Letters to Maya

Dear Maya,

By the time you are reading these letters, you must've been a grown woman already.

I won't make things complicated, so I'll just go straight to the point. The truth is, we are not one of them.

You and I, Maya, are stowaways. We belong to the Fire Nation.

I know this is very confusing, especially for you since you've probably lived most of your life as a water tribe girl, but I'm sorry. That's not who you are.

At first, I planned to keep this fact away from you forever, but my conscience is killing me, I thought to myself, how cruel of a mother I would be if I keep my daughter's true identity from her.

That's why I talked to Kanna and Kaya about this, I also wanted to come out clean to them. I couldn't lie anymore.

I told them the truth about where we came from, but not all things I told them were true.

Right now, Kanna and Kaya must have told you that I ran away because your grandfather and father wanted you gone, but that's not the truth.

First of all, they both don't know about your existence. The only people from the fire nation that knew about you was me, and two of my friends that helped me run away.

Why? Why did I run away?

That's because I wanted to keep you away from your father and his side of the family. Never shall you ever be raised in that godforsaken place.

Don't get it wrong Maya, I love your father, and I bet he would have loved you just as much as he loved me, but his mind has been corrupted by power.

I don't want you to grow up with the same mindset and ideology as him and his family. They are not a family born out of love, instead, they're a family born out of greed.

That's why I ran away. I never told your father about you so that he won't come looking for you, but I know he won't stop looking for the love of his life.

And that's the reason why I started writing these letters because I am planning to go back to the mainland. So long as I am alive, they will surely come looking for me, and once I'm found, they'll definitely know of your existence.

Once you're discovered, your father will definitely take you away and use you, corrupting your brain and your heart. I don't want that to happen.

So I planned to leave you here with Kanna and Kaya. They will take care of you and they will protect you.

I know I wouldn't be there for you during your times of growth. I know that you will be angry at me for leaving you but this was the only solution I could come up with.

I can't risk you being taken away or having this village taken over by the fire nation.

Katara, Sokka, Kaya, Hakoda, Kanna, and the other tribesmen are not your true family, but they are the best kind of people to look up to.

I am glad that you are able to grow up in a family filled with love and happiness. I hope you will never forget to be happy.

I'm sorry for leaving you. I didn't leave you because I didn't want you. I left because I needed to.

You are the only treasure I have in this life; you are my treasure. I hope you find someone to treasure as well, who will treasure you as I do.

There must've been a lot of obligations as a mother that I missed, but at the very least let these letters be a replacement of my presence.

I am not sure if I will be able to meet you again, but if given the chance, I will hug you tightly and never let you go.

I'm sorry I can't give you a complete family, because our family was already broken even before you were born.

I love you my daughter, and I'm sorry for everything. I hope you'd be able to forgive me.

Your mother, ANIKA

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-Maya's Point of View-

Tears started rolling down my cheeks as I finished reading Mom's first letter. This was only the first and I'm already like this!

So, nobody from the fire nation knows that I exist?! Only two of them and Mom didn't even mention who they were!

Who is my father? How bad can he be for Mom not to let me grow up with him? And my family was already broken even before I was born? How is that even possible?!

What was Mother planning to do when she goes back to the mainland?

What is all this? This is really confusing! Who are you, Mother?! Who am I?!

I put down the letter on top of the others and I covered my eyes that were filled with tears.

I cried silently because I didn't want anyone to hear. Then suddenly I heard Katara's voice. She was already back from the market.

"Maya? What are you doing?" she asked.

I hurriedly wiped my tears and hid the letters in the chest.

"Uh... Ah, nothing. I was just fixing my stuff," I said without looking at her.

"Okay... Can you help me with packing after you're done with that? It seems like we will be doing all the work," Katara said with an irritated tone.

"What? Where are the guys? They should be helping with all these," I looked at her and then at the pile of supplies.

"Aang is busy showing off to the village girls, and Sokka is nowhere to be found. So... It's just the two of us here," she replied.

Oh boy... Men...

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-Zuko's Point of View-

"What is going on? Why are we moving so slowly? It's already getting dark out!" I shouted.

I am here again on the ship's bridge, yelling at the helmsman and his crew.

We have been traversing the seas for a while now and we still haven't arrived on Kiyoshi Island.

"Didn't I order you to do everything that you can to get there this same day?! WHY ARE WE STILL IN THE WATERS?!" I shouted as I blasted fire out of my hands.

"Zuko, relax," Uncle said to me as he pats my shoulder.

I grunted out of anger before I left the place and walked towards my quarters. When I got there I shut the door and sat down on my bed.

A few minutes later, my uncle went inside the room and sat down beside me.

"It seems like this is how fast the engines of the ship can go," he said.

I looked away from him and said nothing.

"I asked the helmsman and the repair crew why the ship can't go faster than this and they said that stressing on the engine could lead to more damage. So they wanted to keep it slow and have a safe trip instead," he explained.

