Falling for the Enemy (Sun and Moon Book 1)

Chapter 54 - Spring

I stop beside the window table and eye the man who sits there. He's tall and blocky, obviously an earthbender. He glances up at me and smiles.

"What can I get you?"

"Do you serve Jasmine Tea?"

I nod and leave to get him a cup, fighting memories of Uncle's tea shop and... and him. When I return to the stranger with his tea, he's staring out the window.

"This is beautiful country."

I nod. "Yes. Yes it is."

"Have you lived here long?"

"No, not long." Time to change the subject. "We don't get many visitors up here. What brings you this way?"

"My sister lives here. I'm visiting her on my way to Kyoshi Island. You may know her- Sali?"

I nod. We know everyone in this town. "Yeah. I saw her yesterday and she didn't mention that you were coming."

"Well, I wanted to surprise her."

I hesitate, then ask the question that's on my mind.

"What news of the war?"

He looks at me in surprise. "Boy, you people really don't get a lot of news up here. The war's been over for months. Avatar Aang took away the firelord's bending. Firelord Zuko is repairing the damages in the Earth Kingdom and-"

"Wait- did you say Firelord Zuko?!"

"Yeah. He joined up with the Avatar a long time ago. You didn't know?"

"No. We don't-"

"Get a lot of visitors up here, yeah. Well, it was nice meeting you. Thanks for the tea." He sets down his empty tea cup and leaves, and all I can do is stare after him. I place a hand on my distended stomach, my heart pounding.

At least I know that my brother and Aang are alive.

But Zuko- he's the Firelord? He joined up with Aang? He's... good?

I told you.

I ignore the little voice in the back of my head. It doesn't know what it's talking about. I put the teapot back on the counter.

"Hey, Kiri, are you feeling all right?"

"What?" I look up to meet Tok's warm brown eyes. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. I'm just- I'm gonna take a walk, okay?"

"Okay. Be careful."

"I will."

I step outside, feeling the late spring breeze ruffle through my hair. Winter comes early and leaves late, but it's long past now, and summer's on its way. Erga says I'll 'pop' any day now. I'm starting to look forward to it. I could use a little girl to brighten my days.

I breathe in the clear, sharp mountain air and stare out over the valley. Down aways I can see Erga's cottage, and the other villagers' cottages dot the hillside and the valley cleft below. The mill turns water from the river and Kenik's fields are sprouting well. In the distance I can see the peaks that mark the edge of the Patola Mountain Range, and I know that beyond them lies the sea.

Once my daughter is born I'll travel there, spend a few weeks on the shore. Practice my bending with more than the little bowls of water I use in my room above the tavern. Maybe some day I'll tell Erga and Tok and Hila that I'm a waterbender. I think Erga knows already. But then again, maybe I won't.

I'll think about it- I've got the rest of my life. Well, whatever kind of life it is, anyway.

**__**

The woman stared into the mirror, watching the scarred man as he paced across the floor of his room in the Fire Nation palace. She wondered what he was thinking about, and why it worried him so. She blinked, and the image changed, revealing the girl, the scarred man's wife. She sat on a beach, far from where her husband paced, and in her arms she held a child.

Their child.

The woman smiled at the picture, then frowned as her gaze darted between the two. The girl was healing. But the scarred man was lost. He had done so good before, but now he was fading, losing the battle to remain in the present.

He was too focused on the past, too busy missing his wife and remembering his fears to see the dangers that approached him.

He needed her. The woman wiped the mirror clean and stood. She pulled on her deep read traveling cloak and pulled up its hood, covering the bright Fire Nation emblem that held up her topknot.

She moved towards the door- there was no reason for her to stay here anymore. They had been kind to her, but now... now he needed her. And she would go.

There was no more reason to stay away- the war was over, the Nations were at peace. She could go home.

She opened the door, and found a man there, poised to knock. He was tall, with a neatly trimmed white beard and hair. His deep red robes and the frown on his face made him seem severe and harsh. She knew from experience that he was not.

She smiled in greeting and stepped back, allowing the older man to enter her small, humble dwelling.

Another man stepped through behind him, this one younger and more vibrant. He wore loose clothes and an easy smile, though his face was chisled and his countenance strong. He, like his older companion, seemed at first harsh and uncaring, but on closer examination one could see his gentle, sad eyes, and the goodness of his heart.

He spoke, frowning slightly. "Where are you going?"

"He needs me." She said the words simply, but they held a world of determination and strength. The older man bowed his head and closed his eyes. The younger man placed a hand on the woman's shoulder.

Finally, the older man spoke.

"No. He does not yet need you, my friend. Someday soon he will, but the journey that lies ahead of him will be hard. And it is one he must make alone, for it is a journey of the heart and mind, of the soul. When he needs you, you will know, and then the gates will open for you."

"But-"

"No." Now it was the younger man who spoke, laying comforting eyes on the woman's desolate face.

"Not yet. You will know when the time is right. For now, he must journey alone."

"Except for her." The woman's voice was bitter, and she wished instantly to take back the words.

"I did not mean that."

The two men smiled. "I know, my friend. I am sorry."

The woman bowed her head, then turned quickly away. But her companions saw her tears, and felt for her. They bowed, each in turn though she could not see them, and then carefully let themselves out of the humble cottage. The closing door released a puff of air that stirred the woman's cloak and long, dark hair.

She breathed deeply of the scent, of liac and something deeper, the mysterious smell that always pervaded this world.

She returned to the mirror, making no effort to stop her tears. The image returned as she bade it, and once more the scarred man paced across its pane. She reached out and laid her fingers on the mirror's cool surface, pretending for a moment that she touched his face. She bowed her head, and her tears fell on the glass, distorting the image.

Hold on, my son. I am coming.

Her silent promise echoed through her, and she straightened her slim shoulders.

Soon. Soon, I will hold you in my arms again, my son, my sweet Zuko.

_____

Meh. So as has been seen in previous chappies... the commet has already come, and now... well. What will she do now? One wonders. :)

And whoo is this mysterious woman... and where is she? :)

COMMENT and vote! :)

-Tess