Chapter Text
Yeah, so that was it. They had one more week together at most.
“I’ll try to write, if I can,” Yue whispered, sensing the sadness in her best friend. “Especially when the baby comes. I won’t be able to tell you the name, of course, but when I give birth, you’ll know.”
Spirits, she wouldn’t even be in her future niece or nephew's life. That was depressing. Sokka had trained his entire life to be considered worthy of becoming the Chieftain after their dad, and now he would leave their Tribe without looking back. Yue too had given her entire life to be the perfect Princess, had even accepted a betrothal that would take her to the other side of the world just so her people could eat and live well, and now… Katara had once read a book that said that love was the death of duty, and she could see it now, right in front of her.
“I don’t know, guys. This just breaks my heart,” she whispered to them. “Maybe Fire Prince Zika is not a jerk and wants to break the betrothal too. Wouldn’t that be good? Then the break wouldn’t come from you, Yue. You could stay in the North. I bet your father would accept your pregnancy. I mean, it would take a lot of groveling and apologizing, but he would, especially if he knew that the Fire Nation wouldn’t do anything.”
“Katara, we understand your reasoning, but it’s a pipe dream.” Sokka shook his head. “We don’t know that man. Yeah, it could go like you’re saying, but it could go sideways too. We are having a child, we can’t risk it. I’m sorry, it hurts me and Yue too, but it’s just too unpredictable.”
Katara pouted. “Yeah, but it could go right. You agree with me.”
Sokka rolled his eyes. “Still, the chances are fifty-fifty at best. I’ll say it again, we don’t know the man. And yes, the current Fire Lord is decent, but his father almost followed in his wanna-be genocidal jerk dad’s footsteps. If Avatar Aang hadn’t been around by then, who knows what would happen? There’s a loose knot in that family’s head. A maybe isn’t enough to risk Yue and my unborn child’s life.”
Damn it. She couldn’t understand why he wouldn’t trust this leap of faith, but maybe her brother wasn’t her brother anymore, he was now a father. Heartache rushed over Katara. How didn’t she realize what was happening right under her nose? She still thought of Sokka as her silly older brother, but he was more than that. Maybe he hadn’t been her silly older brother for a long time, she just hadn’t seen it.
“Maybe… maybe I could meet the Prince? You know I’m a good judge of character. I could go to the Fire Nation with you, Yue,” she suggested.
Yue squeezed her arm. “That’s the same problem, Katara. I still would have to go to the Fire Nation and leave Sokka behind. I won’t risk spending a month of my pregnancy stuck in a boat going to some place I don’t know, even if I am with you.”
“Then I can go. Just me.”
“The Fire Nation invited Yue, sister,” Sokka replied. “The Delegation probably won’t even leave without her.”
Katara’s mind was racing. She couldn’t let her brother and best friend leave like this forever. She didn’t know how she would live without both of them, knowing they had a child she couldn’t see growing up. GranGran’s heart wouldn’t survive that, and neither would hers. She had seen enough of women giving birth in the South, and sometimes things went wrong. She couldn’t live with the knowledge that Yue would give birth somewhere that might not even have a healer waterbender to help if anything went wrong.
“We thought of every single scenario, Katara,” Sokka said, looking sadly at his sister. “There’s nothing we can do. We’ll have to run away.”
Katara blurted out, “I could dress up as her.”
Sokka and Yue blanked.
“What?”
“I can dress up as her,” she repeated herself. “I mean, everyone says we look alike, which, by the way, now that I am thinking about it, it’s a little creepy that you’re together—”
“Hey!”
“But it plays to our advantage, right? I can go to the Fire Nation as Yue while she leaves the North dressed up as me with you. No one will question you if you say you’re taking me home. I can get to know Fire Prince Zika and find out some way to break the betrothal. Maybe I can annoy him so much that he’ll have to break it! And I can hold my own in the Fire Nation, I bet these sheltered people have never seen a southern waterbender in action!”
Yue looked at her like she had grown a second head, but Katara saw the gears in Sokka’s mind turning.
“It’s still very dangerous. They might find out.” He shook his head.
