Road to Ba Sing Se | Zuko

16

❃ Full Moon Bay ❃

The entire trip to the refugee port took almost a week. By that time, Keya was sure that she would never allow anyone to put her in a flower pot ever again. Although the desert heat was partially blocked out by the clay, it still wasn't enough to prevent the pot from feeling like a hot oven. Even worse, the water and provisions that they were given also became warm with time, so there was nothing to cool herself off with. Beside that, Keya's joints and back ached terribly after being forced to sit in the same position for hours at a time (they could leave the pots for a few hours when no other travellers were around -which was a rare occurrence). The whole thing was not very recommendable.

Thankfully, the last two days of their journey were a bit better. The White Lotus members that had transported them informed them that they could make it safely to Full Moon Bay from this point onward, since the Fire Nation and bounty hunters didn't come that close to Ba Sing Se. So, the trio was left to travel the last leagues on their own.

On their way there, they were able to group up with some other refugees under guidance of a team of Kyoshi warriors. Apparently, they were an all-female group who came from Kyoshi island, an island way down in the Southern edge of the Earth Kingdom. Keya hadn't really heard much of it, but from what she could tell the girls were very cool. She was very impressed by their makeup and outfits (she had yet to witness their skills), but it seemed that Zuko wanted to avoid them. He put his conical hat on and lowered it over his face as much as possible, to the point where his scar was no longer visible to the others. Keya wondered if he was insecure about it. After all, they were being accompanied by a bunch of pretty girls. Was he scared that they wouldn't like his scar?

As the group finally entered the giant port, Keya noticed just how big the whole space was. She had never seen a port this big. Granted, she'd never seen a port at all, but she had always expected them to be a lot smaller. Especially if it was a well-kept secret from the Fire Nation! How could they never have found this place? Hundreds, if not thousands of hungry and tired refugees lined the sides of the enormous cave. Families and single individuals from all over the Earth Kingdom were hanging around, hoping for a better life across the sea. Keya could only recognise a few traditional clothes, like the pale outfits from Chin village, a larger village near Yulin village -her hometown. Some of the refugees had tickets, some were begging for them. Camps were set up all around with people waiting for their ferry or simply having nowhere else to go.

Keya sighed sadly and looked around the area. The cave itself reached far up into the sky and had a single, large hole in the top, through which the full moon shone brightly -hence the name. On the edge of the cave was a thick wall with Earth Kingdom insignia carved into it and several different entrances, each leading to a different gangway to a specific ferry. Behind the wall she could see several ferries ready to go. Each and every ferry was absolutely packed with refugees like herself.

Iroh was currently speaking to a strict lady at the ticket desk. Her traditional garb was very different from the simple clothing that the villagers in Keya's hometown wore. The lady had a moss green dress with a strange piece of headwear coming from her tight bun. Keya wondered if all citizens in Ba Sing Se dressed like that. Would she have to wear a headpiece like that as well in order to blend in? She hoped not.

"That'll be three tickets then?" Her shrill voice sounded accusatory as she looked down on the trio from her raised desk, as if suspicious of the trio's odd looks. Then again, Zuko's golden eyes weren't exactly common among Earth Kingdom citizens and this place was supposed to be kept secret from the Fire Nation...

"Yes, madam. And might I say, your beauty is like a warm light during these dark days. A true jasmine flower in bloom on the coldest winter days." The old general... flirted?! Zuko gagged and Keya hid her face behind his shoulders to conceal her laugh. Who knew that this sweet old man was such a flirt?