Title: In The Midnight Before Day
Multi-Chaptered
Summary:
Katara is one of the newer female jockeys in the racing world. Belonging to West Dragon Stables, she spends her days doing her favourite things. Riding and looking after her two-year-old filly Painted Lady. Everything of her being is put into Lady. Waking up at 2AM every morning. Her life starts to shift when Iroh's nephew Zuko, a three-day-eventer with a four-year-old colt, returns from college. Their relationship is an odd one, everyone knows it. A bit like love... Nobody could've predicted however, how disastrous things would turn out when Azula, Zuko's sister, steps onto the stage. No one would've predicted that afternoon.
AN: I do not own A:TLA in any of its shapes or forms. The only things I own are the words upon this page and the introduction of equines and no powers. Of course they never had powers anyway here...if only they did.
Katara felt the pull of muscle, the pulse of a horse's heart. Her steed pounded the earth with his hooves. In the midst of the race she didn't notice the goggles' strap irritating her ear. All she could see was red-and-white-and-grey-and-brown. The finish line was in front of her. She pounded the reins with all her might and pants puffed from her chest. One more horse in front of them. She couldn't give ground... they were too close to allow the horse behind them to get ahead. Rochester grunted, throwing himself forward for all he was worth, lungs heaving with effort. They passed the finish line and Katara tugged on the reins, the mud-coated horse's legs slowing. As he gathered a relaxed pace, his sides puffed in release. Eventually the gelding slowed to a walk and Katara was able to dismount.
She glanced down at the blue-and-white jockey silks, splattered with dirty brown blobs. She took Rochester's reins and led him from the track, but not before glancing at the results. Rochester. Second to Bloody Persephone, a filly from the same stable as Rochester. After the handler led Rochester away Katara was met by the owner and trainer of both horses, Iroh. The man grinned at her through a long beard. "Good job. Chester really got a work-out out there, didn't he?"
Katara grinned. "I can't believe it's only my second time and my legs feel about to snap."
"If anything that just proves that it's your second time! So good job! Anyway, that race was full of stress for you, so have a breather. I know a tea shop called Ruffian Tea. But, my nephew's coming back from college in a few days and he had hired an exercise rider for his colt, but the exercise rider broke his wrist. Could you take over?"
Katara took off her helmet and shook her dark hair loose. "Of course, Iroh."
"Oh and also," Iroh winked. "Look in the mirror before washing."
That night, as she stripped for her shower she looked at her face. On it was a thick layer of dirt and mud with two rings around her eyes and a smile across her face.
At 2AM Katara did what she always did. The girl got out of bed, got breakfast and then exhaustedly stumbled to the paddocks. The dark was a veil, unyielding and pouring down. She used the rails for a while to help see in the dark, and then helped herself into one of the pastures. The grating of the hinges awoke the horse inside. After the horse identified Katara, the filly trotted over to the small girl who was her owner. Katara flashed her torch onto the dainty horse's brown coat. "Hi Lady." The filly was named Painted Lady and she had been Katara's since she reared her tiny head into the world and vice-versa. The 2-year-old's mother had belonged to Kya, Katara's mother, so the Painted Lady was rightfully hers.
Katara felt as though they shared a personality. Unbelievable but true, in her eyes.
The girl wrapped her steed in a tight hug. She used the fence to mount the marvellous beast, swinging her left leg over and feeling the spine of the equine beneath her weight. With a nudge of Katara's heels, the bay filly went into a trot, then a canter out onto the training track, and then a gallop.
Katara, though helmetless, felt completely safe on Lady. They were faster than most people would go in their lifetime, at least out of a car.
The dark of hair flew behind her like waves. Her breath came out in puffs of frost. "I am the Ocean Spirit," she whispered, remembering times of old. Of mothers, of friends her own age. The memories made her duck and hug Lady's neck. "You understand, don't you girl. No mothers for us. Just each other." Lady nickered, soft and sympathetic. Sokka would sigh. He also would never be up this early.
"Do you remember my mum?" Katara cooed, slowing Lady to a slow canter. She remembered her mother falling. Ozai's Nation's Black Snow, a giant grey mare, colliding with Lady's older sister, hooves clipping Black Snow's hocks, falling to the ground in a tangle of limbs. Kya falling under Turpentine's, Lady's sister's, body. Hakoda had driven his thirteen-year-old son and twelve-year-old daughter to the hospital so fast he got there before his wife. Praying to all the gods that she would live.
But horseracing is about luck. And sometimes you pray for luck. And sometimes your luck runs out. For Hakoda it was the last one.
"She would like you."
Crushed. Like nuts between one's teeth. Lady's mother Mirror Image had been Kya's best friend. She died of colic 4 years later.
Now they were dead and gone.
Katara led her mount to her paddock, dismounted, and left to meet her new charge.
The early morning sun shone on the muscular colt. Dark eyes peered suspiciously out of an inky face. The blackness of his face spread down his neck and mingled with white hairs over his withers all the way to his hindquarters, except for his legs, creating a greyish-blue. And thus, she knew he couldn't be a racer. He wore a rope halter, blue threads woven into something passible. Katara slowly slipped a hand into her pocket. Then she exposed a sugar cube and the colt's large ears perked. He accepted the sugar and Katara was permitted to rub his snout. But, before she could lead him out, he paused, ears flicking back and forth in hesitation. "What is it?" The colt stretched his neck down and sniffed her pocket. A loud laugh passed Katara's lips. "Oh. You're one of those," she smiled, but extended the cube. At last he let her lead him out and mount him.
His walk was long, outstretching his head and shoulders.