Katara wasn’t giving up, though. “No, it isn’t. Do they have anything of Yue? A portrait? Did the Fire Lord or the Fire Prince ever come here at all? Is there anyone in the Fire Nation Court that knows her?”
“No.” Yue answered slowly. “They never came here, and the Fire Nation Diplomat that I knew is retired now. I think the Fire Lord visited when he was young, but I wasn’t even born yet. And, again, it’s Prince Zuko.”
“Exactly!” Katara exclaimed, almost jumping off the bed. “There’s no one that could snow-rat me out to whoever his name is.”
Sokka took a little longer to reply. “No, it’s still dangerous. I mean, even if no one finds out, he might not want to break the betrothal, then it will be all for nothing. If he doesn’t break it, you will have to marry the dude instead of Yue, and that ceremony will have her dad there, and he will snow-rat you out in a second.”
“If he doesn’t break the betrothal, I’ll just run away,” Katara suggested quickly. “I mean, isn’t it exactly what you’re doing now? Only that the betrothal farce will last a little longer. Sokka, in four months, if I fail and the Fire Prince hasn’t broken the betrothal yet, come to the Fire Nation and I’ll escape with you. We will part ways and I’ll go straight to the South Pole, I won’t ever bother you again. Just, please, let me try this. I can do it, I swear I can.”
Yue and Sokka looked at each other again, confusion etched in their eyes.
“Please, guys. Sokka, don’t you trust your sister to bother a man so much he will break a betrothal? C’mon, I know Yue like I know my own hand, this will be so easy.”
She was bluffing now, but at least no one called her out on it. No one pointed out that if she truly knew Yue, she would’ve known that she was in love with Sokka too, thank the Spirits. She wouldn’t have a comeback for that.
“What would we even do while you’re there?” Yue asked then, her eyes full of tentative hope. Katara pounced on the light in her friend’s eyes, desperate to sell her plan.
“Be together, laying low for a while. When we meet again, hopefully the betrothal will be broken, and Yue can come back to the North Pole and explain it all to Chief Arnook. He might be angry, but he wouldn’t ever do anything against you or your baby. Just please, be married before you come back.”
Sokka sighed loudly. “Can we think about it? It’s a decent idea, but we will have to work out the kinks. Can you leave us to discuss?”
As a couple? Wow, the times changed so quickly.
“Yeah, I can leave. But please, just think about it. You won’t have another chance of raising that baby with their family, and doesn’t your child deserve it?” Yue looked away, but nodded. Sokka just looked away. Katara didn’t allow their reaction to stop her from hugging them close. “Congratulations for you both. I am truly happy you found each other, even though it made me gag a little.”
She left Yue’s bedroom before they could answer.
❄︎ ❄︎
The next day, Sokka and Yue entered her bedroom in silence and started to plan out what they would do.
❄︎ ❄︎
The last time Katara had seen the Northern Water Tribe look this alive had been ten years ago, on the same occasion. The decorations for Tui and La’s Festival were now fully finished, and every bridge, balcony, and ice-carved archway shimmered beneath strings of glowing lanterns. The pale blue light reflected across the canals like scattered stars, beautiful and cold. Banners embroidered with silver thread fluttered in the crisp sea breeze, bearing the Water Tribe’s emblem. People from all over the world were together at the Festival, and Katara could only watch from the window as they walked around and had fun.
Well, at least it was for a good cause.
The Fire Nation Delegation had arrived four days before, no more than 20 people, carrying a long letter from the Fire Lord explaining that he and his family couldn’t come due to the first anniversary of his only son’s death and wishing them to have fun. To both Yue and Katara’s surprise, the Fire Prince had written as well, a very nice letter introducing himself to Yue and wishing her a good trip to the Fire Nation. Sokka had grumbled all night after that.
“Do you think your father will ask you to postpone the trip?” Katara asked, still standing in front of Yue’s window, inside her bedroom.
