::~ Revamped as of September 1st, 2012

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"Where is the Fire Lord?" Katara asked a servant she saw in the hallway. The servant shrugged his shoulders, and continued to arrange the bouquet of fire lilies. Katara sighed. She'd been searching everywhere and he was nowhere to be found. She felt the pressure in her chest increase. Katara ran down the hall, stopping in front of the conference room. The large double doors seemed intimidating. She burst through them and they banged against the wall with a loud clank.

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"ZUKO!" Katara shouted as soon as she entered. Immediately at hearing his name being called, Zuko stood from his chair. Within seconds there were murmurs about the Southern Water Tribe woman, but Zuko paid them no heed. The council members eyed them both with curiousity.

"What happened, Katara? Why do you look so scared?" Zuko ask, worry dripping from his voice. A few council members raised their eyebrows. Zuko had forgotten where he was, but Katara didn't. She regained her posture and cooled her demeanor.

"May I see you outside, Fire Lord? It is an urgent matter." Katara said, folding her hands neatly in front of her. Zuko nodded to the council men, and left the room behind her. As soon as the doors closed however, that was a different matter.

::~

Immediately Katara was turned around, forced to face him. His amber eyes searched her face intently for any injuries." What happened?" He asked, spacing his words. Katara tried to control her breathing. She closed her eyes and sighed.

"It's your father." She said.

::~

Katara had to admire Zuko's capability to multi-task. Within five minutes of telling him the problem, he had gotten the meeting canceled, rescheduled another one, called on all the guards to escort him and Katara to the holding cells in the dungeon, and had gotten her water pouch. She was impressed. They passed all the cells, and Katara peered into each one, a safe distance away, of course.

Zuko didn't have many prisoners. In fact, it was safe to say he didn't have any at all. She made sure she held his hand, and stayed as close to him as she could. The soldiers standing at the cell doors unnerved her. She never did trust them.

"Well, well. If it isn't my bastard son." Ozai taunted weakly from his cell as soon as he saw Zuko approach. He was chained to the wall. His former muscles seemed to hang off of him. His eyes looked sunken. The once fiery golden eyes of the Phoenix King were now barren and lifeless.

"You're in no position to speak, father." Zuko spat. Even now, he refused to stoop as low as he did. Being near Ozai brought out the worst in Zuko, but he in time learned to control his anger.

"Zuko please. Your father isn't well. He's dying." Katara softly. She took his hand when she saw his shoulders tense. The change was subtle, but she could always tell when something was wrong with him. Zuko turned to look at her. In his eyes there was a flash of pain, but a sense of distance.

"That's a bad thing?" He asked rhetorically.

Ozai grinned pitifully.

"It is if you don't know where your mother is." Ozai taunted. Katara held Zuko's arm and pulled him back before he had a chance to lunge at the cell doors.

"At least my mother was more man that you ever were. And she's a woman." Zuko snarled. Ozai narrowed his eyes dangerously. A small flame seemed to have been lit in him.

"Your one to talk, son. I tried to make a man out of you, but you'd always run off to your pathetic mother." Ozai said, sneering. Zuko blinked.

"You never tried to make a man out of me! You always favored Azula!" He hissed.

"Because she knew what it took to be strong. She knew what it was like to run a nation. She had the ability to get what she wanted. You were pathetic, and weak. You cried constantly, and always sought to be babied. A pathetic remembrance." Ozai spat back. The waterbender at Zuko's side narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean?" Katara asked, stepping out from behind Zuko. She confronted him with an analytical gaze.

"Nothing." Ozai said, averting his eyes from hers and staring at a corner of the cell. The wind seemed to howl through the chamber even though all was still.

"So that's what it was. Azulon must have favored Iroh, his oldest son, over you Ozai. You clearly felt bad that you weren't like your brother, so you harbored bad feelings for him." Katara said. Her voice was calm and mellow, yet it brought up a storm.

"Silence!" Ozai bellowed.

Katara continued. "Instead of finding your strength on your own like Zuko, you became evil. You snatched up what you felt you didn't deserve. And whenever you felt guilty, you hurt people for the pain you were feeling." Katara said, lost deep in thought. "That's why Azula's that way." Ozai was panting in anger. Zuko stared at her incredulously.

"You didn't want Zuko to re-live your childhood, so you tried to make him tough just like you. When you saw it didn't work, you tried to get rid of him. You didn't want to be reminded of your past." Katara said, pacing in front of his cell. Her mind was reeling. So many people dead simply because of bad parenting. So many lives lost. So many families broken.

"Silence, girl!" Ozai raged.

"Your hatred must have increased when you saw that Zuko became strong in will on his own, without becoming corrupted. He had a father-like figure to guide him, unlike you when you were younger. That is why you wanted to hurt everyone. You were in pain yourself, no matter how in control you looked like on the exterior." Katara finalized, staring Ozai dead in the eyes.

"Is that right?" She asked, her hands on her hips. She didn't need an answer. Zuko stepped forward, his clenched fists at his side.

"So that's it. You hate me because I'm better than you." Zuko said, realization finally dawning in his golden eyes.

"The woman is crazy! She's a witch! Guards, seize her! SEIZE HER!" Ozai yelled, thrashing in his cell. The cuffs held him back and dug into his skin. He glared at them, murder intent in his eyes.

"You will never be able to rule the Fire Nation! One day, the power will become too great. You'll be just like me, Zuko. YOU'LL BE JUST LIKE ME!" Ozai yelled. The ex-king of the Fire Nation sat, defeated, on the ground. His hair hung loosely and messily over his face. He panted heavily.

"I can't believe it. For so many years, the person I wanted to love me didn't even love himself." Zuko said, sadly shaking his head. He put his arms around Katara's waist and led her out of the dungeon. That's when Katara made the mistake of looking back.

Never before had she seen an unfortunate, damned soul.

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