The Confrontational Approach

By Advocaat

UPDATE: Revised (Very lightly. I didn't even proofread it because I'm tired) 12/21/2016

I really hope this is chapter marks the end of the weird and sudden shifts in POV. Why did I ever think that was a good idea?

Chapter Three

Crime and Punishment

After her discussion with Suki, Katara retreated to her room where she could sort out her thoughts in privacy. She was still sure that what Suki had said about Zuko was ridiculous and impossible. There was no way that Zuko could possibly like any of them; least of all her. And all this talk of him actually being a decent guy… How could he be? What kind of decent guy sends a hitman after a child and then turns around and says, "Wait no. I didn't mean it! Let me join you!"

The answer was none. No decent guy does that. And yet…

When the others had tried to convince Katara of Zuko's reformation she'd been able to brush their arguments aside without batting an eyelash, so why couldn't she now? Why was she actually considering taking Suki's advice?

Katara thought she knew the answer. Aang and Sokka and Toph didn't know Zuko the way she did. They didn't understand how personal his betrayal of in Ba Sing Se had felt and no amount of convincing on their part would change that. But as ridiculous and impossible as Suki's assessment of Zuko had sounded, she had been right about Katara's own feelings, and because of that, the waterbender simply couldn't rid herself of the uninvited and completely crazy idea that maybe the chestnut-haired warrior was right about Zuko as well.

After over an hour of circular reasoning and mental cursing at both her brother's girlfriend and the firebending bane of her existence, Katara was still no closer to inner peace. Oddly, the more she struggled with her doubt, the more she found herself wanting to talk to her dad. Her father had spent the past two years fighting Fire Nations soldiers. They had taken his wife from him and forced him to leave his family. Surely he would share her suspicions about the fire prince.

Surmising that her father had most likely returned from hunting by now, Katara left her room to search for him. She started with the common room, as that was where everyone spent the most time. Her dad wasn't there, but Teo was, and he told her that Hakoda had headed to the library deep in the northern wing of the temple to see if any scrolls on engineering had survived the raid. Katara thanked him and went on her way. She passed Haru as he walked in with his arms full of scrap materials to be used for La knew what. Had she been paying attention, she might have heard when Haru stopped next to Teo and said, "Didn't Zuko go that way earlier?"

But, because she wasn't, she also missed the comically frightened expression they shared at that realization.

This part of the temple was foreign to Katara. She hadn't had a lot of free time to explore, what with preparing meals, practicing her bending, teaching Aang, and going over battle plans with the group. Speaking of teaching Aang, she had to admit that bending with her goofy pupil wasn't what it once was. Aang was already proficient enough with waterbending, so their sessions took a backseat to earthbending and firebending. She missed practicing with him every day and feeling like she was really contributing to the war effort. Now, though, not only did they rarely bend together, she couldn't get Aang to spar with her seriously. She guessed that now that he had become proficient with more bending styles he was afraid of hurting her or some nonsense, although where he got that notion, she wasn't sure. Really now, it's not she was fragile.

Without someone to fight, she worried that her skills would deteriorate. She could do drills and forms until the turtle-seals came home, but drills were no substitute for actual combat practice. She entertained the idea of asking someone else to be her opponent, but her options were less than stellar. Sokka and Suki were nonbenders, and while they were great warriors in their own right, fighting nonbenders wasn't the kind of practice she needed. Sparring with Toph usually just made her muddy and grumpy and Haru was far too timid. She supposed she could ask Chit Sang… Her enemies were mostly firebenders so it would be beneficial to practice with one, but Chit Sang seemed to have an honor thing about hitting girls (and grammar, as she'd come to learn). Boo firebenders and their stupid honor. Possibly the only good thing about Zuko was that he didn't let sex influence how he fought. Well, he didn't pull his punches with her, at least. She couldn't be sure about his treatment of other girls. Katara realized with disappointment that Zuko was probably the only bender here who would both agree to fight her and give her a good match, but she wasn't about to ask that traitor for a favor.

Katara was faced with a choice when she found herself at the foot of a long flight of old, stone steps. She could either continue straight down the hallway she'd been walking along or she could take the stairs and see where they put her. Feeling adventurous, Katara chose the stairs.

