The Confrontational Approach
By Advocaat
Chapter Eleven
I'm on a Boat!
Katara could tell when they passed into the more frequented sections of the ship because the hallways got wider and the number of pipes along the walls and ceiling dramatically decreased.
Next to her, Zuko walked proudly and purposefully but she knew that he was just as on edge as she was. It wasn't long after leaving the equipment room that he'd discovered just what ship they were on.
Apparently, it was part of an elite fleet known as the Western Raiders; a division of the Fire Nation navy responsible for the majority of the attacks on the Earth Kingdom's western shores. Zuko had never dealt with them personally, but he said they had quite a reputation within the military. When she asked what he meant by that, he explained that they were known for being rowdy and unruly. They were dependable in battle, but the fleet's crews were comprised mainly of younger soldiers looking for a bit of excitement and glory. In short, they were a bunch of hooligans.
They were walking down a particularly long corridor when they heard the dull clunk of boots on metal up ahead. A moment later, an older man in officers' attire rounded the corner. Remembering Zuko's instructions, Katara straightened her back and squared her soldiers and did her best to feign confidence as they continued walking, but even despite the armor and mask, she felt terribly exposed.
When they were about ten feet away, they stepped to the side and bowed respectfully, holding that position as the officer passed.
Just when she thought they were in the clear, the officer stopped and turned back to them with raised eyebrows. "The two of you on patrol?" he asked, sounding somewhat surprised. Now that he was closer, Katara could see that he wore a lieutenant's badge.
"Yes, sir," Zuko answered quickly, and after a beat he added, "You can never be too careful, sir."
The old officer nodded his head in approval. "True words, soldier," he said in his creaky, old-person voice. "Perhaps this ship hasn't completely gone to the rabiroos. I tell you, back in Fire Lord Azulon's day, soldiers had discipline," he groused, shaking his head. Then he smiled and winked. "Keep up the good work and maybe someday you'll wear one of these, eh?" He pointed at his lieutenant's insignia proudly.
"Yes, sir!" Zuko said, playing the part of an enthusiastic young recruit.
The old officer nodded again and Katara joined Zuko in bowing low once more as the he continued on his way.
When she was sure he was gone, Katara turned to Zuko and said, "That man was surprisingly friendly."
Zuko didn't say anything for a moment. He was looking off down the hall where the lieutenant had disappeared. When he finally spoke, his voice was full of wonder. "He was one of my uncle's men."
"Really? You recognized him?"
He shook his head. "No. But that badge he was wearing...the flame had a dragon tail. That was Uncle's personal mark."
They continued walking, a little less wary now that they knew their disguises were effective. It ended up not mattering that much anyway, because they didn't encounter anybody else. They arrived at the door to the crew's sleeping quarters, or the "bunk room" as Zuko had called it, and Katara steeled herself for whatever lay beyond. Hopefully the soldiers were all asleep already and they could just quietly sneak in and find some open beds.
Zuko opened the door and Katara was relieved when they weren't immediately impaled by fifty spears. Breathing a small sigh of relief, she peered inside. Beyond was an impressively large chamber stuffed with a haphazard array of bunk beds and futons, most of which, she was surprised to find, were empty. The total number of beds had to be close to a hundred, but she didn't think any more than twenty were currently occupied. There were four men awake and chatting quietly on the beds nearest to the door and the others were scattered about the room, some asleep on futons and the rest hidden by the privacy curtains that all of the bunk bed looked to be equipped with.
They stepped into the room and the men near the door looked up and waved genially before going back to their conversation, not even giving them another glance. They walked toward the back of the room, being careful not to make too much noise, and picked a bunk bed that was far away as possible from the room's other occupants.
"Where is everyone?" she asked quietly, seating herself on the bottom bunk. Zuko was right, these beds were not very comfortable.
"It's not all that late yet. They're probably off in the lounge or the mess hall," he said as he glanced around the room. "Wait here. I'll get us some nightclothes."
Katara watched him weave through the beds to the far wall where a built-in shelf held stacks of folded red cloth. He returned with two thin, sleeveless shirts and matching pants. "There's a bathroom right over there if you want," he suggested, pointing to a door on the same wall their bed was set against. She could see the character for 'woman' painted in red on the metal.
