As soon as they arrived the female quarters, Lihua was ushered by Madame Zhu and some of the older women into a room Katara had never stepped foot in.

She was too tired to press the subject and, exhaustedly, dragged her feet into her conjoint sleeping space. She threw herself onto the bed, her head burning with a migraine. She placed her arm upon her eyelids covering the increasingly garish light of the morning. Her body was drained as well as her mind. She was sure Lihua had meant no ill intent when it came to her disgruntling sounds, but she was also sure the Fire Lord wanted her to know what happened beyond that point. Although she almost hadn't heard him-almost being the key word- she could see he was uncomfortable, having her there. Perhaps he was unaccustomed to company. Perhaps he only disliked her that much.

Her room was now empty, devoid of all kinds of sounds but still she couldn't sleep. Katara turned in her bed, searching for her mother's necklace, concealed expertly under the mattress. She rubbed the carved surface and smiled. It was always brought her comfort. Gripping it in her hand she held it close to her heart. It should have never abandoned the closeness to her chest.

There were times when she wondered what her mother could have taught her. There was a slight part of her that believed she would never be in this situation. Another told her that it wouldn't matter. The Fire Nation would always find a way to make her life miserable. She fell asleep remembering the time where she believed everything and knew nothing at all.

0o0o0o0o0o

Xue pushed the waterbender's shoulder softly. Katara stirred, groaned and pushed the other girl's hand away. The other female sighed.

"Are all Water Tribe women this hard?" the girl in question smiled.

"No. Just me."Xue smiled back at the tribes' woman. The black haired female rubbed her hands on her lap, looking at the far wall. She seemed distant somehow and the waterbender furrowed her brow at the sudden mood change. The air was now thick with unspoken disquiet. Both women knew as little about the other as it was humanly possible, they were both so unaware of each other's beliefs and culture it was impossible for them to delve further into a sort of relationship. Xue stirred and Katara briefly wondered if in another life, where there was no segregation, they would be friends. The Fire Nation woman seemed nice enough and the waterbender knew she needed some allies here. As much as she wanted to further her plan, she would need some leverage. She would need to know the corners and crevices of palace life and concubinage. She needed to know what actually made the Fire Lord drop his guard. She needed to know his story and how to get to him, but for that she needed to transform into Lihua. Or make him think she had. Perhaps Xue could shed some light into the matter. Teach her things that would one day bring down their imperialistic ways. But for now Katara had to play the game accordingly, and the girls around her disliked, or at least didn't pay close enough attention to her.

"Is everything alright?" She pressed and Xue blinked at her a couple of times before regaining focus. The waterbender was sure the other female found her interest alien. Heck, she herself found this very alien coming from her. But she needed to put her feelings aside and start working towards her goal.

Sokka's faced death many times. Did he ever turn away from battle? No. He stayed and fought even though he knew it could be his last fight. I will not back down. I will step into the battlefield, head held high if I must.

"Hm? Oh! Yeah! Everything is fine. I just came to call you for lunch." Katara nodded but let it slip by. Once again the awkward silence took the space between the two females. Katara rolled on her bed, her feet touching the floor. It was cold and it sent a shiver up her spine. The waterbender once again was lost in her thoughts, philosophising. She had been doing this a lot lately, dropping subjects. There had once been a time when she would press things in such a way no one would be able to keep a secret. She had this talent, to be able to rip everything out from people but now she didn't really care. She would be safer not knowing anyone's secrets, especially people as perfidious as Fire Nation.

The tribes' woman got up and she was vaguely made aware of the scent lingering in the air around them. She scrunched up her nose at the foul aroma and Xue looked at her funny.

"Why didn't they drag you to the cleansing chamber?"

Katara turned, the puzzled look setting deeper in her features.

"Cleansing chamber?"

The Fire Nation woman blushed and stared at the hands on her lap.

"Yeah. You know! To clean you up after being with a man."

