Honor Bound
SLAVERY CHALLENGE for T-rex989
Warnings: AU, language, sexual situations/nudity, enslavement, and probs OOC (sorry, I'm trying)
Disclaimer: I do not own ATLA or any of the mentioned characters. All credit should go to the original authors.
Chapter 1
She was running, didn't know where to go, but she had to keep moving or it would catch up. Katara couldn't turn around, it would slow her down too much. Why was it getting so hard to breathe? She sprinted through hallways of blue ice. She chanced a look.
The ice was melting.
It was getting closer.
She sped through the hallways. All the doors had been bolted shut, she could feel the beginnings of bruises form on the palms of her hands from the pounding, her voice hoarse from screaming at barred doors. She realize she had turned down a hallway with fresh snow up to her knees, too late to turn back. Katara's breathing was getting more dyspneic. Why did she feel like she was drowning?
The footsteps got louder. The snow was slowing her down.
'Run…must run faster!'
Her skin crawled as she felt the tips of fingers brush the base of her spine. She couldn't run anymore. The snow had paralyzed her movements to non-existent. A hand grabbed the back of her neck, she tried to scream but the falling snow now too thick, muting her voice.
She could hear Gran Gran clattering about in the kitchen she knew was one more doorway down. The warm golden light shining from under the door.
Sokka's soft metallic zing's he made as he sharpened his boomerang were coming from the door just to her right. A gloved hand covered her mouth.
No one was going to help her. She wanted to cry but couldn't...if she just had AIR.
Slowly she was being pulled back. Katara clawed at the ground but her hands found no purchase against the soft snow.
There was wind against her cheek and the hand was gone.
She found herself suddenly on the docks of her village. Katara looked down and noticed she was in her dress used only for formal occasions. The white bone trinkets that were sewn into the blue hide made her heart ache. Her hand ghosted over embroidery and beads hand sewn by her mother and grandmother.
Sokka was standing next to her father with an angry look. She felt sadness when she finally caught the gaze of her father.
The sky turned red and her father's voice boomed through the clouds.
"This is for the safety of the tribe."
Katara's heart beat faster in her chest as she felt the creature getting closer. She couldn't see it in all this red, but she knew something was coming.
Leather wrapped around her neck and squeezed.
"You will be mine…" Katara tried to scream again…nothing.
She turned to shove herself away from the monster and regretted looking into it's eyes. It looked like a man, but everything was wrong. It's head was too enormous for it's body, the black eyes with gold irises buzzed inside the sockets, not stopping for a second to examine any one thing. Like bugs flying to all corners of a glass jar. The skin of the face was slowly melting on to it's black cape that engulfed nearly the entire dock.
"You will be mine…"
She was going to die. No one was going to save her. No one could hear her. She was−
Katara bolted up right at the sound of metal screeching. Her chest heaving from the nightmare. A tall shadow with broad shoulders entered her cell and her mind immediately went back to the horrendous image of the monster in the hallway.
"My…my…it seems my precious ocean gem has finally awakened," the voice lowered, "did you enjoy your nightmare?" Katara glared at the man that had stolen her from her home. This man…Admiral Zhao…she prayed for the day he would drown in the waters of her home. He stepped closer to her until he was almost to the edge of her blanket.
"It really is a shame the Fire Lord asked for this type of present specifically. The Fire Prince wouldn't know what to do with a woman, much less a personal slave. I'm sure we would have gotten along famously…" Katara tried hard not to scoff at his remark. She sat on her bunk poised and calm. Well, as calm as she could, being that her hands were currently tied behind her back and she was sitting in a cell somewhere at the bottom of a ship.
She didn't let her face show any emotion as the man leaned forward to inspect her face.
Zhao or Monkey Beard, she'd prefer to think of him as, oozed arrogance and power. He lifted a hand to her chin but Katara yanked her face away from him before he could touch her. The smile that spread across his face made her stomach churn.
"Get her cleaned up and ready. I want her presentable when we dock with Prince Zuko's ship." He turned to leave the cell, letting two male servants enter the cell quickly to grab the girl.
"What are you doing?! DON'T TOUCH ME!"
