Just a little introduction to the sequel of Misguided Misfortunes. Welcome to: Disastrous Desires.

Warnings will vary for this story. Hope you enjoy.

Recap: Zuko, Haru and Sokka were kidnapped by a sadistic doctor that collected men as patients. Through a lot of painful experiments, harsh realities, and gut wrenching tortures they managed to escape with their lives. Haru was chosen by the mad man as a lover, but ultimately let him go. Xia was killed. He was survived by one of the triplet sisters, an older brother who we met in the last paragraph of MM, a younger brother (who is also a wayward doctor) and an adopted daughter who delivered the killing blow to her father.

Three years later, and the war is still raging we catch up with the gang.


A single drop of blood rolled down his neck. The blood covered sponge came away from him and fell with a splash to the ground. The other man sat in a chair across from him. His legs were crossed and his cool eyes were staring at him. Long white hair draped over bare shoulders loosely hanging down over an expanse of bare chest. A set of black stitches stood out from the pale body in which they were sewn. Just over the heart, as if it had been removed. With the fluid grace of a river, the man stood up. The boy watched as blood dripped from the man's finger tips, but no other blood could be seen. The man stopped just in front of the boy and a blade appeared in his hand.

"Scream for me trinket, remind me why I chose you." The deep imperialistic voice rolled over the boy as the man held the blade tip under his chin. The boy could feel his heart begin to beat wildly as the man bent down, his lips ever so slowly inching closer to his own.

Haru sat up with a jolt, the blankets falling away from him. His chest was heaving as he fought to catch his breath. He pushed his hair out of his face and shook his head. Sweat covered his forehead as he rubbed his eyes with his fingers. Three nights. Three nights in a row he was victim of the same dream, each one advancing further than the last. He picked up the pale hand that had found a place on his stomach and moved it off of him. That caused the girl next to him to stir. She sat up and looked at him with deep green eyes.

"What?" Haru shook his head and sat back on his makeshift pillow. The girl frowned and sat up the blankets falling away from her naked body.

"You were dreaming about her again weren't you!?" Haru closed his eyes. Here she goes again. He turned to look at her blankly.

"I don't know what you mean." She tossed her head throwing her brown curls over her shoulder.

"You were dreaming about Katara. I know it." Haru sat up and rubbed his forehead. He turned to look at her.

"No. I wasn't. It wouldn't be any of your business, if I were." The gril huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"It should be. I'm your girlfriend after all." Haru stood up tossing the blanket off of him. He shook his head as he looked down at her.

"You aren't a girlfriend, you're a convenience." He pulled his shirt over his head and pulled his waist length braid out of the collar. He ducked under the tent opening and out into the pre-morning forest. He stretched his arms up high over his head. They were to meat Aang and Sokka at the village before noon, from there Zuko at the foot of the hills, then Katara and Shio at the gorge. Shio and Shia were siblings they had somehow come across upon the first siege of the Fire Lords castle. Shio was a strong bender in his own way. He was a forceful fire bender, but in that respect he and Zuko didn't get along. Shia on the other hand wasn't good at anything. Haru glanced back at the tent as he heard the girl cuss. Well she was sort of good at one thing, but that wasn't much to say for her.

"Haruuu." He cringed as he heard her whine. He had gotten stuck with her when they split up. Aang had gotten into a bad state after loosing the first battle with the Fire Lord. He had decided it better if they split up and gain their forces that way. Shio had taken up with Katara, much to the disapproval of everyone except Shia. Haru hadn't had feelings for Katara since the incident with the cages. Three and a half years had past since Xia was killed. But still Haru bore the scars of their meeting. He shook his head casting the leeching thoughts from his mind. He looked back as Shia crawled out of the tent. She stood up and pulled her impossible small shirt over her medicinally enhanced breasts. He narrowed his eyes. He detested everything she stood for, but he had sunk himself. They were in the Earth kingdom, in a small province off of Ba Sing Sei, when it happened. They fell into the bodily lust, and he hadn't been able to dig himself out. She walked over and hit him on the shoulder.

"I hate it when you lie to me." He turned to look at her.

"Don't hit me."He growled. She frowned and stamped her foot.

"Dammit, Haru-kun. I am the only women you need you don't need to dream about other women. 'Specially since Katara's getting pounded by my brother." She hissed. Haru felt his eyebrow twitch as he inwardly counted to ten.

"Shia, I'm going to speak as slowly as possible. Do...not...talk...about...Katara...like..that. Understand?" He said and walked over the tent and started to tear it down. Shia put her hands on her hip and thrust her hip to the side.

"Why does it make you jealous?" Haru shook his head and just decided to ignore her. Next thing he knew, a shot of pain surged through his head as she jerked his braid down with all of her strength. He turned to look at her. She smiled at him innocently. "Well does it make you jealous?" The back of his scalp burned and she was still trying to fight.

"No. PUll my hair again and it will be the last. But If Toph heard you refer to anyone as if they were a slab of meat you would be dead." She snarled her nose at him.

"Oh you mean that imaginary blind earth bender that you and your friends made up?" Haru shook his head.

"Ok. You'll meet her one of these days and you'll be sorry." He finished tearing down the tent and began to roll it up, bedding and all. Things had been hard after Toph decided to part ways with their group. Haru had to take up the maintenance of Aang's earth training, which was not an easy feat. They had managed to find some of the other victims of Xia along their travels, and had kept in touch the best they could. Haru closed his eyes. He had just received word in Sokka's last letter that four of the men had disappeared. Three of them later found mutilated beyond recognition. Haru's chest tightened as he remembered the letter word for word as it described the condition of the bodies.