Yue, who sat on a chair, slowly rocking herself while reading a book in front of the fireplace, sighed out loud. “I doubt it. He saw me and Sokka whispering in a corridor a week ago, and I think he has some idea about what’s going on. I don’t think he knows, but he has sent Sokka on that stupid errand today, so…”
Chief Arnook had asked Sokka to accompany a rich Earth Kingdom family during the Festival, and Sokka hadn’t come back yet.
“Oh, yeah, I wondered about that.” Katara shook her head and left her post at the window. There were more things to do than worrying about her brother. “The party is about to start, we might as well start dressing.”
Yue smiled and closed her book, leaving her chair to go to her closet, where she kept her dress. “You know very well that there is no we in this phrase, Katara.”
Katara smiled nervously. “I know, I just…”
“Are you having cold feet?” Yue frowned. “Cause if you are, it’s okay. We can still run away and…”
“No!” Katara exclaimed, shaking her head. “No, I’m really not. It’s just nerves. I mean, we managed to hide from everyone with the sickness excuse, but today… I’ll really dress up as you and fool everyone. What if your dad finds out?”
Yue’s eyes shone with fear, but she took a deep breath. “He won’t, Katara. I know he won’t, because I wouldn’t let you do this if I thought you couldn’t fool him.”
They had gone too far to stop even if she thought she couldn’t fool Chief Arnook. They managed to get him to allow the Fire Delegation to take Yue to the Fire Nation right after Tui and La’s blessing and had fooled the entire palace into believing Yue was sick and that Katara was healing her with waterbending. Thankfully, Yue had awful morning sickness and heartburn, so at least that wasn’t all that much of a lie, but the rest…
“I won’t let him find out. I swear I won’t,” Katara promised.
“There’s no need to promise, but thank you.” Her friend replied, breathing deeply. “I know it’s too much to ask from you, but-”
“No, Yue, I suggested it, this is my plan. You are not asking too much, I’m giving it for free. All I want is the chance to be in my future nephew or niece’s life. I want Sokka to follow in dad’s footsteps and for you to live a happy life with your family. There’s nothing else I want.”
There was one thing that Katara had, and that was a tell. Whenever she lied, she would hold her hands together, a very physical and obvious tell, and Yue knew that. But Yue was too worried about her future to notice her friend’s hands right now, so Katara knew she was safe.
Her lie wasn’t that big, to be honest. She did want Sokka and Yue to be happy and she truly wanted to be in her nephew or niece’s life, it just wasn’t all that she wanted in life. She wanted other things and she had dreams of her own, like leaving the Poles and experiencing the world. She respected Sokka and Yue for finding love and settling down in the Tribe, but she wanted to live. She wanted to have fun and meet people from everywhere else; she wanted to eat other things; she wanted to see the animals and flowers that she only saw in books. She wanted so much more. She wanted to change the world for the better.
Her mother had always said she was a very ambitious woman, but there was no place for ambition in the Southern Water Tribe: ambition led to selfishness, and selfishness led to a horrible death in the frozen tundra. She was 18 years old and the best waterbender of her Tribe, learning from Master Hama of Wolf Cove herself before the old woman had passed away, and still, all she could do in her Tribe was to heal the men that went out to fish and help the women in childbirth.
The Southern Water Tribe was much better in the matter of equality between men and women than its Northern sister, but they were still traditional. Meaning that Katara did not follow the men to the hunts – and even if she forced her way in, she would probably be the only woman there, and who wanted that? She kept herself inside her family’s house, mending clothes and sewing pieces to sell in the Earth Kingdom. It was nice to build something beautiful with the women of her Tribe, and sometimes it felt really good to make a difference with her healing, as small as it might be, but it wasn’t very fulfilling. She could do better than that. She knew she could.
And yeah, maybe the Fire Nation wasn’t as amazing as the Western Air Temple, which was her dream destiny, but it was still cool. She would probably be stuck in the Palace for most of the time, but maybe she could wander around in the city. She knew how to be persuasive and she could ask the Fire Lord for permission.
“I think you’ll look beautiful today. Too bad no one will compliment you with your name.” Yue smiled apologetically and gave her the dress for her to put on. “Go on and get ready. I will dress up too. I’ll wait for Sokka and then we’ll leave.”