It was the waterbender's time to blush, mouth agape and thoughts wild. It crossed her that she should be furious at the statement, the mere insinuation of such a thing leaving a foul taste in her mouth. No Water Tribe woman would ever permit someone to say something like that about her. But somehow she managed to contain her disgust and fury. Instead bewilderment and inquisition were all that was left for her to feel.

It was completely natural people thought she had slept with the Fire Lord. The waterbender had spent the entire night in his quarters and Lihua wasn't known to blabber about the Lord's intimacy. Many had questioned her about the man's preferences, the way he liked to be touched, if he liked to be spoken to dirty, if he enjoyed kissing. Even things Katara wasn't really sure were pertinent like if he could have an erection, how long he lasted and how big he was. The tribes' woman could feel her cheeks heating up at the thoughts. She wanted none of those questions answered, and even though she wasn't the one who had spoken them, she felt embarrassed for those who did. She recalled the feeling of his digits on her skin, like they had never departed, still lingering on her nerves like a ghost that never ceased to haunt. They had burned her with their welcoming heat. She was sure his increased bodily temperature was due to his firebending but still it had felt almost welcoming, like a fire in the dead of Southern winter night.

Katara berated herself for her thoughts. There was nothing welcoming or enjoyable about him. He was a absolutist, a dictator set on nothing else but total dominion of that which didn't belong to him, of her Tribe, her friends, her family. All I ever loved. Home.

His touch had irate her and, at the time, she had wanted to slap his hand away from her, forcefully, but hadn't for the sake of propriety. I wasn't about to get greater punishment for such an action.

Xue looked at her with mixed curiosity and amusement. The tribes' woman seemed nervous, or maybe just uncomfortable with the issue at hand. She didn't seem to understand the complexity of palace life, especially for women like them, whose sole purpose was entertaining and making the nobles happy.

"Oh, Agni! Don't tell me..." Xue started at the realisation. The other female's eyes shot towards her figure, more confusion etching onto her rough features.

"What?" Katara's voice was short of a screech, her heart pounding heavily in her ears.

"Don't tell me our dear Lord has requested you stay unclean." The waterbender wasn't sure what she was talking about and turned from her, not wanting to delve any further into the subject. She walked towards the room's cabinet and search for something to wear. Xue's eyes were wide and she smiled.

"I promise I won't tell anyone. Not even Madame Zhu. You can trust me with that secret if that is what you wish." Katara opened her mouth to speak, but judging by the retreating footsteps, Xue was already out the door.

0o0o0o0o0

They had told her it would take years for her to master the koto and she believed them when they told her so. The instrument proved itself to be immensely difficult, the notions she had learned poorly consolidated. She had gotten blisters on her digits during the afternoon practice and her instructor told her she would develop a callus with time and that her fingertips wouldn't hurt so much. She was divided. In one hand she absolutely adored the amazingly intricate sound the instrument made. It was beautifully melodic, the sound very rich and velvety. She could see why the Fire Nation loved it so. Usually in the Water Tribes music was different. It was much more rhythmic than melodic. It was based heavily on drums like Taiko, made of the skin of caribou-hare. They had drums made of every shape and size, different depths of sound being created by each one. Usually chord instruments didn't sound good in the pole. Something to do with them going out of tune due to the cold. But as she heard her instructor play "The Flower in the moonlight" the tribes' woman felt like she was finally at peace. Closing her eyes, Katara absorbed the delicate sounds emitted by the koto, the delicate strings vibrating into the air. The song was peaceful and soothing, like a cool summer night. She remembered the Firelight Fountain back at Ba Sing Se. It was where Jet and she had shared their first kiss and after that it had become their safe point, the place they would meet in case they got separated. The girl sighed, her thoughts breaking her from the sounds around her.

"I'm going to give you another instrument to practice."

"What? I haven't even learnt the koto properly!" The man sighed and nodded.