I still didn't say anything.

I was furious! What if the Avatar has already left?! What's the point of going there then? I keep on failing and failing every single time!

"Zuko... the crew is concerned about everyone's safety— of your safety. You should take them into your consideration as well," Uncle said.

"If only we arrived there hours ago, then maybe we could've been sailing home right now with the Avatar in my hands. Only then can everyone be safe."

"I know that you're worried about the Avatar escaping, but even if he has left the place, we can still ask the village for information," Uncle said.

"You have to learn to look on the bright sides Zuko. Sometimes, a setback or a delay happens for a reason. You might not know of it but actually, they can be great blessings in disguise," he continued.

"How is this a blessing uncle? Where is the bright side in this?" I asked him.

"Well, since your arrival in Kiyoshi has been delayed, you have more time to prepare your strategy for how you will take the Avatar," he said.

"I have already planned that hours ago. I have been preparing for this my whole life," I answered.

Although... There is still something else besides the Avatar that I want to deal with.

"Uncle, do you remember the girl who has a necklace the same as the ones given to the members of the royal family?" I asked.

"The red-eyed water tribe girl?" he asked back.

"That necklace she has. It's exactly the same as what my mother used to wear," I continued.

Uncle didn't answer me and he just stared at me with a straight face.

"I'll have to get that necklace back and lock away that thief. I bet she even knows a thing or two about Mother's whereabouts."

"That necklace might as well be fake. You know markets these days, they can create imitations," Uncle contradicted.

"I don't think markets from around the world will be thrilled to sell Fire Nation items," I told him.

He looked at me for a good few seconds before looking away.

"Get some sleep. You'll need a lot of energy for tomorrow. Good night my nephew." Uncle said as he closed the door.

Why do I feel like he's hiding something from me?

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-Maya's Point of View-

The sun has already set and finally, Katara and I are done with packing. I thought it was going to take forever!

I lay down on the floor while panting. It was very exhausting to do since the boys didn't help.

Katara was standing in front of the room's entrance waiting for the boys to return.

Yup! They haven't returned yet. Those slack-off jerks!

"Katara, stop walking around in circles... You're making me dizzier," I said.

"Ugh, I just can't help it! What are the guys doing this late at night?" she said frantically.

"I'm sure they're fine. Kiyoshi is a safe place. They must be having fun out there that they forgot their responsibilities here," I replied, and then suddenly, both of them showed up.

"Oh! Hey Katara! Hey Maya!" Aang cheerfully greeted.

"Where have you two been?" Katara asked in an angry mom tone.

"I was out with the Kiyoshi Warriors, training," Sokka replied. Sokka training with the Kiyoshi Warriors? Really? They let him join?

"And you Aang?"

"I had dinner at Koko's house. Her mother invited me over for dinner and I just couldn't refuse," he answered.

"Right, so you both had fun outside, while Maya and I were tired all day packing the supplies we need for the trip, which, you guys should be helping us with," Katara complained. I can really feel the irritation in her. She's going to explode any minute now.

"Well nobody really told you to do that. We could've done it once we got back, right Sokka?" Aang said as he nudged Sokka's elbow.

"Yeah, he's right. Instead of stressing yourself. you should've done something fun as well," Sokka agreed.

Oh boy, here we go... That is definitely the wrong response.

"LISTEN HERE YOU TWO JERK FACE!" Katara shouted.

Alright, I need to step in before a war goes on.

I quickly stood up and ran towards Katara to hold her back.

"I NEVER OBLIGATED YOU TWO TO DO WORK," she continued.

"Katara, calm down please," I said as I tried to get her as far away from the boys as possible.

"EVER SINCE WE LANDED HERE IN KIYOSHI YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN NOTHING BUT LAZYING OFF WHILE WE GIRLS GET TO DO ALL THE JOB," she continued more.

"Katara stop already!" I shouted while struggling to get her away.

"NO! I'M SICK OF THIS TWO SLACKING-OFF ALL THE TIME!" she shouted.

I let go of her but I still stayed by her side.

"Forget it. From now on I'm not going to bother you guys anymore. You go do your own stuff and I'll do mine," Katara said as she walked towards her bed.

"Good night," she said once more, and then she laid down on the bed and covered herself with the blanket.

"What's wrong with her?" Sokka asked.

"Shut up Sokka. Just go to bed. Let Katara be for now," I said and then I walked towards my bed as well.

"Good night," I said but with a sad tone.

I didn't hear the boys say anything but I heard them walk towards their bed as well and then they laid down.

Well... This was a bad night.

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Morning came and everyone woke up on the bad side of the bed. We all had breakfast together but no one was speaking. I tried breaking the silence but I got no responses.

"Hmm! This breakfast is great!" I cheerfully said but no one replied to me. "How does the fish taste Aang? Tasty right?"

