Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or anything related to it. But this story, its plot and any original characters created here belong to me.

Chapter 4: Ninjas in Long Coats

"I almost forgot to tell you something," said Zuko, seated on Appa's head.

Katara was resting against the rim of the saddle. "What?"

"Look in my bag."

Katara raised an eyebrow. "Okay." She moved to the front of the saddle to kneel on her haunches – where she usually sat – and lifted Zuko's shoulder bag into her lap.

Inside, she found a lump of smooth, black material. Her eyebrow travelling higher with curiosity, she pulled out two pieces of the material, which were surprisingly heavy. She held one of them in front of her at arm's length, and ran her eyes up and down it. It appeared like a tunic from the waist up, with long, thin sleeves. The front was opened out, and to hold it closed a black obi sash was looped lazily around it. What Katara favoured most about it was how it came down in thick ripples; these were the culprits who added weight to the garment.

Katara set it down on top of the other. "So, how am I supposed to change into it?" she asked.

"You wear it on top of your normal clothes. And it's called a long coat."

"I've never heard of that before."

"That's because they were made in the Fire Nation, out of mianhua imported from the Earth Kingdom. They were going to be uniforms for the Yu Yan Archers, but since Ozai said they weren't fiery enough, they were put on sale for the public. But they're still very rare these days, so don't lose them."

"Sure. Thanks for the History lesson. How do you know so much about them?"

"I wasn't totally left out. They told me unimportant things like that, so I took what I got." He shrugged.

"When you become Fire Lord, why don't you get them to make some more?" She stroked the material like she would a meadow mouse, unconscious of her words.

"When…" pondered Zuko. It was definitely not a question.

Katara realized what she had said with a flush. Of course, the topic regarding the outcome of the War was a sensitive one. How was Aang going to defeat the Fire Lord? Would he be ready? And what about Azula and the Fire Navy and the power of Sozin's Comet? These questions fled by in Katara's mind. No. There's still a few more weeks for the Comet to arrive. For now, I'll focus on our mission… for now…

"Katara?" Zuko saw to the silence that had fallen. "Put on the long coat."

"Don't order me around. I'm only being nice because I want the mission to go well." She relaxed into a full sitting position, stretching her legs out.

"Nice?"

Katara sniffed and ignored him. She lifted one of the long coats and slipped it over her shoulders. The material felt softer when she wore it, and it clung onto her, becoming a part of her skin. She rose, shakily standing on her feet. The draping sides fell along her legs, and were quite light in comparison to when she first held it. She looked at her bare hands; something was missing.

"Gloves and masks are also in the bag," said Zuko, answering her thought. "You know, Toph said you were supposed to be good at going through people's bags."

"Haha, very funny," she responded dryly. Kneeling down again, she dug her hands into the bag and found two pairs of fingerless gloves and two masks; they both matched the black of the long coats. She removed her own blue gloves and tugged on the black pair, her fingers poking through the end. The mask came in the form of a piece of charcoal scarf-like material; she tied it around her neck. Using a shred of material from her old gloves, she tied her hair back into a loose pony-tail.

"Can you pass me my stuff?" asked Zuko, without looking behind him. After a moment of hearing Katara's fingers tapping on the saddle, he added, "Please?"

"Anything for you, Zuko," she said sweetly, and tossed him the new outfit. "Where did you get these things?"

He caught the bundle easily and, balancing on Appa, he pulled on the long coat. "I practiced my jet propulsion and followed Aang and Sokka to the market."

"Wouldn't you have been seen?"

"Airbenders can bend clouds, apparently."

"So can waterbenders."

"You're competing with the Avatar." Zuko gripped the reins tightly and tugged on his gloves using his teeth.

"No, I'm not!" Katara folded her arms. "Why didn't you tell me about your shopping-spree?" She needed to change the topic.

"You were healing Appa. That was too important to give up for a… supplies trip."

Katara looked away. "I hope he has enough strength."

"What?" Zuko flipped around. "What do you mean?"

"I healed the bone, but he was still weak and tired from your field-trip with Aang. Where did you go, anyway?"