At the top was another hallway, and though Katara was a bit put out by this, she started down it. As she walked, she amused herself by counting the various cloth covered doorways that lined the wall to her left. She had walked pretty far by this point and nothing around her looked the slightest bit familiar anymore. She wondered if she should just give up and wait for her father in the common area but then she turned a corner and was surprised to find herself at one end of some manner of large, indoor balcony, lined by a stretch of beautifully carved stone railing. Past the railing was an enormous chamber filled with rows and rows of what looked like ridiculously tall stone shelves. She hurried across the lofted floor to peer over the railing. She'd somehow found the library after all.

Right as her hands touched the smooth stone, her ears picked up the unmistakable sound of conversation from somewhere far below. She was too far away to pick out any words–surprisingly, the massive chamber seemed to dampen sound rather than boost it. It was supposed to be a library, though, so that was probably by design. She was sure, however, that one of the voices belonged to her father. She leaned excitedly out over the rail and scanned the spaces between the shelves, ready to call out to her father as soon as she spotted him, but her greeting died in her throat when she caught sight of his companion.

Her face screwed up in disgust. What is he doing here? she thought spitefully, her eyes narrowing at red and gold clad figure standing in front of her dad. Why was her father talking to him? No, more to the point; why was Zuko talking to her father? What was he up to?

The firebender had a strange look on his face as he said something she couldn't make out to her dad. Katara uncorked her water skin and froze her bending water into the shape of an ear trumpet. It was a trick she'd invented while snooping for information from wayward camps of Fire Nation Soldiers between towns. She brought it to her ear in time to hear her father's next words.

"You're humbler than I thought you'd be. I'll admit that I was prepared to meet a very different young man."

Katara's stared down at her father incredulously. Humble? Zuko? What part of him?

"I'm not, really," Zuko answered. "Or…I guess I'm better now than I used to be. I lived for a while as a refugee with my uncle. It was a pretty humbling experience."

The same uncle he betrayed and left to rot in prison, she thought snidely.

Truthfully, Katara didn't know what had become of Zuko's uncle after she fled the caves with Aang. She hoped he was just sent to a prison somewhere and not beaten…or executed. She didn't really know the man, not even his name, but he had helped her and she was grateful to him.

"Your uncle... That would be General Iroh, correct?"

Iroh. That answered one question. But Katara was surprised to learn that the jolly-looking old man was—or possibly used to be—a general. He didn't look the part of a nasty Fire Nation warmonger.

She was hit by a sudden thought then. If this Iroh was Zuko's uncle, did that mean he was Fire Lord Ozai's older brother? But no…if that were the case, then he would have been made Fire Lord, not Ozai. Iroh must be the brother of Zuko's mother.

"Yes. That's him. He's been with me since my banishment," was Zuko's reply.

There was a long moment where her dad looked like he wanted to say something. Katara could tell from his body language. He often looked that way around her and Sokka these days. He probably had a lot of questions for them since he had been away from his family for so long, but Katara thought he probably didn't know how to ask. Especially after she'd blown up at him on the ship after fleeing Ba Sing Se. She was proved correct when Hakoda spoke again.

"If I may be so bold as to ask, I'm curious to know why you were banished. You seem like a good kid."

A good kid.

Her dad thought Zuko was a good kid.

Katara took a few steps back and shook her head. This was all wrong! Her dad was supposed to agree with her about Zuko's evilness, not be won over by the jerk! Was she really and truly the only one who saw Zuko for what he really was? Katara wanted to scream out loud in frustration, but she refrained because she too was curious to know why Zuko had been banished. He'd never told them. She held her breath in anticipation.

"I spoke out of line during a war meeting. I don't know how it is in the Water Tribes, but in the Fire Nation, questioning the Fire Lord is not tolerated. Even if you're the crown prince."

Katara waited for him to elaborate, but he didn't. That's it? She wanted to jump over the rail and throttle him and demand he tell her what in Yue's name he'd said to get himself banished. Ozai was a monster, but still, Zuko must have said something really bad for his dad to banish him, right?

