I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters. I do not make any money from this publication.

It's cold is the first thing Zuko thinks as he walks on board the deck of his ship. He glances around and sees white all around him and so he sighs. In his home, there are many colors, washes of red silk and glittering green canopies all around him, but here, there is only the barren white of death.

"We are approaching the Southern Water Tribe, Prince Zuko," a voice says at it approaches.

"How can you tell?" Zuko asks. "Everything looks the same here, Uncle."

"Once you are there you will not think so."

Zuko turns around. "How long until we make port?"

His uncle sighs. "It is difficult to tell. But it will be today, if we are to believe our maps."

"No one has been here in almost a hundred years, Uncle."

"So we must keep faith in our navigation."

Zuko huffs and turns back around. The ice seems to be thickening around him as the ship pushes through. What if we get stuck, he thinks, but quickly brushes the negative thoughts away. They will find the Southern Water Tribe and the natives will surrender. It is their destiny as much as his.

"I'm going back to my quarters," Zuko says and he turns and walks back towards the door. "Alert me if we find anything." He yells over his shoulder, and with that he leaves, not waiting for his uncle to respond.

Zuko walks through the dimly lit corridors as he makes his way to his quarters. They aren't anywhere near as luxurious as his chambers in the Palace, but they are sufficient and he has grown accustomed to their confining nature. He pauses after he opens the door. Soon, he will not be staying here. He will be in the hands of a potentially hostile and virtually unknown race of people- people no one has had contact with in almost a hundred years. Zuko would be lying if he said he was not afraid, but he certainly would not admit that to anyone.

From what little resources he was able to obtain regarding the Southern Water Tribe, they are supposed to be generous people who would deem it a great dishonor to harm a guest. Zuko takes little comfort in that knowledge, though, since the texts are ancient and one hundred years is plenty of time for a culture to change its practices. Hopefully the presents he brought will be enough to pacify them once they make port. If the stupid savages even have a port.

Briskly, Zuko makes his way to his bed and lays down. He probably won't go to sleep since the sun is up. For the thousandth time this trip, he curses his firebending capabilities because the sun is up all the time in this horrid place. He should be out like a light, but the light never ends. He hasn't gotten enough sleep recently and he can feel it draining him. He will have to find some sort of sleeping draught for him and the rest of the Firebenders if he wants to stay alert during his time in the South Pole.

He must have dropped off, though, because far sooner than he would have expected there is a banging on his door.

"Prince Zuko," a male voice calls through the metal.

"What is it?" Zuko asks, harsher than he intended, sleep curbing the edges of his voice.

"We have spotted the Southern Water Tribe and will make port soon."

Well, at least he was awoken for good news.

"I'll be out shortly," he calls and hears footsteps retreating. Zuko sighs and grabs his thickest coat before he begins his trek to reach the bitter cold, again. He wishes that he was back in his warm home with every step.

He opens the door leading to the outside and pulls the coat tighter around him. As much as he hates to admit it, he is probably going to have to wind up buying something warmer from the savages. He can only regulate his body temperature for oh so long, and with such little sleep and energy, he can see himself freezing to death very soon.

"Where is the Tribe?" He asks, knowing that someone will answer him.

"Just in front of us, Prince Zuko," his uncle answers.

"When will we be making port?"

"When we find a suitable place to keep the ship."

"They don't have a port?" Zuko asks incredulously.

"It appears not," he responds slowly. "But," his uncle's tone picks up again, "the tribe has not had visitors for many years now, so it was expected."

"This is ridiculous."

"Patience, Prince Zuko. If you are to persuade the Southern Water Tribe into agreement, then you must not speak so poorly of their way of life. You must be understanding."

"I am understanding!" Zuko replies angrily. "I understand that these savages are under-developed and in desperate need of saving. I have come to provide them with a better way."

Zuko stares ahead, focusing only on the city he cannot yet see. Just outside of his peripheral vision, his uncle slowly shakes his head.

