(Aya's dress for the party^^)

Aya's POV

Not to long after we took out the Fire Nation drill, we were on a train to Ba Sing Se. A part of me was nervous because Ba Sing Se is a huge city and I've never been to a city this huge before. Growing up in the Southern Water Tribe, I'm not used to big crowds and humungous buildings but I guess we have to get used to it.

Aang believes Appa is here and I have a feeling he's here as well.

"Look, the inner wall." Katara points out and I looked out the window to see the inner wall. "I can't believe we finally made it to Ba Sing Se in one piece."

I was sat next to Aang and held his hand in mine. I can tell he's worried that Appa won't be here.

"Hey don't jinx it!" Sokka exclaims. "We could still be attacked by some giant, exploding Fire Nation spoon. Or find out the city's been submerged in an ocean full of killer shrimp."

"That would be unfortunate." I state.

"You been hitting that cactus juice again?" Toph asked Sokka.

"I'm just sayin', weird stuff happens to us." Sokka defended and I rolled my eyes.

Maybe because we're traveling with the Avatar and most of the world is after him.

A very strange man with a glossy stare and a yellow plant in his mouth shoved his way in between Sokka and Toph, starling them. I giggled when I saw Sokka's horrified look.

Or maybe it's just Sokka and his 'attractive' personality that draws people in.

Beside me, Aang stares out the window with sadness and I placed my hand on his cheek.

"Don't worry, Aang, we'll find him." I assured him and Katara nods with a grin.

"It's such a big city." He remarks and I kiss his cheek causing him to blush lightly.

"He's a giant bison. Where could someone possibly hide him?" Sokka asked as the train passes through the inner wall to reveal the city to us. "Oh."

All of us, minus Toph who didn't move from
her spot, gazed at the large, expanding city in front of us. My mouth fell open slightly at the sight, I couldn't believe how huge this place was. You could fit millions of bison in here.

"You were saying?" I asked my brother with furrowed eyebrows and he chuckled nervously.

The train reaches the station and all of us disembark to only be greeted by the magnificent view of Ba Sing Se.

"Back in the city. Great." Toph mutters sarcastically.

"What's the problem? It's amazing." Sokka asked her.

"Just a bunch of walls and rules. You wait; you'll get sick of it in a couple of days." Toph mentions to us.

I keep forgetting that Toph's family is well know around the Earth Kingdom. She's just so different then your typical and proper person that you forget.

Ahead of me, Aang looks out to the city and blows his bison whistle.

"I'm comin' for you buddy." Aang sighed and I wrapped my arms around his neck. "He's here. I can feel it."

I gave him a reassuring smile before we turned to see a lady with long, black hair approaching us. Not gonna lie, she had a creepy an unnatural smile plastered on her face.

"Hello, my name is Joo Dee. I have been given the great honor of showing the Avatar around Ba Sing Se." The woman greeted not removing her weird smile before looking at the rest of us. "And you must be Sokka, Aya, Katara, and Toph. Welcome to our wonderful city. Shall we get started?"

This woman is giving me an uncomfortable feeling. She's odd and not in a good way like Sokka.

"Yes. We have information about the Fire Nation army that we need to deliver to the Earth King immediately." Sokka informed Joo Dee but she seemed to completely ignore him.

"Great." She said. "Let's begin our tour. And then I'll show you to your new home here. I think you'll like it."

Joo Dee turns to leave but the rest of us didn't move. She completely dodged Sokka's information, like she didn't hear him at all.

Sokka growled and stopped the woman. "Augh! Maybe you missed what I said. We need to talk to the King about the war, it's important."

"You're in Ba Sing Se now. Everyone is safe here." Joo Dee states and we gave her an odd look.

But, what about everyone else in the world? Also, didn't she see the drill that was gonna invade the city?

"She's odd." I whispered to my boyfriend who wrapped his arm around my waist. Whenever Aang feels threatened or a situation doesn't feel right, he becomes protective of me. I'm not complaining just pointing it out.

——

Joo Dee led us to a carriage with an ostrich horse attached to it and we got in. Sokka and Katara were sitting next to Joo Dee and Toph, Aang and I were sitting on the other side. I was resting my head against Aang's shoulder with his hand in mine. Joo Dee was giving us the tour of the city and the first place we went too looked like it was meant for refugees. It didn't look as nice as the rest of the city.

