You Rise With the Moon…
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or elements of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Those rights belong solely to its distributors and Nickelodeon.
Setting: Takes place during "The Siege of the North – Part 1," right after Zuko defeats Katara in the Spirit Oasis.
Note: This may be considered a sequel to my previous Zutara oneshot, Half a Face? Some of the dialogue from said story is referenced here, so if you have not yet read that one, then you might not understand some of it.
Katara suddenly heard the yell behind her. She turned around, and in a split-second, she saw the massive blast of fire heading straight for her. Thinking on a moment's notice, she instantly tried to form a shield of water, but it was far too late. The fire instantly shot through the weak ring of water, and found its mark.
Katara did not feel any burning feeling, surprisingly. Perhaps the attempted protection with water had done enough to douse the flames. But nonetheless, the speed, impact, and suddenness was enough to knock her right off her feet. It was as if a great wind had not just lifted her, but thrown her off of the ground. Her flight did not last for long, and she instantly felt the hard, painful impact as she slammed into the massive wooden pole behind her. The old wood did not give in. As a matter of fact, it felt as hard as rock. This only made the impact all the more painful. Almost immediately, the pain that was already overdue suddenly came rushing in. It was the back of her head and a good majority of her spinal column that hit the pole first and hardest. The rest of her body came after, her legs curling in closer to her body for a moment before they dropped down again. She slowly slid down along the pole, its rough, hard surface unforgiving. When she hit the grass, her head dropped almost instantly. She felt absolutely nothing. She tried to lift her hands, but was unable to. She found that she couldn't move any part of her body. What little strength she had, she used to lift her eyes up to look at where Aang was sitting.
Or, rather, where he had been sitting.
There, she saw the arrogant Prince, standing over her and looking down at her. He was holding Aang by the collar, like he was some kind of object or bag, rather than a human being. His still form was silhouetted by the sun behind him, casting a glow of light all around him, and his ponytail was blowing lightly in the wind.
In a most firm, confident, and satisfied tone, he said, "You rise with the moon, I rise with the sun."
She glared at him with a fiery hatred. He had just infiltrated these grounds that were sacred to the Water Tribe, with absolutely no respect whatsoever. He had insulted her people, and especially her. And now, here she was, watching as he started to take Aang away, and there was nothing she could do about it.
Then, so faintly, they could hear sounds in the distance. Crashing. Explosions. Screams.
"Well, well, well…" The Prince slowly turned around and looked behind him, over the huge wall and in the direction of the sounds. "Sounds like Zhao actually managed to do something right for once. I suppose that your fellow peasants have something to keep them occupied for the moment. And you aren't going anywhere."
"Oh…yeah?" Katara found it so hard, unbelievably difficult, to even say those two short words.
"I can already tell. Otherwise, you would've tried to get up and attack me again. No. I saw how you hit the pole. When the back of your skull and spine are hit that hard, it can temporarily paralyze the body. Even if you could move, the pain is like a powerful grip over your senses and your whole body that prevent you from moving. You can't even try to waterbend your way out of this one. It's no use."
Katara felt her hatred grow, but the rising tension in her mind suddenly sent another jolt of pain through her body, and she moaned again.
"See? You might as well be tied to a tree again, just like on that beach." Zuko grinned, and let go of Aang. He promptly fell backwards, landing on his back with a slight thump in the grass. Katara nervously glanced at him, expecting his connection with the Spirit World to suddenly be severed.
Nothing happened.
Zuko noticed her worried look towards the airbender, and grinned cynically.
"Oh, don't worry about him. I'll take good care of him. But I don't think that my father will be so generous. And once I hand him over…there's nothing I can do."
"You…monster!" She winced again.
"What else can I do? It is the only way to restore my honor."
"Like…I said before!" She groaned again. It hurt. It really did. But at this point, she didn't care. She had to say something, and she wasn't going to let the pain get in the way of her mind. "If all your family cares about is capturing Aang, then they won't really love you! You won't have earned back their love; you'll have just fulfilled some mission that they sent you to do because they're too lazy to do it!"
