Lies From Within

-Zuko's Point of View-

I went to the ship's deck and there I saw my uncle burning a piece of paper. "Uncle?" I asked. "Oh, Zuko, you're awake." Uncle said as he threw the burning paper into the sea.

"What was that?" I asked once more. "Nothing. It's just a scrap I found from my shelves." Uncle answered.

Something's off...

"Have you had breakfast already? I'm starving. Come now, my nephew." Uncle said as he stretched out his arms and started walking inside.

I looked at the water where he threw the paper. Why do I feel like my uncle is hiding something from me?

"Zuko?" I heard Uncle call. I looked at him and then I said, "Yes, I'm right behind you." And then I looked at the sea once more.

"Prince Zuko, that paper was nothing. Don't mind it." Uncle said and then he walked towards me and pulled me away from the ship's edge.

"Why don't we go inside and eat? I bet the cook has prepared something great." Uncle said with a smile. He started walking inside the cabin and I went along with him.

There's really something in that paper. I don't think it's just some scrap. I think it's a letter, but from who?

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-Maya's Point of View-

"Ugh... I'm hungry..." Aang complained while lying on top of a rock. "Tell me about it..." I agreed to him while exhaustingly lying on the ground.

"Relax guys, I'm sure Sokka will be back soon..." Katara said. "He's taking too long..." Aang argued.

We're now here in the middle of the forest, near an almost dried-up river. It's almost dinner time and all of us are now hungry. The food that King Bumi packed for us only lasted for two days.

Sokka said he will go look for food in the forest with Momo, but they've been gone for hours and he still hasn't come back. Did he get in trouble perhaps?

Suddenly we heard footsteps. I quickly sat up and looked at where it was coming from. "Sokka!" I exclaimed as soon as I saw him from a distance.

"Great you're back! What's for dinner?" Aang asked as he stood up. Momo flew to where Katara was and Sokka followed behind him. Aang and I went closer to where the siblings have gathered.

We formed a circle as Sokka discussed with us what he has gotten. "We've got a few options," Sokka said as he rummages inside the bag he brought. Ooh! I hope it's some kind of fresh fruit! I'd love to have some fresh pears right now!

"First, round nuts-- and some kind of oval-shaped nuts. There's also some rock-shaped nuts, that might just be rocks." Sokka said as he one by one took out a few nuts and threw the last one that looked like a rock.

Sokka poured out the whole content of the bag, revealing a number of nuts and then he exclaimed, "Dig in!"

That's it? Nuts? You've been gone for hours and all you've found is nuts?

"Seriously... What else you got?" Katara asked Sokka. "Well, that's it. I didn't find anything. The forest was like robbed of its wild habitat and the river's been dried." Sokka answered.

I let out a sigh and as I said, "I don't think we'll find anything to eat in here. Why don't we just go fly it out? We'll probably find a better place to look for food somewhere." I suggested.

"You're right. I think we should fly now before night falls." Katara agreed. "Hey? You're not gonna eat these nuts?" Sokka asked. "Would you?" Katara teased.

"Well, I-" Sokka was about to argue with Katara when we suddenly heard a loud boom.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Sokka asked. We looked at where the sound was coming from and just when we thought it had stopped, we heard it again.

"It's coming from over there!" Aang shouted as he pointed to the dried-up river. As soon as he said that Aang and Katara started running towards where the sound was.

"Hey! Where are you two going?" I asked while following behind them. "Shouldn't we run away from huge booms?! Not toward them?!" I heard Sokka shout.

Katara, Aang, and I stopped behind a large root that has crept on the dried river's floor. Sokka followed behind us as well.

We saw a young man earthbending the huge boulders blocking the river and sticking it to the river's walls.

"An earth bender..." Katara said. I suddenly remembered Balu, and boy do I miss the guy already... I wonder what he's doing right now...

"Let's go meet him!" Aang said. "He looks dangerous so we better approach cautiously," Sokka warned but as he was saying that, Katara has already gone closer to where the earth bender was.

"Hello there! I'm Katara! What's your name?" Katara yelled.