"You spoke out against Ozai?" Her dad seemed surprised, but whether that surprise was at Zuko giving the Fire Lord lip or at being banished for it was unclear.

"Not directly. It was one of his generals, actually," Zuko explained. "But by disrespecting the general, I disrespected my father."

"And so he banished you? Just what did you say?" her dad asked the same question that was on her mind.

Zuko shook his head. "Probably nothing like what you're thinking. I just expressed concern about the general's battle tactics. I was only thirteen so I didn't understand just how serious an offense that would be."

Her dad's mouth fell open. He regarded Zuko with a look of shock. "At such an age! Banished. For something so trivial." He shook his head in disbelief. It must not have occurred to him that Zuko would have been so young at the time. Even from a distance, Katara could clearly read the disgust on his face. Katara didn't like Zuko, but even she was outraged at Ozai's treatment of him.

A large part of Katara expected Zuko to show his true colors right then and there and incinerate her dad for daring to speak against the Fire Lord. Her dad was an excellent warrior, but Zuko was a talented firebender and for a horrible moment, she felt truly scared that her dad would be taken from her right before her eyes.

Zuko did not do this. In fact, rather than anger, it the expression he wore more closely resembled sadness. Despite her resolve to never feel sorry for Zuko again, his next words nearly cracked her.

"My father... Ozai is not like you. He doesn't love his children. He's only interested in us if we're useful to him."

He turned his face away as if ashamed and Katara couldn't stop her traitorous heart from going out to him, just a little.

"My sister is a firebending prodigy. She is cruel and manipulative and highly intelligent; everything my father values. Me, on the other hand… I struggled with bending and was clumsy and naïve. I was his shame. I'm sure now that he was just looking for a reason to get rid of me."

The small amount of compassion Katara had felt immediately flew out the window. It was clear to her now that he was lying through his teeth. She seethed. Struggled with bending? His bending is amazing! And what's that bit about being clumsy? As if anyone would buy that!

Katara had watched Zuko carefully since he joined their group, including his training sessions with Aang, and that boy was nothing if not graceful. He moved through his forms like a leopard-tiger. He jumped and flipped with the practiced ease of an acrobat. And, although she was likely the only one who'd noticed this about him, he had the ability to move as swiftly and silently as a panther-shark. Katara found it unnerving that someone with such a hot head and a natural tendency to stomp around in anger could be so stealthy, but if Zuko didn't want to be heard, he wouldn't be.

Behind her outrage, Katara couldn't help but feel smug. Zuko had just revealed to her what a dirty liar he was and he didn't even know it. Bad at bending? No. Clumsy? Not in the slightest. Naïve? Only if he thought she would ever give him a chance now. She had been right all along and now she had proof. Zuko was a liar and a traitor and…

…and why wasn't she as happy about this as she should be?

She shook her head fiercely. Regardless, she had heard enough to never trust him again. Zuko could fool her friends and apparently even her father, but he wouldn't fool her.

Her dad, of course, had no idea that he was being played for a fool and he said, "A parent's love should never be conditional. As a father, I can't forgive Ozai's treatment of you. It is appalling and disturbing to me that men like him are allowed to sire children. I am deeply sorry for what you have had to go through."

Katara snorted. Don't be. He's not.

"Ah, no, um… I mean, it's okay. You don't need to apologize for him." Zuko looked flustered at her dad's oncern, but now that Katara knew it was all just an act, the display only disgusted her. "I've already come to terms with it anyway, so it's really not a big deal..."

She watched her father squeeze Zuko's shoulder and say, "Listen, Zuko. You shouldn't ever brush your feelings aside like they're worth so little."

He doesn't. He reserves that effort for other people's feelings.

Her dad's expression was stern as he said, "Suppression isn't healthy and neither is letting your feelings accumulate and fester. I am certain there are people who love you and they don't want you to live like that."

Katara scowled down at them. He's already betrayed everyone who ever loved him. Bet you regret that now, don't you Zuko? Oh, wait, that would require giving a damn about someone other than yourself. My mistake.

She couldn't listen to this anymore. She refused to hear her dad's compassion be taken advantage of. She bent her ear trumpet back into her water skin and simply watched, waiting for one of them to leave so that she could catch Zuko alone. She'd show him who the fool was.