Zhao's rat-snake charm of a smile didn't leave his faceas she was nearly dragged out of the cell. She noticed a table with clothing folded neatly on the edge and a large water basin next to them.
"Zhao you despicable creature of a man…I'll make sure you−"
"Silence her."
"WH-hnn!"
She tried to yell in horror as the servants yanked and quickly stripped her of her clothing. Zhao doing nothing but watching from his place against the wall. The servants took a knife to her dirty and torn dress to remove it completely, not once unbinding her wrists. Katara felt her heart give a thump at the sound of the white bone beads spilling onto the floor, her mother's dress now in shreds at her feet.
"Hmm…interesting…" Zhao hummed at the sight. Katara tried to glare as viciously as she could as the servants yanked and sliced her clothes, exposing more and more of her dark skin. Heat flooded to her cheeks from embarrassment.
A hand grabbed her hair and roughly dumped her face into the water basin. The water was so cold she couldn't help but gasp and breathe in the frozen water, her hair was yanked back seconds later. The soaking wet gag didn't help her as she tried to cough out the liquid trapped in her lungs.
Wet wash cloths scrubbed every inch of her skin. They didn't even giver her the dignity of washing her most personal areas by herself. The servants continued to scrub her skin until it was raw and poured the last of the icy water over her head to rid her hair and body of any soap that had been left behind.
"Hold her down Zhato."
"Hnn?" The one named Zhato moved the now empty water basin over and grabbed Katara by the back of her neck, forcing her forehead against the table. She felt what must have been his forearm against her lower back, completely pinning her against the metal table. She tried to wriggle out of his grasp but a third hand pressed against her back as well.
Her mind raced at the ideas of what they were going to do. She suppressed the muffled yelp that almost left her mouth as she felt cool liquid brush against her spine at the base of her neck. She couldn't even decipher what had been written on her skin. When she felt the last of the liquid dry, a hot hand pressed against the same spot. She couldn't help the whimper escape her lips as she felt the markings from the liquid feel as if they were burning straight into her vertebrae. Zhao's footsteps echoed against the metal walls as he walked closer to the table.
"Perfect."
She immediately was released and pulled back to standing, head feeling dizzy from the force.
Katara couldn't keep the blush from rising to her cheeks when the other servant had gone to retrieve the clothing on the table and came back with some stringed catastrophe.
"You like it, do you? I had it made specifically for you. Nothing screams personal companion like the clothing of a whore. " Katara couldn't help but glare at Zhao when she heard him starting to laugh. "Precious Agni…Prince Zuko is going to soil his pants when he sees you. After his outburst years ago about human equality for the soldiers blah…blah…I've been dying to give him a present such as yourself." Zhao wiped a tear from his cheek, "Agni, it still makes me laugh so hard even to this day."
When the servants had finally finished dressing her and powdering her cheeks she looked down. Well…if she didn't feel violated before.
Her breasts were covered with two triangle strips of thick cloth that tied behind her neck and a thick strip of cloth along the bottom that tied in the back. Silver and white wooden beads hung off of the navy blue top in a "U" fashion that made delicate clinking noises against her skin as she moved. She had on what she assumed was underwear in the same dark color blue that tied on the sides of her hips, but she had never seen a pair of underwear that even revealed this much thigh. To top it off there was a light blue, see-through wrap as soft as silk that did nothing to hid her legs. It had been tied off on the left side of her hip and the entirety of her left leg peaked through.
At least the colors were familiar in the sea of red she had been surrounded in. Katara would rather die than live in cloths that screamed "Fire Nation", the same nation she was enslaved under. At least she could still claim home in the colors of her past.
Her knees swayed at the soft rocking of the ship, Zhao raised his head.
"It seems we've caught sight of Prince Zuko's ship." His rat-snake charm smile reappeared. "Get her fully prepared. I don't want Prince Zuko's present tarnished." And with that he left. The servants pulled and brushed her hair so roughly she was sure she'd be bald before the moon rose in the sky. But being that they didn't know what to do with her hair, they left it down, not bothering in tying it up.