At least the boys and the girls had separate bathrooms.
"Are you sure that's safe? If I change in there, everyone will see my face when I come out."
"I don't think you'll need to worry too much about that," he reassured her. "I doubt anyone will be looking, and there are so many people on these boats that seeing an unfamiliar face is pretty normal." He slipped his mask off so that she could see his face and smiled. "Besides, who's going to expect an intruder all the way out here in Air Nomad territory, right?"
Katara removed her helmet and nodded, returning his smile. "Right."
It felt weird to walk around in the open without her helmet, but the only people in the room awake to see her were the four men at the front of the room and just as Zuko said, they didn't pay her any mind. She supposed that if anyone asked her about her skin or eye color she could just claim to be from the colonies. It was high summer, so having tan skin probably wouldn't attract too much attention. Nobody ever gave her or Sokka any trouble about their skin or eyes when they were hiding in the Fire Nation before.
The bathroom wasn't amazing, but it was nicer than she expected. The toilets were clean and had their own stalls, and there was a long mirror over the counter with the washbasins. There were no baths, but there was an area at the back with drains in the floor and nozzles on the ceiling that she recognized as 'showers' from the ship her dad stole.
Deciding it would be best to bathe now while she didn't have company, she stripped and started the water via a lever on the wall. Borrowing some soap from a nearby tray, she used her waterbending to quickly wash her hair and body. The water was pleasantly warm and she greatly enjoyed the feel of it after so many weeks of washing in a cold fountain. It was also nice to be able to bathe without having to wear her bindings. It was a real nuisance to have to wash around them all the time.
She wondered what Zuko was going to do about bathing. He couldn't very well use the showers with a helmet on. Or eat, for that matter. She was curious how he had managed when he was traveling on Zhao's ship. There was no way he'd made it all the way to the north pole without eating or bathing.
When she was finished dressing and retying her hair, she cleaned her teeth as well as she could without her toothbrush and left the bathroom. The curtain around their bed was partially drawn and she found Zuko sitting on the bottom bunk, already changed. He was unwinding a roll of bandages.
"What are you doing?" she asked as he used his firebending to sever a long strip.
"I'm wrapping this," he said, pointing at his scar. "That way I won't have to keep my helmet on all the time."
Ah. Well that answered that question. She sat down next to him and took the bandage out of his hand. "I'll do it. It'll be easier than trying to wrap it yourself without a mirror."
For a moment, Zuko looked like he wanted to argue but then he sighed and nodded. Katara scooted closer and knelt beside him, turning his head to face her. Not being able to help herself, she cupped her right hand under his jaw and tilted his face up so that she could examine the warped flesh. He tried to pull away, but she used her other hand on the back of his head to hold him firmly in place. Zuko was physically much stronger than her so if he really wanted to, he could push her off. But he didn't, and she took the opportunity to look at his scar close up for the first time since their imprisonment in Ba Sing Se.
"Your dad did this?" she asked seriously. It was a question she'd been dying to ask since hearing Azula's threat two mornings ago. She'd always wondered how he'd received his scar. They all had, but nobody had wanted to be the one to ask him. She knew that it was a sensitive subject for him, and even though she mistrusted him, she respected his right to privacy on this matter.
But what Azula had suggested... she couldn't simply let it go.
"It doesn't mat-"
Katara's eyes narrowed and she cut him off by roughly shaking his head and saying, in a harsh whisper, "Darn it, Zuko! It does matter." She was tired of him dismissing everything like that. Her dad was right, he shouldn't be bottling these things up and she wasn't going to let him. She looked him straight in his eyes and asked again. "Did your father do this to you?"
Zuko's eyes hardened and he looked back at her inimically. "You heard Azula. What's the point of even asking me?"
"I don't trust Azula."
"You don't trust me either," he snapped back.
Katara held back a wince at the venom in Zuko's tone. He did have a point, though.
"Yes, my own father burned off half my face. And before you say anything; yes, it was terrible, yes, it was intentional, and no, I didn't deserve it. Are you satisfied? Is your curiosity appeased?" he asked bitingly.
