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Chapter Three

Fire Bender in the City

Zuko had been avoiding the eyes of people, preferring to look down at the ground or watch Katara's back as he followed her around the place, muttering under his breath about stupid earth benders and their curiosity. Eventually, after fifteen minutes of walking, Katara noticed Zuko's annoyance and bought him a hat. While the thing was ugly and annoying, it succeeded in hiding Zuko's gold eyes under the shadow of the rim, allowing the only looks to be thrown at him looks of sorrow for what little of the scar they could see.

Katara, meanwhile, was having the time of her life. It had been three years they had been stuck in that hell hole, and it not only felt great to be free and walking above ground, it felt great to catch up on fashions and what was popular buys around the markets. It also seemed forever since they had decent food, so Katara fished some of the silver they got from a Dai-Li agent they had ambushed and bought some candy covered in chocolate while Zuko wasn't looking.

Whirling around, Katara held up the red bag with a grin on her face, practically shoving the chocolates into Zuko's face. The fire bender scowled and grabbed the bag, holding it up as his eyebrow arched. Katara merely smiled and turned on heel, merging with the crowd again.

Zuko opened the bag, expression softening at the sight of the sweets, and popped one into his mouth without a second thought, following Katara through the city. Within minutes both bags of candy had been devoured, and Zuko walked by Katara's side with his arms crossed over his chest as she bought frivolous things with the stolen money. He sighed, eyes scanning over the growing crowd in front of him.

Suddenly, a shout caused the Prince to shudder with fear, head whirling towards the sound as Katara dropped what she had been carrying in alarm, her own eyes darting from Zuko out into the crowd.

"Yellow eyes! That boy has yellow eyes!" a man shouted, standing atop his cart and pointing an accusing finger in Zuko's general direction. The black-haired youth merely froze, hand tightening on the bag he was carrying for Katara as the water bender squatted, gathering up what she was carrying with shaking hands. Heads whirled around and a young woman next to Zuko started wailing, causing the fire bender to snap out of his trance and wince, hands going up to his ears. His head snapped over to the woman, only to find her back facing him, shaking arm pointing towards a boy not more than eight years old staring with wide golden eyes at the crowd. A woman with water Tribe clothing stood protectively in front of him, her shaking arms the only thing giving away her fear as the crowd turned on her boy.

"He's not Fire Nation!" she said, voice wavering, but holding firm. Her stance shifted as she stepped back, pressing her son protectively between her and the wall. "His grandfather was a fire bender, but I swear to you that he did not inherit the talent, only the eyes!"

It was the truth. Despite the boy's terrified yellow eyes his skin was a dark shade of brown and his hair a soft auburn. Tears were welling in his eyes as he grabbed clumps of his mother's dress, breathing speeding up with fear.

Zuko glanced back towards Katara, and the girl was surprised to see something akin to pain within them. Something that hadn't been their throughout the torture they endured in the cells. To be honest, it shocked Katara so much that she didn't even move when Zuko dropped her bag, took of the hat and shoved it in her arms, and walked over to the boy and his mother, fists clenched.

Thrusting himself in front of the crowd, Zuko took up the space in between the mob and the mother, bending his knees as his hands fisted at his sides, elbows bent. His yellow eyes surveyed the crowd, who fell back slightly under his fiery gaze before surging again, this time with uncertainty mixed in with anger. His brow furrowed as flames licked the air around his hands, causing gasps to sound throughout the crowd. He gulped slightly, yellow eyes seeking Katara's comforting ones and found her standing, still confused at the sudden turn of events. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, Zuko plunged off the deep end by raising his hand, causing the crowd to shrink back, leaving a ten foot gap in front of him. A deathly silence fell across the earth kingdom and water tribe members as they waited, for what, not even Zuko knew. But he had to break that eerie silence somehow.

"He's not a fire bender," he said, voice oddly even although his eyes were uncertain. "He's not even Fire Nation, or are you completely blind?"

There were mutters from the crowd members and Zuko took a chance to glance behind him at the mother and child. The woman was crouching, watching Zuko with wary, but interested eyes, and as yellow eyes met yellow eyes the child smiled. Zuko blinked, and couldn't help but relax slightly.