"You will find that once you get the hand of things they become pretty easy." The man showed her a big string instrument in the back of the music room.

"That is the Konghou. " The man moved over to the instrument and touched the strings. Katara shivered at the sound.

"You will practice each instrument five hours a day. You have a lot to catch up to." The girl's jaw dropped. Five hours each? That would be ten hours in total. He has to be kidding me.

"For today we will stick to the koto." The instructor, Yin Yue, the waterbender recalled, clapped his hands and she started her exercises all over again.

Her wrist was about to give in when the door to the music opened. Lihua and three other girls, Lien, Bao and Hua walked into the room. The Fire Lord's favourite sat on the konghou, Lien- who was Lihua's best friend and confident- sat next to her, grabbing a pipa, Bao sat across from them holding an Erhu and finally Hua, who sat next to Bao with a dizi in her hands. The woman who was babysitting her smiled brightly.

"Hey Katara. Sorry to interrupt your music lesson. Yin Yue was frowning at the females but the waterbender shook her hand.

"It's ok. Why are you all here?"

The girls giggled into their billowing sleeves. The outfits they wore reminiscent of the style usually used by women in the upper ring of the impenetrable city. They were all clad in kimonos, some gold other's red. They all had flowers embroidered, lotuses and lilies adorning their outfits. It struck the tribes' woman that this was far from what the women in the female quarters usually wore and it infuriated her that Lihua and her friends get to be fully clad and she had to walk around with pieces of fabric that were only big enough to cover an infant.

"We have a presentation this evening." The girls giggled again and the woman who had been intimate with the Fire Lord for the past few months shushed them.

"We are going to perform for the Fire Lord himself and some of his courtiers." The girl smiled and Katara nodded.

"Yeah!" Lien added shaking her hand elegantly. "I think our wise Lord is trying to introduce Lihua to his court." They giggled once more and Katara felt herself growing annoyed. "What an honour." The girl in question blushed profusely, plucking some of the chords of her chosen instrument.

"C'mon girls. We need to rehearse." They nodded at her as each set to play the melody Katara couldn't help but wonder if they all had to practice five hours each day as well. She wasn't sure she knew the song but it was infuriatingly sweet. It was clear they were going for the femininity approach and sugar the courtiers into liking Lihua for being a demure and sweet woman who would bless the Fire Nation with her little pale and ebony haired children. The tribes' woman had always loved children but allowing the Fire Lord to breed was a crime against humanity. She was once again made aware that these people weren't trustworthy. They were all guilty of supporting their ruler's desire and bloodlust. Building and Empire through violence and fear was not benign. And despite the fact that she had met kind people in her month and a half in the Fire Nation, the truth of the matter was that they all thought themselves better than her, better than anyone else who wasn't born and bred on fire. They would always support the madness that was Sozin's war, and even though she didn't want to hurt anyone but their sovereign she would get rid of anyone that stood in her way. So she would keep Lihua from conceiving. She had long learnt how to use her bending to prevent ovulation. Most people weren't even aware of such facts, but she had been taught in the art of healing by Yugoda and part of healing was to listen to the body like it was her own. She had learnt much in her year stay there. It had took the that much to be a good enough bender to fight and only after travelling to the Earth Kingdom did she truly mastered her element. Being in the front line of the carnage had honed down her skills, and meeting a few disturbed people had helped her come through in stressful situations. It was painful and Lihua would never notice what was being done to her. Katara heard the girls giggle once more and was snapped out of her reverie by their high pitched voices.

"So? How do you like it?" Lihua smiled at her and it took her a few moments to snap back into attention. She would do the same to me if the situation was reversed.

"It was beautiful. Just beautiful." The girls all exchanged appreciative glances and kind words and got up. Lihua and Lien wrapped their arms around the waterbender's and walked her out of the room.

Lien smiled brightly at her.

"I heard Admiral Sheng wants a private session with you." Her tone was of absolute amusement.