"Your Highness," a sailor says as he approaches the prince. "An envoy has been spotted."

"Ah," his uncle begins. "It seems our welcoming party awaits us."

"How many are there?" Zuko asks.

"It is difficult to say," the sailor responds. "Ten, maybe a few more."

"Well, at least they had the decency to meet us." Ten people is not much, but it is a bit better than Zuko expected, even if he is used to crowds of people welcoming him wherever he goes.

"Have the gifts prepared," Zuko orders without looking at the sailor.

"Yes, sir" The sailor left with a bow.

"I hate this place," Zuko murmurs as he tries to suppress a shiver. Despite his being a Firebender, it is still desperately cold and he doesn't like to use all of his energy trying to maintain his body temperature when he feels exhausted as it is.

"I do not think it is so bad," his uncle replies. "The white shines in the sunlight-"

"The constant sunlight," Zuko interrupts. The ship suddenly lurches, throwing him off balance. "What was that!" he yells up towards the ship's tower where the captain stays.

One of the crewmen leans out a window. "Sir, we have reached the edge of the glacier. We cannot go any farther."

Zuko huffs out a breath that steams out his nose. "Are we just supposed to leave the ship here then?" He asks to no one in particular.

"It appears so," his uncle answers before gathering up his many layers of coats and cloaks and walking towards the bow of the ship. Zuko begrudgingly does the same.

"Where is Tian?" Zuko asks a nearby sailor.

"She is still in her quarters, sir," he replies.

"What?" Zuko whirls around to face the sailor. "Why is she not here awaiting arrival?"

"Sir, she does take some time to get ready."

"I want her out here in the next ten minutes or she will be punished. Tell her this. Go!" The sailor scurries away quickly, fearing the Prince's wrath.

"Prince Zuko-" Iroh begins, but Zuko stops him.

"Uncle, please. Not now." The two men are silent for several minutes until the tension passes.

"You asked to see me?" a female voice says from somewhere behind Zuko.

He turns around. "Yes." He scans her body briefly. Her face is painted in a pleasing way, and though she wears more clothes than she is probably used to, she looks acceptable. "We are approaching the Southern Water Tribe, Tian." He doesn't look in her eyes when he speaks to her. "You are to prepare for your presentment to the Chief."

Tian bows low and her long hair almost brushes the ground. "Yes, my Prince."

Zuko turns back around to watch the sailors prepare for unloading the ship.

The wind picks up as Zuko and his crew wait on deck. It picks out tendrils of his hair and makes them fly around his face. He wants to brush them out of the way, but he is too focused on the group of people waiting on the ice to really be bothered by his hair.

His guards are in front of him, leading the way and making sure these natives aren't going to attack him. Normally, he is grateful for the barrier the guards present, but at present he dislikes their prolonging of the inevitable. He wants to just walk down already, get it over with. He takes a deep breath to calm himself.

"Are you nervous, Prince Zuko?" his uncle asks with a knowing tone that Zuko does not appreciate.

"Of course not!" is Zuko's quick reply.

"I would not think less of you if you were, nephew. This is uncharted land with a people that we have never encountered before. A bit of nerves would be expected."

"I am not nervous, Uncle," Zuko says slowly, trying to control his temper. "There is nothing to be nervous about because this will be easy. The Southern Water Tribe will surrender and then I will return home." His uncle remains silent.

Zuko briskly makes to way to the stairs leading down from the deck. He absently hears the footsteps of those behind them but he pays them no mind. Instead, he focuses on the stairs-the many stairs-and not falling down them. Oh, what a great first impression that would be.

The stairs go by too quickly, though, and he is suddenly standing in front of several people clad in furs. Their dark skin is the first thing he notices since it is so different from the alabaster faces of home. They stare all stare at each other for a moment.

"Greetings," one of them says. "Welcome to the Southern Water Tribe." The words are a bit stilted, though, and Zuko immediately understands that there will probably be some degree of a language barrier between himself and these people.

