Chapter 7
The silver breeze cooled the sweat off of Zuko's face as he stumbled through the dark fields and into the So's humble farm. Katara coughed a few times and then he laid her down on some hay in the barn. He quickly brought a flask of water towards her and splashed it gently on her face so that she would wake up. At once, the prickling of soft life giving water droplets stained her skin and she fluttered her eyes open to see Zuko's messy head above her.
"Zuko? Is that you?"
She coughed and then fell forward into his embrace. He rubbed her arm tenderly as her hand crept up towards his strong shoulders.
"We made it Katara. Naoki went back to the society. Everything is going to be fine, but I don't think that we should help them anymore."
She sighed and closed her eyes as she rested her head on his chest, his heartbeat pounding against her ear.
"Okay… whatever you want to do…"
Zuko held her a bit more tightly, and as the moon shined down onto her beautiful face, he felt the words choke up in his throat. He looked away, not allowing himself to feel so weak. Every second that they had been fighting for the better good of the peasants in Denati, every second he the thought of losing Katara entered his mind and he found himself focusing on that more than anything else. At that moment, when she began to fall asleep in his arms, he felt the world slip away, as if nothing else mattered. He sighed and tilted his head on top of hers.
"I'll be right here Katara, right… next to you, and I won't let anything… happen…"
He fell asleep amid the yawning and the two of them rustled against the hay beside them.
Sokka and Emi were standing outside of the barn, just standing and looking at each other for what seemed to be the longest minute in the entire world.
"Thanks for a great day today Emi…"
"It was no big deal… I mean, showing you how to do some chores wasn't as much of a wasted day as I thought it would be."
She laughed, showing off her gorgeous smile. Sokka was mesmerized by the amounts of beauty that shined through her face, the way that she even talked left him sometimes speechless. All of it had happened in one day, and now he didn't know if he could be separated from her. Suddenly, she whacked him on the head gently and he snapped out of his delirious eye goggling state.
"What was that for?"
"So that I could finally get your attention. I'm surprised I was able to teach you at all!"
He smiled as she pulled him away from the barn and into the field.
"What are we doing?"
"You always have a question to ask, don't you?"
"That's a question too though!"
Emi's eyes sparkled with brilliance as they came to a stop in the middle of the field.
"Sit down."
Sokka stared at her blankly and shrugged his shoulders. He obeyed, and then his eyes bulged as she pushed his back all the way to the ground.
"Are you crazy?"
Her eyes glimmered above him and her soft hair scratched his cheeks playfully.
"Shh… just look."
Her face disappeared and Sokka did what she asked, he looked up at the sky. Millions of stars dotted the vast expanse of hazy blue and his jaw dropped in awe.
"Wow…there's so many stars… we didn't see so many at the North Pole. It was just the moon…"
He fell silent for a moment and then sat up sadly. Emi's smile softened and she turned his head towards her.
"The Earth Kingdom belongs to the stars. They shine the brightest in the sky to reveal that our hopes shine in the hidden legacies of those who looked up at night before us. Each star shines with hope, and everyone can find their own star if they want. You can choose the hope that will guide you with your heart, no matter what you've done in the past."
Her soft words flowed with the wind and rustled against his face. Sokka melted inside as her fingers slipped into his hand. He jerked awkwardly but then looked into her deep emerald eyes and saw something there that he hadn't seen before. The kindness in her heart warmed up her face unlike anything else. In a moment, their lips would have touched, brushed against each other and spilled the warmth into each others hearts, but someone came stampeding through the field. Emi pulled away and gasped when she saw that it was her brother Naoki.
"Hey! Where have you been?"
They stood up and followed Naoki, who hadn't paid them the slightest bit of attention.
"Are you deaf? I asked you a question!"
She barged right in front of him and stopped him where he was, just a few long strides away from their house.
"I was in the forest just sipping some water from a dirty river because I had nothing better to do!"
Sokka winced as he strode away from them. Emi bit her lip and glanced after her brother, who seemed burdened with something heavy on his heart. His eyes gleamed with sorrow and his body ached, lagging behind with each step that he took. She sighed and then rolled her eyes when she heard Sokka's remark.
"I could think of a few things that would have been better to do than that! Is your brother really that dim?"
Emi hit him on the shoulder and ran after her brother. Sokka rubbed the spot where she had hit him and then smiled. He began to walk towards the barn and when he stepped inside, he stopped and his jaw dropped. Zuko and Katara were asleep peacefully in each other's arms. Despite his usual arrogance, he nodded and crept out of the barn. That night, he would sleep in their room since they decided to take his, not that he minded it though.
