"Will you please shut your air hole?!" 

Katara is screaming at Aang. There's a hurricane in her eyes that has Miko believing the girl is much more similar to her cousin than she'd initially thought. She's been high strung all day, ever since she first offered to teach the Avatar what little water bending moves she knows. Aang's a natural, which -- Miko suspects -- makes her feel inadequate as a water bender herself. Miko sympathizes. 

"Believe it or not your infinite wisdom gets a little old sometimes!" Katara throws her hands in the air, the water on the river bank splashing violently beside them. "Why don't we just throw the scroll away since you're so naturally gifted!?" The scroll in question is currently sitting on a rock nearby, left abandoned by the Avatar and water bender. They'd gotten it after stumbling onto a pirates' ship while shopping for supplies -- Aang and Miko had been seduced by the coolness. 

Among other things, the pirates had a scroll depicting ancient water bending movements; and Katara, after realizing they'd stolen it from a water bender in the Northern Water Tribe, had decided to steal it for herself. The theft resulted in a brief chase scene, which Miko and the others had only just narrowly escaped. They decided Aang would use it to start practicing his water bending, since he's been so worked up over not knowing anything. First, Katara wanted to get the hang of the water whip. Only she's not very good at it, and it causes her to snap when Aang tries to help instruct her, which is what leads to her little outburst now.

 Sokka glares at his sister from the rock he's leaning on. Miko's sitting at his feet, keeping her head down as she sketches in the empty book she'd bought back at the market. She does her best to tune out when there's shouting. It never leads to anything good, and she'd rather stay out of messes like that. Katara doesn't seem to like either of their reactions. She snaps, "What?" Then, she turns back to Aang. His lips are poking out, pouting and trembling; his eyes are watering, tears ready to spill over. He looks like a small child being reprimanded by his mother. Katara's expression softens as she realizes her rage is misplaced.

 "Oh my gosh, Aang, I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me." Her tone is much different now, quieter and genuine. Miko is taken aback. She's never seen someone change their attitude so quickly -- what's more she's never heard an apology that sounded so sincere before. Come to think of it, she's never even heard the words I'm sorry before. Not since she lived in the colonies that is. Her father, as far as her knowledge went, has never had a reason to apologize, always showing respect even to the lowest ranking individuals, but everyone else in the Fire Nation capital refused to repent for anything, always insisting it's someone else who's at fault. 

"But you know what, it won't happen again." Katara walks over to the scroll, rolls it up, and holds it out to Aang. "Here, this is yours. I don't want anything to do with it anymore." 

Aang takes the scroll, already looking better. "It's okay, Katara." 

"What about Momo?" Sokka holds his hand out to the lemur. He's rubbing his hind side, the poor creature having fallen victim to a rogue whip of water during one of Katara's failed attempts. "He's the real victim here." 

Katara bends down, petting the lemur. "I'm sorry, Momo," she says tenderly. 

Sokka presses his luck. "And what about me? There was that time you --" 

"No more apologies!" Katara's shout startles Momo, and he jumps on Miko. She in turn drops her brush, the bristles sliding over the page in a way that is less than desired; it leaves a long, dark line across the painting, effectively ruining the whole thing. Katara winces, and despite her proclamation, she says, "Sorry, Miko." 

Miko stares down at the painting one last time. It would take a bit of time, and she would need more paint, but it's nothing she can't redo. "It's alright. I will fix it later." She rolls it up and moves to stuff it in her hair before remembering it's no longer long enough for her to fit things in her braids. Instead, she opts to store the painting and her brush inside her boot. She pats her head again. It's the twelfth time she's done so since the Winter Solstice, but she can't help it. She's still getting used to the feel of it -- it's lighter now and somehow softer, foofier. It comes to a stop at her cheeks, the ends curving ever so slightly. She worries it's uneven since she cut it with such haste and with a tool not at all meant for cutting hair, but overall she doesn't think it looks so bad. 

"What'd you cut your hair for, anyway?" Sokka looks down at her, catching her messing with it again. 

Miko shrugs, "It's symbolic."

"What does it symbolize?" Katara wonders, coming to sit across from Miko as they talk. 

"A disconnect from the Fire Nation," Aang explains, remembering a few things he's learned a hundred years prior. He eyes Miko wearily. "I know the Fire Nation has done some pretty terrible things in the past hundred years, but are you sure you want to be cut off from your people like that?"

