Kya Maiden of the Sea Book 3 ATLA

Chapter 8

It's been a few days since we got back from Ember Island, and every day was the same as the next. Early mornings, just as the sun rose court ladies entered my room to change me to meet Kaito. Until the late afternoons Kaito and I would spar. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would have been, besides the fact Kaito would have my ass handed to me at times. I learned quickly, and we grew closer. We would talk a lot, and I could tell she was more emotionally vulnerable around me then she would be with Azula. I wondered why that was since it seemed like they've know each other for a long time. But then I remembered Azula is a sociopath. We even got close enough for me to bring up the idea that maybe Kaito was afraid of Azula. But she never replied to that. In fact, Kaito shrugged it off, acting like I never said anything. Even so, I could tell it was in the back of her head all the time after I mentioned it.

Maybe it wasn't fear?

Occasionally after we were done we would go out to eat lunch with Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. Mai of course kept a bitterly cold distance from me, but it wasn't anything that I couldn't handle, sorta. I tried to remain peaceful around Mai despite her looking at me like she wanted to kill me with her knife. Zuko liked me and that's why she hated me. I did my best to try and be nice to her but it felt like I just made her hate me more.

Okay maybe I hated her a little bit for how she treated me, too.

Either way it wasn't as horrible when I was with them. But that was the only times I found myself even slightly close to being calm.

The rest of those days, guards followed me wherever I went. At a distance of course. Very rarely was I not followed at all. Even so, I took today to go to the royal library, you would forget the horrendous crimes the Fire Nation committed with the kinds of books they had to pass the time. There was a book for every genre in there. It was the only place where I could be free of everyone in the palace, since I was one of the only people who ever went there. I walked back to my room a few hours before the sun set as I read. The light came in and showered the room with warmth. I sighed wondering when I was going to take the chance to talk to Zuko again. I would only see him if I passed the halls, he would walk faster and leave out of guilt. Deep down, I wanted to see him again, actually see him.

Kaito would stop by my room every once in a while, with a pot of tea and some snacks. During these times we wouldn't speak as much as we would during the day, but it felt like she wanted to understand my pain from afar. I could tell by the way she looked at me, she was trying to understand me to understand herself. But she wouldn't say anything, or try to continue the conversations I did my best starting for her. So in the end Kaito and I would enjoy a comfortable silence away from all the things that would happen within these walls. Here with Kaito alone, I was free. Free from the murmurs of the palace staff, from Azula's non spoken threats, from Mai's hate, and from hurting myself more every time I saw Zuko. It was a small moment where I didn't feel lost or torn, and I appreciated it.

Once Kaito left I watched the moon. The small remnants of a spring breeze passed by. I took in a breath of the slightly cool air, getting up to practice all night. Which meant my stomach was cramped all night long. Slowly, as the full moon was arriving I could feel myself getting stronger. I wouldn't feel as sick anymore. Hours passed and I saw the sky turn a lighter shade of blue I laid down on my bed with a sigh.

I just have to be patient.

Not that long after later court ladies came in, like they did every morning, to hand me a new set of clothes for practice. They all glared at me with disgust as they did their job.

"I don't understand why we have to treat this savage like royalty," One whispered.

"Savage? She's a monster. Didn't you tear what happened to those men?" Another joined in on the gossiping.

"Royalty? She's just a trophy for the prince and princess," Another lady said,"Her humanity is slipping, she's forced to practice for a horrible amount of hours, unallowed to leave the palace walls, she even whispers to herself because barely anyone talks to her. She's only allowed in her room and the library unless someone says otherwise. This entire place is her prison," 

"It's what she deserves," Said the second one.

I could hear them loud and clear, but they didn't care. Their opinions differed, from pity, to hate, to annoyance. It was like this everyday, being verbally degraded by these women to no avail. Slowly I started to feel like maybe I was the insane one. I was fighting myself for my logic, I'm not the person who did anything wrong. I was losing myself to the stupid words that left the mouths of the people within these walls. As if they echoed in my mind every second.

Everyone knew what they were trying to do, and they were succeeding.

I'm less then human, trapped in a large prison, surrounded by people who hate me. And maybe that's how it should be.