..:-:..
Emi finally caught up to her brother when she reached the house. She stood silently in the doorway as his scolding came close to being finished.
"And don't you ever scare us like that again! Do you want your mother to die of an early heart attack?"
Naoki hung his head and barely moved his lips to speak.
"No."
"Then we have come to an understanding. Oh, and here's Emi. You should take an example from your sister! She's been working harder than you! Now go to bed, both of you! Tomorrow is our day off, but some work that wasn't done today needs to be finished. Good night."
His parents walked away and into their own room. Naoki let out a frustrated sigh and sat down near the table. Emi sat down next to him quietly, her feet moving around as if the floor was going to break underneath her.
"Naoki… for the past few days… you've been so distant from me, from everyone. What's happened to you? I feel like you can't trust me anymore."
She looked down at her lap and then a tear spilled down her cheek. Naoki saw this and he pounded the table with his fist.
"Damn it! Why does everyone have to be so emotional around here?"
She looked up at him bewildered, her tears dry and her mouth agape.
"I can't believe that you just said that! I'm your sister! I have a right to care about you! Mother thinks you're a tough man, and father thinks so as well. But I know you. I know that there's something soft inside the hard exterior, but you try so hard to live up to that image of the perfect son! Tell me what's wrong Naoki!"
At that moment, Sokka walked into the room and the two of them stared at him. After a few seconds of awkwardness, he whistled and went into Katara and Zuko's room. Naoki stood up and walked outside, Emi following him all the way. She kept tagging along after him until they were a few feet off of their property.
"You want to know what's wrong with me? You really want to know?"
She nodded her head and then he turned to her, his eyes not solid, but as delicate as a blade of grass in the morning, sleek and tainted with moisture.
"Ever since she came here, I've changed. I don't know what it is about her Emi, but I can't keep my mind off of Katara."
She put her hand on his arm and sighed. The wind gently brushed against their clothes, waving their sleeves just a bit. As he stood there, Naoki became vulnerable to the moon's light, which illuminated his figure from everything that was around them.
"I know… you told me…"
"No, you don't understand Emi. Every second I breathe, I think about her. Every time I think about her, my heart cringes. Do you understand now? Since Katara has come here, I've lost my appetite, I work harder than before, all because I have to see her and think about not being able to be with her."
His bold statement silenced Emi's will and she felt her heart break in two by hearing the sorrow grow in his voice with each word he said.
"I'm… sorry Naoki… I wish there was something I could do…"
He laughed suddenly and threw his hands up in the air.
"You see now don't you? I have to live like this as long as she's here because it's not like I can just go up to her and tell her everything I just told you."
It was the worst moment for Emi to be his sister. For the first time, she didn't know what to say.
"I think we should go to bed."
"It's okay, you go. I'll be inside in a few moments."
She squeezed his hand and then went back towards the house. Emi disappeared from his view. He looked up to the stars and sighed. When he blew right past Emi and Sokka, he had only pretended that he had heard nothing. His gaze shifted from one star to the next, and then he let the tears fall from his eyes, shimmering just like the dots in the sky.
"Where's my hope? It's nowhere because there's no hope for me."
After a few moments he walked away and towards the house, into the place where he would finally allow his body to recuperate, his sleep.
..:-:..
The birds began to chirp and Katara felt the stiffness under her arms. She raised herself and then Zuko's arm fell to his side. Katara allowed herself to smile as she stretched and then kissed him on his forehead. Zuko stirred a bit, but didn't wake up.
"You're such a heavy sleeper sometimes, and your hair is so cute when it's messy too!"
She laughed quietly and went to freshen up. For some reason, she felt the pain of yesterday's adventure wearing off. When she finished, her stomach growled and at once she walked towards the house. Once she entered, she saw that Mr. and Mrs. So were already in the kitchen preparing food.
"Oh, good morning Katara! Did you and Zuko travel into town for dinner last night? We were worried about you."
"Uh," she looked around hesitantly before answering, "yes… we did actually!"
"Did you like the food? I'm sure it wasn't better than my wife's cooking though!"
They laughed but the cheerful festivities ended when a thundering knock on the door pounded into their hearts. Mr. So walked over to the door quickly and Katara suddenly felt the room begin to spin. She stumbled away from the house and into the sunlight of the open air around her. Katara stopped and leaned on the barn, listening to the small echoes of shouting coming from the living room.