"You're riding the Blue Spirit!" One of the handlers, Jet called. At the sound of his voice the colt's ears shot back, caution easing over him.
"That's his name?" Katara asked, much quieter than Jet.
"Yeah! I should know, I've worked here years longer than you."
Katara shrugged. "Just because you're my ex it doesn't mean you can brag."
Jet laughed. "Whatever. And good luck with no helmet and no tack."
"I'm used to this." She poked her tongue out at his turning back and rubbed the blue roan's ears. When he nickered, Katara wondered if they would be friends.
A few days later the jockey was sitting on the fence, watching the Blue Spirit graze, when all of a sudden he was alert. His dark head snapped up. It was 3AM again and the moon peeked through a hole in the clouds. The four-year-old's nostrils quivered as they sniffed the air. "You're not about to steal my horse, are you?"
The voice stirred Katara out of her silent fantasy, and the girl squeaked. She fell forward into the pasture, and she hit the ground with an 'oof' sound. She quickly got to her feet and scrambled over the fence. "No."
With a whinny the Blue Spirit trotted over to the new apparition. "Hey Blue," he said, rubbing the colt's nose.
"Are you his owner? Or are you one of the new handlers?"
"He's mine. I'm his owner. Back from college."
Katara smiled and leaned against the fence again. Blue inhaled his owner's scent. She was happy to watch them. "He's a wonderful horse."
"Yeah." Blue looked between the two of them with dark eyes. Since they weren't too far from each other, Blue took the opportunity to nibble her top. Katara giggled. Iroh's nephew looked at her. "He likes you. That's rare."
"I didn't know it was rare. But I wouldn't know. I'm the only one who's been riding him this past week."
"You've been exercising him?"
"Yeah. I'm one of Iroh's jockeys and he asked me to. And besides, I couldn't pass him over."
She couldn't see him well due to the shadows on his face, but she could see the outline of a scar on his left eye. "I'm Katara."
"I'm Zuko."
"Well, I guess this is an introduction, so hi!"
"Do you have your own horse? Or are you another one of those people who just stay here and ride Uncle's horses, and others."
"Half and half. I ride Iroh's, but I've been looking after a filly since the day she was born. Some people say that we absorbed each other's personalities but I find that creepy so no."
Zuko almost chuckled, by the looks of it. "Perhaps you could introduce your filly and me. Since you've met Blue."
"Yeah! Her maiden trials are in a few weeks."
Zuko let go of Blue and the colt started to graze. "I'll be back soon," Zuko whispered to his steed's silhouette as he and Katara went off.
Katara and Zuko were soon at the filly's paddock. "Lady!" the jockey called into the paddock. The horse responded. Katara longed in that minute for the moon to come in all her brilliance. Katara wanted to see her filly. But there was enough to see her silhouette. She had filled out as much as she was going to, if her mother and sisters were anything to go by.
Thin legs planted themselves in the earth, and a slender head supported by a lean neck watched the man besides Katara. "It's okay!" Katara smiled into the darkness and Lady practically bounded forwards.
Lady's excited nicker at the sight of her owner equalled that of Blue and Zuko.
"Want to ride?" Katara asked, turning to Zuko.
"I have a habit of accidents whenever I don't wear a helmet."
"Okay then!"
Katara swung onto Lady's body. A yawn escaped her as well. "Can you open the gate?"
Zuko unchained the gate and stood aside as Katara cantered out onto the grass. Zuko was gone for a minute before he came to the track with Blue. However, Blue was tacked up, a halter and rope tied into a bridle. The eventer was getting used to it again, but it was so obvious he was a rider. He had his hard hat, and was staring at Katara, as if challenging her.
"Can you race me?"
"Of course."
He lined Blue up with Lady. "One… two… three… go!" The two horses set forward, Lady in a gallop from the start, but Blue cantering.
Katara had a disadvantage and an advantage. She was a jockey, but she was also tackless. Lady's thin spine slammed against her tailbone, and Katara had to hold onto the equine's mane.
The excitement provoked Lady to buck, and Katara leaned backwards to avoid falling.
As they rounded the first turn, Blue was ahead. The dark, rounded form of Zuko prompted her to speed up to him.
Katara knew Lady's favoured positioning. She liked to sit behind the leading horse until the final stretch. This Katara knew from weeks of trial races.
She heard the sand thumping as it made contact with her filly's hooves. As they passed the six-furlong mark, Katara started to nudge Lady forward. Her breaths were relaxed, and all she could see was the track opening before her. They passed the fourth furlong mark, and Katara pushed Lady with the reins. Lady responded to her jockey, trainer, and owner, well. She pushed forward, inching past Blue with fervour. There was nothing uncomfortable about this, thought Katara, and at once Lady was a whirlwind, shooting forward. Everything around them blurred. Lady was half a horse-length in front of Blue, now. A full horse-length. She heard Zuko pushing Blue to catch up, and the noise behind her only made Lady faster. Katara passed the two-furlongs and her lungs burned with exhilaration. They were the ones who passed the finish line first, Katara and Lady were, and Katara felt a rush of joy.
She thrust a fist into the air, glee washing over her face. "Woo!"
"So modest," Zuko muttered.
"And you could do better?"
"I could."
"You didn't though. You couldn't beat me if you tried, which you did do. Try, I mean."
A few minutes of silence lapsed between the two before Katara stopped Lady. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Or the day after. I have to get back to training Lady."
"I know a place I could meet you?" he said. "In daylight. The fields. Blue is going to be going there for probably the first time in a while. Lady would like it too, I guess."
Katara felt a small smile take over her face. "I'll be there."