Koete ↠ Sokka

Chapter 3: The Hair Tie - Part 3

Katara was the first to wake up the next morning. She left to get them water, but returned in a state of panic. "They took him! They took Haru," she shouted, putting a hand on her head.

Sokka and Aang stood up quickly, running over to Katara, while Charlie glanced down with slight guilt. She knew Haru would get his happy ending, but she still felt uncomfortable knowing she could have stopped him from being taken. She felt stuck in a cycle.

"What?" Aang gasped out.

"The old man—he turned him into the Fire Nation for earthbending! It's my fault, I forced Haru to do it." Katara's eyes were full of sorrow, looking increasingly overwhelmed as she realised how her actions affected Haru's life. "They took him in the middle of the night."

Sokka's gaze shot to Charlie. "Did you know?" he demanded with a strong expression. Charlie balled her fists.

"I know that we'll get him back, and his dad," she stated more as a promise to Katara than anything else.

Sokka shook his head. "There's no way we can track him. He's long gone."

Katara broke away from the group and walked towards the barn doors, staring out over the mountains. "We don't need to track him." She placed a hand on her necklace. "The Fire Nation is going to take me straight to Haru."

After Katara explained her plan to them, the four hurried to the mine shafts where most of the Fire Nation guards were stationed to keep an eye on the workers. Charlie didn't have much of a role, so she squatted down behind a rock next to Aang, deciding she would make sure he got his cue on time, unlike in the show.

"Out of my way, pipsqueak," she heard Sokka utter in an unnaturally deep voice.

"How dare you call me pipsqueak, you giant-eared cretin?" Charlie muffled a laugh as Katara continued on about Sokka's ears.

"That's it, you're going down," Sokka announced in an unbelievably bland tone. She really didn't know how the Fire Nation soldiers could believe his terrible acting.

"I'll show you who's boss," Katara stated, winding up her arms. Charlie took a moment to flick Aang behind the ear, talking his attention away from the yellow butterfly he was playing with. "Earthbending style!"

Aang gasped, realising his queue had arrived, and leaped into the air before thrusting his hands downwards, blowing a stream of air into the air vent which lifted the rock in front of Katara.

"That lemur—it's earthbending!" one of the soldiers announced.

Charlie's head popped up from behind the rock. "What!?" Underneath the rock that hovered in the air stood Momo, arms raised as he groomed himself. She'd honestly forgotten about that. "Are you guys kidding me!" she said to the soldiers, leaving her spot behind the rock and picking up Momo with one hand.

"You idiots, it's the girl!" Sokka exclaimed, flailing his arms in Katara's direction.

"Oh. Of course," the guard admitted sheepishly, his face drooping slightly. With her free arm, Charlie grabbed onto Katara.

"We'll hold her," Charlie said as the guards came closer. Sokka was quick to follow along, grabbing his sister's shoulders. He whispered the plan to her just before the guards pulled her away, leading her towards the dock.

When they were far enough away, Sokka turned to the two. "Let's get to Appa quick, so we don't lose them."

Charlie tensed up a bit at the implication that she'd have to fly over the water—something she wasn't yet ready for. "You guys go ahead. I'm gonna stay here and update Haru's mom."