Hot Water: crack!Zutara

I had accomplished my goal, the goal I had had in my heart since my mother was lost to me. I was ending this war, now I had the perfect prisoner to help me carry out my plan. It hadn't taken much to trick my unsuspecting captive, and even the most powerful benders could not stop me now. And why would they want to?

"Katara," I growled to the hostage, "my name is Katara."

Zuko was furious. She had taken advantage of his delusional illness, and Uncle had done nothing to stop her! Actually, Zuko was pretty sure Iroh had helped them, who else would know that pig-wool was fire proof? Or so itchy. He squirmed again in the strong wool ropes that had him bound to the tall stone, undoubtedly the earth bender's doing. His hands flared up, but the pig-wool gloves bound to his hands quickly smothered the flames.

"Let me go water bender," he yelled again. He would not give her the honor of hearing him speak her name.

She turned away from him, ignoring his rage. Flames erupted from his mouth, almost reaching her. She turned violently, her braid cracking like a whip in the air. Suddenly, his face from the eyes down was covered in a thick block of ice. When he realized he couldn't breath, he started to panick, violently trying to shake the ice off.

"You will keep that mouth of yours in check, fever bender," she melted the ice, leaving him drenched.

"FEVER BENDER?!?"

Katara's glare was enough to freeze the water around his neck to the stone. The ice slowly expanded, and Zuko stayed calm and quiet to reserve his oxegyn. She slowly walked around the pole, a scene from the past playing in her mind.

"This scenario seems quite… familiar, don't you think?" Zuko scowled. "Only this time… you don't have anything to barter with, now do you? Especially not your honor… Now you will control that temper of yours…" Zuko could barely concentrate on her words any longer. "Or I'll be forced to use this." From around his shoulders she held a wide band of the thick, itchy, pig-wool up to his face. Not only would it inhibit him from fire-breathing, but it would keep him quiet… and suffering.

Zuko's eye's drooped in resignation, and Katara melted the ice again. Zuko gasped for breath, but kept his fire from escaping.

"I gotta hand it to you though, you're worthless as a hostage," Zuko glared at the water bender. "You haven't noticed? Nobody wants you… Not your father, your sister… your uncle practically threw you at us." Zuko waited for her to mention his mother, ready to die defending her honor, even if he couldn't have his own. But though he waited, that attack never came. "But… there is this country of yours. Not because you rule it mind you, its just as much yours as the Water Tribes are mine… but still…"

"They don't want me either."

"…Not yet."

It may have been cruel, calling him fever bender, but so far it had been accurate. He was still sick from what ever ailment had struck him in Ba Sing Sei. Iroh seemed to know more about it than he let on, but Katara didn't care… not really… that much, anyway.

But she could no longer rely on Aang to save the world, that belief had gone out with one flash of lightning. He was having trouble bending since his brush with death in the Avatar State, and what good was a non-bending Avatar? No, this war would have to end with the people, after all, there was nobody else left to save them, they would have to save themselves. Her mind traveled back to the pirates who had changed her way of thinking, long ago, long before Toph, Kuei, or Iroh had joined them. The pirates had been people. Yes, they stole and conned and even tried to kill, but the point was not what they did, but the fact that they did it together, despite the color of their clothes, or eyes, or hair, or skin. The people of the world would bring down the Fire Lord.

Their group, during their travels, had met many peoples, and gained many loyalties. The warriors and people of the southern and northern Water Tribes, the Swamp Water Tribe, the people and warriors of Kyoshi, the Omashu resistance, the Freedom Fighters, the Gan Jin and Zhang, the Northern Air Temple dwellers, countless other Earth Kingdom citizens… and Fire Army deserters… and Traitors.

But the assistance of the Fire Nation people, the commoners, would be crucial when the Eclipse came. And Katara figured that this sword-swingin Prince who had been banished for speaking against the Fire Lord, for speaking up for their brothers and sons, would be just the person to rally them. If only he could see the honor in it. Of course keeping him tied to the stone wasn't doing much for his honor. Katara knew he wouldn't break, he would die first… She needed a better plan than kidnapping him and hauling him off to his country; nothing was stopping him from attacking them and his traitorous uncle. Katara smiled. Not yet anyway.

AN: I was tired of Zuko capturing/kidnapping/tricking Katara. They are slightly OOC, but this was mainly to poke at the average Zutara fanfic... don't get me wrong, some are great, but after a while... seriously? I also wanted for the everyday people of the Avatarverse to get some recognition for the part that they could play in ending the war.

Enough Reviews and I'll do another drabble of things I haven't seen enough of in Zutara FanFics... muahahahaaha! (/randomevillaughter) It would be about Fire Nation people post-war (and post Zutarian wedding XD)

Adi&Ono,

-SpatialHeather