"We went to learn firebending. And don't blame this on me."

"Where did you learn firebending from? Don't tell me you found a bunch of dragons."

"No, we didn't." He shifted awkwardly. "Why didn't you say anything about Appa before we left? We could've waited." He continued to look at her accusingly.

"Well, this can't wait. It's important to me, and we can't go on this mission right before Sozin's Comet arrives. We still need to prepare Aang just a little more. And watch where you're flying!" she added.

He turned to look ahead again. "You need to accept that he can do this, Katara."

She lowered her eyes. His words were so true. Another wave of silence fell over them, as each one ventured off into the haven of their minds. Katara imagined the Northern Water Tribe's icy wall melting, exposing its city to the outer world again, in accordance with the new peace. Her vision drifted off to an Air Temple, where there were hundreds of airbenders buzzing around the mountainside on air-scooters and gliders. Then came the Earth Kingdom, with Ba Sing Se's wall being fixed, and the Earth Kingdom banner covering all of the Fire Nation flags around the great continent. But, for a reason unknown, she could not imagine the Fire Nation in the new world. She opened her eyes, and saw Zuko. Yes, he would lead the Fire Nation into an era of peace… hopefully.

She then noticed the cover of a book sticking out of Zuko's bag. Plucking it out, she scanned the familiar cover. Love Amongst the Dragons. This book seemed to follow her wherever she went, and she could not help asking her next question. "Why do you have this book?"

"It's very special," he said quietly, without a single glance at her.

"Where did you get it?"

"Someone gave it to me."

"Who?"

"A very special person." His tone was quiet and almost heavy with an emotion Katara could not understand.

She opened the cover for the first time, and there was an inscription written in black with small, curvy handwriting:

To my dearest Zuko,

Happy 8th birthday.

Enjoy your day, my love.

Today, you begin to understand more complex things, and what is better to start with than this book?

It should keep you company for those lonesome days.

With love, from Mom

Katara breathed. She hoped she had not offended Zuko. She ran her hand over the page, yellowed at the corners. Eight years ago, this would have been brand new. The ink of the inscription would have been shiny and fresh, written by Zuko's mother just for him. Now that she thought about it, Katara knew nothing of Zuko's banishment, his exile and his family life before it had all happened. But without asking, she knew why Zuko had this book; it was a reminder of his mother, just like her necklace was to her.

"I didn't know," was all Katara could think of to say.

"Don't worry about it."

"When did she… leave?"

"She was banished," he said stiffly. "She left one night, when I was eight. That's the birthday present I made sure to keep – it was the last one she gave me."

Katara closed the cover gently. She could not help but feel the slightest pang of guilt. When she was leaving on this mission only a short half hour ago, she had not imagined feeling something of sadness for Zuko. Though it was not for his past mistakes; it was for how unfortunate his story was. His mother had vanished, disappeared, and hers had been killed senselessly. Neither of the circumstances were favourable, of course, but his mother was probably alive, living somewhere else in the world. From Katara's experiences, she knew Zuko had travelled this world in search of Aang, in the process coming very close to what he was longing to find. She could not imagine the frustration he feels every time he comes even remotely close to finding his mother.

"What was her name?" asked Katara.

"Ursa."

"Was she the Fire Lady?" Every lord must have a lady, right?

"No. She was Princess Ursa, wife of Prince Ozai." He paused. "With the banishment, comes an automatic divorce. Ozai wouldn't dare hurt his reputation."

Katara raised her eyebrows. She wished she had not brought about this topic. They fell into silence once again, Katara placing the book back into Zuko's shoulder bag. She leaned on the rim to the right of her, letting her hair fall over the side. His story, no matter how short, had definitely appealed to her generous side; the one that she had decided to nickname 'the Painted Lady'. She felt as though she needed to do something to heighten his mood, to help him. If someone like Zuko could not find his mother, how would she?

