Katara stood up weakly, leaning on Iroh for support. Her strength was returning quickly and she blessed the spirits for her determination too. As they walked slowly she began to fear what she might see. Was his body maimed or broken? How much was left of him?
The walk seemed endless until they stood before the doors of a new wing. She looked around suddenly weary of where she might be. She knew they were not in the palace but they were in a noble's house of some sort.
As she and Iroh turned the corner, Iroh signaled the guards to step aside. They did so, so she could walk into the room. As soon as the doors opened she felt a rush of heat consume her and she could feel the beginnings of a sweat already. All along a table in the center of the room were Fire Sages. Their fire burned brightly and with ease almost consuming the young man that lay on the table. To seem so pale and lifeless made her heart break and she felt hot tears burn her cheek on their trek down.
"Zuko." She whispered. She wanted to reach out and touch him. The man that meant so much to her was dying and she could do nothing.
"Please tell me everything possible is being done?" Iroh nodded solemnly before shutting his eyes and taking a deep breath.
"All we can do is wait. The council will want to speak to you tomorrow if you are up to it. I can postpone it for only a few more days." Her eyes had locked on to Zuko's form. The words Iroh spoke swept slowly through her and she absorbed them but they took a while to sink in.
"I will see them in a few days. I need to rest and be with my daughter. Tomorrow we will travel back home to the palace to see the council." Her voice was cold and her mind clouded. Iroh nodded and hesitated for a moment watching her.
"Would you like to go see Maya? She has been asking about you every second." Katara snapped out of her trance and swung her head around hurriedly.
"Oh yes! Where is she? Is she alright?" Iroh smiled finally at ease and turned bidding her to follow. She followed hastily anxious to see her daughter. They entered a new room with wide windows to let the warm sun in. There were sparse toys scattered in all directions and the little two year old sat in the middle smiling at a nursemaid that was playing with her.
At the sound of people coming the small child turned her head and an even bigger smile spread across her face. She plopped her hands on her belly and began to push herself up on her two chubby feet. Her arms flailed widely to steady her wobbling balance.
She reached her hands out in front of her clumsily urging Katara to come to her.
"Mama!" Katara ran to her little girl and scooped her up in her arms. She squeezed her tight afraid to let go.
"Oh Maya. I missed you so much. Are you okay? Are you having fun?" The little girl nodded and slowly Katara took her daughter over to the toys and the nursemaid moved wisely into the shadows.
Iroh watched from behind content to see Katara happy for a bit. Bits of tears touched the edges of her eyes and she blinked them back smiling at her daughter. Maya spoke rapidly to her mother although half of the words were jumbled in the child's jargon.
His thoughts circled back to the council and his mood darkened. It could only mean trouble. Iroh had not had to deal with the council much lately but on more than one occasion the roof of the palace had to be replaced when Zuko came back from their meetings.
Thoughts of Zuko made him sigh. He knew whatever the council had to say to Katara was not going to like. He walked back over to the temporary hospital wing and stared into the window where the Fire sages worked relentlessly. There was more at stake than just one life if he died and the tension was apparent throughout the entirety of the Nation. Even the other kingdoms held their breaths, their memories still ripe from the war. It had been over a decade but still the peace was brittle. A whole new generation of children grew up learning about the hundred year war and they too were weary. They couldn't risk Zuko's death.
Katara's strength returned and by the next day she and Maya set out for the palace to see the council. Before they left Katara stood before Iroh and Aang her daughter in her arms.
Iroh would come with her to give her advice but Aang would stay behind to help Zuko. Katara stood before them her smile gone from her face. Her expression was one of worry and sadness. She opened her mouth to speak slowly but Aang anticipated her.
"I'll send you reports daily on his condition, Katara. We'll do everything we can here." Suddenly Katara embraced Aang as tears started to form in her eyes. She squeezed her friend tighter.
"Please Aang, I need him." She whispered. She wasn't sure if he heard but his body stiffened at her words and she let go of him. His face looked almost stricken for a second but he moved it into a sympathetic smile before she could be sure of his thoughts.
"I'll let you know if anything happens." Katara nodded and went over to be helped up on to her rhino. Maya was already on the saddle her mother bracing her. Iroh rode his own separate rhino.
It was a very slow trip. They were a good two day distance from Sozen, the capital. All the while Maya played with her little doll or slept against her mother. Katara felt so relieved to have her daughter back and she began to miss her other children passionately.
Her thoughts circled to Zuko instantly as she began to think of never seeing him again. She held her breath for a couple of seconds to steady her body as it shook violently at such a thought.
"Miss Katara, are you alright?" Iroh inquired quietly. His voice was soothing and she looked over to him. One of her hands wrapped around her sleeping daughter and pressed against the child.
"Iroh, do you think he will survive? Honestly?" Iroh was quiet or a moment his own thoughts choosing his words delicately.
"There is a very small chance he will survive. No other has ever survived such a thing. But I will tell you I have not lost hope. There have been many things during this life time that were once thought impossible that have been accomplished. You and your friends are a testament to that. You have all done incredible things.
"Zuko's spirit is strong and I have every belief that he will not leave us without a fight. All we can do is wait." Somehow she felt slightly comforted by all this and the seed of doubt in her mind began to disappear.
Aang watched Katara leave from sight until he could see her no more. There was an aching in his heart that came only with regret. When Katara loved she loved with her whole being and to think at one time that love could have been his.
Aang smiled at such thoughts. He was not one to covet and he was happy she was happy. Things had worked out the way they should have. He turned back to the house and walked slowly by Zuko's room gazing in as one Fire Sage relieved another from the long strenuous hours. They worked meticulously on a tight schedule that gave them rest at individual hours. It was the only way to keep up their strength.
He walked further into a room that had been designated for him. The room was dark but he slowly lit a few candles on a table nearby. He sat down on a mat to meditate and attempt to reach the spirit world once more.
He sat and concentrated. He remembered what the guru had taught him and what he had done in his past. He controlled his breathing and let the air flow through him. He let his awareness reach far and wide into every living thing. He stretched out his consciousness and then he opened his heavy eyes.
Instead of the room he had left there was a forest. He looked around wearily making sure it was the spirit world he sat in. He stood up slowly listening for any strange noises. Despite his instincts for caution, time was of the essence.
"Avatar Roku!" He shouted cupping his hands around his mouth. He began to walk some more and shouted his mentor's name. After he had been searching for what seemed forever he saw a form appear in the mist up ahead.