Disclaimer: I don't own avatar.
AN: Well this chapter while it stays mostly the same to my original draft got a lot of small edits, and a few big ones given that forced me to delete and then rewrite about a page...Anyway hope you enjoy.
Alright this chapter is based pretty much entirely off of episode one of Book two, this will not be the case for all episodes just the ones I deem important. (plus Iroh has way too good of lines in this one to give up).
Preacher: "It's god's will."
Mal: "Y'all see the man hanging out of the spaceship with the really big gun? Now I'm not saying you weren't easy to find but it was kinda out of our way and he didn't want to come in the first place, Man's lookin' to kill some folk. So really, it's his will y'all should be worrying about thwarting."
Zuko sighed, Iroh had been enjoying the comforts of this spa for much too long in his opinion. Zuko had simply been dealing with the nightmares that always accompanied the anniversary of his banishment. A sigh escaped his lips as he looked into the garden, it was nowhere near as beautiful as his mother's had been. Zuko missed her, she had been the only one who understood him fully. Who didn't want more of him then he could give, he knew that his Uncle wanted him to stop his quest for the avatar and fine his own path in life and Zuko, well Zuko just felt confused.
He had always trusted Uncle without a second thought, and while Zuko knew that his Uncle most likely knew many secrets he had never to Zuko's knowledge held something back purposefully from him. But why would Uncle try to hide something from me that involved the water bender? What could there even be to hide from me...i
Zuko shook his head, he didn't want to go down this train of thought. It would just make things worse, if he could just capture the avatar and go home he would have all the time in the world to find out what his Uncle was holding back from him. Another sigh broke from his lips. As Iroh walked over and sat next to him "It's the anniversary isn't it?" His uncle's voice had concern laced through it. "Three years ago today I was banished. I lost it all, I want it back. I want the Avatar, I want my honor back, I want my throne. And most of all I don't want my Father to think I'm worthless."
"I'm sure he doesn't, why would he banish you if he didn't care." As Zuko stood up he heard Iroh "Eww, that came out wrong didn't it." But in Zuko's head it wouldn't stop repeating itself, the doubts regarding his sire's love towards him became nearly unbearable this close to the anniversary. Thoughts like why was he always trying to do this task his father had set to him. The fact that the task his father had charged him with was meant to be impossible made it terribly clear that his Father had looked at Zuko that day collasped upon the agni kai arena not as his son but as a tool that no longer had a use. When he was younger his Father may have cared. Zuko sighed, his father had stopped caring the moment his bending had begun to weaken.
Unlike most fire benders who could remember the first time they used their element Zuko could never remember what had happened. He knew that he was at his Grandmother from his mother's side for a family visit. This was back when Azula had just been born, Ozai had found some box and then Zuko remembered him throwing it to the floor and then his memory just blanked. When the memory began again his father had a burn on his chest and he was smiling, Zuko only had his own theory as to what happened but he was fairly sure that he had attacked his father for some reason.
Zuko summoned a small flame, he watched as it wavered in the sea air performing the hypnotic dance that all flames do (A.N Yes I'm a bit of a pyro). Zuko felt his gaze drawn across to the ocean in the background, the water seemingly dancing along with the flame he knew this was wishful thinking but it was beautiful none the less. He remembered the times as children when they would play on the beach on ember island, Azula back then not the snake she had become but care free and so much like her mother. Zuko sighed he didn't hate his sister, point in fact he pitied her. She was basically a living weapon for their father now and Zuko wished he knew some way to bring back the little sister he had known for only a short time.
Zuko looked up at the sky, despite the suns comforting rays he was afraid. This fear wasn't attached to anything physical they were simply based off of events, tonight like every other night around this time for the past three years he would have that dream. He stood in the Agni Kai arena of three years ago, everything the same, the noise people even the feel of the stone. But Zuko was different, well different wasn't the right word. He was looking at himself from he had originally assumed was his father the first time the dream happened. But it wasn't, Zuko still to this day had no idea who the man was that he watched the grisly scene unfold from behind the mans eyes.
Everything happened as it had before, Zuko fell begging to the floor but there was no voice that spoke out like his father had when he struck Zuko. Instead when the boy was maimed and passed out the man bent down and picked up the young Zuko. He said the same thing every time to the young prince "This mark may seem a curse to you now, but some day it shall be your salvation and you will understand why this gives you true honor."