Katara's heart sank as she was yanked up the endless stairs she had been dragged down on only weeks before. She prayed to Tui and La for strength and protection as she ascended the stairs, hoping this Prince Zuko wouldn't be as horrible as Zhao.
The sun blinded her as she was pushed past the thick metal door. She couldn't help the hiss that escaped her lips as the servant yanked on her arm, almost taking the bone out of it's socket as she was hauled to stand behind Zhao and another man. Zhato held her almost at arm's length as if she was still covered in dirt and grime while the other untied her gag and left.
The two men turned to look at her. She felt her eyes widen as they settled on the other man. He was tall and his posture was powerful. His armor was more decorated than Zhao's and his hair was longer. She felt her breath hitch when her eyes landed on the golden flame perfectly placed in his top knot.
"You weren't lying when you said you had captured quite the specimen. Although, she is a little thick for my tastes." The Fire Lord's voice made her skin crawl.
"Indeed Your Majesty, but can you imagine? After searching the entire Southern Water Tribe and this was all they had to offer? It should be shameful their race has even lived this long. I even had to take a look for myself."
The Fire Lord's perfect eyebrow raised as he looked towards Zhao. "Admiral Zhao, we both know you did a little more than searching in the South." Katara clenched her jaw at what seemed like an inside joke to them. "But I'm sure Prince Zuko will appreciate his birthday gift, it is quite an honor to be given a personal companion after all." The Fire Lord turned back to Zhao.
"Not to mention his recent promotion," Admiral Zhao growled.
"It could not be helped, my older sibling had made the decision final after he had notified me. Iroh has too soft a heart, it's a wonder he hasn't destroyed the Fire Navy in his position as Grand Admiral."
Katara saw Zhao's face turn sour. "Agreed."
It had taken a while for the ships to position for docking. The waves were calm enough that the metal plank connecting the ship clanged sadly as waves barely jostled the two enormous metal ships. Katara noticed a man emerge on the other ship and began walking towards the plank. She noted a familiarity on his face that almost resembled the Fire Lord. He would have been a perfect clone of his father if he didn't have the bright red scar over his left eye. The man's eyes locked onto Katara's and narrowed as he crossed the bridge, his scar wrinkling at the movement. Katara couldn't help but stare and hoped that that wasn't the famous Prince she was being rewarded too.
The man bowed deeply towards the Fire Lord after he finally stepped foot on the opposite ship.
"Greetings Fire Lord," He turned and gave the same bow to Zhao, "Admiral Zhao, good day."
The Fire Lord spoke first, "You certainly took your time to meet with us, Prince Zuko." Katara could have sworn the tension in the air increased ten fold, her heart clenched at use of the name. Of course, she had to have jinxed herself.
"My apologies." Admiral Zhao turned and motioned for the servant to walk forward. Her arm was jerked again and they stopped a few feet from the men.
"Prince Zuko," Zhao began, "for your most recent promotion to Commander of the Fire Navy along with the 25th celebration of your birth, I present to you my gift." The prince's eyes barely glanced over Katara. "She is a delicacy of the Southern Water Tribe. I hope you enjoy your gift to the fullest of it's capacity." Katara tried hard to keep the bile from spilling out of her throat, she clenched her hands into fists behind her back.
The tension didn't ease as the Prince didn't so much as look away from Admiral Zhao. She saw his jaw clench and unclench before he finally answered with a bow.
"I am honored to accept such a humble gift from my superior." Katara thought his raspy voice held a little too much annoyance for him to truly be grateful.
Katara tried hard not to gasp again at the rough jerk on her arm and followed Zhato onto the plank. She looked over the edge and yearned to feel the freedom of the ocean swaying under their feet. It felt like ages since the last time she had danced with the ocean waves.
As they reached the end, Zhato shoved her away from him and made a sound of disgust. "I feel like I need a bath. I can't believe I was stuck with washing and preparing her for this." As if the servant was wiping imaginary dirt off his hands, he turned away once Katara had successfully been grabbed by someone else.
She looked up at the man currently holding her shoulder and shuddered. He was definitely a sailor and not a servant judging by his clothing but the smirk on his face did nothing to ease her thoughts.