Zuko bows, fist in palm. "I am Prince Zuko of the Fire Empire. My crew and I thank you for your welcome." This is easy. This is basic emissary work that he can handle. This is not hard.

"Prince Zuko," his name sounds strange on this foreigner's tongue. "Might I inquire as to your business in the South Pole?" The same man speaks to him every time. Zuko wonders if the others speak a different language.

"I am here to speak to your King-err, Chief." Zuko quickly corrects himself. He read just enough about the Southern Water Tribe to hopefully not insult the Royal family.

"Yes, but why?" The man inquires.

"I believe that business is between me and your Chief. We must speak immediately. Take me to your meeting place."

"In House." The man says turns to the others in his party and speaks to them in a strange, flowing, but percussive language. They nod, apparently agreeing with whatever the man is saying. He turns back to Zuko. "We shall take you. Now."

The men turn and begin to walk away without waiting to see if Zuko is following them. He glances at his uncle, who nods, and the Fire Empire entourage follow the fur-clad natives through the great gate and into the city of ice.

While not as tall and grand as the gates, the buildings along the main street are wide and tall, casting shadows along the beaten down paths. Beside the paths are the canals, with long boats for transporting different goods and large groups of people. The paths are crowded with people looking into stalls and toting wheeled carts full of furs and cloth. Zuko expects the envoy to move people out of the way as they pass, but the group stops often as it waits for peasants to pass by them. Whether or not the people take notice of the red and gold colors of the Fire Empire, Zuko could not tell. The closer the group walks to the center of the city, the richer the people appeared and the taller the buildings. All the buildings, however, are dwarfed by the immense ice structure surrounded on all sides by water.

"This is the Royal House," one of the natives says. Zuko didn't know his name, nor did he care to know it, but he seemed to be expecting some sort of a response.

"It is...very large," Zuko manages to say.

"And very beautiful!" his uncle supplies. "The workmanship that went into creating this work of art-we do not have this in the Fire Empire."

"It was entirely built by Waterbenders," the man says proudly.

"Thank goodness the Fire Empire Palace was not building by Firebender, right Prince Zuko?" His uncle chuckles at his joke and gently nudges the prince with his elbow.

"Yes, General Iroh," Zuko begins slowly and pointedly. "What a blessing."

The envoy exchanges curious glances with each other before continuing towards the Royal House.

"How long has this structure been the home of your Chief?" Iroh asks..

"As long as anyone can remember," the man vaguely answers and thusly ends all conversation between the natives and their guests.

The group crosses a bridge that links the paths and the Royal House and Zuko can't help but marvel at the intricacies of the design. It appears to be made out of ice and packed snow, but it does not feel wet or slippery. He makes a mental note to ask about that to determine if it wil be useful in the northern Earth Provinces.

"The Chief will meet you in the Great Room," the man says.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Iroh replies with a bow. Zuko quickly follows suit despite the indignity. The natives leave the prince and general in front of a large door. Once alone, Zuko gestures to his soldiers to tell most of them to wait outside while three will follow them into the house. Tian simply stands clutching her hands and not speaking or looking around.

The doors open without announcement which startles the prince much more than the general, to his ire. Standing before them is an imposing figure; tall and muscular, even though most of his body is hidden under furs. He gazes down as if waiting for an excuse to cause something horrible to happen to them. Finally, he speaks.

"I am Navuq," he says as he bows his head only. While it is not the greeting Zuko is used to receiving, he doesn't comment. He speaks in a much heavier accent than the man from earlier.

"I am Prince Zuko of the Fire Empire. This is General Iroh, The Dragon of the West, the savior of the Fire Empire, the-"

"Save introductions for Chief," Navuq interrupts. Zuko is left with his mouth slightly open at the audacity of this man interrupting the Crowned Prince of the Fire Empire. He moves forward slightly to confront this man, but Iroh's and on his arm stops him. "I will take you now." Navuq turns and begins to walk away. the group quickly follows.