This was the first time since Zuko had joined their side that he'd shown any real anger toward her. Rather than feeling alarmed, however, Katara was a little relieved. The Zuko she knew had a temper, and the fact that he hadn't lashed out at her at all in the past two weeks despite how badly she treated him had just made him all the more suspicious. Knowing that he was hiding his anger had only made her wonder what else he was hiding.
"Why?" she questioned, not backing down like she knew he expected her to.
Zuko looked momentarily surprised at her persistence. They had a sort of staring contest for several seconds before he said, "You wouldn't understand."
He was trying to dodge the issue again, and she wasn't having it. "I'll be the judge of that," she asserted.
It occurred to her that if he really didn't want to tell her, that was his right and she really had no business pressing him about it. But she wanted to understand him better and she wanted to know what kind of person Fire Lord Ozai was. It was clear Zuko's scar was no accident, but what reason could Ozai possibly have had to maim his own child? Just what kind of monster did a person have to be to even consider such a thing, much less do it?
And why would Zuko want to go back to someone like that?
She lowered her left hand but continued to cup his jaw with her right, keeping his face angled toward her. She gave him a sincere look and said, "Please, Zuko."
Gentle impetrating obviously worked better than demanding, because he sighed and she saw his resistance fade. He put his hand over her wrist and turned his face down and away. "Do you know why I was banished?" he asked.
"You told my dad that you spoke out against a general in a meeting."
Zuko's lips thinned into a grimace briefly, then he said, "That general wanted to send newly recruited soldiers to their deaths. His plan was to let the enemy forces slaughter them in order to create an opening for a group of more experienced soldiers to sneak in."
Katara's eyes widened in shock and then narrowed in outrage. "You're kidding!" she exclaimed, barely managing to keep her voice low, but it was obvious that he wasn't. "That's terrible!"
"That's why I spoke out against him," he agreed. "But my father didn't appreciate that, so he ordered me to face the man I disrespected in an Agni Kai." He saw the uncomprehending look on her face and clarified, "A firebending duel."
Oh. She thought she knew where this was going. "You said before that questioning a general is the same as questioning the Fire Lord. Does that mean..?"
"Yes, I had to duel my father," he confirmed. "Of course, nobody told me that. I thought I was going to face the general."
"No one told you? Ozai just let you think that you were going to fight someone else?"
Zuko scoffed. "Let me? He deliberately set it up so that I would think that." His lips turned up into a joyless smile. "He always did possess a flair for the dramatic."
"That's depraved," she said, shaking her head. "Forcing you to fight him unprepared and injuring you like this." She looked down. "Horrible."
"I didn't fight him."
Katara's eyes snapped back up to his face. "What? Then how...?"
"I begged for forgiveness. He commanded me to fight him, but I refused. He gave me this," he pointed at his scar, "to teach me respect."
Katara's mouth fell open and she stared at him in disbelief.
That's what it had been about?Respect?
No! No, it wasn't! Giving a child a timeout was about respect. Scarring Zuko had nothing at all to do with respect. It had been about something else entirely. She didn't know what it was, but she did know that Ozai was sick in the head. Very sick. And at that moment she felt the most extreme loathing for him.
"You're right. I don't understand," she said, focusing her gaze on his scar again. "And I hope I never do." She ran her thumb over the damaged tissue under his eye and he flinched, jerking away from her.
"I don't want your pity," he snapped, turning his head so that only the right side was visible.
His defensiveness caused her to frown. "I don't pity you." She shook her head and chuckled humorlessly. "I'm angry for you. I don't care who Ozai is; the Fire Lord, your father, it doesn't matter. What he did was completely unforgivable. I'm shocked that a man like him is allowed to rule a country!" Again, she had to fight to keep her voice down.
After hearing his story, she was glad that Zuko had joined them. Regardless of his possible motives, he'd needed to get out of there. Aang had her and the rest of their friends to protect him from Zuko, but from the sounds of things, there was nobody in the Fire Nation protecting Zuko from Ozai.
Zuko studied her with his good eye for a long moment and Katara wondered what he was thinking. Then he looked away and said, in a calmer, less barbed tone, "I don't need you to be angry for me." His hands fell from his lap to grip the mattress. "I gave Ozai a piece of my mind the day I left."