She pushed the thought aside; her plan was becoming so complicated that she might forget about this mission – her mission. Still… the thought of a small boy with a messy topknot appeared in her mind. She was not sure how Zuko looked when he was half his current age, but she did her best. The furthest she could go with this vision was a silhouette, but tears were dripping down its face and onto the cold floor of the Fire Palace. Another figure, Azula, popped up out of nowhere, and began to smile – her bright, white teeth were enough to prove it. When Katara tried harder to picture Zuko's face, his scar smudged the face of a young boy. Then he grew to his full height, decked in Earth Kingdom clothing, and the setting changed to the Crystal Catacombs of old Ba Sing Se. Azula was fully grown too, and together, they blocked out Katara's vision with a rush of blue and red fire.

Katara's face was creased in a frown. She remembered her talk with Suki, and also remembered how difficult it was to forgive Zuko. The events of that night at Ba Sing Se kept flowing back every time she wanted to forgive him. It would take something big to make her able to accept what had happened in the Crystal Catacombs as a mistake. Her forgiving nature was locked away. Now she just had to find the key.

"I'd like to read it sometime," she said, breaking the silence. That was definitely not the key she was looking for, but she hoped he would grant her the permission.

"I don't need pity, Katara. You don't have to."

"I know that. I just thought it looked interesting, so I want to read it." She thought of a reason, and pointed her finger skywards when she came to one. "Since it's important to you, I need your permission first."

Zuko sighed. "Sure. Just don't cloudbend it to shreds."

She pursed her lips. This journey should be ending soon enough.

"How much longer until we're there?" She sat up in the saddle, flexing her arms. "Wherever there is," she muttered under her breath.

"There is right in front of us," replied Zuko, pointing ahead at a great tower in the middle of the ecstatic sea. "The Lookout Tower. The place where all the information on the navy movements is kept."

Katara's tone became more serious. "So when we get there, we bust in, and get the information we need."

"No, actually. We need to enter as quietly and stealthily as possible, otherwise the Southern Raiders will be alerted, and by the time we get there they would have gone."

"The Southern Raiders." Katara tested the name on her tongue.

"Yes, and we're looking for the leader of the group," confirmed Zuko. "Appa, uh… yip-yip…"

Katara raised an eyebrow. "Not like that." She moved to the front of the saddle. "Appa, yip-yip!" she called in Zuko's ear; he cringed and snapped the reins. Appa picked up his pace.

Zuko steered Appa to an enormous rock formation a few miles away from the lone tower. The rock, with a flat surface and then another tall rise jutting skyward, was large enough for a flying bison to hide on while Katara and Zuko left to the tower. Appa landed on the rock with a skid. Katara tightened the mask around her neck, covering her nose and mouth, and hopped off the saddle onto the rock's surface while Zuko slid down. He rolled his neck and moved to Katara, pulling his mask up over his mouth and nose. He nodded once at her.

With a swoop of her arms, Katara brought a huge wave up from the sea and held it next to the rock. She coated the tongue of the wave with a few more layers of water to strengthen it, enough to support the weight of her and Zuko. She stepped carefully onto the water and spread her arms out next to her. Zuko stepped onto the wave next to her, with his arms held out to help his balance. Katara took a deep breath and lunged forward, the wave speeding in the direction of the tower. The salty air of the sea batted her face and hurt her eyes; she squinted.

As they neared the outer wall of the Lookout Tower, Katara said, "Just a bit closer… get ready. And… jump!" She gave the wave an extra boost and sent them flying up into the air.

She had used a lot of power for the launch. Everything seemed to freeze as the two were suspended in the air above the wall. Thankfully, no guards were present. Splashes of water hung in front of Katara, and her hands were in the middle of grabbing desperately for the scuffed bricks before her. Time caught up, and slowly gravity dragged her back down. Zuko landed first, quite lightly. But time had caught up too suddenly, and in the nick of time, Katara pushed her hands out as she made contact with the ground. She tumbled once and landed heavily on her haunches with a grunt. She straightened up.

"Are you okay?" whispered Zuko.

"Yes." She nodded. Zuko held up his finger as she was about to speak again. Listening, she heard two voices coming from around the corner.

"Whoa, was that tide high!" came the first.

"I wonder if it'll ever flood the tower?" came a second, younger voice.