The Royal House is empty except for the occasional random person who spies the group and quickly scurries away. The difference in atmosphere between this building and the rest of the city is not lost on Zuko. In his mind's eye, he begins to form illusions about what sort of man must live in a palace such as this. Unfortunately, due to the grandeur of the palace and the sense of fear and stress that permeates the passageway, Zuko creates the image of a massive man-bigger than Navuq-who strikes fear into the heart of all who meet him. One who makes the servants quake in fear and subjects shield their eyes so as not to accidentally offend. Zuko is still pondering when Navuq stops abruptly in front of a rather inconspicuous door. It is thanks to Iroh that Zuko does not slam into Navuq's back.

"You will meet Chief now," Navuq says. He presses his hand against the door and it opens. He walks through the doorway and Zuko turns back to tell Tian to stay out here with one of the soldiers. He will call for her when they are ready. Zuko follows Navuq, pressing down his sudden onset of nerves and worry. He is the Prince of the Fire Empire. He will not be afraid of this chief of a small tribe in the middle of the South Pole.

Zuko glances around the room, trying to get a feel for it and see if there are any other exits. The room is lit by sconces attached to the walls. They are the only light in this interior room. At the end of the room is a dias smaller that that in the Fire Empire, but still several feet off the ground. Navuq is blocking his view of what could only be the royal throne and the man who sits upon it. Suddenly, Navuq holds out his hand and everyone stops walking. He points to the ground, obviously wanting Iroh and Zuko to bow, but the prince is hesitant. He turns to look at his uncle, but he is already on the ground, prostrating himself before the Chief. Resentfully, Zuko does the same.

Navuq speaks to the Chief in the same fast, percussive language as the man from the envoy and try as he might, Zuko cannot make sense of it. He assumes, given the circumstances, that Navuq is telling the Chief who they are, but he can't be sure. The Chief does not respond.

"Rise," Navuq says, finally addressing them. Zuko does, but keeps his eyes on the ground.

"Your Majesty," he assumes that the highest title beneath Fire Lord will be sufficient here, "I am Prince Zuko of the Fire Empire. I am travelling with my uncle, General Iroh, the Dragon of the West, the Savior of the Fire Empire, the Conqueror of Ba Sing Se." The practised words slide off his tongue. "We have travelled from the Fire Empire to speak with you and to negotiate your unconditional surrender to Fire Lord Ozai and the Fire Empire to become the Southern Water Province." Zuko waits. For several moments there is only silence, then high pitched, feminine laughter. Zuko jerks his head up to find the source of the unexpected sound.

On the throne before him sits a woman. Half of her long, curly, dark hair is piled atop her head in what Zuko assumes to be an intricate bun, with the other half down and flowing well past her breasts. Her face is painted, but not like the Tian's. This woman's face is painted with blue and black. Her eyes are heavily lined in black wings that come to a point near her eyebrows. Her white painted-on eyebrows arc dramatically and in between them is a black widow's peak. White stripes on either side of her face mark her cheeks and along her jawline, triangles like that of a tigerbear have been painted on. As fantastic and intimidating as all that, though, Zuko cannot help but have his attention drawn to her full, bright red lips. They stand out against the muted but fierce colors on the rest of her face and are opened slightly from her laughter and slowly curl into a near smirk as she takes in his reaction.

He makes a noise as if he's going to say something, but nothing comes out. He can't form words because he's so utterly shocked. The Northern Water Province would never have allowed a woman to be Chief, especially one painted like that, and since the Northern Water Province is Fire Empire's only real source of information regarding climate, food, and culture of the Water Tribes, he assumed that the Southern Tribe would feel the same way. Obviously he was wrong.

She smiles. "My presence startles you, Prince Zuko?" The sentence lilts out of her, her accent adding a odd music to the simple sentence that he was sure wasn't part of the language before. His name, though. The way she said his name was...wrong. The 'z' too sharp and the 'k' too hard. It didn't sound like the same name when she said it. He wants her to say it again.