"Well, that was cautious..." I said to Aang and Sokka.

When the earth bender saw Katara, he looked at her with fear. He dropped the boulder he was earthbending and then he ran away. He also earth bent some rocks into the river covering up his trail.

Aang, Sokka, and I went towards Katara. "Nice to meet you!" Aang shouted. "That scared him off..." I teased.

"I just wanted to say hi..." Katara replied to me. "Hey! That guy has got to be running somewhere! Maybe we're near a village!" Aang suddenly exclaimed.

"And I bet that village has a market!" I exclaimed too. "Which means no nuts for dinner!" Katara exclaimed as well. Then the three of us ran off to follow the young man.

"Hey! I worked hard to get those nuts!" I heard Sokka shout. I stopped running to look back at him. "You're not seriously planning to eat them are you?" I teased.

"Nah... I hate them too," Sokka answered as he slowly walked towards me. Momo flew towards Aang and Katara and I dragged Sokka while following behind them.

We followed the direction where the earth bender went and Aang was right! There is a small village in the valley.

We were walking around trying to look for a shop where we can buy food from. "Great hat! I'll trade you some nuts for it!" I heard Aang say to a hat vendor. Aang wore the hat and he gave the bag of nuts that Sokka hunted a while back.

Seriously? The vendor agreed with the trade? That was surprising.

Aang used the hat to cover up the arrowhead tattoo on his bald head. "Can't believe the shop owner took the nuts," Sokka said as Aang walked towards us. "He said it's better than nothing," Aang answered. The vendor does have a point.

Katara then suddenly ran up in front of a house, where a guy went in. "Katara where are you going?" I asked but I think she didn't hear me.

She went inside the house, so we followed her. Once we got close to the house's entrance I heard a young man say, "Uh... you must have me confused with some other kid."

When I saw who it was that was speaking, it was the earth bender that we met just a while ago!

"No, she doesn't. We saw you earth bending!" Aang suddenly said as he walked closer to Katara.

The young man and the elder woman let out a frightened gasp as soon as they heard what Aang had said. The woman hurriedly closed the windows and doors, after that, she looked at the young man and she asked, "They saw you doing what?!" in an angry tone.

"They're crazy Mom! I mean, look at how they're dressed!" the earth bender defended. Oh, so that woman is his mother... and what? What's wrong with our clothes?

All of us checked if something was wrong with our clothes but I saw no problem.

"Do you know how dangerous that is?! You know what would happen if they caught you earthbending!" the woman shouted at her son.

"Who's they?" I asked. Then suddenly a man pounded the door as he shouted, "OPEN UP!"

Sokka peeked through the window's blinds to check who it was and as soon as he saw the people outside he shouted, "Fire nation! Act natural!" and then all of us hurriedly went to a certain spot in the room and tried to stay calm.

Sokka held an apple and the earth bender stood by his side, both of them looking at the apple as if they were discussing something. Katara grabbed a bowl of cherries and stuffed her mouth with it. Aang leaned against a barrel of water while showing off the biggest smile he can make.

I panicked and I didn't know what to do! I'm bad at improv! My mind is not that quick to think of something!

The woman suddenly opened the door when I wasn't even ready yet so I just ran towards the corner of the room near the window and leaned my back on the wall while crossing my arms.

A fire nation soldier went inside the house and he looked at all of us. The barrel's lid that Aang was leaning on suddenly slipped, making him fall to the floor.

C'mon Aang! You'll get us locked up!

"What do you want? I've already paid you this week." the woman said to the fire nation soldier.

"The tax just doubled. And we wouldn't want an accident would we?" The soldier replied as he released fire from his hands.

THIS LITTLE-- MY BLOOD IS BURNING! WHAT IS HE DOING HERE COLLECTING TAX?! IT'S NOT A SOLDIER'S JOB! WHY IS THE FIRE NATION EVEN HERE?!

I fixed my posture to stand up straight as I clenched my fist. I wanted to do something! Like fight back or something but... I hate to say it, I'm weak! Unlike my mother who's a master bender, I'm just a plain girl whose combat skills are not even praiseworthy.

