Chapter Twenty Seven

– Sokka's Point of View Continued

"Hey Dad, how did you propose to Mom?" I asked as we ate dinner. Aang had dropped me off this morning, and I'd spent the day catching up with my Dad, letting my nerves about seeing him again dissipate. Until now we'd been laughing and having a good time, but, at my question, my Dad almost spat out his soup.

"What?"

"How did you propose to Mom?" I asked again, I wanted ideas. My Dad paused, before sighing and giving me a small smile.

"Who is she?" He asked, and I grinned.

"She's amazing." He just laughed at my answer before calling Bato over to us.

"Sokka's got a girlfriend." He declared, and Bato raised his eyebrows.

"What's she like?"

"Well, she's super thoughtful, kind, insanely talented-" I was cut off by laughing from both men. "I'm serious, I've never met anyone like her before!" I defended myself, but I couldn't even be bothered that they were making fun; I couldn't stop smiling.

"Is she from the Earth Kingdom, Ba Sing Se?" My Dad questioned. I shook my head in response.

"No, she grew up at the Western Air Temple." I explained, but my excitement slowed down when I saw the confusion on the men's faces. Momentarily remembering that my girlfriend was a firebender, I faltered.

"Isn't that Fire Nation territory?" Bato questioned, his left arm's burn-welted skin seemingly brighter in the light of our campfire. I swallowed hard, suddenly nervous.

"Yeah, she's-"

"You're dating a Fire Nation girl?" Another man queries from across the beach–clearly, some warriors had been eavesdropping.

"Well-" I tried to explain, but now everyone was coming over to join the conversation.

"Spirits Sokka, that's horrible." One guy said.

"You're dating the enemy!" Another spat, two more echoing him.

"Hey! She's differ-" I tried to defend Ren.

"Yeah right." Someone scoffed, but one man shut everyone up.

"Quiet down! Not everyone in the Fire Nation is evil, and we all very well know that!" There was some grumbling, but he shut them up as he continued. Anik was a couple of years older than my Dad, and he'd been the youngest member to ever lead Southern Water Tribe Warriors into battle. He was greatly respected by the tribe, and I was thankful he was standing up for me, even if I was unsure as to why. These men had every reason to hate the Fire Nation. "The Fire Nation has its psychos, sure, but there are people who disagree with the War within its borders as well. And, those who don't want the innocent hurt." Anik claimed, and I nodded along.

I saw one man roll his eyes, but Bato jumped in, agreeing with the older warrior. "I would likely be dead if it weren't for that one Fire Nation Commander." He admitted, glancing into the campfire. "She ordered my freedom, made her soldiers let me go. She had no reason to do that, I'd killed and maimed a few of her men, and yet she let me go."

"That day is still a fever dream." My Dad said, a dark, though confused expression on his face as he watched the wood burn in the campfire.

"What do you mean? What day?" I asked.

"The day your grandfather died." My Dad answered. I sucked in a breath suddenly, remembering Ren's words about the Chief dying. My grandfather, the Chief. I wondered if I could ever tell her that it was my Father who she had met that day... I wondered if she would ever forgive herself... I wondered if telling her would only make it worse.

As the men around the fire spoke about that raid so many years ago I was shocked to hear their stories. They spoke of the horror and bloodshed, the men they killed and the men who had killed our own. But, they also spoke about a Commander who had sliced a man's hand off when he threatened a child, even though he was her Lieutenant. Ren had never told me that part... nor had she told me about saving Bato, or the other men and women she'd turned away from her ship when there was no proof of them being benders. As I listened to the war stories, I became more and more sure that this woman was the one for me.

"I still can't believe she came to warn us." My Father said once it had quieted down. I looked over at him, and I could see the doubt and confusion which still lingered from that day. "I thought she was a kid, really, I mean she looked like she couldn't have been any older than me, and I was only 20." He paused, staring into the fire. "I didn't take her seriously, and Dad didn't either, once we all relayed the message. We should have." Everyone was silent until someone commented about her title.

"I thought it was a joke or something when the soldiers called her their Fire Lady. I couldn't believe they would send someone of that calibre to us..." Others nodded, and another man spoke up.

"To be the Fire Lady at that age, I mean... it had to be forced, right?"

"Maybe she was a golddigger?"

"She could have had a thing for old men-"

"Was she really that young?"

"I've heard that they did something so that she would never age."

"What creeps..."

I stood up then, I didn't want to hear anymore. They were laughing, joking, and acting as if the situation were morbidly entertaining. I couldn't take it. They kept going at it as I left, walking down the beach. I knew I couldn't listen to it without blowing up, I wanted badly to defend Ren, but without telling everyone who she was to me... I couldn't.

I sat farther down the beach from the group for a while alone, but eventually my Dad came to sit beside me. "It's just some dark humour, it helps us all cope with the loss." He explained, and I just shrugged as if it didn't bother me, but he knew better. "Sokka, what's wrong?"

"It's horrible, what they're all saying." I snapped angrily, "I mean, she didn't even want to be there-" I cut myself off, checking my wording carefully. "Like you said, she tried so hard and still, people died. She led the raid, but it wasn't her fault." My Dad looked at me curiously, but nodded.

"Sometimes things don't work out, and it's no one's fault. There's not always someone to blame. It took me a long time to come to terms with that." Dad responded thoughtfully, and I just nodded, and we sat in silence for another long while. "You really love this girl?"

"With everything I have," I told him, looking him right in the eyes. "She makes me so happy. When I'm with her I feel like I could do anything, be anything... She's incredible."

"But, she's from the Fire Nation?" he asked, I looked away and nodded.

"She can't choose who her parents are, it's not her fault that she was born a fire bender." I told him, I was tense, prepared to defend Ren. But my Dad just sighed.

"Can't argue with that." My head swung around, and I stared at my Dad in surprise. "It's like Anik said, not everyone agrees with or supports the war. The fact that this Fire Nation girl is in Ba Sing Se tells me that she's not exactly lining up to help in the war. I can overlook her other obvious flaws due to that." I was confused for a moment before he continued. "The flaw being that she likes you, of course."

I laughed, a smile coming to my face as I relaxed into conversation with my Father, telling him about Ren.