Katara’s heart ached. “I know I said my goodbyes already, but Spirits… this is so hard.”
Yue held her hands and squeezed them, holding off tears. “Katara, if there was ever a day where I didn’t tell you that you are the best friend someone could ever ask for, forgive me. I love you so much I won’t know what to do with myself. After this baby, having you as my sister is the best thing that loving Sokka ever gave me.”
Katara’s eyes watered up hard enough for her vision to be blurry. She hugged Yue, holding her as close as she could. They were only half a year apart in age, with Yue being older, and Katara couldn’t even remember her life before she met the Northern Princess. “I love you too. I’ll miss you so much, Yue. I’ll do what I can to break your betrothal.”
“Please do,” Yue said through tears. “Oh, I’m about to throw up.” She took a sudden step back and ran straight to the bathroom attached to her bedroom.
Katara laughed a little and grabbed the dress she should be putting on. It was very beautiful. It was long and flowing, falling almost to the ground, and the fabric was a soft blue, almost white, like moonlight on an iceberg. The sleeves were wide and loose so she could wear fur under it, embroidered at the cuffs with intricate bands of blue, purple and silver beads in geometric patterns. The same embroidery ran along the edges of the skirt and down the front of the gown, the work of very talented hands. They had many talented women in the South, but the lavishness of such a work could only come from the North.
Yue came out of the bathroom with an apologetical smile, her eyes softening when she saw Katara watching the dress. “C’mon, let’s get you dressed before your brother bursts in to complain about the Earth Kingdom family that is holding him.”
❄︎ ❄︎
It took them almost an hour, but Katara was ready just when Sokka knocked on the door.
“Spirits, I thought the Beifongs were about to invite me into the bathing room with them!” He complained out loud once he entered, throwing his Festival mask away. “Their daughter is actually cool, but her parents, I swear-” He stopped mid-sentence, having just seen Katara. “Wow, you guys do look alike when you're dressed like a pretty girl and not a weird dude, Katara."
Yue laughed and Katara bent a snowball straight at her brother’s face. “Ha-ha, how funny,” she deadpanned, pulling the mask out. “Shouldn’t you be ready too, jerk?”
It wasn't even a compliment, but Katara knew she looked pretty. Yue’s dress had a thick collar of white fur that framed her neck and head, protecting her from the biting cold while giving the dress a very regal appearance. More fur trimmed the hem of the skirt, brushing against the floor whenever she walked, and beneath the outer robe, layers of warm fabric kept her hot without weighing down the flowing silhouette. Her dark brown hair was parted down the middle and pulled into two long braids that fell over her shoulders, the ends tied with blue bands and the rest of her hair was gathered high on her head, arranged neatly into a rounded loop, held in place by Yue's blue hairpiece, the symbol of her status as a Princess. Yue's Festival mask was on her face too, a beautiful silver mask of an arctic bear-fox that hid her entire face from view. She was completely unrecognizable as Katara.
“I’ll take ten minutes tops. I will dress all inconspicuous and you’ll never even see me leave.”
Katara felt a little dejected at the thought of her brother leaving. She would’ve never guessed, three months before, that their trip would end with her leaving for the Fire Nation dressed as Yue and Sokka running away with the mother of his unborn child. Their parents would kill them once they knew what was happening. The only time they were too busy to come to the Northern Water Tribe and sent their children as their representatives, this was what happened.
“After this… we’ll leave for the South and I’ll hide Yue in my house.”
They were really lucky that Sokka had finished building his own house the winter before. He was rarely there, of course, but he had built it for his future wife and children. In the South, once the man reached 20 years old, he would build his own house, symbolizing his coming of age and readiness to build his own family, leaving his parents’ behind. No one would bat an eye that Sokka was living by himself, and Yue would be safe. She wouldn’t be able to leave the house, but at least she would be with him, and it would be only for a short period of time. Katara would get the Fire Prince to break the betrothal in a week at most.
“Won’t you tell your sister she looks splendid?” Yue asked, poking Sokka with a finger. “Men.”