"Perhaps, it was a bit injudicious…" Miko frowns. It's something that's been running through her mind since she cut it. Had she been too precipitous in her decision? If she changes her mind will she be accepted back? Does she want to go back? Will anyone even notice she's severed her connection to the Fire Nation anyway? She imagines they won't. "I don't think anyone will miss me." 

"What about your father and your cousin?" Katara asks. 

Miko considers the question. She hadn't thought about them before cutting her hair, before severing her bonds with the Fire Nation and in turn shutting them out. Now that she's calm, it tugs at her heart strings. "My father might be saddened, but I am not sure about my cousin." 

"Yeah, no offense but your cousin is kind of a jerk," Sokka scoffs. 

Miko shakes her head. "He isn't. Not really." At the group's disbelieving looks she adds on, "That's not the real Zuko. He's only like that because his father --" She stops herself. Perhaps, it isn't polite, sharing her cousin's personal information with three people he considers to be his enemies. 

"His father…?" Katara presses lightly. All three of them are staring at her expectantly. She's started the statement, so now she has to finish it -- they'll keep asking if she doesn't. 

Miko sighs. Perhaps, it will help them better understand where her cousin is coming from if they hear the story. Against her better judgment, she begins, "In the Fire Nation, honor is a big deal. Your honor hinges on everything you do, and if you lose it you shave your head and do everything you can to get it back. But what is honor without respect?" The Water Tribe siblings give her curious looks at the implications. "There's only one true way to get one's honor back -- an Agni Kai. Though, more often than not it causes people to lose their honor, at least in the eyes of Fire Nation citizens." 

"What's an Agni Kai?" Sokka asks, taking a seat himself now, perching next to his sister. 

Aang scowls at the mention of the tradition, but it's Miko who explains this time, "It's a fight between two fire benders, meant to settle disagreements. The fight ends when one person is burned, but more often than not someone ends up dead." 

There's a gust of wind that washes over Miko and the siblings. It's Aang. He lets out a huff, the wind getting pushed by the breath that leaves his nostrils. He throws his hands up. "Why does everyone always think they can solve their problems with violence?!" 

Miko doesn't have an answer for him. 

After a moment Katara moves the conversation along. She puts together the subtle hints Miko has given. "Zuko was in an Agni Kai. Is that how he got that scar?" Miko nods. "But what does that have to do with the way he acts? And you mentioned his father?" 

Miko fiddles with the sleeve of her new brown shirt. She hasn't thought back on this day in a long time. She's never spoken of it either -- Zuko never let her. "It's hard to…" She lets out a small, albeit heavy, sigh. "I wasn't there when it happened, but my father let Zuko into the war room during a meeting. He told him to keep quiet, and he did… Until one of the general's suggested they use a group of new recruits as bait for some horrific plan or another. Zuko spoke out against the plan, and even though he was right it was still seen as an act of disrespect."

"So, Zuko tried to fight a general and lost. Now he's a jerk," Sokka says, not sounding at all sympathetic. 

"No," Miko tells him firmly. She can't explain why, but it's important to her that they understand. "It wasn't the general Zuko fought." The siblings and Aang give her three different looks of confusion. "It was the general's plan he spoke out against, but it wasn't the general he disrespected -- it was the Fire Lord's war room, so it was the Fire Lord he disrespected." She can see when it sinks in for each of them. Sokka's face falls. Katara covers her mouth, tears gathering. Aang falls to his knees, eyes downcast.

 "Zuko couldn't fight his father, so he begged for forgiveness on his hands and knees." She doesn't recognize her own voice. It's hollow and dry. The scene flashes through her mind's eye. She hears the shouts, the cries, the screams; she smells the flesh, the smoke. Red and yellow. Heat. As if it's happening right in front of her all over again. "Ozai called him a coward, and he burned him -- a thirteen year old boy, his own son -- in front of a crowd of millions. And they cheered for it." 

"That's awful," Katara mutters. 

"Zuko's refusal to fight lost him his honor. Ozai couldn't bare the sight of him, his own son. He banished him. My father pleaded with him to reconsider the decision, but the Fire Lord didn't want to hear it. So, instead, figuring he'd need guidance and assistance, my father went with him. And I went too. Only the bare minimum was sent with us -- the worst soldiers on the force, sub par cooks. They tried their best but…" She shrugs. "We've been at sea for the past two years." 