She saw Zuko bow his head, his hair hiding his face from her, and her dad held both his shoulders in a needlessly comforting gesture. Katara resisted the urge to gag.

oO0Oo

Without raising his head, Zuko drew one last shuddering breath and then nodded to the other man. Hakoda drew back and gave Zuko a moment to collect himself before speaking again.

"About Katara," he began. The water chief was amused at how instantaneously he received the boy's attention just by saying his daughter's name. "From what I've been told, it sounds like she has some misconceptions about you. But Zuko," he watched the firebender carefully, "I've watched my daughter nearly her whole life and I truly think that Katara wants a reason to believe in you."

Zuko looked at him and blinked once.

Then the boy gave him a look that was so ridiculously hopeful that the chief of the Southern Water Tribe wondered if he hadn't mistakenly told the boy he'd won a million gold pieces and that his father loved him. He hoped for Zuko's sake that Katara came around soon.

A part of Hakoda was actually amused despite the seriousness of the subject they'd just finished discussing. His duty as a father was supposed to be to make sure his daughter wasn't hurt by boys, not the other way around. He chuckled inwardly. That girl was her mother's daughter, through and through. "Explain yourself to her," he advised sagely. "She won't pity you."

Zuko hesitated but then nodded. "…I'll try."

Hakoda gave him a supportive grin and then made a show of glancing around the chamber. "Now that that's settled, have I don't suppose you've seen any scrolls on engineering?"

Zuko felt himself smile as well. He felt lighter somehow, like talking with the Water Tribe warrior removed an invisible weight from his chest. "Couldn't tell you. Everything's too high up to identify."

"Hm... That is a problem, isn't it. I guess I'll go see about crafting a ladder. It's not like these old scrolls are going anywhere."

Zuko nodded again. "Do you need any help?"

"No, I'll get Sokka if I need anything. That boy is far too lazy." Hakoda made an affectionately disapproving face. "But thanks for offering."

Zuko smiled at that. "Sure. And thank you. For the advice."

Hakoda mirrored his smile. "It's what I'm here for. I'm glad you actually appreciate it, unlike Sokka and Katara." He started to leave but stopped in the doorway to look back. "Just so you know," he added, "if you ever just want to talk, I'll listen. Hell, I'll even throw in more advice, so don't be shy."

Zuko placed the heel of his palm over his fist and gave him a formal Fire Nation bow. "Thank you, Chief Hakoda, for your generous offer."

Hakoda nodded. "I am honored to be of assistance, Prince Zuko."

The two shared a final smile and then Hakoda left.

Now alone again, Zuko glanced around him and spotted a good sized basin filled with water situated against a wall. Perfect. He could use the water to wash his face. The fact that the basin was still full after a hundred years meant that it was likely fed by pipes or connected to a source of ground water. He didn't know why the Air Nomads would need a water source in their library, but he wasn't about to question it. Maybe they used it in their ink.

As he splashed water on his face, Zuko thought about Hakoda's reaction to Ozai's parenting. If he only knew how Zuko had received his scar... Hakoda seemed like the type who would march right into his father's throne room and punch him in the jaw. Zuko couldn't help but smile at the mental image. "Chief Hakoda. He's as good as they come."

"Yes, he is."

Zuko barely had time to be surprised before he was slammed against the basin by two skins' worth of water. he fell gracelessly to the floor in a heap but quickly managed to gather his bearings and roll to the side just as another wave of water, this time from the basin, collided with spot of floor he had just occupied.

"Katara?" he called out to his assailant, bewildered by her actions. "What are you doing?!" He dodged a third jet of water and sent a warning blast of orange flame back at the enraged waterbender who easily extinguished it. He'd wanted her to acknowledge him, sure, but this wasn't what he'd had in mind.

"You slipped up, Zuko." She pulled all of the spilt water from the tiles and sent it crashing over him. As he spluttered, she quickly froze the water, trapping him the way she had so many months ago in the spirit oasis.

"What are you talking about?" Zuko's teeth clenched from the feeling of the ice on his skin. Unlike the time at the north pole Zuko was wearing summer clothing and ice was freaking cold.

