Hi! I'm finally free of writer's block and I actually got some time to type! Hooray!

Disclaimer:I don't own Avatar. :(

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The pub smelled of rotting wood and strong alcohol, and it was packed with man after man that was drinking to his heart's content. Naturally, this meant that nearly everyone within the vicinity was drunk. The merchant led Katara directly to the bar and ordered her a sizeable mug of ale. It was much stronger than any alcohol she had ever tasted, and she was feeling quite loopy within minutes of consumption. She had a long conversation with the merchant about the taxes; he was obviously a big opponent of any new taxes on merchants, but Katara insisted (in her manly voice) that taxes helped keep the country alive and flourishing.

The merchant soon seemed bored, and told "Katain" that he had to go back outside to check his cart.

"Just wait here for me," he said with a shifty grin that Katara's alcohol-buzzed brain didn't pick up. "I'll be back in a few minutes." He winked at the bartender and then made his way out the door.

She sat at the bar and twiddled her thumbs, staring offhandedly at a wall. Amid the buzz of the conversation amongst all the customers, her thoughts wandered to how old those walls probably were. Bugs crept along the side of it, burrowing their way into the old wood. Getting impatient, Katara was beginning to try to stand up when the bartender thunked another mug of ale onto the bar in front of her.

"Drink up. It's on me," he said gruffly, his eyes shifting guiltily away from her. Shrugging and taking a swig, Katara decided she would wait a few moments longer and then go outside to leave. She wasn't feeling like waiting for the merchant, anyways. Thanking the bartender and standing, she staggered out of the pub. Gripping the side of the door for support, Katara drunkenly surveyed the area for her horse.

"Appa?" she called out. No response. She stumbled completely outside the pub and looked directly at where she had left him. His rope was cut, and he was gone.

"DAMMIT!" Katara shouted into the sky, drawing quite a few glares and curious glances from the surrounding people. "THAT BASTARD!"

She toddled over to the post where she had tied him, picking up the sawed, frayed rope. A murderous instinct constricted her throat.

That FILS DE PUTE took my HORSE that my MOM gave me! DOES HE KNOW WHO HE'S MESSING WITH? She glared around the crowd, looking for her horse or his abductor. Her fingers itched to strangle his little smooth-talking throat. He would be on every single wanted poster and have a hefty bounty on his head. Wanted alive, of course, just so she could have the satisfaction of guillotining him. Yes, she thought, just as soon as I get hom-

"Home," she half-whispered, half-croaked.

Blinking rapidly, trying to clear tears from her eyes, she shook her head slowly. She couldn't go home; her father was probably in great distress- freaking out, to be exact. She was surprised that the royal search party hadn't found her yet. Tears now streaming down her face, she burst through the crowd, running. Shocked gasps and grunts of annoyance signaled each person she barreled past, and finally she broke free from the market.

She ran down the road, not caring about where she was headed; she was just trying to put as much distance between her and Paris as possible. Her feet pattered swiftly on the road, her shoes flying up into the air as she discarded them. Every so often she let out a shriek of despair, wracking sobs following, and finally letting a new onslaught of tears to dump themselves down her face.

When her feet were cracked and thoroughly sore, she slowed down and made her way into the forest that was looming to her right. She wandered around, the moonlight shining through the leaves making her even sadder.

"Mother, I never told you that I could waterbend," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I never told you my deepest secret. And now I just lost our horse." Katara fell to her knees, wailing. "Why? Mother, why? I didn't mean for this to happen!" Anger and self-loathing began to throb in her veins, and fury boiled her over. Standing abruptly, she kicked a tree as hard as she could with one of her sore feet.

"Why did I leave father?" she roared, punching the same tree with her weathered hands. "Nobody will forgive me! Nobody! I'm so stupid for doing this!" Her knuckles and feet began to bleed, hot blood spattering onto the ground as she gritted her teeth.

Crumpling to the ground in despair, she let out a cluster of coughs before collapsing into a fitful sleep.

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Pain woke her up. The pain in her legs seared through her being, the pain in her hands piercing her arms. But her heart.

It felt like someone had torn out her heart.

Glaring at the sky through the trees, she let the fire of pain engulf her body and decided to ignore it. The sun was too bright, too happy to soothe her anger. She ripped off the stupid boy clothing and pulled on her normal outfit, leaving the discarded clothes lying in a pile beneath the leaves and moss. Crawling towards a gap in the trees, she hoisted herself onto her legs. If she were to get herself out of there, she had to bear the pain, no matter how much there was.

Upon exiting the forest, her eyes lit up in recognition.

"The Wu Manor!"

She looked around, searching the land, to find she was right. Madame Wu, or Aunt Wu, as she informed everyone to call her, was an old family friend that ran a manor north of Paris. She had never been there, nor did she know exactly where it was, but the telltale colors of black, yellow, and red stripes on the workers and the castle itself were evidence enough.

She made her way slowly across the field, and as soon as she crossed the threshold of the entry to the castle, Aunt Wu waltzed out of the doors.

"Katara!" Aunt Wu said grandly, "What a surprise! How are you doing?" She enveloped her in a big hug, sweeping her off her feet and twirling her in a circle.

"Trr-rrribl," Katara mumbled incoherently, then winced when Aunt Wu set her back down on the ground.

"Good, good," Aunt Wu said with a wide smile. "Can I get you anything?"

"A doctor would be nice," Katara said sourly, gesturing to the drying blood on her legs and hands.

