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They left. Appa was sad to see me go, but I planned to escort the King at least for a few days until I could be sure he knew what he was doing. They wanted me to meet up with them again, to continue to teach Aang. Apparently Aang wasn’t dead. Katara explained it to me, but I couldn’t wrap my mind around it- something about magic water from the Northern water tribes. But that bald head and those bubbly blue-grey eyes were wonderful to see. Toph wasn’t so happy about me teaching Aang, but we came to an agreement: she would help me refine my bending without looking, and I would help her and Aang focus their control to particles. I already knew how to bend without looking, but I agreed just to make her feel better and maybe hate me less. I probably wasn’t going to see them again anyways. For two days we- the King, his bear, and myself- have been walking south of the city. “Maybe to the Eastern Air Temple,” the King would exclaim. “Or to Gaoling! I hear they have wonderful curry there. Bosco likes curry quite a bit. I’m not a fan myself. More of a chutney man. Mango chutney is amazing! Do you think-“

Everyone I come across wants to talk 24/7, and the king was no exception. He rode his bear while I walked beside them. I wondered how long I would accompany him. The longer we travelled together, the more invested I became in his well-being, which is expected I guess.

I felt movement nearby beyond the upcoming hill- a small city, probably earth. The past two nights we’ve stayed in little rock shacks that I tried to make as pleasant as possible. While he remained polite and cheerful, it was obvious that he was used to much finer things. Maybe there would be better lodging in the city. “Your Majesty,” I gently interrupted his rambling about food, wiping the sweat from my brow. “There is a city about a mile from here. It’s getting late. Perhaps we should spend the night there.”

“What a wonderful idea!” he exclaimed. Bosco roared in agreement.

20 minutes later we arrived: small earthen buildings placed closely together, thin streets, unwelcoming faces. I would have been happy with sleeping in one of my earth tents again, but the king didn’t seem to notice the stares he got. After a whispered warning from me, he removed his glasses. Glasses are a dead giveaway that the wearer is well-off and might have money to steal. I led the bear to the sign of an inn down the street a ways and went inside to inquire about rooms. The owner, a thin and very short man, said they had rooms available, but not for animals. The next inn, however, had a sort of stable behind the building for pets to stay in. Bosco settled down next to some frightened horses to eat the meat the king bought him, and we went upstairs to the third floor to our room. Two flat cots lay on the ground with a saggy pillow and worn blanket for each. The king stretched and fell to his bed with a sigh. “Travelling is so much work,” he mumbled sleepily. “But so much fun too! I’m almost glad that things happened that forced me to leave the city. It’s just too bad that the circumstances were so… so extreme.”

“I will be leaving you tomorrow,” I said as I removed my shoes. The King glanced over at me in surprise. “My friend is still in the city, as well as people I know who can’t defend themselves.”

He remained silent while I lay back on the cot. I thought maybe he fell asleep.

“What do you plan on doing?”

Hm. Good question. What is there for me to do? “I’ll try to get them out of the city.” Even as I said it, I knew it was stupid. How could I move so many people without being caught?

He knew it too. That’s probably why he didn’t say anything else.

The next morning I woke before the king, before the dawn. Grabbing my small bag and leaving the last of my silver beside his bed, I left the building. Bosco was still there. I was afraid someone would try to steal him and sell him on the black market. I waved the cook making breakfast goodbye and headed back to the city.

With a little help from my earthbending with my legs, I made it to the outskirts of the city a few hours after nightfall. Fire waving at the top of the wall revealed the position of Fire Nation sentries and two huge emblems hung over the gates. I kept close to the base of the wall, gathering my bearings. Nirou’s shop was east of the front wall. Rin’s was towards the center. Zuko’s was in the upper ring to the northeast. This must be the opposite wall… I don’t come over here much. This part of the city isn’t as familiar. I should stick to travelling under the roads instead of on them, then.

The earth caved in under me and closed above my head. So dark. I closed my eyes and focused on feeling movement within the city as I bended the rock bubble around me under the wall.