"Fire, it's sometimes so hard to control..." the soldier taunted as he stopped firebending. DO YOU KNOW WHAT ELSE IS HARD CONTROL? MY FIST.

I was about to go closer and smack the life out of this soldier but then the woman started walking to her counter and brought out a small chest. She walked back to the soldier and handed the remaining income she had which was only a few pieces of copper and silver coins.

When the soldier had them in hand, he suddenly took out the copper pieces and said, "You can keep the copper ones..." and then he threw them on the floor. The soldier went outside the house and I looked at him with a furious face as he leaves.

The soldier closed the door behind him and the place went silent. The woman started picking up the copper pieces that were on the floor so I helped her with it.

"I'm sorry..." I whispered to her. I don't know why I said that but I just felt the need to apologize on behalf of my kind. "It's alright. They've always been like that." the woman replied. I suddenly felt sad about it. I'm one of them she's talking about...

"Nice guy... How long has the fire nation been here?" Sokka asked. The woman stood up with copper pieces in hand. "Five years. Fire Lord Ozai uses our town's coal mines to fuel his ships." the woman answered.

"They're thugs. They steal from us. And everyone here is too much of a coward to do anything about it." the earth bender butted in. I sadly look at him as he said those words with anger. I clenched the necklace that was under my shirt and I looked away.

"Quiet Haru! Don't talk like that!" his mother shouted. I suddenly felt a hand at my back. I looked at who it was and it was Aang. He was smiling at me, for some reason I think he knows what I was thinking.

"But Haru's an earth bender! He can help drive these soldiers away!" Katara suggested. "Earth bending is forbidden! It has caused nothing but misery for this village. He must never use his abilities." Haru's mother argued.

"How can you say that? Haru has a gift! Asking him not to earth bend is like asking me not to water bend! It's a part of who we are!" Katara argued back.

"You don't understand..." the woman disagreed. "I understand that Haru can help you fight back! What can the fire nation do to you that they haven't done already?" Katara pursued.

"They could take Haru away! Like they took his father..." the woman answered. Katara was shocked. "I'm sorry..." she said.

"It's alright. You didn't know, but thank you. I know that you were only looking out for us, but my mother is right. All we can do is follow them so we can live normal lives." Haru said to Katara.

"With that being said, we should probably leave this place now. We can't stay here for long." Sokka suddenly said.

"The sun is about to set. I think it would be best if young travelers like you will stay in the village, just for a night." the woman contradicted.

"We'd love to, but we don't have that enough money to pay for lodging," Aang answered.

"Well then, why don't you stay with us just for one night? We have a barn big enough for you guys to fit in." the woman suggested.

"That is truly an honor..." I replied as I held onto her hands. She looked at me with a smile on her face. "I am sorry for not introducing myself earlier, but my name is Sonya. And you must have already heard my son's name, Haru," she said.

"Nice to meet you all," Haru said shortly.

I smiled at them and then I bowed down. "It's a pleasure to meet you both. Thank you for accommodating us." I said.

We left the village square and went to Sonya and Haru's house. They have a lovely small bungalow atop a hill and a big barn just a few meters away.

"I'll lead you guys to the barn," Haru said, and all of us followed behind him. Just when we were about to reach the barn, we suddenly saw Appa and Momo flying toward us.

"What is that thing?" Haru asked as soon as Appa touched the ground. "That's my flying bison. Our method of travel is through the air." Aang answered.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you. We have a big company..." Aang continued. "No, it's alright. The barn is big enough for him to fit. Come along." Haru replied and then he continued walking to the barn.

We entered the barn and they are right. The barn really is big enough for us! Appa went inside and yet still it looks spacious!

"You guys can sleep here for the night, but you should leave in the morning," Haru said. "Thanks! I'll make sure Appa doesn't eat all your hay." Aang replied while pointing at Appa who was feasting on the pile of hay inside the barn.