"Yur lucky yur the prince's prize and nobody else's girlie…t'sa shame too." He pulled her to a metal door and opened it with a huff. She glanced back towards the other ship to see the Fire Lord, Admiral and Prince still talking, although the prince now seemed to be holding a small wrapped package. Her vision was blocked completely as a gag was placed over her mouth and a dark woven cloth over her eyes. She tried to yell and squirm away but the hands holding onto her had too strong a grip.
She was being led down a hallway and was hoisted over a shoulder when she had almost tumbled down a set of stairs. The sailor's shoulder dug into her stomach and nothing she did could ease the pain in her abdomen. Her head was swimming, dizzy from the twists and turns she felt him make before the sound of a door alerted her ears and she was roughly tossed onto a hard mat.
"Sit up girlie!" Rough hands pulled at her unbound hair into a sitting position. With the blindfold and gag into place, not to mention her hands still tied behind her back, Katara knew her options were limited. She sat on her heels as she thought of what her fate would be. From the sound of the sailor's mouth breathing, he dragged her down to this room and was probably standing in the open doorway. Silence permeated the air for a while before a pair of footsteps echoed down the hallway.
"Leave us." Katara heard the sailor mumble something in acknowledgement and the sound of a heavy metal door and a lock clicking into place dampened her spirits. So much for the "bust through the door" idea she had going.
A wave of heat passed by her and she could have sworn it might have been a flame but the smell of smoke was nowhere in the air. The room was starting to warm to an almost uncomfortable degree before the source of heat vanished with a low male growl. Something sounded as if paper were being crumpled or hit onto a hard surface on the other side of the room. Katara gulped.
It was a second before she heard the familiar voice of the prince utter a string of curses under his breath and the sensation of hands lifting the blindfold and untying the gag from her mouth. Her vision swam for a little and her heart rate spiked when she felt hot heat against her wrists only seconds later to feel the rope falling from her wrists.
As soon as she was free Katara shoved against the Fire Prince's chest and tried to crawl away until her back hit a cold metal wall. When her eyesight finally normalized, Katara glanced around the room frantically. It was a moderate size room that was bare with only a bed, dresser and desk in it. Red curtains were pulled over the large window-like door casting the room in a warm red light. Her eyes quickly went to the prince crouched in front of her and noticed an annoyed expression on his face.
He rose from his position on the bed and walked to the window on the opposite far side from the door and ripped the curtains open. Katara immediately saw a small patio with a chair and a small table on the opposite side of the glass doors that over-looked the ocean.
Her heart started racing. She saw her way out.
Her eyes went back to the prince when he moved to cross his arms. She saw him release a slow breath that almost looked like steam before he turned to her. Fear and raw nerves scrunched into a knot in her throat.
"As if I don't have enough things to worry about, I now have you. This is just perfect." Katara remained silent as he clenched his eyes shut and rubbed at the bridge of his nose. Katara took the moment to really examine the prince. Save for the nasty scar that took up the large majority of his face, the prince wasn't too horrible to look at, he even was nice looking when his good side was turned to her, hiding the hideous mark. At least he was more attractive than Monkey Beard. She stopped her thoughts when the prince's gaze returned to her.
"I'm unaware if you truly understand the position of a personal companion when in the Fire Nation, but it is actually revered as a place of honor. With you being a peasant from the Southern Water Tribe, I can't even think you comprehend." Katara just stared at him, she had to bite her tongue to suppress the urge to hit him. His good eye widened a bit, "shit…I didn't even think to ask. Do you even speak Agnilese?"
Well, this would be entertaining if anything. Katara tried to look confused and tilted her head a bit. The prince groaned and sat on the edge of the mat next to her, rubbing anxiously at his face before looking at her again.
"Do you…understand…me?" Why was he speaking louder?
She pinched her thumb and index finger together and motioned it towards the prince, "little…ĥjuté" It took all of Katara's might not to laugh out loud at the miserable expression on Prince Zuko's face.
"Precious be Agni…as if this situation wasn't a mess to begin with!" the prince groaned into his hands once more. Katara chanced a quick look to the ocean while the prince was distracted. Folding a piece of hair behind her ear she turned back to him as he looked to her.
