The Avatar's Advisor (HIATUS)

The Dam

Sokka's eyes widen as he's yanked back by his hair. He nervously eyes Polu's limp form before focusing on the blade at his throat.

"Sokka, so glad you could join us," Jet taunts.

The younger teen scoffs. "I heard your plan to destroy the Earth Kingdom town. And killing Polu? You're setting him up to be a martyr!"

"Our plan is to rid the valley of the Fire Nation," Jet corrects. "Besides, it's his job as a prince, isn't it? To protect his people?"

"There are people living there, Jet." Sokka stands shakily and glares at the taller. "And Polu's job is to protect them, not die for them because of some psychopath!"

Jet simply shrugs as he bites down on a grain. "We can't win without making some sacrifices."

"You lied to Katara and Aang about the forest fire." Sokka takes an accusing step forward.

The leader ignores the claim. "Pipsqueak, set the traitor up at his station."

Sokka tries to step in the way of the boy, but he's easily pushed aside.

"They don't understand the demands of war, Sokka. Polu, raised and pampered in a palace for 16 years, doesn't understand either." He smirks at the younger teen. "Not like you and I do."

~~~~~

A now 13-year-old prince stares down at his 9-year-old brothers.

"Polu? Why that one? Why not something like Lu? You know, like a warrior?" Bumi tilts his head as he processes his sister- no, his brother's new name.

Polu shrugs as he releases his short hair from its braid. "It just makes sense to me."

Aang pulls his attention from the outlook of Omashu to his oldest friend. "What does 'Polu' even mean?"

The teen smiles and massages his scalp. "It means 'the great'," he supplies.

Bumi frowns. "But that's so simple! If you're gonna choose your own name, it should be something cool like 'king' or 'dragon'!"

Polu giggles quietly before a gloomy expression settles on his face. "Perhaps, but it reminds me of Poleng. I always thought that he was the greatest person ever. I suppose Polu is an homage to that."

The younger prince rolls across the ground to sit next to his brother. "What happened to him?"

The taller boy glances down at his brother, a tear trekking down his cheek. "I don't know."

~~~~~

Polu groans as sunlight hits his closed eyes.

"You're alive! Kinda thought we suffocated you too much for a minute, there."

The prince shifts in an attempt to rub his aching face. When his hands give but the tiniest of movements, his eyes shoot open.

Heart-stopping fear claws at Polu's throat as his brain begins to process his situation. The boy hovers a foot over the ground, feet trapped in metal casings and hands bound to his sides by rope.

"What did you do to me?" He glares down at Pipsqueak, fully wishing he could manage a handless water whip.

"Jet says you're a traitor, and that we need to test your loyalties. If you really care for your people, then you'll do what it takes to save them from the incoming flood." The taller teen crosses his arms with a scowl.

Polu's eyes widen. "He wants to make me a martyr? And you're just going to blindly listen to him? Did you even learn my history? Do you know why he thinks I'm a coward?"