"We need to search your premises. Last night there was a robbery in the palace and we believe that a young man and woman were accomplices."
"Oh sir! Please, we only have a boy who was with me all day yesterday out in the fields and a weak girl."
The soldier walked around the house briskly, not really paying attention to the small traveling bags from the North Pole that were hidden in the corner where Sokka slept.
"Your son doesn't fit the description. This inspection has ended. Note that the Governor has ordered another tax. Someone will come tomorrow to collect it."
The door slammed shut and Mrs. So held onto to her husband tightly.
"What are we going to do? We just paid the tax this week!"
As he calmed his wife down, Mr. So wasn't aware of the fact that his son was standing silently near the back entrance. Naoki had watched the entire thing unfold and his fists clenched painfully. He darted out of the house swiftly and jumped forward a few strides before he stopped. His eyes searched the figure standing next to the barn and his furious thoughts and pumping heartbeat disappeared. Her tender blue eyes cooled his rage and she walked over to him carefully.
"Are you okay Naoki? You seem… a bit worn out."
He blinked a few times and then winced as the wind sliced at his aching muscles. Katara made him sit down on an old woven chair and then she waved her hands through the air in a fluid like motion. Her fingertips directed the glowing water towards his face and he stared at her with doubt.
"Come on, just open your mouth. It won't hurt at all, I promise."
He had never received any help at all, but at that moment, with her breath so close to his face, he wavered in his strength and he nodded, parting his lips. Naoki closed his weary eyes as the cool water washed over his tongue and seeped into the back of his throat. The rejuvenating magic of water bending spread into every sore muscle that his body owned. When he opened his eyes, she was standing there, ready to help him stand up.
"How do you feel?"
"I feel… great."
He looked away and her smile vanished as she saw the tight lines near the corners of his eyes. She put a hand on her shoulder and sighed.
"I can tell that there's something wrong and that something I don't think I can fix with my water bending. Do you… want to talk about it?"
He turned his head slowly towards her, his neck craning to inch closer to her lulling voice. With that said, his remaining ability to stay fierce and unmoved, crumbled.
"All right. I'll tell you. There's a girl I met and I can't stop thinking about her. She haunts me in my dreams like the infinite expanse of dense sky during the night. I try to keep away the urge to search for her, but she keeps coming into my thoughts, and each time this happens, my heart breaks further into the depressing agony of my life."
Katara's hand dropped and her face crippled with sorrow.
"I would have never thought… that you felt that way about someone…you always seemed so headstrong about everything… but why are you pushing her away? Why don't you tell her how you feel? You shouldn't allow yourself to fall into misery. You deserve more than that Naoki."
He smiled gently, only the left corner of his mouth rising in an upward angle.
"Katara… I wish it were that simple. But you don't understand…"
"Understand what?"
"I can't tell her."
"Why not? Why can't you tell her?"
He looked away, his eyes narrowing and creating a crease in between his eyebrows. Then, Naoki faced her again and leaned forward slightly. The tense particles of warm air pulled her in closer, all of her thoughts depending on the words that were going to come out of his mouth.
"I can't tell her because she's already fallen for another guy. I can't tell her because she would hate my guts for feeling the way I feel. If I told her, I think it would hurt me more to see the pain in her perfect blue eyes…"
The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them, and when he realized he had done the thing he wanted the most not to do, Naoki's eyes widened and his fingers spread apart, trembling. Katara shrank into herself, into the heart that began to bleed each beat into her ears. She shook her head and let the tears fall from her pain stricken eyes.
"How… no… you can't… this can't be true… no, it can't…"
"Katara, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to tell you! I didn't want you to know!"
She sobbed lightly and wiped the tears off of her flushed cheeks. The sunlight reflected off of them as the rays hit the water and created prisms of radiance.
"I can't believe it… but I do… I knew yesterday… and I think I knew all along… but those words that came out of your mouth… your heart… I can't think anymore."
She let the whisper die out of her lungs and then, seeing her so weak and lost, Naoki found the overwhelming urge inside of him growing larger. Without thinking about what he was going to do, he leaned in closer, pulling her body towards him, lowering his lips onto hers. The seconds passed quickly in torture for Katara, the absence of Zuko's warmth inside that kiss causing her to lose her vision. Naoki cherished it though, as much as she loathed feeling his cracked lips over hers. He took in the sweetness of her bitter tears and he breathed in the reality of the dream he had longed to have for so many countless nights. Then, the thought of Zuko sleeping innocently in the barn behind them gave Katara the strength to push him away from her, away from the sinful kiss they had just shared.