The tribes' woman grimaced at the thought. A private session was something she didn't want with any men under the Fire Lord's rule.

"I heard he is quite good looking for a forty-year old." Lihua offered, tugging the girl's arm. Katara blanched at her words. Forty? FORTY? My dad is about that age.

"Yeah." Lien giggle. "I heard from Niu that he is very muscular, scars all over his chest and back, most made by sword since he isn't very prolific in firebending." She mused, looking up to the ceiling, a finger pressed against her fleshy lips.

"Well, anyway, he is a very powerful man. Fire Lord Ozai relied on him. He has a lot"- she emphasized the words-"of money and a very well trained battalion. He trains his guard himself you know." The southerner wasn't particularly interested in such specifications. They had pushed the dagger deeper and completed the kill when they mentioned the man's age.

The waterbender always imagined that she would marry a man around her age, perhaps only a few years older and that her private sessions would always be out of need and want and not duty. She had probably been foolish to think so, but the idea was much more pleasing than having to lay with a forty year old Fire Nation Admiral. Especially since she had heard some of the girls talk about some of the courtiers. None could physically harm any of the Fire Lord's girls, at least not visibly but there were ways of hurting without leaving a mark. She shivered involuntarily.

"Are you cold?" She shook her head, and Lihua frowned at her, concern on her face.

"Well, please don't tell me you are getting sick. Even though you aren't coming with me for tonight's events you still have to come with me when our Lord summons."

Katara nodded and breathed a don't worry, before hurrying into the female quarters.

"She's peculiar, that one." Lien surmised and Lihua only nodded.

0o0o0o0o0

She had threw up a couple of times after getting into the rooms, if it was because of her tongue washing the day prior or because of the details she had received a few hours prior, she did not know.

The quarters were quieter than usual. Madame Zhu had been ecstatic due to the girls' performance that evening and as the remaining females got the hint their services would probably be needed later, after the men-and their spouses, entertaining couples was more common than one would think-had had their fair share of alcohol and smoking shady substances they would probably turn to the concubines. For now Katara knew she was safe. There was no way the Fire Lord would ask her to entertain someone without being absolutely sure she would behave.

Katara smiled at the memory of her brother smoking a less than proper substance once, when their father was absent due to warfare. During the heat season, small patches of dirt, and consequently some weeds would grow. The men sometimes pick some of them up and smoked them in nights of full moon as tribute to Tui and La. They would see strange shapes and colours and would often guarantee to the women-who could not smoke the weeds not to affect their fertility-that the moon and ocean spirits' talked to them, revealing secrets one would not even dream of. Sokka had stolen some from their father's private stash and in an act of manhood- as he had adamantly put it "Only real man smoke this stuff, Katara. Do you doubt my virility? Oh, a woman wouldn't understand."-had smoked it. What followed next was a series of shameful events that culminated in her brother setting fire to most of the tents. He had been bedridden for three full days and four nights and had sworn off smoking for the rest of his life. Of course the waterbender didn't believe him. He would always do what it took to prove he was a man. She was fond of the memories she had of him. He was, to this day, after years of absence, her best friend and there was no one she would ever love more than him.

Several hours passed, and the waterbender had already drifted off to the sleep lands when she was roughly woken up by Madame Zhu. She threw cloth her away and told her she had a minute to get dressed. The tribes' woman yawned and stretched her back before brushing her hair. She placed a golden comb in her hair. The lotus in the middle of the piece was painted white with a green orb in the centre. The clothes Zhu had given her were simple. The top parted below her breast line and the top closed around her neck leaving her shoulders bare. It was made of deep crimson cotton and Katara enjoyed the sensation of the cloth against her skin. Her skirt was long, somewhat of a train brushing the floor. It was the same crimson shade as the top and she tied it with a knot at the side of her waist. It parted down her leg showing a bit too much of her upper thigh. She borrowed a pin from Xue's things and closed the opening as much as she could by pinning the fabric together. She put her ankle charms on and she wouldn't dare leave without her upper arm bracelet. Somehow she felt naked without them, she found, as if they covered a bit more of her.

