The Lost Ones

Dream

Katara felt incredibly warm, she was tightly wrapped in some thick furs. She felt safe and snug, but she had no idea where she was.

Finally, as if she had just gained her vision, the scene slowly came into view. The floor, the walls, the ceiling, and a few pieces of furniture were all made out of ice. She was sitting next to a metal fireplace, on top of a fur rug. And most odd of all, she felt completely at ease.
"Katara, we need you to come home," the voice was soft and feminine. Katara knew that voice... Her entire body filled with an urgent longing, like she desperately needed to see whoever was speaking. She slowly rose to her feet and began turning, stopping suddenly when her eyes landed on the doorway. There stood a woman, she was tall with a slim figure and had dark brown hair that went all the way down to her waist. Katara finally met her eyes, and immediately felt an incredible pain in her chest.

This was fake. This was all a dream, or even a hallucination. Katara knew none of this was real, because there was no way her mother was standing in front of her, in a huge room made of ice.
There was no denying the resemblance, the same thin nose and plump lips. The way her hair fell in waves around her, and even her voice sounded similar to Katara's.

"My name is Kya. Do you know who I am?" she spoke softly. It took a full minute for Katara to register the question properly before she nodded slowly.
"Do you know who you are?" she asked. Normally, this would be an odd question. But Katara's life has never been normal. Again she shook her head, this time a lone tear escaping down her cheek.
"My name is Kya, I am Chief of the Northern Water Tribe, widow to the late Chief Hakoda," her eyes bore into Katara's as she said the next part, "and mother to the Princesses of the Northern Water Tribe."
Katara felt her heart drop, and she couldn't stop the tears. It took a great deal of strength to not collapse, but she dropped her face into her hands as she sobbed. So this was the life the Fire Lord stole from her. The family he wretched her away from. She was royalty, and he had her scrubbing the palace outhouses.

Katara felt a new fire light inside her. A new drive.

"We need you, Princess," she said after Katara's sniffling had died down. When she looked up, Kya was inches away from her. Her hands reaching out and gently taking hold of Katara's wrists. She stroked the identical brown skin with her thumb. "I need you," she was holding back sobs of her own.
"I'm coming home." Katara said resolutely. Kya smiled before pulling her daughter into a tight embrace. It felt so real, Katara couldn't believe this was a dream. But she knew it was something more, as she held her mother in her arms for the first time. She knew her mother was connecting with her spirit, and that her people needed her help.

After what seemed quite some time, Kya held Katara at arms length and said, "We'll have someone meet you halfway, they will escort the two the rest of the journey through-"

"Wait, two?" Katara interrupted her, looking at the other woman with confusion.

"Oh, my moonlight," Kya stroked the side of Katara's face with the back of her hand. "You and Prince Zuko must escape together."