I find it cruel that people are ranked in some areas. Everyone deserves to be treated equally even in huge city's like Ba Sing Se.

"This is the lower ring." Joo Dee informed us.

"What's that wall for?" Katara asked and I noticed that was blocking off sections of the city from one another.

"Oh, Ba Sing Se has many walls. There are the ones outside protecting us, and the one's inside that help maintain order." Joo Dee explained to us as we passed by multiple working people and refugees. It looked sad compared to the other buildings here. "This is where our newest arrivals live, as well as our craftsman and artisans, people that work with their hands. It's so quaint and lively."

So, the people who do the most work get the put in the lowest ring? Makes sense(cue sarcasm)

Two men in an alley were conserving and one of them had a dangerous looking sword in his hand. My eyes widened a little when they glared at us as we passed by.

"You do have to watch your step though." Hope Dee mentions noticing the shady men.

"Why do they have all these poor people blocked off in one part of the city?" I asked feeling sorrow watching these poor people live their life.

"This is why I never came here before." I glanced at my boyfriend who was not pleased at the sight we saw. "I always heard it was so different from the way the monks taught us to live."

And that's why we work so well together. We have the same view on life but that might be because I'm the Fire Angel.

Both, darling. You are naturally a good person and being the Fire Angel just adds to your good nature.

I let a small smile slip at Sapphire's words. I'm glad she's here with me and see's the unpleasantness of the life these lesser rank people live.

Time passed and we approached a cleaner and nicer part of the city. This looks so much nicer compared to the lower ring, why is it so much better? The buildings were well built, it had a much brighter atmosphere to it, and it didn't look sad.

"This is the middle ring of Ba Sing Se, home to the financial district, shops and restaurants and the university." Joo Dee explained.

"Yeah, we met a Professor from Ba Sing Se University." Sokka mentions, leaning closer to Joo Dee. "He took us to an ancient underground library where we discovered information about the war that is absolutely crucial for the King to hear!"

Joo Dee just simply grins and ignores Sokka's emphasized point.

"Isn't history fascinating?" Joo Dee asked, changing the subject before looking out the window. "Look, here's one of the oldest buildings in the middle ring, Town Hall."

The carriage comes to a stop and Joo Dee exits. I watched her with a bewildered look and shook my head.

That woman is completely dodging our conversation about the war. Something is off about her, something is not right.

"Is that woman deaf? She only seems to hear every other word I say." Sokka asked with bewilderment and I nodded at this.

"It's called "being handled"." Toph informed, crossing her arms. "Get used to it."

Joo Dee returns and we continue touring the city. We reached a beautiful part of the city with gorgeous buildings and lovely scenery. This is probably the highest ring here.

"The Upper Ring is home to our most important citizens." Joo Dee explained to us. "Your house is not too far from here."

As much as I dislike how city it separated, I don't mind staying in this part.

We pass by a large wall with a gate and behind it there is an enormous building. Three men were standing at the gateway wearing dark robes and wide brimmed hats, they saw us and
just stared.

"What's inside that wall?" Katara asked.

"And who are the mean looking guys in robes?" Sokka adds.

"Inside is the Royal Palace. Those men are agents of the Dai Li, the cultural authority of Ba Sing Se. They are the guardians of all our traditions." Joo Dee explained.

"Can we see the king now?" Aang asked getting impatient.

"Oh, no! One doesn't just pop in on the Earth King." Joo Dee denied and Aang nods his head sadly.

The carriage comes to a stop when we reach a beautiful looking house. We all get out and Momo flies and lands on the house and Bubbles chitters from my arms at the lovely home.

"Here we are. Your new home." Joo Dee smiles and  messenger runs up to Joo Dee and hands her a scroll. "More good news, your request for an audience with the Earth King is being processed, and should be put through in about a month. Much more quickly than usual."

We were all stunned by the news. A month is way to long to wait, the eclipse is a few months away.

"A month?!" Sokka asked stunned.

"Six to eight weeks, actually." Joo Dee corrects and I sigh at this.

All of us enter the house and it was very nice. The ceiling had lit lamps hanging from it, there was a lovely dinner table and an elevated portion in the back with steps leading up to it. If we truly have to wait a month, I guess staying here won't be so bad.

"Isn't it nice? I think you will really enjoy it here." Joo Dees beams.

She smiles to much. It's creepy.

"I think we'd enjoy it more if we weren't staying so long." Sokka mentions. "Can't we see the King any sooner?"