"Well first things first, you need to bathe. You smell like Zhao's precious mineral oils he won't shut up about." She watched him nervously as he stood and opened a door opposite to the bed and disappeared into the other room. She noticed a mirror and a tub from her vantage point and slowly rose from the mat when she heard the sounds of running water. As she stepped closer, Katara noticed that the smaller room was just as bare as the main room with another door on the opposite side. A long rectangular window ran across the length of the bathing room at the same height as the Prince's head. She figured if she stood on the ledges of the tub and climbed the wall, she'd be able to see her ocean again.
A commanding male voice crashed into her reverie and looked up at the Prince with a questioning look on her face.
"Strip." Prince Zuko's voice held the same authority and annoyance as when he talked to Zhao earlier. She furrowed her eyebrows.
"Out." She pointed towards the door for emphasis. The prince raised an eyebrow before he slowly stepped backwards, pushing the door further open on his way out. His gaze almost daring her to object. She stayed silent as he walked out of the room and disappeared around the corner. She assumed he went out onto the patio when she heard the sound of a door sliding. Katara didn't dare undress until she heard the door slide to a closed.
She smiled as it clicked shut.
In a flurry of excitement she stripped herself of her blue top and skirt, leaving her lower garment on and quickly made for the large tub.
Katara let out a small whine as the cold water reach her midsection but continued down into the water until she was completely submerged. The cool water did little to smooth her frazzled brain as she tried to push herself to the bottom. She opened her eyes underwater and peered up at the warping window. The light reflecting through the water almost made her see rainbows. A peaceful calm washed over her as her element lapped and pushed against her tired body. She didn't think she'd be able to bask in the luxury of her element when she had first been taken from her home.
But she would be home eventually. She had to get back.
Katara came up for another breath. She pulled her feet up and out of the water, sliding closer to the end with the faucet before pinching her nose closed with her fingers and leaning backwards into the water.
She stayed there as long as she could, peaking her eyes open to look at the ceiling, Katara nearly choked on the bath water as a face appeared.
The furious face of the fire prince suddenly peering over the tub made her gasp in surprise and rise out of the water, hacking and coughing.
"What are you doing?!" Katara screamed as she covered herself.
He braced himself on the edge of the tub and leaned over her.
"Do I have to worry about you?" His face inches from hers. Her eyes widened at the statement.
"I would never allow myself to die so carelessly away from my homeland." Her tribal accent thick as it rolled with her tongue. The prince only narrowed his eyes.
"So you can understand me just fine. Move over." Her eyes bugged out.
"Excuse me?!"
"I don't repeat myself. I don't trust you to not be foolish." Katara tried to contain her growl as she floated to the corner of the tub farthest from the prince. He must have already removed his armor because his shirt had been removed so easily, already on the floor. He removed everything except his under garments and swiveled over the edge of the tub. His top knot was still perfectly in place. He let out a hiss as his feet went into the water. "It's barbaric thinking you've been in this cold water."
She couldn't keep her eyes off of his form as she watched the muscles in his abdomen and arms flex as they came in contact with the cold water. Maybe fighting the prince in hand-to-hand was not such a good idea.
The prince finally sat in the tub and laid back against the opposite end, making himself comfortable. His feet on either side of Katara. While the tub may be large for one person, it was a snug fit with two people.
Katara bit her lip to ease her nerves. "What are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing?" He laid his head back and closed his eyes. She watched in curiosity as he brought his fists together, palm against fist, and exhaled a deep breath. Within seconds Katara could feel the water warm to incredible temperatures. Was the fire prince planning on boiling her alive?!
"Stop! It's getting too hot!" The prince immediately stopped his breathing and peaked through his good eye. Katara tried not to panic as she felt goosebumps travel up her entire body.
He quirked his eyebrow at her, "is this really too hot?" Katara just looked at him and moved her legs under the water. This was bad. If she got onto the prince's bad side, he could boil her with her own bath water.
"No…I'll think I'll be okay." He nodded.
"Come." He raised his arms and motioned to her with his fingers. Tentatively, Katara moved closer, keeping her arms over her chest. When her shoulder was within reach, the prince pulled her until she was straddling his lap, pried her arms away from her chest and froze. "What is that?"