Sokka rolled his eyes affectionately and turned back to Katara. “You’re okay, I guess. Now leave before I have to push you out of the room.” His tone was light, but once she stared at him, his façade broke and he let out a sad sigh. “I’ll miss you, Katara. Be safe in the Fire Nation and don’t let Prince Zika find out about anything. I’ll be there in four months, I swear.”
Katara bit back the burn in her throat and nodded. “I’ll miss you too. Be safe, both of you.”
“We will,” Yue promised, holding Sokka’s hands. “Now go. And for the thousandth time, it’s Prince Zuko.”
Katara laughed and dried her eyes before putting her mask on. “Take care.”
She left the bedroom and closed the door behind her with her heart in her hands. Saying goodbye was harder than she thought. She straightened her back and closed her hands elegantly before her, holding her head high. In the last six days of lockdown, she had learned every little tick of Yue, from how she walked to how she lifted a cup to drink from. It would be useless knowledge in the Fire Nation, but very useful during the Festival. If anyone talked to her, she could act exactly like her friend and fool them.
Once she left the Princess’ chambers, the Palace started to become alive, loud and joyful, filled with people walking around. It didn’t take long for her to be recognized.
“Princess Yue!” Someone exclaimed to her left, and she turned slowly to see one of the waterbender guards that kept Yue’s chambers safe. Relief poured down her skin when she realized that she was fooling at least someone. “I’m glad to see you healthy, Princess. Shouldn’t Master Katara be with you, Your Highness? Her brother has just entered.”
Katara took note to lower her voice, make it a little rougher, as if she was sick. “Katara’s brother is taking care of her. She caught the same sickness I had. I have a bit of a sore throat, so I won’t be able to talk so much tonight. I apologize.”
“Don’t apologize, Your Highness. It’s proof of how hard you suffered this last week if Master Katara couldn’t fully heal you. If she couldn’t, I don’t think there is someone who could.”
Underneath the mask, Katara smiled. Why didn’t anyone compliment her to her face? Were they afraid of her? “Will you accompany me to the Festival? You can tell people that I won’t be in a talking mood today.”
The guard’s eyes sparkled. “Of course, Princess. Please, I’ll lead the way.”
The guard led her to the main square of Agna Qel’a, where the main attraction of the Festival was happening. The entire city glittered beneath layers of lanterns, the lights reflecting on the ice buildings, flickering. Music drifted through the streets, carried by the wind, and everywhere Katara looked, there were people from all over the world dressed in their finest clothes and fanciest masks. Children ran between the crowds, wearing carved masks of animals, merchants called out from beautifully decorated stalls, and dancers moved in circles beneath strings of hanging lights and water whips.
Katara loved all the festivals of the Northern Water Tribe, but the Tui and La’s Festival was special. And it was even more special because tonight wasn’t just a celebration, but a farewell from the people to their Princess.
If she was herself, she would probably be running around with Sokka, eating half of the stalls out of their stocks, but she was Yue, so she just kept one hand folded neatly over the other and tried to look composed while people bowed around her. She nodded to all of them while the guard explained her condition, and tried to swallow the bitter taste of deceit. The Northern people loved Yue and were sad to watch her go, and Katara couldn’t help but wonder if they would really accept and support her exile if she ran away from her betrothal. She wondered what they would think if they knew their Princess was escaping with Sokka right now, leaving them behind. Would they forgive her?
She was still thinking about it when a deep voice called from behind and her nerves exploded.
“Daughter.”
Fuck.
Katara turned around as elegantly as she could and almost didn’t breathe when she realized that Chief Arnook was staring her down, standing with the Fire Nation’s Dignitary on one side and the Avatar Aang on the other. They were all fancily dressed and masked, but they were easily recognizable. Arnook for the build and clothes and the half mask he was wearing, the Fire Dignitary because he was dressed in all red, and Avatar Aang because… well, there were a lot of Air Nomads at the Festival, but everyone knew Avatar Aang. He was a well-regarded Avatar, especially because he had been the person to stop Fire Lord Azulon from trying to start a war against the Earth Kingdom 50 years ago. His predecessor, Avatar Roku, had stopped Fire Lord Sozin from using a comet’s enhancing powers to genocide the Air Nomads, and Aang mastered the four elements at age 14 just so Azulon couldn’t follow in his father’s footsteps. He was close to his eighties, but still looked freakishly young, not even a year over 45, still handsome and tall.
