It short but I had to write it down. The idea just wouldn't leave me alone.
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It was late and Zuko slipped into his rooms hours after he had first thought of going to bed.
Taking over a country as big as the Earth kingdom was more complicated than his sister had imangined so most of the duties fell to him. He had spent the day writing to the Fire nation, requesting guards and their own men to come and help finish the take over.
His sister had spent the day with her two female friends and the entire Dai Li.
When Zuko had seen his little sister at dinner she kept talking about how happy their father would be. But there was something underneath her words.
Zuko knew his father would be pleased that Earth benders had fallen but he was still unsure of where his father emotions would lay when it came to him. He had failed to capture the Avatar yet again but had helped to place his sister safely on the Earth throne.
Surely that had to stand for something.
Would his father realy restore his honor or was it just another one of Azula's tricks to get him to do what she wanted him to?
Tired and lost in his own thoughts Zuko hadn't even noticed the person standing at the foot of his bed as he moved to sit on it.
"Long day, Prince Zuko?" a voice asked bitterly and Zuko spun around to find the water bender girl standing there with her arms crossed.
She wasn't poised to attack so he let the flame daggers he had called into his hands fade out.
"What do you want?" he asked. He wasn't concerned about how she got there. It would be only too easy to stop her from leaving.
"What do you think I want?" Katara crossed the space between them in two long strides and slapped him.
"I could have you killed for that." he said in shock. No one had ever dared do something like that to him. Especialy not a commoner.
Bringing his hand of to his stinging cheek he stared at her.
"Yea, well I was just getting even with you." she stepped back and glared at him, "I can't believe you."
"I need my honor restored." he said, correctly guessing what it was that she was thinking about.
"To Hell with your honor!" Katara started pacing, "You told me you had changed!"
"And I have." Zuko straightened his shoulders.
Why was he tolerating this? He should just call for the guards and have her thrown into one of the many dark cells below the palace.
But he didn't move or call out.
"Yea?" she snapped, "How so? Did you just become even more insensitive than you were before?! You turned against your Uncle!"
"He was in my way!" Zuko yelled.
"Was he realy or was he just a reminder of the type of person you will never be?!" Katara glared at him before stepping close again. She almost smiled when he stepped back- he thought she was going to slap him again, "You gave me hope down there in the caves." she said quietly, "Hope that all this killing would end and that people could finaly go back to living their lives without fear of what will happen to them just because they weren't born Fire Nation."
"We have to finish this. We have to make the Fire Nation's control complete." Zuko said in a flat voice. It was almost word for word what his sister had said to him that first night after the fall of Ba Sing Se.
"Because everyone who isn't Fire Nation is too stupid to be able to live their own lives?" Katara shook her head, "You spoke to me about your mother while we were trapped together. Think, just think for a moment about what her thoughts would be on all this."
"You know nothing about my mother!" Zuko growled out. It was his turn to step forward but Katara didn't back away.
"No, I don't but if she was anything like my mother she would still forgive you." Katara sighed and seemed to be searching his face for something, "She'd forgive you if you changed your ways and proved that you were the son she raised. That you aren't like your sister who only looks at people as things to be conquered."
Zuko glared at the rugs, avoiding looking into the water bender's searching blues eyes, "My father's forgiveness is all I need."
"Fine." Katara said and Zuko looked up quickly, she sounded so tired, "I just thought you should know that it doesn't have to be this way." he watched her walk over to the window he was guessing she had climbed through, "I healed Aang after we got away from the city. So, this isn't over yet."
"Why are you telling me this? Aren't you afraid I'll just capture you and wait for the Avatar to try to recue you?" but even as he said it, Zuko couldn't make his legs carry him over to where she sat half in the room and half out the window.
"No." she turned back to look at him over her shoulder, "Because you will want me to heal your Uncle. Azula was torturing him, did you know that?" she asked and he felt his breathing catch, "We came back to take him with us. We couldn't just leave him here. Not after he was the only reason we got out alive." she watched him for a moment before saying, "He still loves you. He is sad that you have done this but he still loves you. He's the only one who supported my plan to come and see you."
"You came only to make me feel bad for what I've done. But I don't. I don't regret any of this!" Zuko stomped over to Katara and snapped, "This is what I have wanted all along!"
"Then why aren't you calling fo the guards I saw outside your door? Why aren't you stopping me from returning to my friends and your Uncle?" she tilted her head to the side and Zuko opened his mouth to reply but could think of nothing.
"Maybe you have changed." she said, sounding tired again, "I realy hope you have because sooner or later you will have to choose between the horrors that your father calls honor or hope for the future."
She slipped out the window and he watched as she slid down the spike of ice she had created.
"I have already chosen." he said to her small retreating form. He could just see her blue clothing in the light of the full moon as she ran across the lawns.
His words sounded false even to his own ears.
Glancing up at the sky he realized that she could have killed him while he had been so distracted. It was a full moon and no doubt her powers would have been far greater than his after his tiring day.
Why hadn't she killed him and then moved onto his sister?
Because she's not like that.
That little voice in the back of his head, the one that sounded more and more like Iroh with each passing day sinced he had watched the old man being thrown into a cell, told him that he would indeed have to choose.
"Maybe you have changed." her voice floated around in his head.
"No I haven't" he said and slammed the window, angry with her but more angry with himself for letting her words get to him.
He hadn't changed. He was still the angry Prince who would stop at nothing to get the Avatar but at the same time he couldn't help but hope that his Uncle was ok.
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A/N: Just a short something that popped into my head while I was reviewing a story by Jimi's Little Wing.