Road to Ba Sing Se | Zuko

01

Keya stood still for a moment, basking in the late afternoon sun. Her humming stopped as she was suddenly reminded of the heavy weight on her back. "C'mon, it's time to cook." She mumbled to herself, making sure to take her time walking over to her porch.

When she finally arrived, she dropped the rucksack on the floor and bent down to gather the sticks. She grabbed the bag and shook it in order to let the wood fall out. When one particularly stubborn branch didn't fall out, Keya reached inside to grab it out herself.

"Ouch!" She pulled back her finger with a yelp and quickly stuck it in her mouth to stop the bleeding. "Stupid branch!" She grumbled and pulled it out (more carefully this time). She gathered the rest of the firewood and carried it inside her home. The branch that had scratched her was still outside on the porch.

As she walked out again to bring the discarded rucksack inside, she saw her assailant laying on the floor beside it. Keya looked at it with pity and sighed. "I'm sorry for yelling at you, mister branch. I was just tired and took it all out on you..." She walked back inside with both the branch and the sack. "Don't worry. I'll make good firewood out of you yet." She spoke calmly.

From inside the home, a small door creaked open. "Who're you talking to, Keya?" A weak voice called. Keya jumped and turned around.

"No one, mother." Keya walked over to the older woman and helped her get back in bed. Lin complained to her daughter, mentioning that Hun and Lei were eating with them tonight. "I need to make them dinner." She croaked as Keya covered her with a blanket.

"I know, I know. Now, go back to sleep and don't worry about your sons. I'll make dinner." Hun and Lei always ate home if they could help it. It frightened Keya to hear that her mother didn't seem to remember that. She slept so much that she often missed out on dinner. Lin didn't talk to her oldest sons more than once a week these days (if they were lucky). Her condition had been deteriorating ever since the Fire Nation took over their town. It was a sad thing to witness.

"Alright..." Mumbled the tired woman. She was already half asleep by then.

Keya went back to the kitchen and started humming again as she started making dinner. The branch that had scratched her earlier was the first one to fuel the fire for the broth she was making. Said broth didn't include a lot, besides some homegrown vegetables.

These days, all they could afford was whatever their own garden had to offer. Other than that, Lei would sometimes come home with leftover or partially rotten food from his boss's stall. Anything else, like meat or cheese, was too expensive to buy more than a couple of times a year. They used to get eggs from their pig-chickens as well, but sadly their last stock was confiscated by Fire Nation soldiers as a tax payment a few months ago. All of the money that her brothers made went to the Fire Nation in the form of taxes these days.

How the family would survive this winter with only their vegetable garden as a food source, the siblings hadn't figured out yet. Keya was needed at home to tale care of their mother and grow the vegetables, so Kanak would probably have to get a job in the mines like his brother. Despite the danger of the job, the only other option would be starvation. Not that vegetable broth every day provided much nutrition... She could see the effect it had on both herself and her family. None of them would last much longer the way things were going.

For now, all Keya could do was focus on making her broth. Making a broth with limited ingredients was tough, but it was nothing that the young girl couldn't handle! Her humming continued as a delicious smell started filling the tiny kitchen. The fire crackled on steadily as the broth started simmering. Keya stirred the pot for a moment and waved her hand in the fumes, bringing the aroma up to her nose.