"I'm vegetarian, I don't eat meat," Aang replied.

Oh right... I forgot about that.

Nobody else was speaking so I just had to stick with the silence and keep my mouth shut.

As soon as breakfast was over, Sokka hurriedly went out of the room. I looked at Katara thinking that she might say something but I guess she was really going to keep what she said last night.

We're here in the room, Katara, Aang, and I, and the atmosphere is seriously awkward.

Katara was practicing her water bending through a bowl of water, and Aang was playing with Momo using a mini airball.

On the other hand, I am just sitting here, shifting my vision from Aang to Katara hoping that one of them would say something, but I guess I'm hoping for nothing.

So I decided to break the ice even if I know they wouldn't talk back to me.

"You don't seem to be occupied today Aang, what happened to your fangirls? Aren't you guys going to do anything today?" I asked.

"Actually, we are going to do something today," he said as he stood up.

"Katara, remember how the Unagi almost got me yesterday?" Aang asked.

"Yeah," Katara said stoically.

"Well, I'm gonna go and ride it now. It's going to be real dangerous," Aang said.

"Good for you," Katara replied.

"You're not gonna stop me?" Aang asked.

"Nope! Have fun," Katara answered.

Oh, dear...

"I will!" Aang said with an irritated tone.

"Great," Katara sarcastically said.

"I know it's great,"

"Well, I'm glad you know,"

"I'm glad you're glad," Aang said.

"Good," Katara said.

"Fine!" Aang shouted making Katara drop the water she was bending. After that Aang stormed out of the room while Katara just sat there.

Ah... What a great disaster I have started. Why did I even have to start a conversation?! These guys are driving me nuts!

"Uhm... Would it be really fine for you if he did that? You know... Ride the Unagi," I asked Katara.

"He can handle it on his own," she impassively said.

"Look, I know that you're angry with him but, he could really be in danger if he wouldn't be stopped," I said.

"Then why don't you stop him? You seemed to care so much," she replied.

I walked closer to Katara and then I placed my hands on her shoulders.

"Don't be too hard on him. He's just enjoying the world again after being locked up in the iceberg for years. It has also been a while since he encountered a lot of people," I said.

Katara let out a deep sigh and then she looked at me.

"Alright... I'll go look after him," she said.

"Well... that's what we do best. Look out for each other," I encouraged with a little chuckle.

Katara grabbed her coat and then she walked towards the room's entrance.

"Aren't you coming?" she asked me.

"No, I... I have other things to do," I replied.

"Well alright. I'll head off now," she said. "Oh, and Maya... Thank you for always being there for all of us." she continued, with a genuine smile on her face.

I smiled back at her and I said, "Of course! We're family! Now go get your boyfriend back before he becomes Unagi food," I teased her.

"He's not my boyfriend," she seriously said.

"Whatever. Go!" I said as I pushed her out of the room.

Once Katara was out of sight, I went back inside the room and took out my mother's chest. I opened it and looked at the pile of letters.

Should I read the second letter? I'm dying to know who my father is! But, I don't think I will be able to process this all at once.

That's right. I should just probably read one later. Sokka was right. We won't stay too long here in Kiyoshi Island so I might as well have my share of fun.

I looked at the letters once more before closing the box but then I remembered the necklace inside.

It would be such a waste if I didn't wear this.

I closed the chest, put it back where I got it, and stood in front of the mirror with the necklace in my hand.

I wore the necklace while looking at it in the mirror and boy does it look so beautiful.

"This is what I have left of Mom. I'm sure wearing it will be fine, so long as I keep it hidden." I said to myself and then I hid the necklace's pendant under my shirt.

All of them are out of the house so I should go out too. I'm the one going to have fun this time. I mean... What can go wrong on such a beautiful day right?

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-Zuko's Point of View-

"Prince Zuko, we have arrived on Kiyoshi," one of my crew said.

"Ready the Rhinos. We're heading out," I said and then I went to my quarters to wear my armor.

Today is such a beautiful day. Nothing can go wrong this time.

"You look happy," Uncle said as he opened the door to my room and went inside.

"I'm ready, uncle. I won't let him get away this time," I said as he walked towards me and helped me suit up.

When my armor was set, I looked at him and said, "And I might even be able to find out about Mother."

He suddenly looked at me with his eyebrows crossed.

"I suggest you focus on taking the Avatar first," he suddenly said.

"Why do I feel like you're avoiding this girl? Are you hiding something from me, uncle?" I asked.

"Trust me Zuko. It's best if you stay away from her," Uncle calmly said as he walked out of the room.

I'm sorry, uncle, but I can't just leave her be. That thing she has, it's the same necklace as Mom. If she, in any way, knows something about my mother, then I have to know about it.

I'm taking her in for my sake. You can't stop me, uncle. I'll do whatever it takes to see Mom again.