Zuko sighed and turned to meditate in the garden. He may as well try and center himself before the nightmares began.
Katara was furious at the Earth Kingdom general. He was using wounded soldiers to try and influence Aang into this meaningless waste of time. She groaned, after spending two hours trying to talk Aang out of doing this and getting nowhere she had given up, sometimes he was too childish. He didn't think of what may happen if he lost control of himself, wasn't it just this morning that he was afraid of himself in the avatar state and now he wanted to enter it to simply appease some overzealous earth kingdom general.
She stood on the cliffs as she went through her bending prep, this was the first time she had ever tried bending the ocean on the scale she had the night of the siege. She could already feel it calling to her but she would not be hasty, if she tried to do too much too early she may end up doing serious damage. As she looked ahead she simply tried bending basic shapes, she was amazed at how simply it responded to her bending but as she moved farther away she could feel her powers weaken significantly. She guessed she had power over maybe a three or four ship lengths worth of water before she had to put significant effort into it, and then maybe another two or three ship lengths before her powers were next to nothing. Not too shabby she thought to herself.
Her thoughts returned to the strange vision she had after Zuko knocked her out, the man's eyes she realized now were identical to Zuko's. It was not so surprising that she remembered Zuko's eyes, after all he had come to epitomize everything bad that had happened to her that the fire nation had caused. She knew that he would have been very young when her mother had died but she didn't care, he had hunted them and tried to hurt her friends plus there had been the tree incident...All for what? Why would her pursue them so far and with such dedication, what did he hope to achieve anyway. Katara shook her head, there was no way of finding out such answers so there was no reason trying to ponder them out.
Zuko headed to bed as he felt the sun began to dip below the horizon. He never had trouble getting to sleep so he was soon breathing peacefully.
The moment he became aware that he was dreaming he knew something was different, he was on a beach for one which was never a part of the normal nightmare. His point of view shifted and he realized that he was looking through the eyes of someone else, the person finally stopped and focused on the woman in his arms. She was water tribe from what Zuko could tell but her eyes were the most beautiful blue he had every seen. A lot like that waterbending peasants eyes,wait where did that come from?
Neither the person whose eyes that Zuko was looking out of nor the water tribe woman said anything, she just took hold of his arm and began to lead him down the beach. She was smiling and Zuko was fairly sure the man was simply content to see her smile. Zuko even to a small extent felt that her smile made everything seemed brighter but he tried to ignore that. Eventually she seemed to find what she was looking for and it turned out to be a natural cave, dug out by the ocean over the years.
She stepped inside beckoning her companion with her arm, once both of them were in the cave she wrapped her arms around him, I think it's a him Zuko thought. And she brought her face in slowly until their lips just barely grazed, as soon as this contact was made they both moved in closer together Zuko could feel the pressure from the womans chest on her companions and he even felt a little light headed though he wasn't sure if that was the man's reaction or his. Then suddenly he woke up.
But he wasn't awake, because Zuko knew where he was. It was ember Island. He found it strange that he would dream of here of all places, then again it was weird that he was dreaming of home. In three years he had never vividly dreamed of being back home, Zuko assumed it was because he felt he didn't deserve to be back there even in his dreams...without his honor.
It was only when he heard someone's grumbling that he realized there was another person inside the dream. He headed to the nearest hill so he could get a better look and hopefully find who else was on the island, but as he crested the hill he was suddenly sent to the ground as he felt someone else land on top of him. As he looked up he found himself staring into a pair of the blue eyes that seemed very familiar...No it can't be the avatar's water bender...agni it is the avatar's water bender.
She quickly jumped off him obviously shaken a little from the collision, as Zuko began to stand he heard her voice "What are you doing in my dream?!" Zuko looked up, a confused expression on his face "Your dream this is my dream. Since I would find it weird that you would be dreaming of a place in the fire nation." He told the water bender.
A slow smirk began to grow on her face, "I'll fight you for it." Her voice as kind as ice, Great now people are trying to kill me in my dreams. Zuko could only stare in amazement as he watched the water tribe bender begin to draw water not from the water skin at her side but from the ocean itself. Zuko tried to stop her by sending the largest fireball he could at her but she simply drew the water from the pouch at her side to extinguish it, as Zuko stared at the approaching wave of water that rushed to crush him his only thought was I think I would have preferred the nightmares.