The last time I did this, Zuko was with me.

I pushed that thought out of my head fast.

About half an hour later I felt the roads lead into familiar territory. Further down the street would be my house. I continued on until Chouko’s house stood above me. I tried to slow my breathing, but the small space trapped my body heat. Fresh air was disappearing fast. Quickly I listened for any heartbeats- three. That meant someone was missing. I broke the surface of the ground, breathing the new oxygen deeply in the blackness. Next to me in the dark, I saw two little eyes peering at me from under the table in the corner, on top of which sat Chouko’s mother with a broom raised above her head.

“Ouch!” I gripped my throbbing head and looked behind me to see her father above me with a wicker chair ready to swing again. “Mr. Ching, it’s Iwa!”

He lowered the chair and sighed. “My boy, I’m sorry. You gave me a heart attack,” he whispered. He helped me up and put the chair aside. “Are you here for Chouko?”

“What’s happened to her?” I felt my heart drop.

He wiped at his eyes tiredly and his wife came to rub his arm. “Since the Fire Nation invaded, they demanded that one person from each business travel to the palace to represent the business. She insisted on going herself and took one of our finest baskets as a gift to the Princess Azula. That was just yesterday, but there’s been no news on when everyone will return.”

My brain worked at this information. “Alright. I’ll go to the palace to find Chouko. Can you get out of the city alone?”

We made plans for them to leave the way I came in. Mrs. Ching would earthbend them out to the left of the house for about 15-20 minutes until they were outside the city. She couldn’t feel things through the earth like I did, so I guestimated the time it took to get outside the wall. Chouko’s younger brother didn’t say a word the whole time, but glanced between the three of us intently and in confusion. They gathered what little they could carry quickly in the dark, and thus I left them to continue on. This time I could use the streets, because I knew the area well.

Out the door, the streets were still littered with a few homeless here and there but definitely fewer than normal. Fire nation soldiers stood at every intersection, some evacuated families from their homes to make their own for the time being, and more still raided shops for any food or small valuables they could pocket. The dimming sunlight couldn’t outshine the torches the soldiers carried. I assumed my inconspicuous demeanor that I always had on me years ago, as a young boy who needed to be present and not seen, just the right height for pickpocketing. I was taller now, but the mission was completely different. In moments I had pulled out my ponytail so my long hair covered most of my face and shoulders. The androgyny would provide even less reason to notice me. Sure enough meandering my way through the thin crowd came without effort. Civilians, though visibly and verbally expressing their unhappiness with the situation, could do nothing about the blatant theft and destruction of their homes. There was nothing I could do right now, especially in the open like this.

I wonder how Rin and his family are doing. That line of thought was cut short when I turned the corner and bumped into a metal wall. The wall let out a surprised “Uff!” muffled by my long hair, and in the second of confusion I recognized the Fire Nation emblem on the black breastplate. So much for going unnoticed. My brain worked quickly to develop a way out of this quietly.

“Watch where you’re going!” The soldier gripped me by my arms and shook me angrily for a moment. His short black beard hid most of his face visible under the helmet, but I could tell he was still rather young.

I smiled sweetly up into his brown eyes, even though the memories of Fire Nation soldiers surrounding me threatened to make me cry. “I’m sorry, I…” My eyes looked up at him from under my lashes as my teeth twisted my lip nervously. “I got distracted by… by you.”

His cheeks flushed a tinge of pink but his scowl disappeared, replaced by a boyish and prideful grin. His eyes roamed my body without any attempt to hide it. “Hm… You’ve got good taste. And you’re not so bad looking yourself.” His touch became gentler and moved to my waist. I pulled him with me by his wrists into the nearest empty house. He immediately pushed me to the closest flat surface, the table, and shoved his tongue into my mouth. Ugh. My brain started panicking when he unbuckled his pants. The next instant I bended him into the wall, everything from the mouth down sealed in rock. His eyes glared at me with fury, but I just smiled the same sweet smile and sat up on the table.