"The Earth King is very busy running the finest city in the world, but he will see you as soon as time permits." Joo Dee explains to us.

"If we are going to be here for a month, we should spend our time looking for Appa." Aang suggests, staring out a window. I stood next to him with Bubbles resting on my head.

"I'll be happy to escort you anywhere you would like to go." Joo Dee offers, bowing her head.

"We don't need a babysitter." Toph sternly states, heading toward the door.

"Oh, I won't get in the way." Joo Dee replies, and takes a small step into Toph's path. "And to leave you alone would make me a bad host. Where shall we start?"

We decided to check the pet site first. Momo and Bubbles roamed around the store and quickly interact with the other animals. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like they got along very well and Bubbles got scared.

"I'm sorry, but I haven't heard anything about a flying bison. I didn't even know there were any. " The pet story owner apologized.

"If someone wanted to sell a stolen animal without anyone knowing, where would they go?" Aang asked the owner.

"Where's the black market? Who runs it? Come on, you know!" Sokka points an accusing finger at the owner, agitated.

The owner nervously stutters before replying. "That would be illegal. You'll have to leave now. Your lemur and koalaotter are harassing my sparrowkeets."

We looked over and saw Momo and Bubbles perched on a birdseed bowl with sparrowkeets. While protecting Bubbles, he gobbles up the birdseed while Bubbles eats them carefully.

Next, we went to Ba Sing Se University to see if anyone knew about where Appa or about the war. People are very dismissive about the war, they hate talking about it.

"Hmm, I've never seen any sandbenders or nomads around here." A student we randomly asked told us. "You should ask Professor Zei, he teaches the class on desert cultures."

Of course, out of all the professors here it had to be Professor Zei.

"Right. And which of your professors could we ask about the war with the Fire Nation?" Sokka retorts and I noticed the student glance at Joo Dee. I turned and she just smiled at me like nothing happened. Sokka and I exchanged looks of skepticism.

"Uh, I don't know. I'm not a political science student. I have to get to class." The student stands up and walks away but trips, dropping his scrolls and papers. "Ugh!"

He quickly collects them and walks off.

We returned back to our house and Joo Dee was about to take off. Thankfully.

"Well, I'm sorry no one has seen your bison. Why don't you go get some rest? Someone will be over with dinner later." Joo Dee suggests before the carriage drives off and from the other house we see a man peering through a window watching us.

"Hey, come with me." Sokka whispers and we all sneak over to the house and my brother knocks on the door. The same man that was staring at us answered with a smile.

"You're the Avatar. I heard you were in town. I'm Pong." The man greets kindly.

"Nice to meet you, Pong." Aang smiles.

"So, Pong, what's goin' on with this city? Why is everyone here so scared here to talk about the war?" Sokk asks and this scared Pong with his eyes shifting from side to side.

"War? Scared? What do you mean?" He stuttered, nervously.

"I can feel you shaking." Toph mentions with annoyance.

"Look, I'm just a minor government official." He informs and looks to the sides to confirm that no one is watching. "I've waited three years to get this house. I don't want go get into trouble."

"Get in trouble with who?!" Katara questioned.

Pong puts his finger on his lips and whispers. "Shh, listen, you can't mention the War here. And whatever you do, stay away from the Dai Li."

Dai Li? Joo Dee mentioned that name before. Are they those guards at the Royal Palace?

Pong shuts the door and we all share a look of confusion.

—-

That night, I stayed awake and stared out the window at the bright night sky with Bubbles who was sleeping peacefully beside me.

I heard footsteps behind me and looked to see Aang standing there.

"Hey, why you still awake?" He asked me, wrapping his arms around my waist from behind.

"I can't sleep." I told him, leaning into his chest. "I have too much on my mind."

"Like what?" He asked and I shrugged.

"I'm not in the mood to talk about it." I dismissed, moving my eyes to the floor.

I badly wanted to blurt everything out to him but I didn't ensure to bombard him with information.

"That's okay, I'm not gonna force you." Aang kissed my cheek. "You should get some sleep.

"I know, thank you." I looked up at him and he pecked my lips before removing his arms from my waist.

"Goodnight, Angel." Aang told me and my head perked up.

Angel? Does he-No, he can't.

"Angel?" I asked and he smiled.

"Yeah, it fits you. You're beautiful like an Angel." Aang softly said while blushing.

I giggled and glanced at my feet. "I like it. Goodnight."

