Set thought Book 2.
A few things he was sure of. He had been Zuko, crown prince of the Fire Nation, son of Fire Lord Ozai and Princess Ursa. He had been Lee, who had disgracefully stolen from the girl who was kind to him. Lee, who had honorably fought for a boy who had no father or elder brother to fight for him. He'd been the Blue Spirit, the elusive and mysterious thief who was quickly becoming a legend. The one who's skill with broadswords was unmatched by any, the feared warrior who, rumor had it, had rescued the avatar for unknown reasons...He was the surly young man who worked at the Jasmine Dragon, too self involved to notice the whispering girls who tried to catch his eye. Yes, he knew who he'd been. But who was he now?
She didn't know why she'd done it. It made no logical sense that Katara had just offered to help the one who had caused so much pain, the one who would have taken Aang away in chains in a heartbeat if he could have. Maybe it was they had been briefly united against a common enemy. Maybe it was because of the connection Toph had with the prince's uncle, what was his name?...Iroh, yes. It could have been out of pity. Katara was by nature very empathetic. As she lay awake that night, Katara realized something. That sometimes even your enemies deserve the chance to change.
Everything happened so fast. Zuko could not believe that this morning he'd been serving tea. And now... now he had it all. It seemed so surreal that now, finally, he had what he'd been working, hoping, sweating for three years. Unconsciously, he thought of his uncle. Where was he being kept? Did they remember to give him cloth instead of wool blankets? Maybe he would go and check, Uncle was allergic to wool... No. General Iroh is a traitor. He deserves to be fed hard tack and clasped in irons. It was a triumphant day and Zuko ought to have slept peacefully. Instead of dreaming of his father, he dreamt of blue eyes.
Katara cursed everyone and everything, herself most of all. It was such deja vu. Why was it that every time she trusted someone, it backfired. Just like Jet, she thought bitterly. How he must have laughed at her, how pathetic she was! How someone could act so well... He had seemed so confused and hurt... But it had all been a lie, a trick, a manipulation. She couldn't believe she had really been going to use Pakku's gift on him. Her last conscious thought before drifting into an uneasy sleep was I will never, ever forgive you.
