundings blurred, and he was falling, falling, falling. He hit the leafy ground with a harsh thud. His eyes turned black.