" CHANGE OF PACE "
03. CHAPTER THREE: "PUSH-ME-PULL-YOU"
The former prince of the Fire Nation awoke that morning to the sound of something metal being dropped upon the ground with a resonating metallic thud. He held back from his usual response to such a disturbance - firebending in the direction of the sound - being that the last time he'd done that, he'd ruined his chances at gaining an ally within the Avatar's group by burning the earthbender's feet. He hadn't meant to hurt her, of course, it was just instinct, a reflex.
His golden eyes opened and he sat up, one hand reaching for his a sword as he rolled onto his knees, ready to emerge from his shelter to attack whoever had approached him--only to come face-to-face with an angry waterbender. Arms crossed over her chest as she glared upon him with those intense blue eyes of hers.
"I thought I told you to leave," she spat.
Zuko suppressed a groan. This again. She was like a bad case of chicken-pig pox that wouldn't go away.
"You did and I did," he said sleepily, stifling a yawn as he set the sword he'd grasped hold of aside, despite the strong urge he had to place the sharp, pointy end between those pretty eyes of hers. No, he wouldn't attack her. He wasn't here to do that. Unfortunately, she'd never see that.
She brandished a soup ladle at him, wagging it threateningly like the cooks at the palace used to do when he and Azula would sneak into the kitchens to catch a glimpse of the meals that were being prepared. The sight would've been amusing if not for the scowl that was permanently etched into her features whenever he was around.
"No, you didn't. You're still in the area. Now leave before they see you." Katara pointed behind her with the ladle to emphasize her point.
Zuko fell back against his pillow, bringing one arm up to toss over his eyes to block out both the rays of sunlight that crept through the trees and the sight of her standing over him. "No."
He heard her scoff in surprise. "Excuse me?"
"I said, no."
She was silent for a few minutes and for a moment, he thought she'd left, when he felt her boot connect with his left leg. Groaning in protest, Zuko sat up, now fully awake and biting back the flames that formed in his throat, pushing a cloud of smoke through his clenched teeth instead.
"What the hell is your problem, waterbender?"
Not Katara. Yes, he knew her name. He paid attention when the Avatar and his friends addressed her. But right now, he was in no mood to call her by her name. If she had a proper title, he would've called her that. For now, her bending-type would do.
"You," she said, looking at him as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Beyond that," he said, standing and crossing his arms over his chest. "Despite what you may think, I'm not an idiot. I see and hear a lot more than you realize, and it's not just me that's bothering you. You're just using me. You're taking all of your frustration out on me, whether or not it's my doing."
It was ironic, in a sad sort of way. Being used. Again. Azula used him, Mai had used him, his father had used him - even his grandfather, Azulon, had used him in a failed attempt at getting Ozai to feel some sort of remorse for his elder sibling when Lu-Ten had died. People always used him, as if he were a marionette whose strings were passed from puppeteer to puppeteer as needed.
Katara seemed almost...hurt by what he'd said, her expression still angry, yet teetering on the edge of sadness. "I'm not using you."
The firebender let out an almost amused sigh and sat back down, knees bent with his arms draped across them. "Stop fooling yourself, waterbender."
"I don't use people," she said firmly. "I'm not like you."
Zuko wasn't sure how it happened, but he found himself pinning Katara to the nearest tree with one hand clasped to her shoulder and his other hand drawn back in a fist of flames. He sneered at her, feeling the anger that he'd been holding back in regards to her boiling dangerously to the surface. Her eyes were wide, yet her expression knowing, as if she had expected him to do something like this.
Had she purposely provoked him? Surely, the Avatar's waterbending teacher wasn't that devious.
"This is what you wanted, isn't it?" He spat at her, the flames dancing upon his knuckles so close that if he were to throw a weak punch her direction, she would be forced to kiss the flames. Of course, he would never do such a thing. He wouldn't burn and disfigure another human being if he could avoid it. While he may be the son of the Fire Lord, he wasn't Ozai. "For me to attack you, so you can run along and tell the Avatar and the rest of your comrades that I did so. That way, you'll have some sort of validation for your displaced anger."