She took his continued silence as invitation to continue. "You come here, unannounced, after years of silence from your people. You come here, to my city, to my home. You come here and you ask me to surrender. To surrender unconditionally to your people. Your people whom we have not seen in almost one hundred years. Unconditional surrender. Why? Why now?" When he does not answer, she slams her hand against the arm of her chair. "Answer me!"

Zuko narrows his eyes. "I owe you no explanation."

"You will tell me why you have come!" She isn't yelling, but there is command in her voice. He can tell that this is a woman who does not meet opposition kindly.

"I came here to negotiate the terms of the Southern Water Tribe's unconditional surrender to Fire Lord Ozai." More of the rehearsed words slide off his tongue.

There is more tense silence. Iroh stands, but makes no move to speak. The woman stares at the visitors. "You came here to negotiate terms of an unconditional surrender." A slight twitch develops on one of her eyes. "Why."

"It is the will of the Fire Empire that the Southern Water Tribe join with the rest of the world in entering the modern age. An age where all nations are equal in wealth, knowledge, property-"

"Stop." When Zuko looks at her again, he sees that her eyes are closed and her hand raised. He feels his body temperature rise. "Upon presentment of a written document outlining all details deemed necessary, the Council and I will meet and discuss. Until that time I have no more interest in hearing about the Fire Lord's grand plans for the future of the world."

Zuko remains silent. Though he is unhappy with her...flippancy, but there is no way he can argue with her order. He chances a glance at Iroh and becomes impossibly angrier at seeing his completely calm face.

"Navuq will escort you to you chambers where you will stay until the feast in your honor at sunset." Zuko looks perplexed and opens his mouth to speak, but quickly stops once he sees Katara's hard expression. Navuq appears seemingly out of nowhere and the group turns to follow their guide in this intricate and magnificent palace. Zuko stays looking at Katara for a few more moments, but turns away when he sees that her expression isn't changing and that she isn't even looking at him. She seems to be miles away now, contemplating something that Zuko couldn't understand at this particular, infinitesimal moment.

The Southern Water Tribe is rather large, considering their limited resources and isolation from the other lands. Similar to the Northern Tribe, there is a large gate made of ice, artfully constructed by the Masters of old and maintained by the tribe at large. The tribe functions almost exclusively on trading among themselves since they have no use for currency. There are many igloos for families that vary in size and larger buildings for storing supplies. In the center of the city is the Royal House for the Chief, his family, and those allowed to live with them. There are many rooms in the House, including a large training facility that is used for the training of warriors and Waterbenders alike. However, the Chief's daughter prefers a smaller room that is specifically for the Chief's family.

Jumping out of the way of an oncoming water whip, Katara shifts her weight to her toes. Gathering water from the nearby vats, she covers her hands in blades of ice and charges at her opponent. He moves out of the way a second too late, her blades grazing his sides to form a shallow cut, but the movement sends him down to the mat quickly. Sweat from both of them drenches the mat, some of it turns to ice and other particles hang in the hair like dust. They had been sparring since high sun, and Katara can now feel the faintest touch of the moon coming out from the horizon. It's a sliver away from full. She feels its power course through her veins.

"Set." She calls out to the body laying on the mat. Pathetically he raises his hand to the ceiling, a sign of surrender.

"Set." Laughing in exhaustion, she pulls his outstretched arm and helps him up. He immediately goes slack and falls on Katara. Managing to stay up from the added weight, she complains loudly.

"Karan! Get off of me!" The man is a full head taller than her, years of training adding lean muscles to his body. He's still heavy, as Katara finds out.

"Can't. You've absolutely pulverized me. I'm finished." Sighing dramatically, Karan slips off Katara and flops back onto the mat. "Tell my mother I love her. Tell Munna to be a good girl and as her almost-mother, make sure you take her out for walks." Crossing his arm over his eyes, "I cannot believe you killed me before we got married. I thought you would at least wait until after. A week, a month at least."