In Katara's opinion, Fire Lord Ozai deserved a lot more than just a piece of Zuko's mind, but she was glad that Zuko had stood up to him nonetheless. She got the impression people didn't do that often. 'If I ever meet him...' she thought darkly. She didn't care if he was scary as all get out, he would get a piece of her mind, and right now her mind was conjuring up some very interesting ideas about gonads and strife. "We'll give him better than that when we face him during our next invasion," she declared, grinding her fist into her palm.
Zuko looked startled for a moment, but then he gave her a ghost of a smile and said, "I don't doubt it."
"Good. Now give me your head. I still need to bandage you."
He complied and she wrapped the white cloth around his head until all the damaged skin was safely hidden, then tied the ends securely behind his head. When she was done, she scooted back to get a better look at him.
"Aren't people going to be suspicious when they see this?" she asked. Really, how were they going to explain a such a severe facial injury on an unmoving boat so far from enemy territory?
"Probably not," he said, sounding unworried. "Training accidents happen all the time."
She hadn't thought of that. "Well, what about the rest of you? You're not worried about being recognized?"
Zuko crossed his ankles and shrugged. "The thing about having a huge scar on your face," he said, pointing at his covered eye, "is that people tend to focus only on that. Even if someone on this ship has seen me before, and I would be surprised if any of them have, they wouldn't know me without it."
"But you're their prince," she protested, confused by his surety. Shouldn't his people know his face? Particularly after the brouhaha surrounding his return from exile. The Fire Nation had been all abuzz about his supposed dispatching of the Avatar.
"I'm sure they have a general idea of what I look like, from paintings and whatnot," he agreed, "but half the people on the ship probably look like me."
Katara highly doubted that. Zuko wasn't what she'd call average looking. Firstly, and most obviously, he was damn pretty. There was just no getting around the fact that he was a very attractive man, and she should know, she'd tried. But another other thing that set him apart was his eyes. Yellow eyes were a distinguishing feature of his people to be sure, but they were still fairly uncommon. Most of the Fire Nation people she'd met had brown eyes or tea-colored eyes, but even among those possessing the distinctive saffron eyes of his nation, Zuko's stood out. They were such a pure gold, no hint of darker shades like brown or grey. She wondered if Ozai's eyes were like that. Or his mother's. She recalled that Azula and his uncle both had quite dark eyes.
She saw his point though. An illustration wasn't much to go on and none of the people on this boat had any reason to believe that their prince was here with them.
"We should probably try to get some sleep now, while it's still peaceful in here," he changed the subject, pulling her from her musings. "Navy soldiers can get pretty rowdy after a long night in the lounge." He abruptly stood and said, "You can sleep here if you want. I'll take the top bunk."
Katara nodded. She really didn't care which bunk she got, but it was sweet of him to give her the easier option.
It occurred to her suddenly that Zuko was always quietly doing nice things for her—making her a personal fruit plate, saving her from being found by Aang, giving her his cloak to sleep under, letting her have the better bunk—and he always did these things in a way that left her little room to refuse. Rather than asking if she wanted something, he'd just give it to her. If something needed to be done, he'd do it. She'd expected him to act spoiled and stuck up like Toph had when she first joined them but Zuko was like the anti-Toph. At first, she'd thought he was just making a show of being extra nice and helpful to gain their trust, but he never made a big production of it. In fact, he seemed to go out of his way not to call attention to himself.
Zuko climbed up and closed the curtain, blocking out the dim light from the wall sconces. Katara fumbled around for the edge of the blanket and slipped under, feeling warmth on her legs from the spot where he'd been sitting. She laid her head on the stiff pillow and stared up at the underside of the bunk above her, listening to him shift around as he tried to get comfortable. The noise helped to sooth her lingering anxiety. It was like an assurance that if there were to be any trouble during the night, Zuko was right there to help her.
For once, it didn't even occur to her to doubt that he would.
oO0Oo
When Azula had told her that she'd taken care of locating Zuko, Ty Lee had expected to be given directions and a map.
She had not expected the huge brown beast that was currently downing whole steaks like they were fireflakes.