She walked out of the room and Madame Zhu nodded appreciatively.

"You will not have Lihua with you tonight." That set her into a panic. Why? What's going on? Shouldn't the Fire Lord be with her tonight? Oh Tui, please tell me I'm not going to spend the night with Lord Sheng...

The lumpy woman dragged her to her escort and nodded towards the men. Grabbing her upper arms they dragged and wary Katara down the hall.

0o0o0o0o0o

She felt a bit relieved once she saw the halls she was going through were familiar. She had somewhat learnt the way to the Fire Lord's quarters, finding it necessary in case she needed a quick escape.

Part of her had quieted down somewhat, but another was ever more frightened now. What if the Fire Lord wanted to have her, to break her right now? What if Sheng had pressed things and she was going to be give to him sooner than expected? She still hadn't formed her Sokka proof plan. The woman had to bite her lip to keep herself from trembling. No matter what they did to her she refused to break down and be weak. It was not the way of the Southern Water Tribe. Southerners faced blizzards, the harshness of famine and wild tundra beasts on a daily basis and never feared what lay ahead of them and neither would she. She was a daughter of Tui and La and she would never give the sons of Agni the satisfaction.

The guards opened the door and she was once again inside the familiar chamber. The Fire Lord's common chamber was empty and traced the fireplace with shaking fingers before settling herself near the warm fire.

She had started to doze off when the doors once again opened, a slightly wobbly young man making his way into the room. She jumped when the double doors crashed against each other, their heavy frames emitting a loud noise that would scare even an adult Sabre tooth mooselion. The man glared at her, his golden eyes cold. The shadows cast by the embers beside her flickered on his features, casting him an eerie glow. She flinched slightly once her brain processed how ferocious he looked. He was most definetly displeased with something.

This is it! I'm going to be raped! He walked past her, opening the doors to his sleeping chambers unsteadily.

"I asked for anyone but Lihua and they had to send you!" His voice was deep, probably due to the drinking and smoke. He was also slurry in his speech. Katara was sure he was a little tipsy.

"Come on girl!" He demanded, perhaps a bit too harshly for her taste. The tribes' woman glared at his retreating back but bit her tongue. It isn't worth it Katara. He is just a pathetic drunkard. Just let it slide. The woman got up and followed him into the room. Generally he would be surrounded by servants, undressing him and preparing him for sleep but, she mused, he probably didn't want anyone seeing him in this state. That's why Lihua isn't here. Katara rushed to steady him when he tripped over himself. Placing on hand steadily on his chest and another on his shoulder she sat him on the bed. He once again glared at her.

The scent of smoke coming from his clothes was strong enough to sting her eyes. She used the balls of her hands to rub them before looking him over.

"Well then, what are you waiting for? Undress me southerner!" He half-yelled and she flinched. Undress him? The girl blushed and looked away but did as she said. She reached for his hair piece but he caught her wrist sternly.

Her eyes met his. The waterbender could see that he wasn't thinking clearly so she removed her wrist from his grasp and set about her work. It was difficult to release the pointy ornament from his hair. It was smooth and straight, but it had, somehow, become tangled in the crevices of the ornament. She worked his hair in order not to hurt him. It would probably earn her another punishment. When she was finished, she placed the golden piece on the nightstand beside his bed. His robes proved to be as difficult as the headpiece. They were heavy and layered and were tied in ways she didn't exactly understand. After fumbling around she managed to rid the man from the royal robes. He was already half asleep, his head tilting slightly forward. His underpants were chaste enough for her not to flee out of his room but his chest was disturbingly distracting. She had seen Jet shirtless plenty. But he was nowhere near this level of...I'm not exactly sure what. The Fire Lord was flawlessly carved, his muscles hard beneath his skin. They were all very visible, the result of hours of hard physical labour on his part. She wondered briefly if his scar was the Fire Nation's way of not hating him for being too handsome.

