Disclaimer: I own Avatar!11oneone, oh and also I have pigs flying out of my nose
It was just before midnight on the night of the new moon, it was pitch-black in the seemingly endless forest, it was impossible to see your own hand in front of your face. The darkness was slowly being chased away by the eerie red glow of a distant predator, or at least it seems that way.
Katara ran aimlessly through the dark forest, she had her arms out ahead of her to block her face from the low branches and loose moss, she had hot tears streaming down her dirty, sweat covered face.
She had never felt so much pain in her life, her heart was crushed and she could literally feel it. Katara ducked behind a tree hidden in even more shadow, and grasped her heart, it pounded hard in her ears as she did so.
Katara felt betrayed, her heart had been ripped out and stomped on, it had been scorched by whom she had once trusted, she burned with fury yet the familiar feeling of love burned inside her as a raging inferno.
She heard a twig snap and a flame shot by her; she took off running in a random direction knowing her predator was close behind. Katara followed the red glow into a small clearing in which nothing but damp leaves lay, she looked in various directions as flames began circling the area she was standing, trapping her in. A twig snapped and some leaves rustled, her eyes darted to the direction of the sound knowing this was the end of this. Another snap was heard, she couldn't tell the difference between a footstep and a flame burning through a twig anymore.
Katara grabbed her stomach and squatted down into a crouching position, she sobbed into her shoulder as her knees touched her chin slightly and her stomach still firm in her grasp, she looked up in time to see her predator step through the flames into the clearing.
He stared down at her for a long while as she sat crying before him, she weakly stood and took her stance unconfidently, not being able to contain herself any longer she absorbed the water lying underneath the fallen leaves and the water in her water sac and hurdled it towards him.
He put up a protective shield of fire around him and evaporating the water leaving her defenseless and weak. He narrowed his eyes some as tears welled up and one found its way down to his cheek, he reached up and captured the tear to look at it, it glistened unusually and reflected his scarred face in its tiny sheen.
Katara seized her chance to run at him wit her fist drawn back, he easily blocked her punch with his forearm and sent a punch into her abdomen, she gaped a bit and stepped back holding her stomach with her eyes wide in shock from the impact.
She was used to bending, not brute force, her face turned a light blue as she struggled for breath. Katara looked up at the predator and grimaced a bit; her eyes were glazed slightly and didn't hold the beauty and passion he had known in her.
Katara closed her eyes focused her mind; she placed her fist in her palm and stood straight up before suddenly darting in a westward direction. She found it, a small underground spring, she could protect herself and possibly get away.
She began digging as fast as she could,she scratched at the ground with as much fury as she could manage. She heard swift footsteps and was alarmed when a foot was placed and pressured ontop ofher hand, Katara's face darted up to the young man whose face was shadowed by the red glow.
Without a word he lifted his foot for an instant to take a position and Katara rolled backwards and stopped in a kneeling position with her forearms facing the sky and her hands in a claw like form.
Water suddenly burst through the earth beneath his feet and began flowing at a decent speed, it wasn't enough to move his armored body, but it was exactly what Katara needed.
She moved her wrists slightly and a few gallons of water was lifted into the air and sent towards the predator with enough pressure to throw him off balance biding her enough time for her tomove back a few feet.
The young Prince quickly regained his balance and with a scowl sent a wall of flames towards Katara, her eyes widen and she instinctively brought her arms up to shield her face and in doing so, she brought enough water to protect herself from burns.
Katara threw her arms down in fists, stopping a few inches from her sides, she spread her legs slightly and bent her knees and began moving her arms up and over herself in circular motions.
The Prince's eyes widened, he knew what this was and he had escaped it before, he stood his ground and dug his heels into the ground, the water formed a large orb around him, all around him water flowing in different directions.
As if in slow motion he watched as the water moved, it moved gracefully, precisely, swiftly, and powerfully, it was as if he was underwater staring at the crashing waves above. His eyes narrowed as he shot flames straight above breaking the flow of the water sending it down upon him, the weight crashing him to the ground.