"Maybe. Let's go check it out," responded the first voice. The sound of footsteps followed.

"C'mon," hissed Zuko. He started off at a run towards their right, Katara following him wildly – he was much faster than her, and she was surprised at his speed. They dashed down a poorly lit corridor. Katara nearly hit into Zuko when he stopped abruptly at the end. She peered around him, annoyed that he had not given her a warning, and saw a plump, snoring guard, squashed into a little wooden chair. The beard sprouting from his chin and all the way down his chest made Katara wonder how long employees were allowed to work for.

Slowly they edged around the rounded corner to the left, the guard oozing out the occasional snort. Here was another corridor, as poorly lit as the one they had just sprinted down, except it ended in a shadowy dead end. Zuko moved down it more swiftly, with a certainty that made Katara suspicious. Again, he stopped abruptly, and Katara resisted the urge to scream. But then he bent down, his finger feeling around for something. He made a small tapping sound when he found what he was looking for – a rusted, brass grate set into the wall. He pushed his palms against the two lower corners; there was a glow and a pop as the screws jumped out.

Zuko yanked the grate open to reveal an enclosed tunnel that resembled the inside of an air vent. He stepped aside and gestured for Katara to enter first. She raised an eyebrow skeptically, but still dipped her leg inside and then the next. She found herself in an enclosed, cramped space. A faint, orange light shone at the end; she crawled towards it. There was a clank as Zuko closed the grate behind him and followed Katara down the tunnel. With a shock, Katara halted, her eyes wide. The otherwise darkness of the tunnel had misled her to think that the surface was flat all the way – it was not. The mouth of a deep hole greeted her.

"It's okay," said Zuko. "Stand up."

Looking up, Katara noticed that the floor jutted out only a little further than the wall; just enough for her to stand up. "I could've decided that for myself, you know." She found a gouge deep enough for her hand to clutch onto it.

"But you didn't know, did you?" Zuko's figure rose up beside her and gripped a second handhold.

"I would've found out eventually."

"Eventually." Zuko snorted.

"Don't laugh at me!"

"That wasn't laughing." Zuko tilted his head in front of them. "Now, before you eventually find it, get onto that ladder and start climbing."

Katara, not bothering to find fault in his words, leaned out over the hole. She stretched out her leg, and the toe of her boot knocked something with a slight ring. She hooked the heel over it, and grabbed onto the rung with both hands, shifting herself over the emptiness below her. The ladder shook unsteadily. Glancing over her shoulder and finding nothing, she placed her hands over the next rung and the next. The ladder rattled as Zuko joined her and began climbing up.

"Are you sure this is safe?" asked Katara.

"Yeah, just as long as nobody find us," he replied from below her.

"What is this anyway? It doesn't seem like any ordinary vent."

"It appears like a vent, but it's a shortcut that only the architects and mechanics used to use. They've stopped using it ever since the elevator was installed. This ladder will take us to the very top of the tower, the Records Room. That's the place we're looking for. And before you ask how I know, my uncle brought me here with my cousin and sister before he left for Ba Sing Se."

"Oh." Katara had really wanted to ask if Zuko's uncle, Iroh, really had a son. She decided against it, since she had already interrogated him along the way here, and even interfered with the more personal matters Zuko kept. She climbed on, and saw the source of the orange light ahead. Another grate was set into the wall, just above the last rung of the ladder. Katara reached that last rung and, holding onto it with one hand, she reached the other forward. As she was about to yank open the grate, her hand plunged through the weak and rusted bars.

Unsure of how to go about this, she tried to pull her hand out soundlessly. And she succeeded in doing so, but the rest of the bars snatched onto the material of the glove. She almost lost her balance as her hand waved out behind her, trying to get the rusty remains off of her. After a good shake, the brass and rust released their hold on the material and fell down into the void.

There was a growl from Zuko. "Now the rust's on me," he complained.

"Let's go," Katara said, ignoring him. She crawled through the grate – now without any bars.

"First dirty water, and now this," muttered Zuko as he slid through behind her.

"Shh!" hissed Katara.