She didn't flinch; he had to admire her for her bravery...or perhaps she knew him better than he thought. Was she testing him? Was this some sort of game to her?
"I don't need any validation," she said, glaring daggers at him. "Your betrayal in Ba Sing Se is reason enough."
He made a noise of frustration, his grip on her shoulder tightening slightly, but not enough to hurt her. "Why must you always go back to that? How many times must I explain myself?"
Her blue eyes seem to narrow further, if such a thing were even possible. "No, you haven't."
The flames being bent from the former prince's clenched fist died out, his golden eyes going wide as he realized that he really hadn't explained to her his reasoning for betraying her in Ba Sing Se. She had offered to heal him then, becoming one of the few people outside of his uncle to show him any sort of kindness since the disappearance of his mother. And he'd betrayed her. It seemed that was all he was doing these days: betraying one side or another, teeter-tottering on the line between good and evil, unable to choose a side--no. He had chosen a side. This side, her side. He wasn't an enemy anymore.
She wasn't his enemy. Not anymore. No matter how much she pissed him off.
Zuko let go of her then, taking a step back to give her some distance. To give her room to flee from him if she desired. When she didn't do so, he began to speak.
"If your brother was as dark and twisted as my sister, would you stand against him and send him to his grave?"
It was obvious to Zuko that whatever Katara had been expecting him to say to start off this little explanation of his, it wasn't that. Her eyebrows shot up, then furrowed - not in anger, but confusion - together as she peered at him, visibly intrigued, at the least. She didn't speak, but kept her gaze upon him, as if she was waiting for him to continue.
"I couldn't let the Avatar kill my sister."
Now, she seeped back into a state of anger. "How dare you assume--"
He cut her off, "That the Avatar would kill her? Don't be foolish, waterbender. You're well aware of such a possibility. You saw what he did up at the North Pole and I know that my sister could easily provoke him into the Avatar State, especially with you around."
Katara's features had gone slack some and she looked down at the ground, then to back up to him. Suddenly, she seemed uncomfortable - something that highly contrasted the image of the defiant girl who had told him to leave his own camp just moments ago. "You assume too much, Zuko."
"Do I? You didn't see the way he looked at me down in those caves. Possessively, triumphantly."
Her cheeks flared with color and Zuko could tell he'd been right, but apparently only half right, as the next words out of her mouth confirmed.
"It may be that way for him," Katara said softly, "but for me..."
His golden eyes widen slightly in realization. The Avatar loved her, but she did not love him in return. Or at least, not in the way the young boy obviously wanted. She looked embarrassed and he suddenly felt bad for bringing the topic up. It seemed to make her uncomfortable, which made him uncomfortable.
"Oh," he said simply.
"Yeah," was her response. She was silent for a while before saying, "No."
"...no what?"
"No, I wouldn't let Sokka get killed if he suddenly switched sides. Even if it meant he was going to possibly kill another. He's my brother."
"And Azula is my sister."
The stood in silent understanding, golden eyes looking into blue ones, and just as he opened his mouth to say more, a voice sounded in the distance.
"It's The Duke, Haru. Not just Duke. THE!"
It was one Zuko didn't recognize (nor did he know who this 'Haru' was), but apparently Katara did, for her calm, understanding features melted away, replaced with seriousness and a hint of anger. At least she wasn't glaring at him too intensely, so he felt it was at least some sort of improvement.
"Kata--" He started, but she cut him off.
"Stay here," she commanded in an almost motherly tone. A tone that made him raise the only eyebrow he had in a mixture of annoyance and curiosity. "I'm going to lead them away. Don't follow me."
Normally, he would argue, but she didn't tell him to leave. Just to stay. Maybe that meant she was contemplating letting Avatar know he wasn't dead. Either way, he didn't want to anger her further, so he simply nodded his head and went to sit back down under his make-shift tent, watching as she disappeared into the trees.
TO BE CONTINUED...
"Avatar: the Last Airbender" is © Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. This fic is being written for the 30 KISSES challenge community on InsaneJournal, so the chapters follow the themes listed in their userinfo's alternate column.
01/20/2008