Azula had called it a shirshu. Apparently, they were very rare. Azula said they could track anything by scent, even things that were all the way across the world. This one was a female named Lulu and even though they'd only been traveling together for a day, Ty Lee thought she and Lulu had hit it off rather well.
"So, you like steak?" she asked it from atop a tall tree.
Lulu growled menacingly.
"Oh, me too," she responded conversationally. "Hey, do you think when you're done, we could maybe put the muzzle back on?"
Lulu took a vicious swipe at the tree, causing it to shake alarmingly.
"Okay, that's fine. I'll just ask again later," she called down.
Yep, it was the start of a beautiful friendship.
oO0Oo
For the third morning in a row, Katara woke to find Zuko staring at her. He was already wearing his uniform.
He smiled when he saw that she was awake. "Get dressed," he instructed quietly. "We're going to go get breakfast."
Katara sat up and poked her head around him to look at the rest of the room. The image was very different from when they'd gone to bed. The floor was littered with the bodies of slumbering men and women and the other bunk beds all had their curtains drawn. "What time is it?" she asked, looking back at him and stifling a yawn.
"Dawn."
That figured. Stupid firebenders and their—wait... "Why are we the only ones up? Don't firebenders rise with the sun?" she asked, raising a brow at him.
Zuko smirked slightly and looked over his shoulder at the veritable battlefield of snoozing soldiers. "I challenge anyone to rise with the sun after a night like theirs."
Her other brow rose at that. What did he mean, a night like theirs? Did they all do a really intense group workout or something?
She removed the red nightclothes and dressed in her uniform, and once again Zuko looked away, although he did seem slightly less embarrassed this time. He waited while she stopped by the bathroom and then they donned their helmets and quietly picked their way across the floor to the door.
The mess hall was on the next floor up. It was even bigger than the bunk room and lined with long metal tables. There were just a few other people up and about and they were already eating. Katara was pleased to find the place filled with natural light from large windows that covered the lengths of two adjacent walls.
Zuko led her over to the serving area where a nice-looking assortment of breakfasty foods were laid out. He handed her a tray from a large stack and informed her that she could take anything she wanted.
There was a lot to choose from and it all looked pretty good. Katara been expecting to be handed some local variation of slop over rice, but instead there were rolls and fruits and tarts and dumplings and even a surprisingly delicious smelling vat of porridge. She ladled herself a bowl of the porridge and also took a red bean dumpling and a small plate of sliced mango. Zuko joined her, and she was privately amused when she saw that his tray was filled with fruit and custard tarts.
She was so right.
They poured themselves some tea—she couldn't tell what kind it was, but it smelled spicy—and went to the tables to find seats. As they approached the windows, she got a good look at the clear morning sky and the calm sea and as she watched, a toucan-puffin flew up next to the window, gliding in time with the pace of the ship. Funny, she didn't think toucan-puffins lived this far north.
"We're moving," she pointed out in a whisper.
"Yeah, they must've received their orders," Zuko whispered back. "It's a good thing we got on last night."
They were just about to sit down when someone called, "Hey, you two!"
They both froze.
"You, with the helmets!"
They glanced at each other fearfully. Well, she glanced at him fearfully. She had to assume that he wore a similar expression under his helmet. As one, they turned toward the origin of the voice.
Sitting at a table next to one of the windows on the adjacent wall was a small group of soldiers: a woman and two men. One of the men was waving at them. "You guys wanna come sit with us?" he invited. "The more the merrier, right?"
Katara quickly glanced at Zuko again but couldn't read him at all. Thinking it might seem suspicious if they refused, she nodded and called back, "Sure."
She began walking toward their table and Zuko rushed up to step beside her. "What are you doing?" he hissed. Apparently, he disagreed with her decision.
"I thought it would look bad if we refused," she whispered back.
"We're trying to not call attention to ourselves!" he argued.
"Exactly."
She knew Zuko wanted to argue further, but they'd already arrived at the table and he was forced to hold his tongue. They set their trays down next to the man who'd called them over, across from the other two. The soldiers gave them friendly smiles as they sat down. The man next to her had his hair bound like Zuko's, and she couldn't help but notice that his face had a sort of manly handsomeness to it. She had a feeling he was popular with the ladies. The other man was also easy on the eyes, although in a different way than his friend. He was taller and more narrowly built, and he wore his hair short. The woman had a pleasant face and a pretty smile.