"That's a very touching story," Sokka says. He sounds a bit more sympathetic now, but not entirely understanding yet. "But that doesn't explain why he's so obsessed with getting Aang." 

"There was one condition to the banishment," Miko says. "One thing that could restore Zuko's honor and allow him back into Fire Nation territory -- find the Avatar." She frowns, giving a sideways glance at Aang. "I always thought it was hyperbole. We all thought you were gone for good, you see. But…" She gives a limp gesture. 

"Capturing me is the only way he can go home," Aang realizes, looking saddened. 

"But that doesn't excuse the things he's done!" Sokka protests. 

"Not at all," Miko agrees. "But now you understand why he is the way he is." They all nod. She's silent for a moment. "I don't like being angry." The others eye her, seemingly unshocked by the revelation. "It's dangerous and scary and… Mean." The words sound silly and childish to her own ears, but the others don't seem judgmental, even Sokka seems more trusting towards her now even though she hasn't really done anything to earn it. 

"Everyone gets angry sometimes," Katara reasons. "It's a natural human emotion. You can't stop yourself from feeling it." 

"Yeah," Aang agrees. He looks much older than he is in this moment, his eyes sparking with an intelligence beyond his years. "It's how you deal with it that counts." 

"I don't know how to deal with it." Somewhere in the back of Miko's mind she knows that flame is still alight. Now that it's been ignited it cannot be extinguished, not yet. It's eternal. She can only push it to the back of her mind, and while she's comfortable electing to ignore it, now, she knows she'll have to tame it later, lest it burn everything in sight. "I've never been angry before…" 

There's another pause, this one much longer and drawn out as someone tries to think up a good response to that. The truth is there isn't one, because in all honesty, no one ever deals with their anger well, or so it would seem. Sokka speaks after a beat, "So, what are you going to do now that you've cut ties with the Fire Nation?" 

Miko shrugs, and it dawns on her -- her lack of planning. She's got nowhere to go, no means of transport or food or money of any kind. 

"You could come with us to the North Pole," Katara suggests, evidently taking the other girl's newfound independence as a sign she was ready to join them in their fight against the Fire Lord. She looks so hopeful, it's a shame to disappoint her. 

"I...don't know," Miko says honestly. "Maybe someday I will join you, but I don't think I'm there yet. I need to find… Something." 

"Something like… A new bag?" Sokka suggests. The sarcasm isn't lost on Miko, but she doesn't comment on it. 

Instead, she shakes her head again, her voice remaining even as she speaks. It's soft and steady, as if she's taking great care with every word that leaves her lips. "Something like… Myself."

The two siblings seem a bit lost, but Aang nods with perfect understanding. "A spiritual journey." 

Miko gives her own nod here. "Sometimes you have to be lost before you can be found." 

"If you think it's something you need, then it's a trip you have to take. You owe it to yourself." There's a little gleam in his eyes, and Miko is positive the Avatar is proud of her. 

Katara moves over to her, pulls her into a hug as if they're life long friends. This surprises Miko, and she tries not to think too hard about the salty sea scent sneaking off the Water Tribe girl and creeping into Miko's nostrils, alluring and endearing. Katara pulls away all too soon, taking the pleasant smell with her. "I hope you find what you're looking for." 

"Me too." Miko turns to Sokka. He's standing passively, but she can tell he's thinking hard about something, it's all in his eyes. 

"Hold on!" He speaks up rather suddenly. "You can't leave! You're still a prisoner!" 

"Sokka!" Katara scolds.

He ignores her, one of his arms swinging in the air lazily. "So, uh, I guess I release you or whatever." When Miko grins at him, he gives her a small, shy smile in return. "Good luck." It's the smallest she's ever heard his voice, and it's very cute in its own right. 

"Thank you." She bids goodbye to Momo and Appa, and then she's heading off. They offer her to stay one more night with them, seeing as how it'll be dark soon, but she doesn't want to waste a second longer -- her journey must begin immediately. So, she sets off in a random direction with absolutely no destination in mind; at one point her hands catch fire, a new sort of flame flickering to life as she walked, a bounce in her step. This one's much more comfortable, familiar, warmer -- it's the one she always feels when she's creating something, and when she's dancing. She doesn't know what's in store for her from this point, but, she finds, she can't wait to find out.