Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: the Last Airbender, or any of the associated characters.

Summary: See Previous Chapters.

CHAPTER TEN

Hahn decided early on that the only way to deal with the waste of time and parchment that was 'The Boy In The Iceberg' was to treat it as a huge joke and make snide comments about the actors and writer while snuggling with Katara in the back row.

Luckily, Sokka was too busy doing the same with Suki in the row in front of them to kick up a fuss about it.

But really, whoever had talked to the writer about Katara's speeches didn't have the first clue, and the writer and actress had even less. Katara was much better and more inspirational at giving speeches, and covered way more than hope, even if that was her main theme. The first speech Hahn had heard from her, when he was recovering from his dunking in the ocean, had taken him through shame at his own arrogance, to guilt on behalf of the entire tribe for not helping their family in the south, to determination to fix these things, and ended on hope that maybe one day Katara would see him as more than a useless jerk with an over-inflated opinion of himself.

And the 'Tearbending' was just stupid. Certainly a lot of what Katara and the Gaang had been through would have driven anyone to tears, but Katara had never just sat down and cried when she could have stood up and done something about the situation.

She was far stronger than that.

And by Yue and La, he did not feel threatened when the writers tried to pair Katara up with Zuko on stage! Both of them looked way too disturbed at the notion for it to be any more substantial than anything else in this travesty of a play.

Katara thought that Aang would have more sense than to take the play with any amount of seriousness, but at least it gave her the chance to clear up the issue of Aang's crush.

She was Aang's teacher and friend, and any love for him took the form of the same semi-motherly concern with which she treated Sokka. It might have been the ONLY thing that the actress playing her got right, but she was correct in saying that Aang was like a little brother to her. Romance would never come into the picture.

"It's true, isn't it? I kissed you at the invasion, and I thought we were going to be together, but you really do see me as a little brother."

Katara wished he had chosen another time to realize this, but she would have to face the problem sooner or later. She loved Hahn, not Aang, and that was all there was to it. "Yes. I don't know how long it'll be before I marry, or who, but I could never accept a necklace from you, even if you were free to give one. I care about you, Aang, but not like that."

Before the Avatar could say anything else, she turned and hurried back inside.

Honestly, Hahn approved of Sokka and Zuko's idea of training.

Master Pakku and Hahn's weapons instructor, who taught the non-benders, thought that a good 'final test' was to ambush their students or put them in a situation that mirrored a real battle, to see how they reacted.

It was a good thing that neither of those masters was present, because both of them would have failed Aang in a second. Running away wouldn't help against the Fire Lord, just as it hadn't helped one hundred years ago. Hesitating at a crucial moment, especially in the middle of a sneak attack, would see Aang 'shot full of lightning', as Sokka put it, and Katara no longer had any spirit water to bring him back.

Hahn just didn't know how many times or ways they had to say it before the Avatar got those facts through his thick skull!

The young Airbender sulked through the rest of the afternoon, even sitting away from them during dinner in the courtyard, though Katara insisted that it was just nerves. Not even Katara's attempt to lighten the atmosphere worked, though it was the first time Aang spoke to them all afternoon.

Even if he was insisting that the Fire Lord was still a human being, and therefore not to be killed.

Sokka and Hahn exchanged frustrated looks as Sokka tried to say that the universe would probably forgive Aang, if he killed Ozai in the name of balance. Zuko tried for a sarcastic remark about showing Ozai his baby pictures to make him see the light, which backfired when Aang took him seriously. Even Katara's patience was running dry, but Aang even snapped at her gentle attempts to sooth things. "Well, when you come up with a way for me to defeat Ozai without taking his life, I'd love to hear it!"

Hahn stood up, finally sick of the Avatar's attitude. "Don't yell at her! Why did you have to pick now to suddenly become squeamish?"

Aang glared at him, promptly switching targets. "What's that supposed to mean? Taking a life goes against everything the Monks ever taught me!"

Hahn glared right back. "When you merged with the Ocean Spirit it helped you wipe out an entire armada of ships. What did you think happened to all the Fire Nation soldiers on those ships? Did you think that they somehow managed to avoid all of the ocean predators while swimming for several days to get out of the freezing polar waters?"

That brought the young Airbender up short, giving Katara another chance to step in. "Aang, I know that it's hard for you to go against the Air Nomad teachings, but you aren't just an Air Nomad. Like it or not, you're the Avatar, and you have to do what's right for the world, not just your personal beliefs."

Zuko joined in again. "If you don't defeat the Fire Lord, he'll go on to burn the entire Earth Kingdom, and millions of people will die. You can take one life to save millions, or you can refuse to fight him, and the Genocide of the Air Nomads will be repeated, and Ozai will be able to turn all of his resources to wiping out the Water Tribes."

Maybe overwhelming Aang with the blunt facts would make him see sense? That was the theory, at least, when Sokka stood up. "It's not like the Air Nomads didn't kill in self-defence, either. I don't think that all of those Fire Nation skeletons around Gyatso all spontaneously dropped dead of their own accord.

The look Aang sent him could only be described as 'betrayed' as Sokka punched a gaping hole in his argument. He tried another tactic. "If you're all so keen to see the Fire Lord dead, then why doesn't one of you do it?"

Suki stood firm with her boyfriend. "Because the Fire Nation would see it as a Water Tribe or Earth Kingdom assassination, and that would start the war all over again. Zuko can't do it without being accused of Patricide and Regicide, and that will only end with a civil war."

Katara stepped forward again, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'd do this for you if I could, Aang. If I thought it would help, I'd stop Ozai's heart in a second. But I can't. You, the Avatar, are the only one who can stop this war."

Hahn and Zuko started taking the dishes back to the kitchens as Katara went to leave Aang's barely-touched food outside his locked door. Finally, Zuko broke the silence. "Thanks for speaking up back there. If I tried to say all that myself, Aang might have just gone back to seeing me as the Bad Guy, and the Fire Nation is going to have enough problems without the Avatar hating the Heir to the Throne."

Hahn nodded, accepting the thanks. "You'll have the support of the Tribes. Sokka is the son of the Southern Tribe's Chief, and Katara is the last of the Southern Waterbenders. I was supposed to marry Yue because Chief Arnook wanted me as his Heir, and that was the best way to achieve it. Suki will bring the support of Kyoshi Island, and from what little I know, the Bei Fong name carries a lot of weight in the Earth Kingdom."

Zuko returned a half-smile, as though a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Aang wasn't the only one who would need support to fulfil his destiny.

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A/N: Yeah, so this chapter took way longer to finish than I had planned, but I will get this finished!

Other, long-term, stories are taking up much of my writing time, as is a new job and an original novel. In the meantime, Constructive Criticism is very much appreciated.

Thanks

Nat