Katara lowered her face and curtsied softly before she spoke with a rough voice. “Father, Master Liaozo, and Avatar Aang.”
Arnook’s eyes flickered and he frowned. “Are you alright?”
Katara turned to the guard by her side and he immediately came forward. “Princess Yue’s sickness has receded enough to just a sore throat, but she cannot speak for long, Chief.”
Avatar Aang replied with concern in his voice. “If a sore throat was left after so many days of treatment, you must’ve been very sick, Princess. Are you sure you are alright?”
Katara almost felt like hyperventilating. “Yes,” she answered. “I feel perfectly fine. Katara says that one or two days of water intake and I’ll be fine on my own.”
The three men nodded and the man dressed in red, the Fire Dignitary, Master Liaozo, offered, “If you please, we can postpone the trip until you are fully recovered, Princess. The Fire Lord is very sensible, he will understand a couple of days of lateness.”
Spirits, no. “Please, no. I am excited to meet your beautiful land. The soreness will leave soon.”
For one horrible second, she thought that they would recognize the lie in her voice, but then Arnook smiled. There was pride in his expression, and something softer underneath it. Sadness, perhaps, to be saying goodbye to his only daughter that night, but pride for her sense of duty nonetheless.
“I have never seen a woman this dutiful since my late wife, Yue’s dear mother. She takes after her mother in this.” Arnook bragged, smiling at the men.
Avatar Aang’s eyes softened. “Your wife was a very wise and kind woman, Chief Arnook. I see the best of her in your daughter. You should be proud. A marriage between the Fire Nation and the Water Tribe is a huge step into a better future. I have been talking about harmony between nations since I was twelve years old and it gladdens me to see it happen in this lifetime.”
“Fire Lord Iroh was very wise to propose a wedding between our nation and the Northern Water Tribe,” the dignitary smiled in agreement.
“And Princess Yue for accepting it, even though she still hasn’t met her future husband,” Avatar Aang added mercifully, smiling respectfully at her. “I have met Prince Zuko and he’s a very kind young man, you have nothing to worry about.”
She looked at him with so much hope in her eyes that it took her a second to rein it in to keep up the appearances. Avatar Aang was vouching for the Fire Prince? That meant he truly was a good man. Maybe her plan would really work!
“Well, friends, if you please, I’ll walk with my daughter now. I’ve barely seen her this week and she’ll leave our Tribe tonight.”
“Of course, Chief Arnook.” Master Liaozo bowed low. “We’ll see each other in the harbor after the lighting of the lanterns.”
“And that is my cue to find something to eat,” Avatar Aang laughed out loud. “Excuse me, my good men, Princess Yue.”
Arnook turned to Katara and offered her an arm for her to link. “Let’s go?”
Katara nodded and took his arm.
The festival continued behind them as Arnook led her out of the main square, back to the Palace, to a wing that she didn’t visit much. Katara kept her hand tucked into the crook of his arm and felt very strange all of a sudden. Arnook’s presence was familiar, of course, but she was stealing a moment from father and daughter, and it made her feel even worse than hearing the people tell her goodbye.
They walked beneath great ice arches and into a small door she had entered only once, when she became a Waterbender Master. Reverence was everything she could feel as Arnook led her into the Spirit Oasis of the Northern Water Tribe.
Inside the Spirit Oasis, the noise of the festival fully died. All she could hear was the quiet rush of water and the wind touching the thin blades of green grass in there.
Arnook glanced at her. “It’s too bad we can’t talk properly.”
She gave her an apologetic look through the mask.
“I suppose I should be grateful that you’re not trying to give a speech before you leave, though.” He watched as Katara shook her head. “Because your old father would probably cry.” Katara gave him a startled look. “I might anyway.”