"Don't play dumb with me, you lying slime!"

Zuko breathed deeply and heated the air around himself, melting the ice enough to break free. Katara was expecting this, however, and had a water whip ready for him. He bended a whip of his own and their elements clashed and sizzled between them. Zuko was reminded of their fight under Ba Sing Se and if the severity of Katara's scowl was any indication, she was too.

"Look, can't we just talk about this?" he called, trying to reason with her. He honestly couldn't think of anything that he'd done to provoke her. Both Water Tribe siblings were off their rocker today!

"Letting you talk was my first mistake!" Katara abandoned her whip and instead crafted several alarmingly sharp looking ice shards which she promptly sent flying straight at him.

Zuko launched off a shelf and twisted in the air to watch the shards shatter against the stone. He landed gracefully in a crouch only to be met with a second barrage of stabby death. Whatever he'd done this time had been enough to make Katara absolutely livid. She obviously wasn't keen on relenting, so he'd just have to subdue her.

Forming a plan of action in his head, Zuko ducked between two rows of shelves and then leapt up, launching himself between them until he reached the top. He looked down and spotted Katara. She was running from row to row, searching for him. He ran along the tops of the shelves, trying to get above her before she noticed him. Her confusion at losing track of him made it easy for him to position himself and he once he was in shot of her he dropped back down, intending to catch her by surprise. Unfortunately, she looked up just in time and plucked him out of the air with her water. She then proceeded to throw him roughly against a wall. The impact knocked the wind out of him and he fell the remaining twenty-some feet to the ground, landing hard on a dislodged stone. He hoped he only imagined the sound of a rib cracking. If the excruciating pain in his abdomen was any indication, though, it wasn't his imagination and it wasn't just one.

He saw Katara approaching, and he struggled to his feet, ribs be damned. He needed to think of a way to take her down quickly. Exploiting the enemy's weaknesses was a basic teaching of any martial art, and bending was no different. Firebenders relied on strong stances and breathing, both of which could be used against them. But what about waterbenders? He thought about Katara's techniques; water whips; pentapus and octopus forms; ice daggers… All at once, it hit him. Waterbenders relied heavily on their arms to bend. If he could immobilize her arms, he would win.

Zuko quickly came up with a plan and waited for the seething girl to come within range, hoping he could pull this off. It wasn't a great plan, and he certainly wasn't going to be winning any awards for it, but he needed to take her down quickly and this was his best bet.

"That was a pretty nasty looking fall," she called, her voice full of false concern. She continued to walk closer, whips swaying menacingly on each arm. "You done already?"

Zuko didn't answer. He sank into a defensive stance for show as he continued to wait. His chest burned and it was becoming harder to breathe. Just a little closer... Come on, Katara.

The moment she stepped within range, Zuko wasted no time in bending a rope of fire at her. Just as he'd hoped, she countered it with one of her water whips, and the two crashed and hissed, filling the air with steam. He used its cover to spring forward, and both benders collided and were sent to the floor. Zuko quickly grabbed Katara's wrists and straddled her hips, chest heaving. Agni, he was in so much pain, he thought he might vomit. Katara struggled beneath him, but he held fast. Finally acknowledging that resistance was futile, she stopped struggling and just glared up at him. "A stalemate, huh?"

Zuko gasped for air. "Not quite."

"What do you mean? Neither of us can bend like this." She looked confused, but also a bit worried.

"You're forgetting something important." Zuko inhaled and released a small, carefully controlled burst of fire from his mouth.

Katara looked alarmed for a fraction of a second, but then her face screwed up in determination. "Do it."

Zuko blinked, taken aback. If he weren't feeling so woozy, he would've shaken his head. This girl...was so unbelievably stubborn.

Just like him. Maybe they were made for each other.

"Well? What are you waiting for? If you think I'll help you capture Aang, you're sorely mistaken. You might as well just end me now."

Zuko fought for oxygen. His vision was beginning to swim. "I don't want to hurt you, Katara." He stared into her eyes, trying to get her to just believe him already, but focusing was proving difficult. "I'm not trying to—" he turned his head and coughed harshly, "—to capture Aang. And I've never once lied to you."