Aang gave me one last grin before walking away. Once he was gone, I let out a large exhale of relief.

I thought he figured out that I was the Fire Angel.

It's a possibility that he has but doesn't know it yet. Once the Avatar knows the Fire Angel is alive, he usually calls them Angel.

"So, he knows?" I whispered with worry.

I can't tell you that. I'm not connected to Aang like I was with Roku, who found out by visions.

"Did you marry Roku?" I asked her with quiet voice.

Yes, but what I'm saying Aya is that Aang knows the Fire Angel is alive but hasn't fully figured it out yet.

I looked down with confusion before replying. "So, I have to tell him?"

Yes or you could let him figure it out. It may be difficult for him to get it because he thinks you're a non-bender but he will know.

I nodded with worry, before laying down on my bed and stroked Bubbles fur.

If only life wasn't so complicated.

I'm sorry, darling.

——

"I got it! I know how we're going to see the Earth King!"

We all look up and see Katara running into the house with rolls of paper. Aang was laying on the railing and my back was leaning against him with his arm around my waist.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Toph asked and mimicked Joo Dee's voice. "One doesn't just pop in on the Earth King!"

"The king is having a party at the palace tonight for his pet bear." Katara explained.

"You mean, platypus bear?" Aang corrected and Katara shook her head.

"Certainly you mean his pet skunk bear." Sokka jumped in, hanging upside down.

"Or his armadillo bear." Toph chimed in.

"Gopher bear?" I add.

"Just...bear." Katara shrugged with a dull voice which left us all confused.

Just a bear? This city is weird.

"This place... is weird." Toph states and I nod.

Katara begins to speak after that awkward silence. "The palace will be packed. We can sneak in with the crowd."

"Won't work." Toph interjects from her spot on the floor.

"Why not?" I ask her, leaving Aang's grasp, who quietly whines and I approach the girls.

"Well, no offense to you simple country folk, but a real society crowd would spot you from a mile away. You've got no manners." Toph simply says and I raise an eyebrow at her as she begins to eat a pasty from the tray.

"Excuse me? My sister and I got no manners? You're not exactly lady fancy fingers." Katara scolds the earthbender who burps in response.

"I learned proper society behavior and chose to leave it." Toph reasons and throws the half eaten pastry off to the side. "You two never learned anything. And frankly, it's a little too late."

Toph picks her nose and flicks the snot off her finger.

"Ah-ha! But you learned it. You could teach us." Sokka reasoned.

"Yeah, I'm mastering every element. How hard could manners be?" Aang grabs a curtain and drapes it around himself like a noble's robe, and begins talking with a sophisticated tone of voice. "Good evening, Mr. Sokka Watertribe. Ms. Katara Watertribe. Ms. Aya Watertribe. Lord Momo of the Momo Dynasty, your Momo-ness. Princess Bubbles of the Northern Water Tribe, your majesty."

Momo and Bubbles peek their heads out from under the carpet when they heard their names. Sokka grabs a curtain and starts to act like Aang.

"Avatar Aang, how do you do?" Sokka greets Aang like a high class snob would.

Aang bows to Sokka and Sokka bows back. Aang bows deeper and Sokka returns this bow with an even deeper bow. Both of them accidentally bow at the same time, but they knock each other's foreheads' together and fall backward. I giggle and cover my mouth at their stupidity.

"Ow!" They both say.

"Katara and Aya might be able to pull it off, but you two would be lucky to pass as busboys." Toph mentions to the two boys.

"But I feel so fancy." Sokka protests and a small pebble lands on his head.

——

That night, Katara, Toph, and I got ready for the party. Honestly, I wasn't fond of the whole dressing up thing. It's pretty and I look great, but I'm like Toph, the fancy stuff is too much work. I liked the dress, I might keep it for later though.

After we finished, the girls and I revealed ourselves to the boys with fans covering our mouths. Our hair was down nicely, we had our makeup done, and we had exquisite Earth Kingdom dresses on.

The girls and I give in to a fit of giggles after a moment and I saw Aang blush and stare dreamily at me.

"Wow, you look gorgeous."

My cheeks got hot and I was about to reply but Toph places her fan in front of my face.

"Don't talk to the commoners, Aya, even if he is your boyfriend. First rule of society"

Toph lowers her fan but my cheeks are still bright red from Aang's compliment. The girls and I start to walk out as Katara informs them on what to do.