They reached the center of the Spirit Oasis, under the tree growing there. It was peaceful. The air was warmer and the water shimmered with power as the two koi fish, the spirits of Tui and La, circled each other in perfect synchrony.
Arnook led her toward the water. “Come.”
They knelt together at the edge of the pond and for a moment neither spoke. Then, Arnook lowered his masked face and Katara followed along.
“To Tui and La,” he murmured, “may the waters of the North remain full of life and our people remain strong. May our southern brothers and sisters prosper beside us. May there be peace between all nations for generations to come.”
Katara closed her eyes and thought of the Southern Water Tribe. She thought of her parents, of Sokka, of Yue. Of the Fire Nation ship waiting beyond the harbor. Suddenly she felt very small, kneeling in front of two powerful spirits, praying for the life and health of the people she loved. Still, she pressed her hands together.
Please, she asked, please let this work.
Yue was somewhere beyond the Oasis, preparing to leave with Sokka, to cross the entire ocean to reach the South, all because Katara promised that she would break her betrothal.
Please keep Yue and the child she’s carrying safe.
Then she thought of herself, please keep Sokka safe and give him strength to stand by Yue's side. Please let Prince Zuko hate this engagement as much as Yue does.
She hesitated for a second, then added: and please let me be happy there.
When she opened her eyes, Arnook was looking at her. “You were always a thoughtful girl.” Katara froze when the man smiled fondly at the woman he thought was his daughter. “Yue, I know this isn’t easy for you, leaving your home, your family and the future you thought you would have here. I wish I could say that you have nothing to be frightened of, but that would be a lie.” He sighed. “The Fire Nation is very different from our Tribe. Their court is larger, their customs are different and you will be expected to conduct yourself with dignity no matter what.”
Katara waited for his next words while he took a deep breath.
“I heard rumors about him… Prince Zuko. The Fire Lord’s nephew turned heir after a freak accident with his cousin. People say that he’s impossible to please and a troubled young man.”
Katara’s eyes flashed in anger, but thankfully Arnook was staring at the fish. What were these rumors about Prince Zuko? Why did he talk like the Fire Prince had killed his cousin? Why did Avatar Aang call him a kind young man if there were rumors like this running around?
And why in Tui and La's name would Arnook allow his daughter to marry a man that might be a murderer?
“These rumors don’t matter, though. You are going there as a wife, not a diplomat.” Katara’s eyebrows shot up behind the mask, but Arnook continued, unaware of the look on her face. “Your husband, as heir, will have responsibilities to his nation and you will have responsibilities to him and to the household. It doesn’t please me to know that you’ll be caring for the Fire Nation’s future royals, but you are a good woman and you will do what you must; I raised you to do as much. You needn’t concern yourself with every political matter that crosses his desk, either. Just do your duty as a wife, give him a peaceful household and he will honor you.”
Katara stared at the water, asking the fish if they were listening to Arnook’s words. Tui and La didn’t answer. Maybe it was a good thing that Yue wasn’t there to listen to these words, after all. Katara missed her dad, all of a sudden. If he somehow agreed to arrange a marriage to her, he would’ve told her to sleep with a hunting knife under her pillow and stab the Prince if he ever stepped out of line.
“I know you will do well and make us proud. You are not stubborn and willful, you’ll make him happy,” he said, smiling at her, “and I think one day he’ll make you happy too.”
Well, if this was his goodbye to his daughter, she was truly better off not hearing it. Yue was one of the most stubborn people she knew, full of opinions on everything. Arnook didn’t know anything about his own daughter. How sad.
Still, she was Yue now, and even if her friend was stubborn, she was also impossibly kind.
She coughed before replying. “Thank you, Father. I’ll make you proud.”
Arnook half-hugged her, genuinely believing that the person sitting beside him was his daughter and he was sending her into a good marriage with words of support. Katara looked at the fish and wondered what they thought about it.
Would they grant a wish? And if so, whose?
Please, let me be convincing, she asked with a smile, and please let Prince Zuko be as impossible as everyone says he is.