It felt like his lungs were filled with water. Dark spots crowded his vision and he coughed again, this time feeling something warm and wet drip down his chin.

"Hey, Zuko, are you okay?" Her eyes widened. "Is that blood? Zuko! You're coughing up blood!"

Katara's voice sounded far away.

"Look, you win! Okay? I give up! Just let go of me so I can help you!"

Zuko stared her in the eye again, as if appraising her sincerity. Either he was satisfied by what he saw or he just ran out of strength, Katara couldn't tell, but he released her wrists and fell forward, his head landing on her collarbone.

Katara rolled him off and onto his back and quickly tore his tunic open. She was alarmed to see an enormous, dark bruise forming under his left pectoral. She sheathed her hand in water and gently felt the area. Zuko groaned in pain.

"Zuko, two of your ribs are broken."

He looked at her, and she was further alarmed to find his eyes unfocused.

"S'okay. Didn't need those anyway."

Katara frowned down at him, her eyebrows knit in concern. Zuko would pick a time like this to develop a sense of humor. Judging from the blood on his chin, she had an awful feeling one of his broken ribs had punctured a lung. She took a deep breath and listened to the blood being pumped through his body. She was right, a good deal of it had built up in his left lung.

"I'm going to try to heal you, okay Zuko? It's going to hurt," she warned him gently.

"Mm," was his response.

She started with his ribs. There was no use working on his lung until the source of the problem was fixed. She pressed down slightly, and Zuko's right eye widened and he opened his mouth as if to scream but no sound came out.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Katara apologized again and again. She had never seen him like this and it scared her. She pushed on, straightening the bones and helping them reattach. Once she was satisfied with his ribs, she moved on to his lung. This was the more serious injury, but luckily it was the easiest to heal. She closed the hole and checked for any other injuries. Her quick healing job wasn't perfect but Zuko looked noticeably less pained. Now there was just one more matter to deal with. She slipped her fingers behind his head and lifted it so that he was looking at her. "Zuko, I need you to help me get the blood out of your lungs."

He nodded weakly. She imagined he was trying to save his breath.

"We need to get you over to the basin. Do you think you can stand?" She doubted she could lift him by herself, and she didn't know what she would do if it turned out he couldn't move himself. Thankfully, he nodded again. She gave him a relieved smile and moved her hand to support his upper back. She held out her other hand to him and he took it. She then braced her legs and, with a grunt, helped pull him to his feet. He wobbled alarmingly but managed to find his balance. Katara smiled encouragingly and helped walk him to the basin. She sat him on the rim and pressed gently on his back to get him to lean forward.

"Just relax." She rubbed his back soothingly. It was clear that breathing was still incredibly difficult for him but he was handling it well. Almost too well, really. Not being able to breathe was terrifying. If she were in his position, she would probably freak out and end up making things worse for herself.

"Breathe in slowly through your nose and out through your mouth," she instructed calmly. Zuko complied and she let him just sit and breathe for a few moments before instructing him again. She was relieved to see that his eyes had regained focus. "Now fold your arms over your stomach."

He laid both arms across his belly. "Like this?"

"A little lower...there. I'm going to have you cough three times and I want you to pull up against your stomach with each one."

Zuko scrunched up his face. She doubted he was keen on putting pressure anywhere near his ribs at the moment, but he nodded.

Katara watched him carefully as he complied with her instructions. "Keep leaning over. Good. Now inhale slowly through your nose again." She watched his chest expand. "Okay, now exhale through your mouth and cough."

Zuko coughed three times, pushing against his belly as she instructed. He could feel the fluid in his lungs being forced up.

"One more time. In through your nose—slowly! Now, cough!"

It was harder this time with fluid obstructing his airway but somehow he managed. On the second cough he tasted blood and on the third his mouth opened wider and dark liquid splashed onto the tile by his feet. He continued to cough and more blood was expelled. It was no wonder he couldn't breathe. He'd been literally drowning in his own blood. His coughing became dry again and he gulped down lungfuls of glorious oxygen between pants. Once he felt calm enough, he wiped his mouth on his sleeve and looked up at Katara with the intention of thanking her, but he stopped short when he saw the look she was giving him.