"We'll get in the party, and then find a way to let you in through the side gate."

Toph and Katara left but I snuck back in and hugged Aang.

"Thank you." I muttered and kissed his cheek. He blushed at this and looked down, twiddling his thumbs.

"Of c-course."

Sokka flicked him in the head and I giggled before leaving.

——

The girls and I got to the Royal Palace and got in line at the gate. The three of us get to the front of the line and we see a guard was at the front.

"Invitation please." The guard said

"I think this will do." Toph holds up the official seal of the Bei Fong family to the guard.

"No entry without an invitation. Step out of line please." The guard ordered us.

"Look, the Pangs and the Yum Soon Hans are waiting in there for us. I'm going to have to tell them who didn't let me in." Toph argued with irritation.

The guard points his finger to the side and spoke with an unyielding voice. "Step out of line please."

The three of us step out of line and stand off to the side. Grabbing out attention, a carriage pulls up an a very sophisticated man that looked like a higher rank class stepped out.

We all smile at this and approach the tall man in hopes he would let us come in with him.

"Sir, I'm sorry to bother you, but our cousin lost our invitations." Katara informs the man and I leaned closer to him with a whisper.

"She's blind."

"Do you think you could help us? Our family's inside and I'm sure they're very worried." Katara continued with a pleading look.

The man smiles and bows. "I am honored, please come with me."

The man walks us toward the palace and him and the guard bow at one another. As we were walking in, Toph sticks her tongue out at the guard that spoke to them earlier.

"Nyah!!!!"

The four of us enter the palace and into the dining hall. It looked amazing, the people were all dressed up nice, the interior was exquisite and stunning, and food looked delicious.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" The man smiled before looking at us. "By the way, I'm Long Feng. I'm a cultural minister to the king."

How convenient is that? We met the minister to the king.

Katara thinks for a moment before introducing herself. "I'm Kwa Mai, this is-"

"Jasmine, lovely to meet you." I greeted with a soft smile before glancing at Toph. "And this is... Dung."

Toph didn't like the name so she tugged on the string that hung from my hair. I winced at this and glared at her for a second. "Ow!"

"Now where is your family? I'd love to meet them." Long Feng asked us, scanning the dining hall.

"Um... I don't see 'em right now." Katara tells
him with an unsure look. "But I'm sure we'll find them soon. Thanks for all your help."

The three us start to walk away but suddenly Long Feng appears in front of us causing me to jump.

"Don't worry, as your escort it would be dishonorable to abandon you ladies without finding your families first. We'll keep looking." Long Feng offered before he turns around and we followed him.

Toph, Katara, and I share nervous looks as we walked with him. This is gonna be a long night.

——

Some time during the night, I managed to lose Long Feng, Toph, and Katara. I sat down at a table and waited for Aang and Sokka to show up.

A minute had passed and I heard some sit down next to me. I lifted my head up and saw a young boy had joined me and I gave him a soft smile.

"Hey, my name's Hung." He greeted. "And may I say, you look beautiful."

"Thank you, I'm Ay-" I paused and decided to use my fake name. "Jasmine. My name's Jasmine."

I looked to the side of him and noticed two busboys boys standing back to back. I noticed a long tail stick out of a boys hat and my eyes widened when I recognized them as Aang and Sokka.

"Um, I hate to cut this short but my sister and cousin are looking for me." I stood up from my seat and I can tell he was upset. "It was nice meeting you."

I went to walk away but he grabbed my wrist and whipped me around to face him. The boy had short, black hair that was styled nicely and had green eyes. He was attractive, but I'll never leave Aang for anyone. I love him too much.

"I can help out." He offered. "Besides my father asked me to help you when you wandered off.

Is he Long Feng's son?

"You're Long Feng's son?" I asked him and he let go of my wrist.

"Yep." He nodded. "And I know you're name's not Jasmine, it's Aya. You're helping the Avatar, correct?"

"I don't have to tell you anything." I told him and folded my arms. "Now, please let me- Mmmm!"

Suddenly, his hand covered my mouth and he held me close as he dragged me away leaving Aya to struggle in his grip.

With the others.

"Where are Aya, Toph, and Katara?" Aang asked worriedly. He didn't like being away from Aya this long, he was worried she was hurt.

"Forget them! Just keep an eye out for the king." Sokka scolds with a whisper. Momo's tail sticks out of Aang's hat and Bubbles's little paws peek out of Sokka's.