The harsh pattering of feet announced the arrival of soldiers, and water whirled around him as earth raised to hold Zuko in place. He turned his head, staring each warrior in the eye before letting his head fall slightly, the sign of defeat.

The earth kingdom official allowed the earth to fall back, leaving stone hand cuffs on Zuko as three members of the Dai-Li surrounded him. Zuko balked momentarily, recognizing the uniforms from not only his time as a refugee, but his time in the cells. However, he relented, going on the fact that they could do nothing to him besides normal imprisonment within the walls of the city.

The soldier glanced at the other yellow eyed child with something akin to distaste and turned to the man that had originally uttered the cry.

"This one too?" he asked, gesturing towards the child. His mother cried out, but was silenced with the cold glares of the other officials. The man glanced from the retreating form of Zuko to the child, and finally to the soldier. With a sigh, he shook his head, and the tension released.

Katara, meanwhile, had picked up the bag Zuko had dropped, and placed the hat on her head, holding the rim down slightly, hiding her enraged face from the crowd until her emotions calmed down. Zuko's actions had been rash, but she could understand the motivation. Finally, when the soldiers moved off, Katara looked up, anger still evident in her eyes. As the crowd broke up and the sound of a marketplace took priority, Katara walked over to the woman who had picked up her child, glaring at the people who passed her. She gulped slightly, stopping in front of the woman and smiling gently.

The mother eyed Katara suspiciously before sighing and shifting her son's weight around in her arms.

"I saw you with that boy earlier," she said in a tired tone.

Katara blinked, caught off guard by the woman's statement, and smiled, looking over the boy who was now squirming in his mother's grasp. Finally, the woman relented, allowing the boy to go to the ground, grasping his mother's dress and staring up at Katara with curiosity.

"We're… acquainted," Katara said softly, looking back up at the woman. "I'm sorry."

"For what? That young man saved my son's life," the woman said, placing her hand on the boy's head. "I only wish I could have returned the favor."

"Do you… do you know what happens to fire benders here?" Katara asked, fearing the answer.

The woman's smile was forced, it was the kind you gave when thinking about harsh things and trying to break them to someone else the kindest way possible. That single smile caused Katara to flinch.

"If your friend had refrained from causing the flames to spark around his fists I think he would only be imprisoned for a while and then banned from the city. However, the fact that he's a fire bender present in Ba-Sing-Se during the Avatar festival makes things so much worse for him."

Katara groaned. She had been afraid of that.

"I guess I'd better get going, then," she said, rubbing her temples. The woman frowned in sympathy, and reached out to place a comforting hand on Katara's shoulder. "Thank you."

"Thank you, and I hope for the best for your friend," the woman said, voice lowered so it would go unnoticed by all but Katara in the street. The water bender smiled thankfully and slipped into the crowd again, nearly sprinting to catch up with the soldiers ushering Zuko through the packed streets. She smiled sadly at him, for he was walking with his back straight, head held high even through all the hisses, mutterings, and curses the residents of the city threw at him.

The procession followed, the reactions becoming more and more violent as they neared the palace. All the while Katara followed, slipping through the crowd some ten feet behind the soldiers. At the front of the palace the gates creaked open and a hush fell over the crowd, the only sounds coming from the distant bustle of the city not affected by the confrontation of the Fire Nation intruder and the Avatar, Earth King, Iroh, Hakoda, Sokka, and Toph standing at the gate with solemn faces.

Katara gulped, heart yearning for the welcoming arms of her father and brother, and even found herself taking two steps forward to the front of the crowd before forcing herself to stop. She needed to wait this out, to see what would happen to Zuko. Her eyes fell on Iroh, and she gulped again, eyes flashing over to the Fire Prince, waiting to see his reaction.

Zuko's eyes had been focused on his uncle the moment the man came into view with something akin to amazement, adoration, and fear mixed into one gaze. As the procession stopped, Zuko found himself pushed forward, and he was suddenly very aware of his obvious scar, yellow eyes, black hair, and the various bruises and cuts covering his bare hands and face left over from their escape.

"How did you get in here?" Aang said between clenched teen, eyes blazing in anger as he stared Zuko down. The prince let out a breath of relief, knowing that he hadn't been recognized yet. However, he had little doubt that as soon as he started speaking Iroh would recognize him. Never the less, he needed to speak out if he wanted to live against the pure hate in the Avatar's eyes.