Zuko awoke with a start, he looked around just to ensure that he was indeed in his room at the spa and not being crushed beneath a wave on ember island. He groaned the sun wasn't even up yet, Zuko simply rose from his bed he wasn't risking another dream like that. Because while he may not be dead like in his dream he certainly felt like he was.
Katara groaned awake, she could feel Yue's pull in the sky. "Not even morning yet..." She grumbled, strangely she felt horrible after the dream where she killed Zuko. Why did I even kill him?, he didn't do anything in fact he seemed kind of at peace. Katara shook the thoughts away, as she walked out into the courtyard she saw Aang coming back from the main building. She ran over to him a little worried as to why he was up so late. "Aang what are you doing up so late?" Aang looked at her obviously not wanting to tell her, but he knew that Katara would be more angry if she found out tomorrow "I'm going to work with the earth kingdom general to try and find a way to enter the Avatar state."
Katara just stared at him, she felt her hands at her sides ball into fists involuntarily. Aang stood there obviously expecting her to give him a speech on how he should be doing it his way, but Katara simply turned around and walked away. "Katara wait where are you going?!?" She heard Aang's voice come from behind her, "To be alone for a while Aang, since you seem to value my opinion so much then you can do without it for a while." She called over her shoulder before disappearing into the night.
Zuko's mind kept turning over the events in his dream, What if it wasn't a dream what if the waterbender was actually somehow there with you. Zuko quickly discarded the thought, reincarnating avatars was enough craziness he didn't need a homicidal water bender in his dreams too. But the dream before that hadn't been just any dream either, truly to Zuko it felt more like a memory but it obviously could never have happened...could it? He was jarred out of these thoughts when his uncle's voice broke through his reverie.
"Look at these magnificent shells, I will enjoy these keepsakes for years to come." Zuko inwardly groaned. His uncle may be a great man but he had a habit of collecting junk...a lot of junk. "We don't need any more useless things, or have you forgotten we have to carry everything ourselves." Iroh simply looked down at the shell until a voice from the corner of the room grabbed both their attention.
"Hello brother, uncle." Zuko was shocked to see Azula sitting comfortably in one corner of the room, a smirk on her face. "What are you doing here?" Azula merely began to play with one of Uncle's shells before beginning to speak "In my country we exchange a pleasant hello before asking questions." A look of disgust crossed her voice as she stood up. "Or is it that you have become so uncivilized so soon Zuzu?"
Zuko knew what game she was playing, but he was too tired or simply didn't care anymore when she so obviously wanted to get a rise out of him. When no outburst came Azula gave Zuko a quizzical look "I see that you have been working on your little anger problem have you Zuzu? That is a good thing I suppose, Father will want you to have a clear head when you come home." Zuko couldn't stop his surprise from showing "Home? But I haven't captured the Avatar yet."
"The Avatar doesn't matter anymore, Father has heard of treacherous plots against him. Some would seek to take the throne from him and after all if you can't trust family who can you trust." Azula seeming to sense that Zuko needed further proof continued "Father does regret your banishment, he really does want you home Zuko." Zuko's mind couldn't process this information. It was too sudden, too much. He walked to the window trying to collect his thoughts. "Didn't you hear me?" Azula's annoyance at the situation clearly visible. "I just gave you great news." Iroh trying to appease the princess began to speak in his defense "I'm sure your brother just-"
"Don't interrupt uncle!" Azula not trying to hide her own dislike for her Uncle. "I'm still waiting for my thank you." Zuko turned to Azula "You said that father regretted my banishment?" Azula sighed obviously annoyed at being asked a question she had given him an answer for "Yes or did you not just hear me?" Zuko not phased continued "Does he regret what he did, or is it merely useful for him now to be home." Azula simply began to walk out of the small house "You obviously need some time to think this fully through Zuko, because if I let you on my ship with you talking like that you could be arrested for treason. I'll be by in the morning to collect you."
