Author's Note: Hi guys! Sorry I haven't updated my other stuff, but this is something I've had in my head for ages. This is a fic based on non-canon interpretations of Mrs. Pettyfer's The Black Games trilogy. It's like an ATLA/THG crossover, but better. If you want to understand these one-shots and the like, I highly recommend you go read The Black Games and The Rise of One first. I probably won't be doing many based on the final installment, The Phoenix Queen, until either it's completed or more chapters are uploaded.
Author's Note 2.0: This chapter is from Zuko's perspective, after Katara has wandered into his mother's room on accident. Thoughts are in italics. Hope you enjoy!
Credit is due to FFN user Mrs. Pettyfer, who has given express permission for the writing of this spin-off. Thanks a ton!
Chapter 2. Stay
As soon as she leaves the room, Zuko shatters a vase. Moments later, through the haze of his temper and the shattered glass, he realizes two things:
One - Katara is alone, in an unsecured area of the palace.
Two - She is in danger.
With another yell, he runs faster than he's ever run in his life. For a moment, he thinks about trying to summon Guards to find her. That will take too much time, he thinks. I just need to find her. I have to find her. Damn it, where is she!?
He makes another turn - this will make the third corridor - when he sees her take a step and fall forward.
"Katara!" Zuko leaps to catch her, causing them to both go down. When the chaos stops, he looks down. No. Oh no.
He tries to pry her hand away, but freezes with a sharp intake of breath. There's so much blood. This is bad. "Katara, what happened — no, don't speak," he finishes in a panic. The pitch of his voice heightens as he becomes more worried. "Water... Water and bandages. We have to get you to a healer."
Picking her up, Zuko makes way for the healers. From a the corner of his eye he notices her reach out for something, but he doesn't have time to grab it. A second wasted could cost her her life. Surely she knows that. She has to know that! "Stay with me, Katara. Stay with me. Please."
She makes to reply, but all that comes out is a gurgle.
"Just worry about breathing!" he commands. "We're almost there."
Another gurgle comes from her. Usually he wouldn't mind her stubbornness, but usually she's not dying, either. The thought of her death scares him into shouting. "Don't talk!"
"Heal her!" Zuko yells at a healer, who responds with too much calmness for his liking. He shatters another vase - To hell with them all! She can't die! - and demands again that Katara be healed. Under duress, they take her from him and start the healing process. They seem surprised that she's survived this, and that she's not waking up through the sutures being put in despite the lack of pain medication.
Hours of talking, explaining, arguing, and questioning later, he's finally able to be alone with her. He lightly brushes his fingers on her neck, right above the sutures. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
Words like these feel hollow in his throat, but he feels the need to say them anyway.
Of course the first thing Katara does when she awakes is try to touch her throat. Zuko expects this and grabs her hand. "Don't. The sutures need to heal properly."
When she tries to talk, he caresses her cheek, lightly guiding his thumb over her lips. He looks to the curtains to avoid seeing the look on her face and the emotions in her eyes. "You can't talk; the healers say you need to rest your voice for several days. The cut was so deep they had to use sutures to staunch the bleeding. With the way you were cut and the particular blade that was used..." he pauses to steady himself, "You'll have to heal the hard way until the sutures fall out. After they do, the healers will be able to use Waterbending. They say you should have died; a miracle saved you."
Katara opens her mouth but thinks better of it. She must not trust her voice, Zuko thinks to himself. Thankfully she's listening to me. At least for now.
He tries to apologize, to explain, but she stops him by shaking her head. Even with her lack of voice, she's still able to say a lot. It's more than he can bear. "Don't try to convince me otherwise."
As Zuko guides her back into a resting position, Katara gestures at her neck, eyes wild. It isn't until he recalls the pendant in his pocket that he understands what she's asking for. "I've got it," he answers while taking her hand. "Stop worrying and go to sleep."
About an hour later, Zuko tries to leave so he can change clothes and shower. He's able to stand, but Katara's grip on his hand is rather firm. Somehow, he's unsurprised by her protectiveness being present in her sleep.
"Okay," he whispers, sitting back down. "I'll stay."
This is the first of many times he chooses her, to stand by her. Despite the guilt he feels, he never regrets his choice to stay.