"Silence!"
Almost instantly, he shot another wave of fire at her. She closed her eyes, waiting for the impact. She felt a rush of hot air just beside her. She slowly opened her eyes and turned to see it fly past her, eventually connecting with the wall of ice behind her. Chunks of ice fell off the wall and into the water, creating a series of small waves.
"Why should you care? You don't even know what you're talking about. It's not your honor. It's not your family. It's not like you are the rightful heir to the Fire Nation throne, trying your hardest to get it back. I am!"
"I couldn't care any less about you and your Fire Nation. But I do care about Aang…"
"You shouldn't be so worried. My father certainly won't kill him. That's the last thing my father would want. If the Avatar were to be killed, what then? He would be reincarnated, and the search would start all over again. No, he'll be kept alive for as long as he lives. But that doesn't mean that we still won't give him some good, long torture in retaliation for all that he's done." A small grin formed on Zuko's face.
"If you do anything to Aang…I'll…"
"You'll what? Do what? You are in no position to be demanding things, much less making threats." As Zuko said this, he approached her slowly. His footsteps, even in the soft, warm grass, were heavy and loud. When he reached her, he slowly kneeled down. She got a good look at his face now, and saw quite a difference. Beyond his original scar, there were many smaller scars all over his face, as well as a black eye and several fresh burn marks.
He must've been through a lot…
"You know, this reminds me of our last encounter…not too long ago. I'm sure you remember."
Katara felt another rise of anger. It was truly infuriating. She wasn't restrained. She wasn't bound to anything. Oh, how much she wanted to just hit him right now. But her body wouldn't allow it.
He slowly drew closer to her. As he breathed heavily, a small puff of white air appeared with each breath. She could feel his breath; it was unusually hot, even in these harsh conditions.
"Back then, you were just a typical, poor little girl from the wasteland that we know as the South Pole, and you just happened to have some skill with waterbending. Back then, I had a loyal crew. Or so I thought. I had a ship; at least something that could get me from place to place faster. I definitely had the upper hand. And I still do have the upper hand now. But we've both clearly changed since then. I've lost all of those things. And you…Like I said, you must have had some time to learn from a true master. Am I right?"
Katara couldn't resist the chance to say something now. She had kept quiet long enough.
"Yes. I have…" Another wince. "And he could freeze your arrogant butt any day!"
In an instant, a moment of déjà vu occurred. All that she had time to see was a blur as she felt an icy, hard, and rough object slam across the side of her face. This time, it was her left cheek. That same feeling of burning pain that was all too familiar came rushing back. In the brief moment when the hand connected with her face, she felt a sting of coldness, like ice. Then, in the immediate aftermath, it transitioned quickly into fire. This time, however, since there were no ropes holding her down and her body was already very weak, the blow was enough to knock her aside, and she found herself lying sideways in the grass.
"Such a shame." Zuko commented coldly. "I thought that our last encounter taught you something. You really did seem like a good student. But I guess I was wrong. Perhaps it was just the circumstances that persuaded you to accept my words."
He kneeled down further and reached his hand towards her again. She expected him to, just like last time, grab her by the throat. Instead, he grabbed her long ponytail and gave it a sudden, brutal yank as he lifted her head up and brought her closer to him. The violent tugging only brought on more pain. She didn't know which was worse; the pain, or being as close to his ugly face as she was.
"Let me spell it for you. R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Does it mean anything to you? Anything at all?"
She looked at him with a look of half-anger and half-pleading. The pain was so much. The way her head was hanging by the ponytail hurt every second. That was in addition to the pain she was feeling in her whole body.
"I told you what happens if you don't watch what you say. But I see now that that's not your only problem. Now, you are also arrogant."
"Arrogant? I'm arrogant?"
Zuko angrily released her ponytail, and her head dropped the ground with a rather hard and abrupt impact.