Katara's face was scrunched up in pure rage. "You idiot! You complete and utter moron! What were you thinking, ignoring an injury like that?" She glared down at him with all the fury of the raging sea. "Do you have any idea how scared I was just now? You almost died!"

Now that Zuko was thinking properly again, Katara's behavior had him confused. "Wasn't that the goal?" he asked dumbly.

"The goal was to scare you and rough you up a bit, not kill you! I'm not a monster." Katara ran a hand over her face. "Tui, I was so worried when you took that fall. But then you got back up and I thought you were alright."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize when I'm the one who nearly killed you!" she shouted before clenching her hands into fists by her side and shifting her gaze to her feet.

They were both silent for a long moment as they both allowed what just happened to wash over them. When Katara felt that she'd regained enough of her composure, she spoke again. "Thank you."

Zuko's good eyebrow shot up. "You're thanking me? For what?"

"For not killing me back there," she answered. "You could've…and I don't understand why you didn't." She turned her head away in embarrassment. "But I appreciate it. I really didn't want to die."

Zuko frowned at that. Did she honestly believe that he wanted to kill her? "Katara, I've never had, and never will have, any desire to kill you." Truthfully, the thought of taking a life made his stomach squirm. Barring his decision to hire a hit on Aang out of desperation, such a thing had never once been his intention.

Katara turned her head back to look at him. "How can I possibly believe you after all the times you've lied to me?" Despite the accusation, her tone lacked much of its usual venom. She was, for once, calmly listening to him.

"I told you before, I never once lied to you," he defended. "I've never lied to anyone here."

Katara scowled darkly at him. "I watched you lie to my father."

Zuko furrowed his brow in confusion. "What?" he said uncomprehendingly. He thought back to his conversation with Hakoda. "I didn't lie to him. What makes you think that?"

All at once, realization hit him like a stampede of sky bison. His good cheek colored. "Wait, you were listening?"

Katara nodded. "I was. From up there." She pointed to the lofted platform far above their heads

Zuko's blush deepened. "Just how much did you hear?" he asked, inwardly panicking.

Katara quirked an eyebrow. "Enough to prove your guilt." She crossed her arms over her chest. "It was a great sob story. You almost had me, actually. But you messed up with that comment about your bending. You told my dad that you were "clumsy" and you "struggled with bending". That's awfully interesting, Zuko, because I didn't see a lot of clumsiness in our fight just now and the only time I've seen you struggle with firebending was before you and Aang went dancing with dragons. You're one of the most powerful benders I've ever met."

Zuko couldn't help it when his lips twitched into a smile. He knew it was an inappropriate reaction but the fact that she thought that pleased him. Nobody had ever told him that before.

Katara's glare intensified and Zuko sensed that he would be in trouble if he didn't explain himself. "What I told your father wasn't a lie," he insisted. "I'm not gifted like you and Azula and Toph and Aang. I've had to work hard my whole life to become proficient at firebending. All of you are amazing benders with a natural gift for controlling your elements." He gave her a wry smile. "You, especially. When I met you, you could barely move water, but look at you now. In just a little over half a year you've become a master. Not even Azula could do that."

Zuko felt a smidgen of satisfaction when Katara's cheeks pinkened and she quickly turned her face to the side to hide it.

"My firebending was a disgrace to the image of the royal family," he continued. "I was always being compared to Azula and no matter how hard I trained I never came close to catching her. I also had really poor coordination as a kid." He glanced down at himself. "I guess I grew out of that for the most part, but I used trip a lot and I would lose my balance all the time during training and sparring." His expression brightened and he added, "I actually developed a technique for when that would happen where I spin around on my arms and bend with my feet. It's actually a good way to catch people off guard so I still use it."

Katara's face lit up in recognition. "Oh! I've seen you do that. It's pretty cool." She remembered watching him flip around on his hands and spin fire in a great arc around him.

"You think so too?" Zuko's smile widened. "I'm really proud of it but I was worried that it was too over the top. If you like it, though, then I'll keep using it." He smiled brightly at Katara and she returned it. Then they both remembered that she was angry at him and the moment was ruined.