She placed a hand on his chest and bit her lip at the feel. It was disgustingly smooth and warm. The waterbender was aware of his sudden alertness, his eyes darting towards her hand.

She set her resolve. As much as it killed her on the inside to touch the man before her, Katara would go to extreme lengths to gain his trust. Only to betray it later.

The tribes' woman swallowed hard, swallowing her shame with her and pushed him into a lying position. She made to cover him with his bed sheets but he held her hand on his chest. His fingers were as warm as his chest, and Katara was now very aware of his heartbeat beneath her palm. Her arm moved rhythmically, conjoint with his breathing and she looked up at him. His gaze was glazed over, the alcohol now fully consuming him. She pried her hand away. He probably wouldn't argue.

"I'm parched." His rough tone made her jump once more. Stop talking, you big jerk. She reached for the water recipient on his nightstand and, pouring the liquid into a glass, she sat next to his head. Katara placed an arm beneath his head to keep him from choking. I should let you do just that and claim it was an accident...but I'd probably be executed in the morning with no escape route mapped out. The Fire Lord drank it eagerly, holding onto her wrist firmly. The southerner flinched as she felt his greedy digits dig into her flesh. After the water was consumed he laid back down. Katara sighed. He would have a very nasty headache in the morning.

"You shouldn't drink that much. It's not good for your body."

He snorted. "I don't need advice from a peasant." She rolled her eyes and got up. Rummaging through his things she finally found a cloth and pouring the water from the container to wet the piece of fabric, she looked at him.

"This will ease your headache." He didn't acknowledge her but she placed the rag on his forehead anyway.

Katara steadied herself next to him, remembering all the nasty things the Fire Nation had done to her over the years to keep herself from dozing off.

When the female felt his breathing was even she made for the door.

One day she would tell this story to her children. While the Fire Lord was out getting drunk, hundreds of people were dying right outside his door.

Another chapter done. Wow. I have to thank you all for the support.I loved the reactions I got to Zuko's idea. He is a jerk, but we all love him that way. I'm sure you all heard the good news about Korra. I'm really excited for it. Once again leave creative responses and critics in the reviews if you like. Thank you so much for everything. (Once again sorry for the English. It's hard writing in my second language. Sometimes I feel real stupid. I'm sure grammar Nazis are dying to kill me right now for murdering their language :P)

Authors note: you should totally listen to the instruments listed on this chapter. They are amazingly pretty.

Yin Yue- music

Bao- precious

Hua- flower

Lien- Lotus

boothandbones4ever- Yeah Katara will take some time to warm up to things. I would be disgusted by that display of affections as well :P Thank you for your review. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

R- Yeah, he can be a bit of a jerk. Although he isn't really aware he is being a jerk. I'm glad you liked it. Thank you. I hope you like this one as well :D

Bigby the Big Bad Wolf- Hahaha. Yeah, I can see why Katara would hate him. Well they will have some sort of romantic involvement, as to whether they will actually fall in love or not you have to wait and see. I'm sure Katara will kick his butt at some point in the fic. Or someone else will kick his butt. Thank you for your review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

JemiLover101- Thank you ^^ Your support means a lot to me.

AnnaAza- Yes it's quite disgusting but it serves a purpose. Katara needs to learn somehow and it's a lot better for one to listen to someone else having intercourse than being forced into it. Lihua is used to far worse things but I will elaborate more in the future. I hope you enjoy this one.