They were now on a ledge, made of thin layers of metal plates, surrounded entirely by pipes and poles. The entire room was blanketed in dim, orange light, emanating from countless lamps. A single aged female, in the uniform of a guard but with a different headdress consisting of a pair of blunt wings, was seated at a desk in the centre of the room. There was a candle – for an unknown purpose – next to the piece of parchment she was inking industriously. Her brush zoomed back and forth between the inkpot and the parchment.

From observing this, Katara knew exactly how to distract the woman for a few moments while they searched for the information. She cupped her hand in front of her and made a scooping action left and right. The ink in the pot followed her movement and slopped over the edges, splashing the woman's uniform as well as her parchment. The woman cursed and stood, rushing out of the room. Katara sighed with relief as she and Zuko used the jungle of pipes to help them down into the room.

"It should be here." Zuko pointed to a low shelf marked 'S'. He ran his finger along the rows and came to a stop at a tube with a sea raven as its emblem. He slid it out and opened it as Katara gazed longingly at a map of the world, spread across the wall next to the door. "They're currently off the coast of Whaletail Island. From here, that should be about four days of flying if we move fast. But considering Appa's condition, this might even take a week. Hey, are you listening?"

Katara blinked. "Hm, yes, I am…"

"What's the matter?" Zuko moved, cautiously, to stand next to her before the map. His voice settled into something of sensitivity. "This does take long. Do you wanna turn around and go back? I don't mind-"

"It's not that." She looked down. "I wonder where my father and the others went. I hope they're all right, wherever they are."

Zuko turned away and slid the tube, the map of navy movement for the Southern Raiders, back into its pigeonhole. "No offense, but we have to get out of here quickly, before anyone notices we're here. We can talk about this later."

"No." Katara turned to him and pulled her mask down. "I'm not giving up on this mission. We're going to find this man."

"That's really great, but we have to leave before-" He paused at the sound of footsteps echoing in the hall. "Let's go," he mouthed."

Katara nodded. Zuko hoisted himself up to the pipes and climbed behind them, back onto the landing. Katara was right behind him, and she found herself scrambling. She reeled her leg in from between the pipes just as the door opened again, and in came the woman. She looked around the room with beady brown eyes and checked behind the desk for an intruder. She found none, and resumed her inking on a new page.

Zuko and Katara went back the way they had came; through the bar-less grate, down the shaky ladder, along the squashed tunnel, and back out the grate through which they had first entered the passageway. And all in silence, without any bickering. They left the shadows behind them as they made their way to the front of the corridor. The overweight guard was still in the same position on the little chair; the two edged around the corner again, moving in another 'u' shape.

They arrived at the outer wall, and without a glance at the churning see below them, they leapt off the edge. Katara threw her arms out in front of her and summoned up a sheet of water. As soon as they were about to make contact with it, she hardened it into an icy board. Their legs were bent, giving them good balance on the floating board as it moved ahead to the rock formation. Katara's hands were at her sides, keeping the board firm as she directed it with ease.

She could not help but feel eager for the mission lying ahead of her. It did not bring her joy, of course, but she needed stability and reassurance. And with Zuko's knowledge of the Fire Nation and navigation, she could find this man easily. So far, Zuko was irking her when it came to certain situations, but he was a certainly efficient partner for this mission. She smiled at the thought of Sokka's company at this moment. And then she thought of Aang. The young boy was reluctant to let her go, his confessions overwhelming, and he would be even more worried the longer it took.

Katara shook her head as she rushed them closer to the rock formation. He said he'd wait. He needs to be patient. I just hope this is what he meant when he said that he'd be waiting…

Author's Note:

Always appreciate your reviews. Thanks!

I should probably tell you that 'mianhua' is Chinese for cotton. Apologies if I'm wrong, but that's what the dictionary said.

Katara's feelings in this chapter aren't romantic – since her personality is generous, seeing someone unhappy or in pain makes her… unhappy. And yes, she was quite inquisitive. The previous chapters' happenings are catching up to her, and she's unsure.

Sorry, I just had to clarify that. I hope you haven't forgotten about the moonpeach? Haha…

Hope you enjoyed the chapter :)