“Thanks for the kiss,” I whispered into his ear. “Maybe someday I’ll return the favour.”

I left him breathing heavily and angrily in the dark and headed back onto the street. Gods, people suck. Within a half hour I was at the front gates to the castle yet again. It all seemed so strange. Besides the Fire Nation occupying the city, I’ve been to the palace twice in the span of 24 hours. Still intimidating as ever, except now the Dai Li were replaced with even worse soldiers. Rows of guards with spears at the ready separated me from the building, but a line of civilians slowly trickled in under supervision. I had no idea where they were being sent to, but I slipped into the line behind an angry-looking man in his 30’s who was one burst blood vessel away from hurting somebody. Several guards shoved us along roughly through the entrance, and inside the darker interior stood plenty more just like us in lines. They filtered to tables where soldiers recorded their information before sending them further into the palace. Azula gave orders and watched over the proceedings with a smug grin. I’m sure she wouldn’t recognize me from yesterday’s fight.

Soon I was next in line. A guard shoved me forward so that my legs hit the table. The soldier sitting down didn’t even give me a glance. “Name?”

“Lee Himitsu,” I lied on the spot. He scribbled some characters I didn’t recognize down under a hundred others. “Veterinarian.” Hopefully I didn’t look too questionably young. They must not have been paying much attention though because as soon as I stated my occupation, they hauled me off with the rest. In moments I was back at the cells, except this time I was in one. Angry storeowners fumed and complained, others resigned themselves to their fate in stony silence. The light of the guards’ torches didn’t illuminate to the back of the cells, and quickly I got lost and shoved into warm bodies. Stay focused. I pushed through the crowd in search of the familiar choppy black hair, deep brown eyes, angled features. “Chouko!” I called out a little desperately. Claustrophobia set in real quick with all this flesh pressing against me. Breathe and don’t panic.

“Iwa! Where are you?”

Quite at the same time, Rin, Chouko, and I all smashed into each other. We grasped hands as the flow of the crowd attempted to pull us apart again. They both looked rather unharmed, though shaken up and confused. Rin was still all smiles- I’m not sure his mood could ever be dampened actually. Chouko sighed in relief at the sight of us. “Thank goodness! Why are you in here Iwa? You’re not a storeowner.”

I pulled them back against the cell wall so that we all lay flat against it. “I snuck in to get you two out,” I whispered to be sure that no one could overhear us. However we were pretty much ignored by the outraged civilians anyways. “We can’t help everyone right now. I’m just here for you two. Anyone else and they’ll figure it out. They’ll release them after they’re all accounted for, but if we don’t escape now we won’t be able to get out of the city at all later.”

Rin nodded enthusiastically while preventing a distracted business owner from bumping into me. “Sounds good to me. I can’t believe you came to get us! Man, I love you!” He threw his arms around my neck in a spontaneous moment of joy and pulled Chouko in with him. She laughed in my ear and the situation seemed suddenly so less dreadful. It’s weird and a little creepy I think, but just the familiar smell of my friends and their laughter stilled the uneasiness and fear of being caught, of leaving the city. I felt sorry for them- travel was almost a constant in my life, so this place didn’t have much significance to me. But Chouko and Rin have lived in this city their whole lives, working the same stores and making memories in the same houses.

“You!”

A Fire Nation soldier pushed his way to the back and yanked at Chouko’s sleeve. “Chiropractic! Princess Azula demands your services.” When prisoners started booing him he flared some fire on his fingertips to quiet them. As he pulled her out of the cell, she kept her hold on the two of us, claiming us as her assistants. We were bound at the wrists and shoved down many hallways. My feet couldn’t pick up where we were headed because of all the people crowded within the palace. The angry yelling and shoving didn’t help either. Rin’s guard kept pushing him into my back to the point where we both fell over each other and onto the floor of the throne room. My jaw hit the rock tiles with a resounding smack and Rin’s shoulder hit the small of my back. I was just glad I still had my tongue attached to my mouth.