"They're breasts…" Katara couldn't look him in the eye as she felt her cheeks get hot.
"I know what breasts are…I'm speaking about that."
"It's a piercing."
"Obviously….your culture is barbaric."
"So is yours." Katara whipped her head around and glared him in the eye.
"How is my culture barbaric when you use bones of other animals to pierce your nipples?" His voice rasping in annoyance.
"You gift humans to other humans. Plus it's archaic that men in your culture still have their nipples! What…do you expect to breastfeed in the near fut−" The prince's hand shot out of the water and grabbed her jaw.
"Watch your tongue." His voice lowering as he continued. "You'd be wise to not upset me. Since my honor is riding on the success of this forever fucked of a situation Zhao and my father have put me in, I intend for this companionship to last. I'm an honorable man but that doesn't mean you can tempt me. You are still my property and I am still allowed to act however I please. Did I make myself clear, water peasant?" The hold on Katara's jaw was too tight for her to nod her head, but the prince seemed to get the idea.
"I understand…Master…" Zuko sneered as he lowered his hand back to the water.
"And here I thought you were only able to speak my language minimally." He raised an eyebrow at her in a challenge. Katara couldn't help but move her glare away. "Just call me Zuko in private. Keep those names only when we're in public. Speaking of which, what is your name?"
She rubbed her jaw a bit before responding. "Katara." She tried not to flinch when his other hand reached out of the steaming water, his index fingers tracing over her jaw.
"Do you have any others?"
"A-Any what?"
A calloused finger dragged against the bone piercing and traced the puckered flesh. Katara closed her eyes.
Oh…
"I-I don't…I−" another few fingers traced the soft ridge of her collarbone, dipping towards the swell of her breast. His blunt nails dragged against her ribcage.
"Katara, I'm waiting."
"No," her breathing increased when the fingers traced the tops of her shoulders. Katara felt breathless when she finally saw his gaze. The smoldering look he held lit something deep inside her.
How was he able to do this to her?
His left hand rested against her hip under the water while the other traced her jaw. Her heart beat ran wild as the prince slowly leaned forward, placing his lips over her ear. She suppressed a shiver.
"Katara…I apologize for the forcefulness earlier, now move." Slowly, she retreated to her end of the tub and blamed the hot water for the heat in her cheeks as she watched him move out of the water. She couldn't stop her eyes from following his backside, his undergarments looked like they were clinging to everything. She forced herself to solely looking at her knees when she realized she had been ogling his back muscles and watching the way they flexed as he rubbed the crisp off-white towel around his body to dry himself.
Why was it so hard to swallow down the lump in her throat?
With the towel finally wrapped around his waist, the prince turned to her. Steam rose off his shoulders and chest and quickly evaporated the remaining water into the air. His golden eyes taking in her entire form before looking in her eyes. Katara swore she thought the man before her was a dragon disguised as a human. The scar on his face making him already look half-dragon.
"Come join me when you're finished." And with that he left the bathing room. The knot in her throat finally went down.
Katara tried to steal her heart against the molten eyes that burned into her memory. This man was dangerous. She couldn't tell if her heart was beating from fear or excitement. Her rampant emotions bringing the water back to a comfortable cool, a thin layer of ice starting to form. With enough resolve powering her gut, Katara got out of the comfort of her liquid element and dried herself. She bit her lip when she realized the prince had not given her anything else to wear. Not wanting to walk around naked, she put back on her skimpy top and skirt and padded out to the prince.
As she finally stepped out of the bathroom, Katara almost faltered in her step when she saw the prince's eyes immediately open to the sounds of her footfalls. His golden eyes glowing in the candlelight. The smell of fresh fruit and spice wafted in the air as she stepped closer to the prince. He must have changed into comfortable pants after he left, still neglecting to put on a shirt. It was almost hard to look at him without averting her eyes, he seemed too comfortable laying on his mat half naked. The prince motioned for her to sit near the head of the mat, rolling to his side to grab a cup filled with various fruits. He shocked Katara when he rolled back over and laid his head on her thighs.