Katara leaned against a railing of the earth kingdom fortress. "Can we talk about something." She asked Aang who leaned against a railing looking outward away from the fortress. "Sure" Was all the airbender replied. "Do you remember when the Ocean spirit empowered me?" Aang turned to look at her, "Of course I remember it was hard to forget." Katara simply looked down at her feet "How did you guys feel when that happened." Aang thought back to all the emotions that had run through his mind. "I'd say mostly fear, I mean your normally calm and peaceful but you were all of a sudden this different person. You were wiping out those troops without any hesitation and then when those ships were trying to escape you made that giant wave and crush..."
"Alright Aang just stop describing it!" Katara yelled, Aang a little stunned by her outburst just looked at her. "I'm sorry it's just, what you just described is how it feels like to me when you go into the avatar state. Your a completely different person, and it's a little scary to see someone you love become that." Aang simply looked over the railing again "I'm really glad you told me that. But I still need to do this." Katara moved away form the railing turning to face Aang "I don't understand why do you have to do this?"
"No you don't. Every day more and more people die, I'm already a hundred years too late. Defeating the fire lord is the only way to stop this war, I have to try it." Katara felt something snap inside her. "I don't understand?" Her voice had an edge to it that Aang had never heard before. "Let me tell you what I don't understand, is how you can't think of anyone but yourself!" She turned away from him, for a moment he thought she was going to leave but she continued "You know my Mother died in a fire nation raid, who knows that if maybe you hadn't have run away from the temple a hundred years ago she may still be alive!" Aang looked at her angry that she was trying to make him feel guilty. "So your saying that your mother's death is my fault!" Katara whirled around so that she was facing him, Aang was a little shocked to see her eyes had a little bit of the same glow they had a nearly a week ago "Aang if you get to say that I don't understand why the fire nation needs to be defeated, then I think I have the right to blame you for my Mother's death!." With that she left.
Katara was dreaming. She knew that she was dreaming because she was at the south pole. She was curled up in a ball at the foot of Sokka's old watchtower, she could feel the tears falling down her face. Which was another hint that she was dreaming seeing as how neither she nor the tears were freezing. How could Aang say that to her, how could he think that she wouldn't understand. She thought she could hear footsteps coming near her but she didn't want to break out of her grief, she just wanted to lie there and cry. "Are you okay?" She heard the voice she had least expected to hear. That of Fire Prince Zuko.
She looked up "What are you doing in my dream!" Zuko took a step back, obviously remembering what happened last time. "I don't know, but are you alright. Why are you crying?" Katara just stared at the prince. "Why are you trying to be nice? Or are you just trying to get me to drop my guard so you can kill me?" It was hard not to notice how Zuko's body tensed up at her accusations, but he seemed to be trying to keep calm. His voice had a strained calm to it when he started to speak "If I was trying to kill you I just would have done so when you were oh so conveniently ignoring the world. As to why I'm trying to help you, it's not like helping someone in a dream is going to hurt anyone." Katara not convinced stated coldly "Your Fire Nation, all you people do is destroy. Lives, homes hope everything!"
Zuko starred at her in disbelief. Is this how the rest of the world thought of his nation. But her words had a horrible ring of truth that only someone who had something truly important taken away from them could have. Zuko's couldn't have kept the sadness out of his voice if he had tried "What did my people do to you?" The water bender looked slightly taken aback at how sincere he sounded. She simply looked at him the tears still running down her face "They took away my Mother." Zuko slowly walked over to her and knelt down in front of her "Do you want to kill me again?"
At the Prince's words Katara couldn't help but be shocked. "What?" All he did was repeat what he had just said "Do you want to kill me?" Katara managed to splutter out "No, no I heard you it's just why would you offer to let me kill you?" Zuko looked at her, Katara couldn't help but see some form of sincerity in his eyes. "My people took away someone you treasured dearly, and while you can't truly kill me this may ease your pain." Katara simply shook her head, "No when I killed you the other night, I wasn't myself. I was having trouble thinking clearly, this earth kingdom general was trying to get Aang to do something he shouldn't have and I took out my frustrations on the first thing I saw as an enemy." Katara paused then spoke again "To tell the truth when I think of the fire nation I see your face."