Naoki caught his breath as Katara brushed her mouth with the back of her hand. He winced as he saw the hatred gleaming in her eyes, the cool blue fading into the raging pitiless fire that shined in her true lover's blood. She shook her head in disgust and then sobbed lightly.
"I can never forget what you have just done. I can no longer look at you and think that you're a sweet man who helped me from the sincerity of his heart. Looking at you, I feel the illness inside me swell and there's nothing you can say that will change that!"
Immediately, she turned and ran towards the distant forest, away from the acknowledgement of pain that had been created with that kiss. Katara ran, each step punching her feet into the deep grass, hoping to rid herself of the stain of betrayal.
"Katara! Wait! Please… wait…"
He ran a few steps, but Naoki knew that he had condemned himself to a life of even deeper anguish than before. Her shimmering green robe grew smaller within seconds, her speed unimaginable yet understandable. Suddenly, just as he turned around, he saw Zuko emerge from the barn, his hair twisting in each direction. Naoki looked down, unable to meet his guest's eyes.
"What was all of that shouting about? Was that Katara? Where did she go?"
Naoki felt the tears explode in his throat, making it impossible to respond. Zuko turned his head towards the forest and saw the brief outline of a girl with a single braid that tossed to each side as she ran. He knew without a second thought that it was Katara and immediately he turned towards Naoki and clenched his jaw, his fists lighting themselves on fire.
"What did you do to her? What- no… I'm not even going to look at you! Just know that whatever it was, you're going to wish you had never done it!"
Zuko dashed away quickly and Naoki gazed after him for a few moments before looking away. He punched the wall of the barn with all of his strength and then let out a frustrated cry that wailed from the depths of his despair. Not only had he ruined the miserable life he had led before, but now there wasn't even a speck worth mentioning it, because every time he would see Katara, he would see not the pain inside himself, but within her.
"Why do I have to be cursed like this? Why…"
..:-:..
Katara had no sense of time. She let the wings inside of her spread so that they carried her as far as she could go. The distant cries wailing from the depths of Zuko's chest never reached her ears, and she kept running, her legs pummeling forward, away from the misery that had been caused. Each breath she took was that of pain so grand that she thought someone was pulling the air out of her lungs with a chain, hoping to plug the hole in which all words escaped. As she brushed away the scratchy foliage, as she stepped into the maze of trees circling around her, she lost herself in the emotions revolving in the tense hot air.
When she could no longer push her muscles to make another stride, she closed her eyes fiercely, shutting out the images of shining green nature, which bred in beautiful bounty. Katara placed her hands on her knees and then gradually slowed down the pace of her breathing. Her whimper guided her to a standstill, not letting the complex thoughts of agony constrict inside of her face. Everything was peaceful, silent and pure. She took a deep breath of air, filling her body with the essence of the meaning of life.
Zuko marched through the maze as quickly as a lemur flies towards a cherry pie. The pounding of his heart against the caged prison of his chest caressed him into desperation.
"Ka-ta-ra! Ka-ta-ra!"
The sweet slipping syllables echoed into the forest like a dull anvil. He had no clue whether or not Naoki had hurt her, but no matter what the case was, something crucial had happened, and Zuko would stop at nothing until he found her. He turned each corner, looked through each bush, into the mingling landscape of never-ending density of the forest. Suddenly, his eyes widened and his heart stopped as something flickered in the distance. His legs bolted from his spot and he jumped over every rock and plant without even looking down. He didn't move his eyes away from her, because if he did, Zuko knew that he might never see her again. Something had crawled into his mind and began to nag him like a hungry child that is taunted with no dinner.
"Katara!"
She spun around immediately, recognizing the voice as the crisp harsh tone of Zuko's growl. Her face stretched, her tense arms fell to her sides and she became limp at the sight of him running towards her.
"Zu-ko!"
A slight smile erupted on her lips, but as soon as it came, the clarity of her happiness vanished into the underbrush. Zuko's jaw dropped as Katara became lost from his vision.
"No… no!"
He ran all the way until he knew he was in the spot where she had been standing. No one was there. All that remained were the small footprints of a lost and crumpled soul, trying desperately to cling onto the hope that her savior had finally come to her rescue. Zuko fell to his knees and gripped the shreds of earth within his finger's grasp. The heat rushed and pulsed within himself, and before he knew it, he had burned the ground beneath him in two symmetrical circles. Tears shed down his face and onto the crisp earth, mingling the sorrow and the hatred to make the desperate cry of longing.