"Mangled. For lack of better word. One was found with his hands bound behind his back, fingers removed. His tongue had been sliced from his mouth and his throat had been slit. He was the better of the three. The second had his ribcage removed, and all of the internal organs with it. Then in a gross display the skin was sewn back into the tissue at the bottom of the empty cavity. The third I did not have the displeasure to witness, but the word we received of it, was not any better. The odd thing was, all three men had their mouth's stitched closed..."

Haru brought his hand up and ran his fingers over his own lips. He had his lips sewn shut, he had known the pain of the needle and the thread pulling through the flesh. That echoed in his mind. It was a sign. But he had buried Xia himself. He had held the dying man in his arms as he struggled with his last breaths.


Zuko tightened the chest strap on his mount once again. He wasn't nervous, he was just anxious to see the others. It had been close to a year since they had all sat together. He paced the dry leaves as his mind reeled. The letter was a bad one. Sokka's demand that they all regroup was one of urgency, and it was more of a demand than a request. He had lost a lot of blood at Sokka's side, through some nightmarish experiences. Including facing his father. If Sokka was that persistent that they convene then they would. He had sent out word through the revolt in hopes that it would reach Toph and the twins. Of course he hadn't heard a response,

He smiled as he thought of the young blind girl. He had heard his share of rumors about her. She and the twins had made quite a name for themselves among the Fire Lord loyals. They were feared as senseless murders, but Zuko knew different. The three of them made the perfect assassin. Cunning, Ability, and Sense. Three parts of the triad that had to be complete. Zuko stopped his pacing and listened to the early morning noise. A small creature ran across the forest floor and skittered into the darkness.

The haze set over the country side as he looked down from his perch on the side of the hill. He was instructed to wait there until he saw sign of the others. He had patience but that had it's limits. He cracked his knuckles as he scanned the sleeping village below. He should see them first thing as they road into the village, unless of course Aang and Sokka came in the middle of the night while he was sleeping. Somewhere in the distant hills behind him, a lone coyote-frog let out it's short yaps as it stirred.

Zuko crossed his arms and set his shoulder's back against the young white birch. He let out a solid breath and let his mind wander. So much had happened since his initial exile from his homeland. He had chased the Avatar across oceans and mountains, through caves and rivers. He fought many battles and met many people. Pirates, bounty hunters, scalawags, whores, crazy hermits, and cabbage crazed merchants. He had felt the bitter-sweet taste of love, and the even more sour taste of leaving. He had left behind a love, that could have never blossomed. He betrayed his uncle, the man, the only man, that believed in him. That stood by his side. Zuko frowned as the bitter taste took over his mouth. He had yet to find his uncle. He had heard rumors that he was alive. He knew in his heart that he was alive. He had escaped his jail cell on the day of the eclipse. He would find his uncle eventually. More likely than not though, it would be after the war.

They had placed so much hope on that day. So much effort into planning the attack. Maps. Time lines. Plans within plans, and hours of arguing with Sokka about the best and quickest path to the castle. They were ready to end it then and there. It was time for them to take the war to it's end by the death of the Fire Lord. Though Aang's passionate nature and monk lifestyle kept his morals from allowing him to kill at other crucial times, they had all decided that it would be the only way. There were too many in the Fire Nation that had been corrupted by his grandfather and father's beliefs. If his father were allowed to live, even if kept in a cell in a dungeon, there would still be those that were loyal to the Fire Lord. And the truth of the matter was, as long as he lived, he was still the Fire Lord, chains or not.

Zuko shifted again as a light caught his eye. The first lamp of morning was lit on the gate of the small village. It wasn't a very impressive city. Two large main streets made paths for merchants. The tea house, and the inn were also on those streets, with a small noodle shop and an open air market at the end. The large manor that sat at the end of both streets would have to belong to the lord of the land. A prison, no doubt, was under the large manor. This village didn't profess loyalty to any of the people. They were independent due to their highly multi-racial population. Zuko smiled slightly. Who was he to point out a mix of races? All he had to do was to look at his own group. Two water tribe, an air nomad, a fire nation prince, two earth benders, then there was the mutts. Zuko felt his smile disappear. The bitter taste was back in his mouth. Shio and Shia. Zuko's nose curled up. The girl was the youngest of the two. Only about fifteen, though she kept herself like a thirty year old. She was of Earth Kingdom origin, or at least her father was. She had no bending ability, and no intellectual excellence that would allow her to be any help in a battle. She was bait. She practically came with a 'kidnap and rape me' sign attached to her.

Shio on the other hand was a full blood fire nation brat. All the signs of a true fire bender as well. He was a powerful creature, but he was reckless and wild. He had an awkwardness about him, that Zuko was unsure of. He was always hiding something, and seemed to be prowling around and listening to conversations that he had no right to hear. He had taken up with Katara off the bat. Though his intentions weren't clear to begin with, he slowly wedge his way between the water master and the rest of their happy family. Zuko closed his eyes as he thought back on the conversation he and Katara had before they went their separate ways. She had called him an egotistical hot head, and he had called her a mothering over-protecting prude. Then things went into a more light and humorous mode. They had agreed that their relationship would never be anything more than platonic. They had tried to romance route, but it just didn't work out. To many lines, too many boundaries that neither of them felt comfortable coming close to, not to mention crossing.

He pushed away from the tree, crossed his arms, uncrossed them then resumed his pacing. Something itched at the back of his mind. Almost a subconscious fury, near panic. He didn't know what was wrong, but he knew something was.

Little background is always nice. Let's hope this is a good start.