"You really don't get it, do you? You think that, just because you are better than you were before, you have a right to talk to me however you want. To talk to anyone however you want. The rapid increasing of your waterbending skills has given you a sense of over-confidence." Zuko slowly stood up and pivoted sharply, turning his back to her. He started to walk away from her. "Over-confidence leads to pride. Pride leads to arrogance. Arrogance leads to downfall. It's a never-ending, inevitable cycle. It's the exact same cycle that I went through, almost three years ago."
Katara couldn't help but lift her eyes up slightly at this last statement. At that moment, he slowly started to turn sideways, and his one good eye was visible. Even through her blurred vision as she grew weaker, and with the glare of the sun behind him, she could see that all-too familiar look in his eye. A look of deep, old, brooding sorrow. An agony that was deep inside him as he mentioned his past. For the first time, Katara was starting to genuinely wonder what it was that had happened to him.
"As a result, I have become stronger, wiser, and smarter. I learned to never treat someone with disrespect. And you should be the same." He turned completely towards her again.
"I do treat people with respe-ugh!" Her response was cut short as more pain shot through her body when she attempted to lift herself up. It truly was getting to be too much. She was starting to question why she was trying to speak to him. She knew that it wasn't doing the situation any good. Either it would bring more physical pain, or it would drive Zuko to hit her again.
"Do you? You sure don't act like it."
Katara paused for a moment, considering what to say next. But then, it hit her. She realized once more that he was right. This time, it wasn't just Aang. But Master Paku, as well. Sure, she had made amends with them already. But still, she had failed to learn respect without it first causing some kind of heated argument, or even a fight. But how could she ever have respect for Zuko?
Zuko saw her slowly turn her eyes away thoughtfully, and knew that her mind was wandering. He walked up to her quickly.
"Hey! Pay attention, you peasant! Are all of your people as easily-distracted and stupid as you?"
With those five words, Katara instantly lost all curiosity as to his past. He was once again the arrogant, sinister Prince that she hated fiercely.
"Shut up! I have respect for everyone; Master Paku, Sokka, and Aang! But I'll never have respect for you! I don't care if you're older than me or better than me! I wouldn't care if you were the Fire Lord himself! For all I care, you can go and burn the other side of your face!"
By the time she began the last sentence, Zuko's patience had already rolled over and died. It was the final sentence, once more, that snapped him. Katara, upon finishing it, instantly realized what she had just said. Her eyes went wide, and she dared to look back up at him. He didn't have the absolutely still, motionless form that he had the last time she'd said something like that to him. Now, there was pure hatred and a burning inferno of rage; one that he didn't even attempt to cover up. His fists were clenched so hard that his already-pale knuckles were even whiter than the snow. His veins were tightening up and bulging, and his heavy breathing was coming out ragged.
Katara braced herself, expecting the worst. She realized that there was something about insulting his scar that really got to him. She learned that the hard way, the first time. She couldn't believe that she just let her anger take over her tongue and allow another insult about his scar to slip out the way she had. She waited for that terribly cold and hard hand to swing across her face once more. She couldn't resist as a single tear started to roll down her face and into the grass at the very thought of it.
He looked down at her, absolutely helpless before him. He saw the tear roll down her face, and the pleading look in her eyes as she looked at him. He knew exactly what she was feeling right now. She was like a young child who had just gotten in trouble, and was pleading with their parents to not punish them.
And, like a firm parent, he was ready to punish her no matter what.
"What was that?"
"I'm sorry!" Katara exclaimed with a sob. "I didn't mean that! I…It…"
"But you said it. Do you want me to hit you again?"
"No! I didn't mean to! It just came out!"
"But you still said it nonetheless. Are you stupid? Have you lost the memory of the last time you dared to speak to me about my scar like that?"
"No! Please…just don't…"
"Do you really think that I did this to myself? That's what you were saying."
"I…I don't…Please…"
"You are truly pathetic. Sitting there, sobbing in the grass, begging for forgiveness. See? You think you were so tough before, when the moon was out. Yes, you did have the upper hand. But you must always be prepared for the tables to turn so fast that you won't even have time to see it coming."