Zuko cleared his throat awkwardly. "Um, anyway, my skills really didn't start developing until after my banishment. To tell you the truth, my firebending was still pretty lousy when I met you."

"It didn't seem that way to me," she remarked.

He shook his head. "But you hadn't had a lot of experience with benders of any sort before I came, right? Any bending probably looked amazing to you back then."

Katara couldn't argue with that. Now that she thought about it, Zuko's bending back then and his bending now were really quite different. She didn't think that she would stand a chance against his current self with only the bending she'd known at the time they fought in the spirit oasis.

"Fighting you was probably what helped me the most," he admitted. "I used to have to really think about technique the whole while whenever I bent, but your bending was fluid and natural looking. You think on your feet and adapt your technique to suit your situation. You make it look like a breeze." Zuko summoned a small flame in his palm and they both watched it dance innocently. "When I fought you at the north pole, I guess that's when I started to see bending in a new light. You used bending the way it was always meant to be used and I was inspired. I stopped thinking of my fire as a tool and I found that firebending came much more easily after that." He gave her another smile. You know, I actually enjoy the act of bending now and not just the power it gives me."

Katara couldn't help it when heat rose in her cheeks again. Despite herself, she was flattered by Zuko's words. She refused to be convinced, though. Truthfully, she doubted even he could invent a story like that on the spot, but she didn't want to have her trust thrown in her face again. "I'll admit that you've improved since we met," she allowed. "But that hardly proves anything. How can I be sure you didn't just make all that up?"

Zuko extinguished the flame and met her eyes with his. "You can't." His weird golden eyes were calm and open and, dare she think it, actually kind of pretty. "You'll just have to take my word for it."

Katara stared hard at him for a long moment. To Zuko's credit, he didn't flinch or glance away. He just looked steadily back at her. This guy was bad for her mental health, that was for sure.

Katara supposed she owed him something. She had almost killed him today and he could have easily taken her life, not to mention her father's, but he didn't. Not that she thought she ought to be giving out awards for not killing people, but that wasn't really the point here. She sighed. "I'll think about it," she conceded.

Zuko's face split into a grin and he tried to stand but he was unprepared for the sharp pain that shot through his chest from his barely healed ribs and he stumbled and fell back down onto the rim of the water basin. "Ow…"

Katara put her hand on his back again and helped him stand. "Don't push yourself," she instructed. "Those ribs are barely holding together."

Zuko grimaced. "This might be a problem when I train Aang tomorrow."

"I'll heal you again after dinner," she allowed. "I need to recover my strength a bit. Healing takes a lot out of me."

Zuko nodded. "It's okay, you don't have to go out of your way." He straightened his shirt and tunic and tightened the gold belt at his waist.

Katara gave him a look. "Zuko, I did this to you. It's my responsibility to fix the things I break."

Zuko half scowled at her. "Thanks. I'm so glad to have reached thing status."

"Don't mention it. Now let's get you back to your room so you can lie down."

oO0Oo

You've made it to the end of chapter three! (And what a lengthy chapter it was.)

So Katara and Zuko had their first major confrontation in this chapter and I think they've come out better for it. Katara has decided to make an effort to not see the worst in Zuko and Zuko is just happy that she's talking to him.

They had a bit of a bondy moment over Zuko's breakdancing. I always wondered how he would've come up with that move and it makes sense to me if it began as a means of self-defense for when he fell or was knocked off his feet in battle. I feel this explanation is slightly more satisfying than "my voice actor is Dante Basco". Not that we don't all adore Dante. ;)

There were parts of this chapter that I felt needed to be changed/improved but I didn't have the energy to figure out how to do that. I know I'll regret it later.

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to leave a comment. I love hearing from you. If you have an account, be sure to sign in before you review so that I can reply/answer your questions/thank you personally.

To anyone who's concerned, this fic is still part of the humor genre, and we'll be seeing more of it in coming chapters.

Next Chapter: Katara and Zuko will have an awkward moment with the rest of the gaang and Sokka will have another talk with Zuko.

See you then!