The Warring Heart - a Zutara fanfic
Disclaimer: I do not own the Avatar world, or characters. They belong to Nickelodeon. I just own this story
Chapter 1: Clear Skies
A soft breeze played in Katara's chocolate tresses sending a strong waft of salty ocean air under her nose. The sun shined brightly, blessing the group of friends with its warmth as they floated dreamily through the cool crisp air on the mammoth bison Appa. Her brother Sokka sat lazily in the saddle and sharpened his cherished boomerang with the look of sheer boredom plastered on his young boyish face. Meanwhile Aang cheerfully relaxed on Appa's head loosely holding the reigns while a cuddled lemur named Momo slept cozily beside him.
Katara relished these serene moments with her friends. They temporarily distracted her from their missions sending her into the illusion of peace, but with the stressful life that they lived, any reprieve would be appreciated. Not to long ago a power hungry prince was on their tails, nearly succeeding in his goal of capturing the Avatar. Prince Zuko seemed to always be one step ahead of them, always showing up at the worst possible moments. Katara hated confrontations with the Fire Nation mainly because they would cause a loved one to enter dangerous situations. She shook the thoughts from her mind; contemplating on such things would ruin a perfect day.
"Hey Aang, I think were all out of supplies" muttered a hungry Sokka
"We'll stop soon, Appa's tired anyway. There should be land somewhere" the boy replied
"Good cuz I'm hungry."
"Sokka can't you think of anything but your stomach?" Katara asked
"There are other things than my stomach?" The young warrior answered, with a look of bewilderment on his face.
They all laughed at his idiotic reply, adding to the blissful enjoyment of their long journey.
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Arcs of flames viciously ripped through the air in a dark metal room, revolving around an aggravated and angry Zuko. The fires licked imaginary foes; while the prince's precise and sharp movements left them in shambles. The center of Zuko's frustration was the delayed event of capturing of the Avatar. Again that boy slipped through his grasp, denying him his longed desire of returning home. The mere thought of this sent the prince into wild raging attacks which bathed the room with fire.
"Take a rest Prince Zuko before you hurt yourself."
The enraged boy did not care for his concerned uncle's advice and continued with a flurry of attacks.
"Perhaps some tea would calm you?" Iroh suggested
"I don't want any of your tea! What I want is the Avatar!" Zuko snapped
"And how will slashing through air bring you closer to this? If you don't rest when you go to catch the Avatar you will be out of breath!"
Zuko sighed, unfortunately his uncle was right. His training would increase his chances of completing his goal, but without proper rest his training would be useless. Zuko made one last jab at his invisible opponent before breathing deeply and taking part in a quick meditation to calm him. He grabbed his heavily embellished robe and placed it upon his sturdy and well built torso.
"Now don't you feel better?" His uncle cheerfully asked.
Zuko grunted and left the room leaving his uncle behind. Zuko paced up the stairs to the main deck and was met with a cold breeze that pricked at his skin. The sun was losing an age old battle leaving behind a trail of blood across the sky, mixed with the cool hues of its foe. The last fading light reflected into Zuko's golden eyes giving them an unnatural glow.
The Avatar had to be close; he had been in hot pursuit of him since their last encounter which was about a week ago. Zuko had pressed the captain to maintain top speed. He was not going to let that boy escape him easily.
A sailor cautiously approached the hot headed prince.
"Sir, there is land in sight. We saw the Avatar's bison heading in that direction. What are your orders?" the man nervously questioned
Zuko quietly thought about the man's question before coming to a solution.
"Tell the helmsman to steer towards it and to be prepared to dock"
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The giant bison rested upon a hill top surrounded by bits of exotic flora. Down one side of the hill, a dark ocean met with a sandy beach. On the opposite side was magnificent view of the island. Rolling hills were littered with towering trees which bowed to a massive white capped mountain. An enormous black garment dressed the clear sky, decorated with millions of sparkling diamonds.
Katara was exhausted, she had fished by using waterbending, help set up camp, and had aided her friends in gathering wild fruits and such for later consumption. On top of that they had been traveling for two days, not that it was hard work, but traveling for hours on end on bison's back in a saddle is very uncomfortable no matter how nice the surroundings are. The three friends currently sat upon the soft earthen ground resting near a toasty fire.
"Hey Aang, do you think we lost Zuko?" Katara wearily asked
"I should think so; we haven't seen him for about a week." Aang cheerily answered
"Doesn't that guy have a life? I bet this guy wakes up every single morning with one thought, capture the Avatar." Sokka angrily stated while rolling his cerulean eyes
"That would get boring" Aang laughed "But underneath all that armor I bet he's a really nice guy"
"Face it Aang, that guy has a lump of coal for a heart" argued the Water Tribe warrior
"That's what probably keeps his fire burning" Katara playfully added
They all had a good laugh, even Momo clicked at the excitement.
Katara thoughtfully gazed over the land. How nice it would be if this war was over. She wanted nothing more than to return home to the Southern Water Tribe and see Gran Gran. She missed everything she left behind dearly, but it could not be helped. Aang needed her and she promised that she would be there for him.
Katara continued to stare out into the distance when something caught her eye.
Smoke…
A/N: This is basically the introductory chapter, trust me the story gets a lot better!