Hey peeps! XD
Anyways, this was originally meant to be part of chapter 6, but then I decided to make it a separate chapter. So, enjoy! R&R! XD
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: the Last Airbender. Any original characters and plots I do own. So there!
7. Plans, Part 2: Escape Plan
"So, what is the plan exactly?"
"Well, once those jerks sell you to the brothel and we set sail again, you reveal that you're pregnant and the owner of the brothel won't want you there. He'll want his money back and he'll head after the pirates, if he doesn't take you with him, you might have to stow away, but once you're back on the ship, you can come and save me and then, when we get back to land we'll start looking for my uncle and crew and you're brother and the Av- I mean Aang," the Prince explained quickly.
"Ok, then what?" Katara asked. "What about us, and the baby?" She put her hands over her abdomen.
The Fire Prince reached out and put his hands over hers.
"I'll stay with you. We'll raise it like any other loving parents would. As for us…"
"I'm not so sure my brother will take kindly to you getting me pregnant."
"I didn't think so."
"But we'll find a way to get him to accept it."
The Fire Prince nodded.
"But how do you feel about traveling the world with the Avatar while you're pregnant? And then when you actually have the baby… are you going to wanna drop out to make it safer for it or will you keep going?" the Prince enquired.
The waterbender was silence for a moment.
"Yes, I'll keep going. I promised Aang I'd help him master the elements; I'm not breaking my promise or letting my friend down no matter what!" she claimed with every ounce of confidence and determination she had in her being.
Her eyes sparkled with honesty and Prince Zuko knew she wasn't lying. He smiled and put an arm around her.
"We set sail tomorrow if I've been counting the day's right," he informed her.
"So, I'm almost a month pregnant," she commented.
Her lover nodded and stroked her abdomen with the gentleness of a father in his teenaged fingertips.
"Your brother is going to wring my neck."
They both started laughing as they wrapped their arms around each other.
"Yes, he is."
As Zuko had predicted, they set sail the next day.
They had three meals a day for the first time in a month and this time, it was made with fresh ingredients. They were still given salt water, but that wasn't a problem.
Once again they had to learn to deal with Katara throwing up half of her stomach after each meal; the rocking of the ship didn't exactly help either.
As the pirates had said, Katara wasn't used as a sex toy anymore. Luckily for her, they had satisfied their lust whilst they were in port.
The captain had given up trying to get the Avatar's whereabouts out of the waterbender; he would have moved from where he last was by now anyway.
But life in the brig was long and almost boring. The only thing that kept the prisoners sane on the five month voyage to Port Venture was each other's company.
Most of the days in the brig were spent in silence, although conversation had increased by hours since the first day they had found themselves in the brig.
When they spoke, they told each other of their childhoods and their family and friends. Katara told Zuko of her adventures with Sokka and Aang and he told her of his travels with his uncle and crew.
By the end of the conversations they were telling each other how much they were in love.
Zuko would kiss her and she would kiss back. He would rest a hand on her belly and wrap his other arm around her and pull her closer to him. Katara would sigh and rest her head on his shoulder. They would sit like that for hours at night until they fell asleep.
As the third month of the voyage loomed into being, Katara began to worry. The unborn baby was now four month developed and her stomach was starting to bulge.
"What if one of them notices? What if they find out I'm pregnant?"
"They won't," the Prince assured her.
"How won't they? By the time we get to Port Venture, I'll be six months pregnant! How are they gonna miss a six-month-pregnant belly?!" she asked, indicated to her slightly bulging four-month-pregnant belly.
The Fire Prince thought for a moment.
"When it becomes noticeable, I'll give you my robe to wear. It won't show through because it's too baggy on you."
"But what will those pirates think when I suddenly start wearing your clothes?"
"It's starting to get colder – winter's on its way. We'll just say you were getting cold so I gave you that to wear. I'll just say I didn't need it because I'm a firebender," he explained.
The girl couldn't think of anything better, so she accepted his idea.
Zuko gave the water girl his robe at the start of the fourth month of their voyage, when her bulging belly was only just noticeable.
They started spending more time flirting and talking rather than sitting in silence. The conversations started to talk about the baby and how they were going to break the news to Sokka. Katara was already working on a plan on how she could help stop her brother from murdering Zuko.
Soon enough, they started thinking of what they were going to name the baby. They never agreed on any names for certain and one of them always ended the conversation with "We'll decide some other time," even though they knew that they would just start talking about it again the next day.
As the fifth and final month of their voyage passed, Katara got less and less sleep. She was eternally grateful for Zuko's robe as the unborn baby kicked at the inside of her swelling stomach. The Prince spent a few minutes each day leaning his head on it to listen to his child's heartbeat and feel it kick. Both teenagers laughed and cried with happiness.
It was noon when the ship stopped and the captain came to lead the waterbender out of the brig.
"Goodbye," she whispered to Zuko as the cell door opened.
He had to fight back as tears threatened to spill from his eyes as he let her go.
He hoped to the spirits that she would be safe.
Please, please, let this work.
"Goodbye."
How did you like it? Did you think it was as sweet as I did? I sure hope you did. Anyways, I will be airing the next chapter soon... if the computer doesn't stuff up, which it has been doing a lot lately. Lol. XD R&R!