A sharp pain exploded across my scalp, causing me to groan through my gritted teeth as my head was raised from the floor by my ponytail. “This one has the brand of a Fire Nation slave.”

When I next opened my eyes, Azula stood over me with an evil smirk and her arms crossed over her chest. “Very interesting. Are you a runaway?”

Crap. I’m so screwed. What the hell am I going to say? I can’t tell her I left the Dragon of the West’s employment in the middle of the night. I grit my teeth in frustration and pain. “No Princess… My master decided children were too difficult to keep as servants, so he kicked us out.”

Azula leaned down so her eyes were very close to mine. Unblinkingly, she asked another question. I knew if I didn’t think fast, I would be found out. “Who was your master?”

Nervous sweat dripped down my back. “I don’t remember,” I huffed. The hold on my hair grew tighter. “We were excused when I was only six.”

After a moment, she pulled back with another smirk on her face. “Alright, I guess that’s acceptable. Either way,” she turned to Chouko, “you’re my new chiropractic. Mei doesn’t want one, so Tai Li and Zuko can choose between your apprentices. Now I need a private session,” she yawned with her arms stretched above her head. “See her to her new room and make sure she’s in the sauna in ten.” She stepped out of the room and a surprisingly calm Chouko was ushered behind her by two of the guards.

“Ooh, I want one!” Tai Li cartwheeled over to us while Rin pushed the guard off of me. She didn’t seem to notice Rin at all and just hopped next to me. “Come on! I’ll show you to the room!”

I glanced back at Rin uncertainly as the guard pushed him to Zuko’s room, I guessed. He complained about the dissatisfactory treatment, which made me smile.

“Can we have a session now too? Oh, it’s been ages since I’ve gotten a massage! Normally I’m the one giving them.” Her pink loose-fitting clothes billowed behind her while she tugged me along. I kept careful track of our location in the palace as I followed her through the earthen hallways of green and gold.

“Yes ma’am,” I answered. She entered a room guarded by two Dai Li soldiers who eyed me with suspicion.

Tai Li whipped around with a frown on her face and shook a finger at me like I was a bad child. “No ‘ma’am’s!” she exclaimed. “Just Tai Li! I’m not that old yet.” With this she front flipped her way to a flat padded couch on a spacious balcony overlooking the nicer part of the city. The sunshine hit the earthen tiles and reflected off her olive skin as she plopped onto the couch with the happiest smile I’ve ever seen- even rivaling Rin’s. “Let’s start with shoulders!”

As soon as I reached her in the sunlight, she changed the subject completely. “Oh, are you good at balancing? We could be a gymnastic duet act together! You’re lean but have plenty of muscle to hold me up. What do you think? Oh, this would be so amazing! Let’s get started. We’ll stretch first.”

And just like that I was recruited into Tai Li’s two-man circus. I was too tired and anxious about the others to question her- also she didn’t seem like she was incredibly evil. Her smile disarmed me completely. The way she treated me, I felt like her older brother and not her captive-turned-masseuse-turned-balance-partner. She yanked me by the arm to the ground on the balcony where I did my best to imitate her stretching techniques. However when she did the splits, I could only watch in horror. After this she taught me cartwheels, frontflips, backflips, backbends, and all sorts of new tricks. Hours we spent on that freaking balcony doing what she called the “basics” of gymnastics. I was panting my lungs out and she didn’t even break a sweat. My body now sported so many new bruises from losing my balance and my muscles shook with the strain of supporting my own weight in such weird positions.

I panted into the ground. Every muscle ached from the exertion. She stood above me with a toothy grin and hands on her hips, glowing in the sunlight. I melted into a puddle of my own sweat on the pavement. She bounced up and down with joy. “You’re doing pretty good! Let’s work on walking with our hands!”

I groaned loud enough for her to hear and laugh at. This girl is going to kill me.