JourneyRocks13- Thank you. Well you will have to wait and see. Perhaps it's Katara that breaks Zuko. ;P

bvc17- Yes they did. And yes they are jerks. Thank you for taking the time to review.

seward907- Well I'm trying to maintain the characters real. And for that they have to be multifaceted. If Lihua was just an evil beotch then she would be there just to make Katara miserable and to be between her and Zuko and I don't want that at all. I want the interactions to be as dynamic as they can. Your speculations are welcome. Some give me new ideas and others are just brilliant :D Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

ArrayePL- She won't. Iroh will formulate one or two plans. It's probably not going to be as good as what she actually needs but he will try. Haha. Yes Zuko was awful but we all love mean Zuko :D Thank you for reading. Enjoy this one

Kataomoi no Koibito- Hahaha. Yes it was quite bad. Zuko is a jerk and we all know it. Thank you for your appreciation of this fiction. It means a lot to me. I hope you keep enjoying

RSK- First of all, let me just tell you how honoured I am you drew art for this fiction. In my view only the greatest fictions deserved art, especially when it's a reader taking the time out totheir busy day to do so. So, thank you. It made me so happy and proud, you can't even imagine. I would like to ask you if I can post the link to the fanart in my profile and in the comments on the next chapter. If it's ok with you I'd like to share it :D Now for your review. The last chapter was fun and I loved it. I want it to be real and as factual as possible. I'm sure concubines were forced to watch, hear and participate in things far worse. Katara will have some "allies". Some just need support and seeing as she is the Fire court's toy of the moment some ill intentioned people may get close. Not that I'm saying either character is. You have to wait and see. Katara will always be cordial, and as time passes she will become less tight but she will ever really trust them. Not at this point at least. I also wanted Lihua to be realistic. I don't think Zuko would fall for anyone just like that. He knows most of the women want the title of Fire Lady. He isn't an idiot so he did have to choose wisely. And Lihua does have similarities with Mai which was what I wanted. But perhaps I will deepen it later on. Katara will be biased throughout most of the fiction probably. Admitting these women are important would go against what she believes and breaking away from our own personal convictions, as wrong as they are, is always hard and lengthy. Iroh will scheme. Whether it works or not I can't say. I can't even tell if it's a good idea or not ;) Lastly I want to tell right now that the time will come when Katara is going to ask Zuko just that. This is inspired by One Night with the King and Esther does it in the movie. And so will Katara. I will give it a twist though, or at least I hope you consider it so. Just expect that moment to come. Thank you for your reviews. They are always beautiful to read and make this fiction much more enjoyable for me. You are a wonderful reader and I thoroughly enjoy your support, ideas and critics. So keep them coming

Tenko- Yes it was. Zuko was a total jerk. But I love my Zuko that way :P Of course it's completly normal. I'm sure worse things happen to women in harems. Katara is being protected still, because she is a hazard. But there will come the day when she will stop being so and will have to get dirty. Zuko is actually trying to be kind. He has double-personality or something like that. Thank you. I hope you like this chapter :D

Pelor- It's different and that's why she is having such a difficult time adapting. Probably as the fiction goes on we will notice the differences less. Or perhaps more. It depends on how Katara is going to adapt. Thank you for your words. As of now I will continue to write. It's an inspiration to have such wonderful readers and you keep the flame strong.

Nephertiri-I love your name. I'm actually a sucker for Egyptian culture and I researched a lot on it for this fiction. Thank you for thinking this is fresh. I tried to come up with something different and I'm quite pleased with it. I'm focusing on making the characters dynamic. I feel they are more appealing if they have multiple sides and not just "He's good" or "She's bad". It's not that Katara is a snob. But her culture is deep seethed in her. So she thinks, because they are not the ones trying to conquer the world that Water Tribe culture is wiser and better. I think that's how the characters in the show faced things. To the Fire Nation people they were actually doing good, spreading their greatness to others.

Well thank you. This is inspired by a movie, though, so that's probably why it feels so good for the big screen. He has needs alright. And he actually fights them as much as he can to keep his sense of honour. He is a young healthy male. Of course he is going to have sex and want to be with beautiful women. Thank you for your words. Keep your opinions coming, they make this fiction better. It makes it more dynamic to have so many ideas from you, readers. So yeah feel free ;)