The next morning, the group woke up groggy, having stayed up far later then they should have. They walked around the camp in abundance of yawns and lazy stretches, trying to wake their bodies for the journey ahead.
Zuko was the only one wide awake, having woken up before the others to prepare for traveling. He pushed the others to get moving and helped them collect their things. He seemed eager to get moving, even though the others couldn't be sure why. Zuko pulled Sokka along, yelling over his shoulder how they were going to find some food for the trip. Sokka followed blindly, rubbing his eyes and haphazardly grabbing his spear as they passed.
Aang stifled a yawn, trying to perk up before the travels ahead. He left camp soon after, getting some hay for Appa before they left.
Katara watched as they all headed in different directions and tried to put all of their things together. She was always the one to put everything together at the last minute. If she didn't, somebody forgot something. Countless times in the beginning of their travels, they had to turn around because Sokka forgot his boomerang, or Aang forgot his sleeping bag. It wasn't until she took it upon herself to grab everything that they owned. Since then, they stopped having to turn around.
But yet, it seemed Zuko never forgot anything. In fact, most days he was right beside her, making sure their freshly washed and dried clothes got back into their bags, and that the fire was throughly snuffed out.
Katara started to grab all of their bags, Toph's being the heaviest. She lugged it along, "What have you got in here? Rocks?" Katara complained.
Toph shrugged nonchalantly, "Duh" she spoke in between picking at her toes. She waved a hand, bending the rocks inside the bag and tossing it towards the others.
"So I even want to know?" Katara asked, rubbing her eyes. Toph answered if it was the simplest answer in the world, "What if I end up somewhere with no earth? You get to carry around a water pouch and it's not weird"
Katara rolled her eyes, knowing it was best not to comment. She instead left Toph's bag where it landed and went for the next bag.
The waterbender moved to grab Zuko's bag, grabbing it by the handle. When she went to pick it up, the fabric got caught on a stick, spilling its contents onto the ground. Katara muttered an expletive to herself in annoyance before leaning down to pick up everything that fell.
Her hand landed on a small piece of paper. She went to toss it back into the bag but a familiar symbol caught her eye. The Royal Fire Nation insignia was proudly stamped in red on the paper.
She froze for a moment, staring at the paper in her hand. Katara looked around; the boys were still far off into the woods, and Toph was too engrossed at the dirt in between her toes to notice. She pulled the string and unrolled the paper.
Tell me everything about the Avatar's plans. Or our precious Uncle may not make it to see the Fire Nation's holiday.
Your Dear Sister,
Azula
Her blood ran cold. Her fingers began to shake.
She wasn't sure how long she stared at the paper, or how many times she read the words over and over. She tried to read between the lines, to see if it was a trick or a fake. But there was no faking the fire nation insignia. Even they couldn't fake that when they broke Zuko out of the jail.
The symbol stood proudly at the end of the paper. There was no hiding it, and there was no forgery.
She wanted to crumble the paper in her hands. If she were a firebender, she was sure that it would be up in flames. She could feel ice forming at her fingertips, like daggers at Azula's throat. Even the paper began to dampen, quickly freezing, with the bitter ice that formed.
Her emotions came from many sources. The first being anger for Azula, for forcing Zuko into this position, for forcing him to choose between his Uncle and the world.
The second was anger at Zuko, for not telling them that this note had arrived. If they knew, they could come up with a plan. They could work together to save his Uncle and keep their plan intact.
The last, and most maddening, was the fear of the unknown. Did Zuko tell Azula about their plans? If so, what did she know? How much did she know? Is everything they've worked so hard for since the library just for nothing? Are all of their efforts mute at this point? Is the invasion even worth it?
Her heart was beating out of her chest. Katara hastily tossed the paper in her pocket and dug through the bag. If he responded there had to be another paper, a response or something. That couldn't just be it. She rummaged through the bag, throwing out useless items and letting them fall on the ground.