"Goodness gracious, I should have noticed your wounded state earlier! Of course I'll get you a doctor! You'll be fixed up in no time!" She took Katara's hand and led her into the castle. After a varying array of twists and turns through the hallways, Katara was on a bed in the doctor's quarters. He was a waterbender; drawing a hefty amount of water from a pot in the corner of his office, and bent it over Katara's body, healing her wounds. Quickly saying her many thanks, Katara was then dragged out the door.

"Dearest! Your clothes are so decrepit and you look so boyish! Unfit for a Princess, that's what it is!" Aunt Wu declared. Katara was dragged up the central staircase, a swarm of servants were upon her, cleaning her, dressing her in a powder blue gown, combing her tangled hair. She was then dragged down the staircase. Everything was seeming to pass by in a flurry.

"It's so nice that you came!" Aunt Wu said joyfully, clasping Katara's hands in hers. "I've visited you in your home many times, but I don't recall you ever coming here!"

"You're right, I've never been here," Katara said, nodding. "I-uh, thought I'd pay you a visit," was the lie that tumbled off her tongue.

"I'm so glad you decided to do that, my little Katara! I haven't seen you in a while! I bet your brother, Sokka, would like to see you! In fact," she said, an expression of intuition dawning on her face, "I bet all the knights-in-training would fancy to see you!"

"That would be nice," Katara replied, chewing nervously on one of her fingernails. Knights in training? Some of them would probably be extremely cute.

Nodding and smiling, Aunt Wu exited the castle and scurried around to the back. Katara waited for what seemed like mere moments before Aunt Wu brought six young men back inside.

"Princess Katara, I would like to introduce to you Duke, Antoine, Vincent, Yves, and Valentin." Aunt Wu gestured to Sokka. "You already know your brother." Sokka nodded to Katara, sticking his tongue out immaturely. Katara replied with the same gesture. "They are all fine, young men with great potential." All six of them bowed respectfully, and Katara motioned for them to stand up.

While Aunt Wu babbled about her oh-so-lovable knights, Katara looked them all over pretty thoroughly, even though she only got a few seconds for each individual guy. Duke was pretty short for his age, sandy brown hair, adorable but not very attractive. Antoine was very, very tall, quite hairy, but looked like a pretty amicable guy. Vincent looked... creepy. His hair was matted and hanging about his face, and his eyes glinted with something that looked way too close to malice. Yves and Valentin were the only two remotely good-looking guys out of the group, both tall, clean-shaven, and scrumptiously muscular. Katara didn't even glance at Sokka. When she regained her sense of the conversation, Aunt Wu was babbling out of confusion.

"Where's- wait a second? Where is he? Katara, would you come with me? We must find him. Antoine and Yves, you're on kitchen duty. Prepare a lovely dinner for us all, and please, pour l'amour de Dieu, use all the bread this time. There was way too much that was wasted last time." After a quick, embarrassed glance that Antoine and Yves shared, the two headed around a corner to what Katara assumed was the kitchen. And, once again, she was being dragged by Aunt Wu out the castle.

They rounded the stony wall of the castle and came upon the training ground; it was a large, grassy area with a fenced-off, dirt rectangle. As they approached the training ground, a figure within the gates came into focus for Katara. She turned to Aunt Wu.

"What's going on?" Katara asked, confused. "Why are we back here?"

"You'll see," Aunt Wu replied, grinning from ear to ear. They arrived at the splintery gate, and Katara walked directly up to it, her mind going utterly blank.

She didn't know if the Lord Wu was allowed to let his pupils train shirtless, but Katara had no objections to speak of when it came to this one.

His lean body looked slightly on the thin side, but after studying him more closely, he was actually quite muscular; Katara assumed he was somewhere in his mid-to-late-teens. His dark brown hair was cut short, swishing swiftly back and forth, shining under the glistening sky. His body was slick with sweat; it looked as if he had been training for a while. He looked deeply focused, concentrating on the wooden dummy he was practicing his swordsmanship on. His fingers shifted, gripping the sword tighter, and he spun, unleashing a huge swipe upon the poor training dummy. The pupil's delicious rippling muscles brought immense color to Katara's cheeks.

"A-Aunt Wu?" Katara stammered, trying to control the blush creeping about her face, "Who's that?"

"Oh, you like him?" Aunt Wu said, grinning even wider than she was before.

"Aunt Wu, you tease me that way every time I see you," Katara whined, memories flooding back to her. "You'd take me to the baker's shop, buy me a bit of bread, and then say something like, 'Katara! Do you like the baker's son?'" she mimicked, blushing completely now.

Aunt Wu laughed; it was a beautiful, joyful sound, and made Katara feel better (although it did not soothe her blush.) "My little Katara, I wouldn't have done it so much if your reaction weren't the same, cute reaction every time!" She mussed Katara's hair in a motherly fashion, and immediately Katara was trying to brush her hair out again.

Katara's big blue eyes wandered back to the knight-in-training, who was now sparring with Sokka, the sword discarded a good twenty feet away. Every time Sokka threw a well-aimed punch, he dodged with much more ease than what was natural. Soft breezes erupted whenever he swung at Sokka, and as Katara examined the two more closely, she noticed that the air was moving around the boy in a very peaceful but unnatural way.

"Aunt Wu?" Katara asked, confusion being the foremost look on her face. Aunt Wu picked up on it right away.

"I should probably tell you, my little Katara. His name is Aang, and he's the last Airbender."

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I'm so very sorry it took me so long to update, but I just never had the time ;A;

EDIT: WOOT! CHAPTER 3 IS DONE! :D Prepare for more editation coming up!

~Momo