And then, before Katara could bring herself to say anything else, Zuko charged at her. She tensed up and closed her eyes. She heard him yell.
And then, there was an intense slam in her face. She didn't even know what it was, but it was definitely harder, colder, and much more painful than his hand could have ever been. She felt a sickening crack as the impact swept across the side of her face, tracing along her cheek and her actual face. She felt her whole body roll over completely, her face rolling down into the grass once, then back up again until she found herself staring straight up at the sky, her back in the grass. It wasn't even burning pain now. Now it was an absolute explosion of pain in her entire head, as well as the rest of her body since it had been forced to move around so violently.
Zuko slowly put his foot down, his steel-toed boot barely scraped after dealing the devastating kick. He didn't feel the slightest bit of remorse for her. She had dared to insult him again, in the most personal way.
"Not so tough now, are you? Are you?"
Katara couldn't take it anymore, and the pain set in. She started sobbing again, tears rolling down both sides of her face. Zuko looked down at her and shook his head.
"Look at you. You're pathetic. You're weak. You're paralyzed. You are at my mercy. You think that you have a right to talk to me like that now? You want to say something else? You don't even know what you're talking about!"
He dropped to his knees right next to her and picked her head up again.
"It's bad enough if you talk to someone with no respect. But to go as far as to insult their family, their past, and pains that you don't even know the truth about… To make accusations that you don't even have any proof to support. If you were smart, you would know that when a blade is held to your throat, the last thing you ever want to do is insult the person holding the blade. Got it?"
Through her tears, Katara managed to barely look past the enraged face at Aang, still lying perfectly still on the ground, his eyes and tattoos still glowing. It was in that moment when she forgot about the pain. Just like Zuko had said to her before; physical pain doesn't last forever. She forgot about how much it hurt now, and remembered the real reason she was fighting him. The reason that she continued to aggravate him, even when she was as helpless as a baby.
With a new, solid resolve and a deep swallow, she calmly replied, "Do whatever you want to me. Just don't hurt Aang."
For once, Zuko seemed genuinely shocked. He slightly eased up his grip on her hair and pulled back. With a look of disbelief, he turned around to look back at the Avatar, making sure that he was still there. When he saw that he was right where he had left him, he turned back to Katara with a dumbfounded look. She glanced up at him and saw the confusion in his eyes. She knew that he had probably never seen such a moment of self-sacrifice before in his life.
After a few moments, his look of shock slowly transitioned back into the grin. "Fine. If that's what you really want."
He then slowly let her head fall to the grass, and pulled his hand away. At first, Katara started to exhale, thinking that it was over. Then she saw Zuko slowly clench the same hand into a fist, once again clenching it so tight that she thought he would start to draw blood from his own palm. He slowly raised the fist back and brought it up higher, knuckles aimed right at her face.
Her eyes widened.
"Don't worry. This shouldn't hurt that much."
Katara didn't even have time to close her eyes before the fist was brought down full force and connected right with the center of her face. All she felt was a shock, a single, brief, one-second long jolt before everything turned dark.
It was a few moments before Zuko slowly pulled his fist back. He looked down at the Water Tribe girl. After the initial impact, her eyes immediately fell shut, and her body relaxed as she instantly lost consciousness. He slowly unclenched his fingers and looked at his own hand. He was surprised at how much sweat was on his palm. He also felt a slight pain in it, both in the palm and the knuckles. He slowly brought his other hand up and rubbed it briefly, then cracked his knuckles. He looked down at the girl once more. He took a deep breath, and then slowly shook his head in disgust.
She would never understand. He thought that he had taught her the first time. He thought that she had listened. But clearly, once just wasn't enough. She was still as stubborn, as arrogant, and as feisty as ever. Her ferocious spirit was truly admirable; she had just basically asked him to do his worst to her just to protect the Avatar. If that was truly what she wanted, then so be it.