She couldn't help but look at him inquisitively as he set the cup on his chest, tapping a finger to his lips. Did he seriously want her to feed him? Katara couldn't imagine someone who seemed very prideful enjoying such a thing.
She clenched her teeth, ridding herself of her own pride as she reached for the cup and retrieved a small grape. The fruit looking as if it were about to burst with it's own juices. She gulped down her nerves as she pressed the fruit to his lips, sliding it easily into his mouth. The pad of her finger tingled as it came into contact with his lips.
She felt a tingle bubble up her spine as his jaw flexed and the muted crunch of the grape made its way to her ears.
"Another."
Again she reached for another fruit, and felt her skin burn from where she knew he was watching her. Still, her fingers tingled at the touch of his skin.
"Another."
The audible popping of the grapes was becoming addictive.
"More."
Electricity shot to the center of her palm as his teeth grazed her fingers. The crunching of the grape somehow had started to excite her spirit and warm her core like the fire pits back home. She tongued the back of her teeth as she watched his adam's apple move along the prince's throat as he swallowed.
"Another." She couldn't help but notice his voice had gotten lower.
Katara picked up a fruit she had never seen before. It's tiny little seeds almost covering the entire outer skin. The man below her must have picked up on her confusion before speaking.
"It's called a strawberry. Have you tried one before?"
"No, it almost looks poisonous." His lips barely moved as he smirked.
"I assure you it's not." Katara couldn't stop the worried look from showing on her face. His eyes narrowed slightly, "try it."
She shook her head, "this wasn't for me−" His palm shot up too quickly for her to register, stopping her hand from bringing the fruit to his lips.
"Try…"
She licked her lips in nervousness. She gulped as she stared at it. His palm giving a gentle push on her wrist again in encouragement.
She didn't break eye contact as her teeth dragged against the red fruit and bit down. Her taste buds tingled in excitement as the fruit's soft flesh embraced her tongue. She had to cover her face with her other hand as she felt juice spill out the corners of her lips.
Her eyes wanted to roll to the back of her head in the sudden euphoria as she took another bite of the fruit. She couldn't help the barely audible moan from escape her throat and into the silent room. Katara felt the embarrassment smack her cheeks when her own voice echoed in her ears.
She jolted as the prince moved from his spot on her lap and sat up quickly. The fire in his eyes burning something bright deep within her as he dragged his thumb over the juice that had spilled over her jaw and watched in a mix of wonder and horror as he sucked his thumb clean. This man had to have been a dragon in a previous life to have so much heat in his gaze, Katara felt like he was trying to melt her soul through his eyes.
She leaned forward to grab one of the cloth napkins, her hair falling over her shoulder. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make a mess." As she leaned back her heart jumped into her throat when she saw pure uncontrolled anger burning in his golden eyes.
"What was…" Before she could ask what was wrong, he grabbed her shoulder and tugged her hair away from her neck. "Those sick bastards!" His hands felt like fire against her skin.
"Let me go! You're burning me!" She felt a hot stream of air on her neck as he growled in anger and released her.
What was written on her neck that made him so furious? What did Zhao write?!
"Zuko!" Before she could get another word out, he had quickly grabbed a robe that had been thrown over the edge of the chair and stormed out of the room.
Katara couldn't stop the slight jump of her muscles as the heavy metal door slammed closed.
What just happened?
Katara growled as she threw the remains of the fruit back into the bowl.
"This is just great!" She rose and started pacing the prince's room, even the familiarity of her native language was doing nothing to calm her down. "Great going Katara, not only is the person in charge of your life somehow pissed at you, you had to somehow insult him enough to make him storm off!" She let out a frustrated growl as she kicked his pillow.
"You can't do anything right! Now I'll probably be stuck here longer as his stupid stupid stupid companion!" She stomped her foot with extra vigor on the pillow as she cursed. "There's not even a…wait!" She rushed to the side door. She smiled in excitement as the door slid open easily. Wind whipped through her hair and into the room as she slipped outside, sliding it home to stop the vortex of wind from possibly destroying the room any further. Her heart leapt into her throat as she raced to the edge of the small patio.
