The Burning Truth-Harmony

Part 21~Hama

"Suddenly, they heard something down the hall in the dark," Sokka began his tale, sitting amongst the trees in their camp. "It came into the torchlight, and they knew the blade of Wing Fung was haunted." Sokka drew his sword, pointing it towards the fire and yelling dramatically.

None of the others even looked nervous. Katara was sat on a log, Isu leaning against her while Toph laid down casually next to them. Iroh was sipping the last of his tea for the night while Zuko and Hachi were curled up in each other's arms.

"I think I like 'the man with a sword for a hand' better," Isu commented as Toph huffed.

"Water Tribe slumber parties must stink."

"No, wait. I've got one. And this is a true Southern Water Tribe story," Katara announced as Sokka sat down.

"Is this one of those 'a friend of my cousin knew some guy that this happened to' stories?"

"No. It happened to Mom."

Upon hearing that, Sokka sat up taller.

"One winter, when Mom was a girl, a snowstorm buried the whole village for weeks. A month later, Mom noticed she hadn't seen her friend Nini since the storm. So, Mom and some others went to check on Nini's family. When they got there, no one was home. Just a fire flickering in the fireplace. While the men went out to search, Momo stayed in the house. When she was alone, she heard a voice."

Katara took in a breath, changing her voice. "'It's so cold and I can't get warm.' Mom turned and saw Nini standing by the fire. She was blue, like she was frozen. Mom ran outside for help, but when everyone came back, Nini was gone."

Hachi let out a soft whimper, burying himself in Zuko's shoulder.

"Where'd she go?" Sokka peered out from behind a tree trunk as Katara smiled softly.

"No one knows. Nini's house stands empty to this day, but sometimes, people see smoke coming up from the chimney, as if little Nini is still trying to get warm."

The group let out little gasps when Toph shot up. "Wait, guys, did you hear that? I hear people under the mountain. And they're screaming."

Sokka chuckled, loosening his grip on his log. "Nice try."

"No, I'm serious. I hear something."

"You're probably just jumpy from the ghost stories," Katara laughed as Toph frowned.

"It just stopped."

"All right, now I'm getting scared," Zuko muttered as Hachi nodded.

"Hello, children." Everyone screamed as they turned to the strange woman. "Sorry to frighten you. My name is Hama. You children shouldn't be out in the forest by yourselves at night. I have an inn nearby. Why don't you come back there for some spiced tea and warm beds?"

Sokka sheepishly stood up, placing an arm behind his head. "Yes, please."

Hama smiled, walking away.

Isu frowned as the rest followed after her. "I'm getting bad energy from her."

"Don't be silly, Isu. It's just because of the ghost stories." Katara chuckled as Isu continued to bore holes in the back of Hama's head.

~~~

"Thanks for letting us stay here tonight. You have a lovely inn," Katara praised as Hama set a teapot down.

"Aren't you sweet? You know you should be careful. People have been disappearing in those woods you were camping in."

"What do you mean 'disappearing'?" Sokka frowned as Hama set down her teacup.