"I was so close… Katara… what's going on? I promise… that I won't stop until I find you…"
..:-:..
The hollow darkness surrounded Katara as the earth swallowed her inside of itself. Her breath tore away from her body and she grasped onto the shaking motion of the soiled walls. Suddenly, it was all over and she stumbled away from the shaking sensation of her whole body moving faster than she wanted it to. Katara squinted her eyes, thinking that she saw a glimmer of light in the near distance. Once her eyes adjusted, she realized it was a lantern, a familiar looking one, and then she made sense of what had just happened. When Jet's face came into her view, she broke out into a joyous grin.
"You have no idea how glad I am that it was you! I thought that maybe…"
"Fire Nation was kidnapping you? That's what I thought was going to happen, so I brought you down for safety reasons. I hope I didn't scare you too much with the surprise."
She let out a sigh of relief, and then waved her hand carelessly, as if she hadn't just almost died of fright.
"It's okay… but wait a minute! Zuko! He must be worried about me, can't you bring him down here too?"
Jet winced and then shook his head as he put a piece of straw in his mouth.
"I'm sorry Katara, but I actually needed to talk to you, just you."
She backed away slightly, her smile fading at the reoccurring sensation that something similar would happen, just like it had with Naoki.
"I need to ask you a favor."
Katara's hesitation subsided and she nodded her head.
"Sure! Oh… actually…"
She had just remembered what Zuko told her.
"I'm sorry, but what we did yesterday was a one time thing. I hope that doesn't make the situation worse for you, that I'm not going to help…"
Jet hung his head and then looked up at her with understanding.
"It's all right. If you can't help us against the Fire Nation, then that's your choice and I will not ask anything more from you. Thanks for thinking about it though… I should get you back up now, shouldn't I?"
Katara began to feel a guilty conscious grow inside her, despite the dangerous terms she would be dealing with and the warning Zuko had given her. Just as Jet was about to push his arms forward, she pushed her arm out and cried to him.
"Wait! I think I could help… just a little bit…"
Jet smirked and then folded his arms.
"I know what you're doing Katara. You're endangering yourself because you feel the need to help out anyone when you can, right?"
She nodded her head slowly, her eyes gleaming inside of the dimly lit underground cave.
"You said that you couldn't do it and I won't let you go back on your word."
"But-"
"That's enough now! Go back to Zuko, he's waiting."
..:-:..
The dark sinister smirk glowered on her pale face as she scanned the warm condensed ground beneath her fingertips. Her black hair dangled from her head as she lowered her eyes to the level of each grain of soil. Two guards stood behind her, erect and ready to obey any sort of command that she asked of them. Azula stood up, pushing her weight off of the trembling ground.
"Stand back."
Her easiness in the sudden vibrations beneath her alarmed the guards. They knew what this meant. Something was going to change in their efforts, what it was they still needed to discover. Azula's amber eyes fixed onto the spot where she had just brushed her trademark symbol of glory. She always found her prey, no matter what, no matter how long it took, and this might have just been the moment she had agonized after for so long.
Underneath the earth, Jet smiled to himself.
"She's a good person. I hope that she and Zuko get themselves out of trouble before it's too late though…"
He was going to turn around when he suddenly felt strong vibrations forming above his head. It could have been Zuko, but he wasn't assured. Jet shrugged his shoulders after a few seconds of stillness and then he walked away.
Katara had moved upwards a bit too soon after her trip under the ground. When the sunlight hit her eyes, she wasn't quite sure who was standing in front of her. But when she felt the bolts of cold sharp fingers grab her arms, her vision came back to her with more clarity than before. She gasped as the resemblance struck her with an invisible force. Behind the woman's shoulders, she saw two guards ready to attack if necessary.
Her voice slithered into her ear and caused Katara to shiver in fear.
"Looks like I've found myself some bait."
A/N: I took bits and pieces of free time this week to write this chapter :) I hope it turned out okay, and not too confusing… I hope! I'm always trying to improve :P Not too much happened, but then again, it did lol I don't know what to say anymore… oh yeah! I got a request to make Jet more normal and NICE and not a bad guy, so that's exactly what I did! Lol Because, this fic is of course with the characters personalities flipped around right? Thanks for reading! Hope you're having a nice day wherever you are:D
-Monika-