The ocean's color of deep blue was calling out. She wanted to desperately jump into the water, as she looked down, she gasped. The water below her was a raging torment as it swirled around the edges of the ship. The whitecaps and foam telling her more than enough that the she might not make the jump. She couldn't believe a ship this large was able to go at such a fast pace. The ships of the Southern Water Tribe only relied on wind and the power of a water bender if necessary.
Her knuckles turned white as she clenched the metal railing.
"There's no way…" She didn't even have to test the theory. She would die if she jumped into such ice cold raging waters. While she may be surrounded by her element, she wouldn't be able to bend herself continuously, night and day, until she reached her home shore.
Katara forbid her eyes from tearing up, unwilling to show such weakness even when alone. But the truth was…she didn't even know the direction of home.
As that final thought floated through her mind, the tears welled up on the rims of her eye lids.
"I just have to be patient." She reminded herself. "I just have to wait until the moment is right." Gran Gran's soft crackled voice floated through her head.
"A hasty judgment in an unfamiliar setting would crack the ice of even the thickest glaciers."
Katara smiled sadly, at least she still could remember the warmth of her Gran Gran's voice even at this distance.
She took a staggering breath in, wondering what Gran Gran was doing at this moment. Was she worrying over her? She couldn't help a weak smile at the realization that Sokka would have to wash his own dirty socks from now on until she made it home. And her father…
'Father…do you even regret what you've done?'
She wiped a tear from the edge of her cheek and took one last long look at her ocean. She could make out the barest of dark grey clouds on the horizon. Tui and La have been keeping her safe, she shouldn't doubt the great spirits if they were taking such great lengths to help her.
Katara turned back towards the room and landed on the mat with a huff. The grumpy prince had yet to return. Her eyes bobbed around the unfamiliar room and landed on the small paper package. Rising from the mat, she made her way to the desk and picked up the package. It smelled weird, like an earthy, sweet tea but felt much heavier than tea. Turning it over and over in her hand, she couldn't decipher what it could be.
"Maybe just a quick peak…"
She pulled on the string slowly until it untied. Inside was a round glass container with a lid that opened from a golden latch. Flipping the latch open, she was correct in her assumption of tea. The leaves looked a green-black color with small flecks of dark red leaves. As Katara flipped the lid open, she noticed character markings along the underside of the lid. The characters were completely unfamiliar to her and hoped that she would over hear Zuko reading them out loud at some point. The markings must mean something important or the tea must have been valuable if he were to get it as a birthday present.
She gritted her teeth at the reminder that she was his present as well.
The image of strange characters reminded her of the markings on her own skin. She wondered what was written on her neck. It had been bad enough to make the prince mad. It would be horrible to have something vulgar written on her neck and not even be aware of it. She hadn't even been able to see them properly since turning her head would never work and the prince only had one small mirror. Katara let a hand rub at the skin on the back of her neck before setting the glass jar on the table and turning back to the prince's bed.
Images of the anger in his eyes swirled around her mind. Katara let out a frustrated groan into his pillow and grabbed at the burgundy blankets folded at the foot of the mat.
"There's no use ignoring a perfectly good bed if he's off storming somewhere else, right?" With a flick of her wrist, a small bubble of water from one of the cups on the food tray seemed to dance throughout the room as it extinguished the flames from the candles one by one. With the last drop of water evaporating in a hiss with the last candle, Katara turned on her side away from the door and closed her eyes.
Images of the fire prince's smirking lips trickled through her mind. She couldn't stopped her mind from replaying the sensation of his teeth on her fingers. Her brain didn't stop her torment as she dreamed of what her skin would feel like if he dragged his teeth elsewhere.
A/N:
Slavery challenge fic for T-rex989 Part 1 of 3. But WOW I'm sooooo sorry this has taken me so long to freaking upload. I hope this isn't a disappointment!
Hope you all enjoyed! I would totally believe it if Ozai and Zhao were BFFs and get together to mess around with poor Zuko. Extra points if Ursa never found out. It has to be canon somewhere…
PS: the word ĥjuté used earlier is a made up word basically meaning "idiot". If some characters seem familiar it's because the basis is from the Siouan language (primarily Lakota) but it's still jarble.
See you in the next chapter
-AR