"Same as everyone else, I walked," Zuko said, shrugging as his eyes flicked over to Iroh. He saw a flash of something in his uncle's eyes, but his face remained as impassive as ever. "Or is walking illegal."

"You were seen fire bending and threatening a crowd," Aang snarled, walking forward to stand in front of Zuko, his arms crossed. "What are you doing here?"

"I was enjoying a festival and shopping when I had to save a boy from an angry mob," Zuko said right back, voiced laced with venom. Aang's eyes flashed in anger and the earth shook below them before he stepped back, arms uncrossing to allow his hands to clench at his sides. The earth stopped shaking.

"The boy was Fire Nation."

"The boy's grandfather was Fire Nation, there's a difference."

"Once Fire Nation, always Fire Nation."

Zuko's eyes flashed with anger and he ground his teeth. Sparks of flame came to life around his shoulders, head, and legs and the people jumped back. As quick as the fire came, it was gone and Zuko was glaring at Aang with such venom the Avatar lost some of his confidence.

"You were Fire Nation many times," Zuko said, voice low and steady. In the crowd, Katara flinched. She had heard that tone twice in the past three years, and in both cases a mage ended up burnt to a crisp and Zuko would be beat nearly to death, forcing Katara to use her drinking water to heal him as much as she could. "So why don't all these earth benders just throw you out along with me?"

Aang's face grew shocked, and Katara couldn't help but smile. As much as she adored Aang, she wanted Zuko to get out of this alive. They weren't ready to reveal themselves to the world yet, information still needed to be gathered on current events. Hopefully, Zuko would remember that simple little fact.

"Because I'm the Avatar," Aang said, but his voice lacked conviction. Katara noticed Toph shake her head and Sokka sigh.

"And I'm the Fire Lord," Zuko said, tone sarcastic but still laced with that pure hatred. "Does that really matter? The boy never lived within Fire Nation borders. His skin is brown and his hair is auburn, nothing like my pale complexion and black hair, right?" he asked, although the answer was evident. Aang stepped back, visibly wavering as he opened his mouth to say something but Zuko leaned forward, interrupting again. "As for me, I'm a deserter. You see this scar?" Zuko flipped his head, shaking the hair away from his left eye, Aang flinched. "This is enough reason for me to leave the people who did this to me. Sure, I can fire bend, but so what? So can you," Zuko sighed, venom dropping from his voice as he shook his head. "Besides, what about fatty over there?"

"Fat?" Iroh asked, raising an eyebrow as he surveyed Zuko with an amused expression. Zuko met his uncle's eyes and flinched, looking away. There was something in Iroh's eyes that screamed that Zuko had given away a lot more than he wanted to during his rant.

Aang battled his own judgment as he watched Zuko, chewing on his bottom lip. Finally, he turned on heel, walking towards the others. After a hasty whispered conversation, Aang sighed and turned around. With a wave of his hand, the earth fell away from Zuko's hands, allowing the Prince to rub at his wrists, coaxing blood to flow freely in them again.

"We've imprisoned you wrongly… but be warned, you will be watched. If you try anything we won't hesitate to throw you behind bars… or worse," Aang said, crossing his arms.

Zuko met and held Aang's eyes before bowing stiffly and reluctantly. As he turned to walk away, he met Iroh's eyes one last time before turning and walking back into the crowd that parted fearfully in front of him. He walked past Katara with not even a glance and when the crowd fell back into its formation, talking amongst themselves about the confrontation, the water bender followed, swiftly catching up to Zuko. As the crowd began to thin near the outskirts of the city Katara caught up to Zuko as he paused, staring ahead at nothing in particular. She reached up, taking the hat off of her head and placed it on Zuko's own, hiding his black hair and shadowing his eyes once more. She smiled sadly up at him.

"Lets go home, Zuko… I for one have seen enough of the city for one day," she said softly, eyes betraying her worry for his spaced look and silence.

Zuko glanced down at Katara, studying her expression blankly for a short while before sighing, turning his head to stare back towards the palace.

"Home…" he echoed distantly before turning back to the teen beside him. "Why not?"

With that said, the two started back towards the inn, the day's events falling fully onto their minds.