He clinched his teeth and took a few quick steps towards her, throwing his left leg over himself and landing on it with his right leg extended shooting flames from beneath his feet forcing her to take steps back.
Katara was stopped a few inches short of a tree and Prince Zuko stole this opening with a flame aimed to her feet once again, she was pinned against the tree by Zuko's armored forearm pressingagainst her neck. He narrowed his eyes holding back the tears that were fighting their way out.
Katara's squeezed her eyes closed from the pressure on her neck; she tried straightening out to relieve the pressure. She couldn't breathe anymore the pressure was too great, she began panicking and her eyes darted from side to side searching for salvation, her eyes feel upon the Prince who had his head turned to the side and slightly down and his eyes closed as he applied more pressure to her neck.
She gasped for air andgrabbed at his forearm trying to pull it away, there was no use, with all his training he was far stronger then she was and his arm didn't even budge. Katara raised her arms above her hands and threw them behind her, water crashed hard into Zuko slamming his cold armored body onto hers, not making her feeling any better, but at least she could breathe.
Katara pushed him off her and rubbed her bruised throat, she whimpered a bit and looked at the Prince who was now standing and taking position, he hadn't missed a beat.
She searched for anything else that could help her, a large tree branch to knock him out, a rope to strangle him, even a rock to hit him on the head with. There was nothing, only water and fire.
Prince Zuko swept his leg under her feet knocking her to the ground; he stomped at her shooting flames from the bottom of his feet,Katara rolling as he did. Her kimono was dirty, burned and torn, and her hair was falling out, her blue eyes looked a deep purple now from the red glow, it was haunting.
Katara lay on the ground trying to think of an idea but before regaining composure she was kicked hard in the side, sending her rolling a few feet. She yelped and gripped her side, I could ask him to stop…ahh this hurts…it won't stop…what am I going to do I can't move? I can't ask him to stop that would be weak, I'd never beg for my life! Katara thought to herself as she lay motionless on the ground, her back to the Prince.
Zuko was now sobbing, he couldn't hold himself back anymore and the tears were rolling down his face as if they were spring fed. He shouted incoherently as he kicked Katara hard in the side once again, rolling a few more feet before stopping, her hair was out of its braid and was littered with twigs and leaves.
Katara winced and stopped on her back, she stared up at him as he walked up to her with uncertainy in his stride, her eyes trailing down to his feet watching to see if he could kick her again. He knelt down beside her as if he wanted to help, but his face showed different, he was crying, more then she'd ever see any man cry in her life.
Prince Zuko looked into her eyes long and hard before finally rearing his hand back and slapping her, her head jolting to the side he eyes wide and her mouth open, she turned her to look at him and he backhanded her in the other direction.
He had pain in his eyes, even his scarred eye showed it, he didn't want to be doing this. He took her chin in his hand and faced it towards him again and slapped her again, repeating this numerous times until her face was as red as autumn leaves. She didn't move, she didn't struggle, she didn't even make a sound, the only thing heard was the skin-on-skin contact being made every few seconds.
Zuko threw himself backwards and landed with his knees bent, he stared at his hands which were sore as well and cried as he placed a hand on his forehead, he stood and looked down at Katara, she wasn't moving and her eyes were focused on him.
Zuko closed his eyes and he kicked her once again, this time with all his might andalmostsending herinto the air and rolling quite a number of times, her light frame rolling over twigs and unearthed roots, she stopped on her stomach and didn't move.
Katara clinched her fist and propped herself up with her arms, her hair covering the sides of her face, and tears streaming down. Zuko walked up to her to finish it off and just as he reared back his leg Katara broke through, "Zuko…stop…please…" She said in pain as if she couldn't breathe, she looked up at him, "It hurts…" She said looking down, her choked up voice muffled through the pain she was feeling.
Author's Note's Section- Hey everyone...i was just sick and tired of all these fluffy Zutara fics so i decided to write what >>I felt was romantic ; anyway hope you like
GenaricPerson o()o