"I don't know what he looks like." Aang remarks.

"You know, royal, flowing robe, fancy jewelry." As Sokka was describing the king, he grabs Momo's tail and stuffs is back inside the hat and tickles Bubbles paws making her hide her them.

Aang looks around the room in search of the king but he couldn't find him. All the guests, minus the ladies, matched Sokka's poor excuse of a description of the king leaving Aang helpless.

"That could be anyone!"

To their right, Toph approaches them and spoke in a fancy voice.

"Another crab puff, please."

Sokka leans his tray over to Toph, unaware it's her and Aang smiles with joy.

"You found us!"

"I'd know your little footsteps anywhere, Twinkle Toes." Toph remarks in her normal voice and Katara comes to them without her sister. This worries Aang when he notices Aya is missing.

Sokka opens her eyes when he realized its them. "Thanks for letting us in!"

"Sorry, but the guy who escorted us in won't let us out of his sight!" Katara mutters.

"Where's Aya?" Aang asked.

"We don't know. She sat down after a while and now she's gone." Toph shrugged and this causes Aang to get worried even more.

"She's probably just in the bathroom or something." Sokka assured the Avatar who nods with uneasiness. "Anyway, what guy led you in?"

Suddenly, Joo Dee appeared in front of the group with an anxious look on her face.

"What are you doing here?" She asked with a nervous voice. "You have to leave immediately, or we will be in terrible trouble!"

Joo Dee attempts to push Sokka who halts her with his tray.

"Not until we see the king!"

"You don't understand! You must go!"

Joo Dee shoves Sokka who bumps into Aang and Bubbles falls off Sokka's head. This causes Aang to spill his water he had onto a guest.

The guest was covered with the water and she was horrified. "Aarrrhh! Oh!"

"Sorry. No, don't shout." Aang pleads and used his airbending to dry her off. To his displeasure, Aang's tattoos are revealed to the party and Momo's shown to the guests. The woman was dried off but her hair, makeup, and dress was a mess and Aang smiles sheepishly.

The woman was shocked but she sees the Avatar and smiles. "The Avatar! I didn't know the Avatar would be here."

The room falls silent and everyone turns their attention to Aang. Joo Dee's plastered smile fades into a dreadful frown of displeasure at the sight of the reveal of the Avatar. Momo and Bubbles both scurry under the hats the boy were wearing and Aang waves at the crowd with pink cheeks. Sokka leans into Aang to whisper.

"You keep their attention while I look for the king."

"Watch this, Everyone!" Aang announced.

Aang jumps and lands on the long dining table as Sokka walks off into the crowd. Aang swings his arms over the drinks, bending the liquid out of the cups. He jumps onto a pitcher and balances on top of it, while continuing to waterbend. Aang brings the water above his head and forms a swirling sphere of colors. The crowd cheers and claps as he spins around keeping the ball up.

Aang continues to perform and during this time two lines of guards enter the room. Some of those guards were carrying a palanquin that was covered with the Earth King inside it. Many guests were marveled at the sight of their humble king and Sokka sneaks through in hopes of speaking to the king.

The guards put down the palanquin and Sokka looks over to Aang.

"Aang! The Earth King!"

Aang was busy entertaining Bosco by bending bubbles for him but he notices Sokka and gets in his air scooter. He whisks down the table toward the king.

"Greetings, your Majesty!"

Three guest swiftly move their food and drinks away from the Avatar as he zoomed by. The platform the king was on was carried away and the guards meet Aang at the end of the table. During this time, Sokka tries to follow the Earth King but he is grabbed my two Dai Li agents and is pulled away with his arms restricted behind his back.

"Hey, let me go!" Sokka yelled.

Another Dai Le agent comes out from behind a pillar and creates two hands gloves that capture Toph and drag her away without Katara seeing. Same thing happens to Katara and all three of them get dragged into a different room where Aya was at

Momo and Bubbles were trying to escape but a Dai Le agent spots them and takes them away as well.

Aang had reached the end of the table and was face to face with Dai Le agents. Long Feng and Hung walk up to the Avatar from behind the guards.

"Avatar, it is a great honor to meet you." Long Feng bows. I am Long Feng, Grand Secretariat of Ba Sing Se and head of the Dai Li." He gestures to his son who bows as well. "This is Hung, my son and also my second in command. I'd like to talk to you. Your friends and girlfriend will be waiting for us in the library."