Zuko felt his hand instinctively go up and touch his scar. "Oh I see." He stood up and walked away a little, wanting solitude from the water bender that threatened to break open those blocks he had made to keep back thoughts like the one that had gotten him banished in the first place all right before he went home! But he couldn't walk away, he needed to help her and he didn't know where that need came from. "I just want you to know, that we have something in common." He paused trying to silence the warring voices in his mind, "I lost my mother to the fire nation too." He turned and looked at the water bender. She was starring at him with a look that was a mix between sadness and some mild form of interest. "Um can I sit down?" The water bender was a little taken aback from the sudden request simply nodded. Once Zuko was seated he looked at her, "I just want you to know that what I'm about to tell you I have never told anyone else, not even my uncle." And with that Zuko began telling the story of his mother's disappearance and the events that led to it.
Katara groaned awake, she could here something smashing outside. "What crazy thing are they trying now?" She was content to leave them out there until it became louder...maybe she should go out and make sure they weren't trying to kill Aang or something...
As she entered the courtyard she saw Sokka coming down the opposite stairwell. "Whats going on?" She yelled to her brother, "The General's gone crazy and is trying to force Aang into the Avatar state." Katara felt a emotion that had became quite familiar in recent days, anger. She quickly let out a water whip that struck a nearby earth bender off of his mount. Which Sokka then got on himself, she looked around for Aang seeing that he was on the veranda overlooking the lower plaza. Then she realized that she was surrounded. General Fong stood before her, yelling up to Aang "You may be able to dodge our attacks but she can't." Katara's response was simply as she froze the water in her pouch into ice daggers and sent them hurtling at the general, he brought up a shield but he wasn't fast enough to stop one from embedding itself in his shoulder.
An unfamiliar smirk came on her face, but it soon disappeared as she realized she was out of water. She suddenly felt the earth begin to swallow her up, he's trying to kill me! Her mind shouted. As she struggled to get out she heard Aang and Sokka cry out. But she was too busy to notice what was happening. As she sank further she saw Aang trying to attack the General and Sokka sent flying through the air. As Aang began to plead with the General Katara felt herself sink more. As she felt herself sink up to her neck Katara felt true fear, she didn't want to die here. Not because of some crazed earth general. "You don't need to do this!" Aang's voice cried out, "Apparently I do." Came Fong's voice. Then all went black.
The first thing Katara realized was that she wasn't dead, he's using me to trick Aang into the Avatar state. Soon after this realization she felt herself propelled to the surface. Hovering above her was Aang while Fong was trying to get him to respond. Suddenly Aang shot downwards shattering the ground and sending anyone who didn't have the luck or the common sense to duck flying. As Aang began to recover Katara ran up to help him. "I'm sorry Katara I hope you never have to see me like that again."
"Ha are you joking, that was almost perfect. We just have to find some way to control you." Aang looked up at him "Your out of your mind." As Fong continued "Well I guess we'll just have to figure that out on the way to the fire nation." Sokka rode up on the Ostrich horse behind him and hit him on the head with his club. "Anyone got a problem with that?" Fong's soldiers obviously having more intelligence then their commander wisely shook their heads.
The soldiers walked forward, bowing to them. "Do you still want an escort to Omashu?" Katara simply looked at the others and replied. "No I think were all set."
Zuko and Uncle stood at a steam, Zuko pulled out the knife his uncle had given him all those years ago. He saw the past three years reflected in it's blade, his failings, his hope that his father would have him back, of recapturing the Avatar and getting back his honor. All of it shattered in the last few hours. His own sister sent to capture him, and she hadn't even planned on bringing him home alive. What had happened to her, then again what had happened to him. Because deep down he was somehow glad at what had happened. Now there was no need to doubt, now all that remained was to act as how he saw fit to act. To maybe figure out who he really was. As he cut the hair from the back of his head, he cut his ties with his nation. From here on I will forge my own path Zuko promised himself.
AN: Whew that was long wasn't it? (and it ironically got longer when I edited it instead of getting smaller :) ) I was kind of surprised when I looked at the word count to realize that this chapter was the length of all the others combined. And the reason why I didn't put in Zuko's fight with Azula was because it's unchanged. The only real reason I put in the whole Katara bit of the fight was because I'm showing that this stories Katara is quite a bit darker (I.E not water whipping but ice daggering (is that a verb?) the general).