"No problem..." Haru answered. Just then Sonya went inside the barn as well and she said, "Have you guys settled in? Don't hesitate to make yourselves comfortable. Finish up here, I'll go prepare dinner for us all."

"Thanks, Mom," Haru said and with that, Sonya started walking back to their house.

"Hey Haru, can I talk to you?" Katara suddenly asked and they both went out of the barn. "I'm going to try and see if I can help out Sonya," I said to Aang and Sokka before catching up with Haru's mother.

"Miss Sonya? Is there anything I can help you with?" I asked while catching up with her. "Oh, you want to help?" she asked back. "Yes, I really feel in debt to you," I answered.

"Well then, why don't we go inside? Help me set up for dinner." she calmly said and walked back to the house again. I quietly followed behind her.

"Help yourself in, I hope you're comfortable with our small home," Sonya said as we got inside the house. "It's actually cozy in here. It's a beautiful and simple home." I answered. "I'm glad to hear that..." Sonya said and then she walked towards the kitchen. I followed her again.

"Do you know how to cook?" she asked. "Oh, I'm not really skilled in mixing spices and stuff. Sorry... but I do know how to make a vegetable stew." I answered. Sonya giggles and then she said, "It's alright. How about tea? Can you brew some for us?" she asked once more.

"Oh! Yes! My mother taught me about tea brewing back then. I can help with that." I excitingly answered, and then I went to grab a kettle and filled it with water, and placed it on the fire to partly boil.

"I have here a ginseng tea and a jasmine... Which one do you like?" Sonya asked. "Hmm... my mother used to tell me that if you're going to have tea in the evening, Jasmine tea is what you should drink because it induces calmness that will help you sleep more soundly," I answered.

Sonya smiled and then she handed me the jasmine blossoms and leaves. I took it, threw it in the kettle, and let it simmer for a few minutes.

"You're good at making tea." Sonya suddenly said. I sheepishly smiled at her as I replied, "Thank you... My mother taught me well."

"She must've been a fine lady." Sonya continued. "Yes... she was..." I slowly answered. I looked at Sonya who was stirring the soup she was cooking. "I'm sorry about Haru's father... The fire nation should've never done that." I suddenly said.

"Tyro was the bravest man I have ever met. When the fire nation soldiers invaded the village, he along with the other earth benders tried fighting them even though they were outnumbered. They knew very well they would lose, but Tyro didn't want to give up without a fight." Sonya told the story.

"You miss him... Don't you?" I asked. "Every day..." Sonya answered. "I understand... The fire nation took something away from me too. They killed my mother in front of me, and I was only 8 years old back then." I sympathized.

"I'm sorry to hear that..." Sonya said. "This is why you kids should never trust anyone from the fire nation. It would be best if you stay as far away from them during your travel." Sonya warned.

But... I'm from the fire nation...

I wasn't able to reply back to what she said. I can't help but feel like I belong to a disgusting nation that the world hates. Gran-gran, how can I look at my own kind with hope and kindness when the whole world thinks otherwise?

Sonya then started finishing up her cooking and I took the kettle out of the fire and placed it on the table.

"I'll set up the table," I said and then I gathered the plates, cups, and utensils needed. Once the table was set, Sonya poured the soup she cooked into a bowl, and then placed it on the table as well.

"I'll finish it from here. Why don't you go and call your friends and Haru so we can have dinner?" Sonya commanded and then I nodded at her. Just when I was about to leave the kitchen I heard her call out to my name again.

I looked back at her and then she said, "Thank you for your help... You are a kind person. I don't usually open up my heart to anyone easily, but I feel like I can trust you... Thank you."

I smiled at her and then I replied, "No problem! I'm always ready to help everyone... I'll be off then!" and then I walked outside of the kitchen and out of the house.

My smile faded once I got outside. I can't help but feel like I'm deceiving her; I'm deceiving everyone... Will she look at me differently once she knew of my true nationality? Would she have trusted me if she knew I was from the fire nation?

My heart hurts... If there's one thing I hate the most, that would be lying to people who trust me, but do I have a choice?