Long Feng gestures Aang to follow him and Hung into the library. Aang hesitates before following them.

——

"Where's Aya?!" Aang asked in a demanding tone. Hung had left to get Aya out of the back room and Long Feng was dealing with the Avatar team.

"My son's grabbing her." Long Feng assures them.

"Why did you take her to a different room than us?" Sokka asked him with a hard glare. All of them were worried for the young girl, thinking she got harmed.

Before Long Feng could reply, the door opened and Hung brought in Aya. Aya looked uncomfortable and tried, she had tear stains on her cheeks.

"Aya!" Aang cries as Hung let her go and Aya falls into his arms. He holds her close and Sokka, Katara, and Toph huddle around her worriedly. "What did you do to her?"

Aang's voice growled with anger as the others look at the father and son duo angrily.

"I just talked to her." Hung shrugged and Aang rubs his girlfriend's back softly. Aya weakly glares at the boy, knowing that's not happened at all. "She's fine."

"She's not fine." Katara protests and gestures Aya's face. "She was crying."

Bubbles and Momo comfort the young water tribe girl who was gripping her boyfriend for dear life. Aya was petrified right now.

"Aang, take her out of here." Sokka tells the Airbender sternly. "We'll deal with them."

Aang swiftly picks up Aya and leaves the room. Aya cuddles into Aang's chest as he leaves the palace. He airbends over to a private spot and gently set her down, but keeps his arms around her.

Aya was silently crying and Aang was holding her close. He had no idea what Long Feng or Hung did to her but she was crying and he knew it was bad.

"Angel, it's okay. I'm here." Aang hushed her and planted a soft kiss on her head.

Aya heard him but couldn't stop the tears from coming out. The conversation between Hung, her, and Long Feng was terrible, absolutely atrocious.

"No..." She cries into his chest. "No..."

"Angel, talk to me." He pleads and gently grabs her face in his hands. Aya's beautiful gold orbs were bloodshot, her lip was quivering, she was shaking with fear, and the tears didn't stop flowing. "Please."

Aya listened to this and blinked away the tears but that didn't do anything.

"It's what H-Hung said." She stuttered with a choked voice and Aang's eyes darkened. "What he s-said w-was aw-awful."

He looked down and held her face in her hands. Aang held her close again and just comforted her. He couldn't bare to listen to her speak like that, hearing her voice crack and seeing those eyes of hers tear up.

Aang knows this place isn't normal. It has order but it's not normal.

Aang gave his girlfriend a peck on the head before he gently lifted her face up.

"I'm going to head back inside and finish talking to Long Feng and Hung."

Aang's voice dripped with hatred when he said that name as he spoke and Aya nodded.

"Okay." She breathed out and swallowed. "I'm gonna head home actually. I need to get out of this place."

Aang wasn't fond of Aya going alone, especially when she was in a vulnerable state but he didn't want to argue with her and agreed.

Aya and Aang stood up and they hugged tightly. Aya wanted to be in his arms forever and Aang did too, they were infatuated with another.

They pulled away and Aang wipes a tear from her cheek. "Stay safe, Angel."

Aya pulls out her daggers. "Always."

Aamg smiles at her before they separated ways and Aya takes off to their home. Once Aang was out of sight, Aya stops and faces the palace.

She glared heavily at the place and jabs a dagger at it. "You hurt my mother. I destroy you."

Aya, don't get angry. The Fire Angel is a calm spirit not an angry one.

Aya ignored her past life. "I don't care. Ruka is here and she could possibly be hurt."

But violence is never the solution. Remember Aang in the desert?

Aya pondered her statement but shook her head at this. "But this is about saving my mother and this kingdom. I'm the Fire Angel, I will never turn my back on people who need me. Hung's word changed everything. First, he said that my mother is here, then he figured out I'm a firebender somehow and called me dangerous and a threat to everyone. I have to stand my ground and save this city from total destruction before the Fire Nation takes it out and this war takes out the entire world. I'm tired of hiding, I'm tired of being scared of revealing myself to Aang, Sokka, and everyone else. I have to do what's right and save the world from destruction. I'm Aya, the Fire Angel and I'm an amazing warrior and firebender that's not afraid anymore!"

No one heard Aya as her voiced echoed through the area. Sapphire was speechless by Aya but she was proud her. Aya has finally accepted herself with who she is and has discovered herself. Aya was done hiding, she was a firebender and was not afraid.