Too tired to put up with him, Katara forms a slab of ice in her hands and holds it agaisnt the back of her neck. She's too low on energy to bother healing the small bruises she has. Instead, Katara lays back on the mat and focuses on her breathing and the cold relief from the ice. Karan turns his head to look at Katara. "Are you all right?" He asks with genuine concern.

Katara manages a smile as she looks at him. "No thanks to you."

Karan props himself up on his elbow. "I thought a Master Waterbender would be able to hold out against little old me for a while."

"Well, you underestimate yourself." Katara turns her head back towards the ceiling.

"Hey," Karan begins and reaches out to press his fingers against her hand. "You're not worried about anything, are you?" His voices takes on a more serious tone and Katara instantly knows that he, like her brother, has instantly read through her calm facade.

She takes a deep breath. "Of course not, why would I be worried?"

Karan scoots himself closer and takes her hand in his. "Well, if I was acting Chief, I would be a little worried about the big boat spotted off our shores." As he speaks, Karan traced designs on the palm of her hand.

"It's a good thing you're not acting Chief, then because I'm not worried at all."

Karan gives Katara a knowing smile and tilts his head. "Of course not. That's why you spent all morning in meetings and all afternoon sparring with me."

"Chiefs have a lot of meetings they must attend," Katara defended.

"Of course they do," Karan laces his and Katara's fingers together.

"Karan," Katara says in a tired tone and he gently removes his hand from her's.

"I'm sorry," Karan says, looking just a little hurt.

"Karan," Katara pleads, but he's already standing.

"It doesn't matter," he says and walks towards the exit.

"Karan, wait, come back!" But he's out the door. Katara bangs her head against the ground in frustration, but that only makes her headache worse. She sighs. "What am I going to do?" she asks out loud, even though there's no one there to answer her.

She has finished cleaning up the main training room when Navuq walks in with news.

"Chief Katara, the ship-" He doesn't finish. He doesn't need to. Katara knows exactly what he means and she is running towards the exit. She rushes to her chambers and her servants are already waiting. She quickly strips off her clothes and waits for them to tell her what to wear. They are infinitely better at choosing clothes to match the occasion than she is. Navuq appears at the door while she is behind her changing screen. "Speak," she commands.

"The ship is close, and much bigger than we had anticipated. It is not one of the usual ships."

Katara considers this. "Do we know where it is from?"

Navuq hesitates. "Well, we are not sure. The elders were consulted and…" he pauses.

"And what, Navuq?" Katara asks pointedly as she walks out from behind the screen fully dressed.

"We believe it is a Fire Navy ship." The room goes silent.

After a moment, Katara speaks. "Well. If the Fire Nation is gracing us with their presence, then we must greet them accordingly. Send out an envoy to meet them." Navuq quickly regains his composure now that he has specific orders to carry out. "Prepare a feast, and rooms for them, too, as many as we can. It would not do to seem inhospitable"

"Chief Katara, you are not planning on keeping them here in the House?"

"Of course," Katara responds quickly as she sits at her vanity and one of her servants comes behind her to fix her hair. "They are our guests. We cannot leave them on the ice."

"Your father would-"

"My father is not here," her voice is as cold as the ice she summons, "I am Chief until his return and you will do as I command." She softens. "My father would respect my wishes and he would not leave them on their own ship where we will have no idea of their intentions. It is best to keep them here where we can keep an eye on them."

"Of course," Navuq says with a bow. "Will you be joining the envoy, Chief Katara?"

"No. Have them meet me in the throne room after they are settled. Now, leave me."

The servants and Navuq bow before exiting. Katara dips in fingers into her face paint and looks at herself in her mirror. She begins to paint her face and does not wander about the Fire Navy ship. She will find out soon enough what they want and worrying will do her no good. She repeats this over and over in her mind, but the mantra does not stop her forehead from creasing and her lips from press into a thin line. When she is finally ready, lips rouged and eyes outlined, she makes her way to the throne room and seats herself in her father's chair.

She doesn't think about how wrong it feels every time.