Zuko looked back once more at the Avatar, still lying perfectly motionless in the grass. He didn't even seem to be breathing. He then slowly looked back at the girl for one last time. After a thoughtful pause, he slowly brought his hand down – the same hand that had struck her into unconsciousness – and slowly brushed aside a large strand of hair that had been knocked out of place by his blows. He slowly pulled his hand down along her cheek and down to her neck. He slowly placed two fingers against her neck, and felt the pulse. Firm, constant, and not too fast or too slow. Yes, she would be fine.
Just then, he heard a massive crash, followed by an explosion and several screams. This combination of sounds was significantly closer than before. He turned his head around sharply and glanced over the wall behind him. Sure enough, one massive tower of smoke was rising; its base not too far from the other side. Then another explosion, and a second smoke tower began to form. He was running out of time.
He straightened up, rising to his feet. He turned back towards the girl and watched as the looser strands of her hair blew ever so lightly in the wind. She almost seemed asleep. He couldn't help but think about how beautiful she was. It was a shame. She could be as beautiful as ever, but if she didn't deal with her constant acts of disrespect or her over-inflated ego soon, she would find herself insulting the wrong person. Maybe then, she could be severely scarred for life. Maybe even her life could be tragically cut short.
"I don't want that to happen." Zuko said aloud. "You may not understand why. I personally don't understand why myself. But I do hope that you will finally concede to my point, and admit that you're wrong. Maybe then you will avoid such an ugly result." Zuko slowly turned around and walked back over to the Avatar once more, picking him up by the collar and lifting him up onto his back, holding him firmly by the legs. "But then again, I'm saying this to you only after you are unable to hear me." He grinned. "So I guess that the decision will still be left up to you. Farewell. May we never meet again."
Author's Note: So there you have it, readers. My second non-romantic Zutara oneshot. For some reason, I feel the need to kind of explain myself and my connection with Avatar; specifically, why I'm doing these stories. This is going to be a little long.
I have always been a huge fan of this series. As mentioned on my profile page, it is undoubtedly one of the best animated series' of all time. Just as much as I love the show, I absolutely love the Zutara pairing. But, sadly, I know that this pairing can never happen in the canon universe, no matter how much a lot of us want it to. As made evident by the info we've received so far about Legend of Korra, Aang is confirmed to marry Katara, and they stay together for the rest of their lives. Most likely, it's the same with Zuko and Mai.
Thus, when writing these stories, I wish to remain true to the style and storyline of the show. Hence, why I describe these as nothing more than "missing scenes," that, for all we know, could've fit perfectly into the story of the episode and wouldn't have disrupted the storyline. Even more so, the interaction between the two main characters must be kept to the kind of interaction that a true fan of Avatar would expect: Not romantic, but indeed very hateful, harsh, and brutal.
It was under these circumstances that I wrote Half a Face? I had re-watched "The Waterbending Scroll" several times on TV, and it is, and always will be, my favorite episode of the first season, and maybe even the entire series. I instantly noticed the abrupt edit cut in the scene where Katara is taken hostage, after the pirates leave to search for Aang and Sokka. And it isn't until morning that those two are finally captured. It almost screamed at me: "A perfect opportunity to fill in this gap with some brutal Zutara interaction." Just as it would have been. We will never know exactly what happened during that night, but that's how I like to imagine it.
I was quite surprised with how positive the reviews for that story were, and how some of them asked me to do another, similar oneshot. I started re-watching the series bit by bit, looking for more moments where I could put in some similar oneshots. As of now, after doing this one, I currently have only one more in mind. I won't tell you what the setting is, but I can promise you that it will come sooner or later, and that it will be quite different from the previous two; but it will still ultimately focus on Zuko and Katara. And I may possibly find other opportunities to do some more, similar stories. But for right now, I'm focusing on just a trilogy of oneshots like these. So for right now, I wouldn't be holding my breath for more than three, including the previous two that I have already written.
Thanks for all of the positive reviews, everyone. They are highly appreciated.