Toph heard the clanging of metal and the thud of earth and looked up. She frowned, walking toward Katara, "I get it. You like Zuko but it's a little creepy that you're going through his things"
Katara didn't respond, only kept digging until she found another paper, holding the same insignia across the front.
Her heart dropped to her feet, her hands shaking as she tore it open.
You chose well Zuko. Let us know if any plans change. Or your Uncle will pay the price. Tell your little friends about this and the little Waterbender might just end up with the scar she saved you from.
Your Dear Sister, Azula
Toph stared at her confused, "Katara?"
She didn't speak for a moment, knowing the girl was blind and unable to read the note but for a moment, not caring. She needed to sit in everything for a moment, let herself come to the realization of what had happened.
"He betrayed us..." she spoke barely above a whisper. She didn't want everyone to hear just yet but she also just couldn't bring herself to say it any louder.
The man she sacrificed everything for had betrayed them. They stuck out their own necks for him. They were almost all killed trying to save him. And yet, he still betrayed everyone.
Toph watched her, silent herself, not quite knowing what to say. She knew that if Katara herself was saying he betrayed them, the evidence had to be damning. Katara shoved the papers into the bag and practically threw it across the camp. She paced with her chin resting in her hand.
She stopped after a moment and turned to Toph, "Don't tell the boys... when we land, take Zuko into town to get supplies... I'll stay behind and tell them"
Toph raised an eyebrow, "Are you sure?"
Katara nodded, swallowing a pit in her throat, "We need to decide where to go next... if we just leave him behind or we hold him prisoner and demand he tells us what he told them or... I don't know..." she paused for a moment, "Sokka will know what to do..."
She was a 16 year old girl. There were very few times where she needed her brother any more. But this was one of those times. She felt betrayed, blindsided, and every emotion in between. She needed a level head, someone to tell her they would figure this out.
When they finally got onto Appa and flew into the air, the group was quiet. Aang and Sokka watched with concerned eyes at Katara's quiet demeanor. Toph felt helpless, unable to feel lying heartbeats in the sky. Zuko just looked out at the clouds, seeming to feel lost in his own daydream.
The time passed eerily slow, as they flew over the clouds in utter silence. Katara found her mind racing to pass the time.
How much did Azula know? Did she know about Sokka's submarines? Did she know about the centipede tanks that were going to house the earthbenders? Did she know how big their army was?
Was this why he had asked her to help him find his Uncle? Was that just a ploy to get her away from everyone so that when they lost, she wouldn't know it was him who caused it? He could steer her away so when the time came and they were double crossed, she would say it wasn't him because he was with her the whole time.
His Uncle wouldn't know and she wouldn't know.
So the Avatar would fall by just pure accident.
It sent a shiver through her body just thinking about it.
She wasn't sure who mentioned stopping for supplies, the words not registering in her mind. But as Appa started to make his descent, she let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding.
Katara was the first one to jump off Appa, her feet desperately needing solid ground. She started unloading their things silently, her lips stuck together in a straight line.
Aang gathered some hay and placed it in front of Appa, who ate gratefully. Appa let out a moan of appreciation in between bites.
"Me and Zuko will go get the supplies today" Toph spoke up, after bending herself a small rock shelter for the night. The boys gave her a strange look, one that she could feel without needing to see them. She shrugged, "We look the most like colonials out of all of us. It's best if we go"
Katara nodded quickly, "I agree" she spoke, not looking up from her bag. Aang and Sokka looked at each other, but shrugged seeing no problem with it.
"There's a small village up stream, about a 10 minute walk" Aang told them, pointing them in the right direction. Toph nodded, "Come on Sparky" she motioned him to follow her as she started walking. Zuko glanced behind them at Katara, who didn't even look up to say goodbye. He let out a sigh and followed Toph without another word.
Katara waited until they were out of earshot. When she could no longer hear their footsteps, she spoke up immediately, "We need to talk..." she turned to her brother and Aang with a look that was dangerous to place.
Sokka and Aang glanced at eachother before sitting down next to Katara with eager ears.