All in all, they were not what Katara had been expecting. She'd imagined the soldiers on a raiding boat as being a bunch of standoffish, unfriendly looking men with scars and stabby things, like knives and swords. So far, the only person she'd seen who came close to that description was Zuko.
"The two of you are up early," the man next to her commented. "Decided not to partake in the nightly ritual?"
She had no idea what he was talking about, but Zuko saved them by saying, "No, we preferred to sleep."
The man across the table nodded and said, "You picked a good night for it. I'll bet my helmet that tonight's gonna be crazy. Once everyone hears the news."
She wanted ask what news? but then the woman said, "Speaking of helmets, are you two really going to eat like that?"
"Yeah, who wears a helmet around here anyway? It's not like we're gonna be attacked," the long-haired soldier spoke again, grinning at them.
Katara was unsure what to do. They didn't want to stand out by being the only soldiers wearing helmets, but they'd be exposing themselves if they took them off.
Then again, she supposed these people were going to see their faces anyway, since they had to remove their masks in order to eat.
She looked at Zuko and nodded at him subtly. He let out a small sigh, which she took as a go-ahead, and she tugged the helmet off and set it out of the way.
"Ooh, you're a cute little bird, aren't you?" the long-haired man remarked, giving her a dazzling smile.
"An exotic little bird," the other added, looking at her eyes. "Do you have a name, blue jay?"
She felt her face heat up under their scrutiny. "K– Zora," she replied, catching herself before she accidentally gave them her real name.
"Zora, huh? Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Zora," long-hair said, taking her hand and kissing it suavely. If she wasn't blushing before, she most certainly was now. Next to her, Zuko cleared his throat.
"Careful, Chen, you're pissing off her boyfriend," his friend warned teasingly.
"Boyfriend?" she asked, confused, then she realized that he was referring to Zuko. "Who, him?" she asked incredulously. "He's not my boyfriend."
"Ooh, ouch!" the one named Chen exclaimed, mock-wincing.
The woman chuckled, and then to Zuko, said, "So, what's your name?"
Zuko hesitated a moment, and she could tell that he was feeling very uncomfortable. Finally, he took his own helmet off and answered, "Lee."
The woman's face turned to shock when she saw him, and in that moment, Katara feared he'd been recognized.
"You're–" the female soldier began, and Katara sucked in a breath, preparing to enlist all of the water in the room to defend them, "–single?"
She nearly fell onto her tray.
Before Zuko could say anything, the short-haired man whistled and said, "That's some injury. What happened?"
Zuko didn't miss a beat. "Foul blow," he said simply.
Foul blow, indeed, she thought.
The group looked at him sympathetically. "Damn, no kidding," Chen remarked. "What's the damage?"
Again, Zuko didn't falter at all and just said, "It's fine. The doctor assured me that I'd still be able to see."
"It didn't hurt your vision? That's lucky," short-hair said with a smile.
This time Zuko's gaze flickered down to his tray. "...Yeah."
Something about that ...yeah raised a red flag in Katara's head.
"Oh, hey, we haven't introduced ourselves yet," Chen said suddenly. "My name's Piao, but most people just call me by my family name, Chen."
"I'm Zhu," short-hair introduced, pointing to himself with his thumb.
"And I'm Lan," the woman finished.
Katara gave them each a smile and said, "Nice to meet you."
"So, how come I've never seen you around before?" Chen asked her, wiggling his eyebrows flirtatiously. "I make a point of familiarizing myself with our crew's lovely ladies."
Katara felt her cheeks heating again. She was unused to boys being so forward with her. This guy could've given Jet a run for his money. "That's because... um..." She tried to think of a believable answer, but her flustered mind was drawing nothing but blanks.
Zuko came to her rescue again. "We spend most of our time below deck," he said quickly, and she noticed his gaze slide down to his tray again. "With the, uh...komodo rhinos. Zora loves komodo rhinos."
He looked at her beseechingly and she nodded, perhaps a tad too enthusiastically, and said, "Yeah, I just can't get enough of them. Komodo rhinos." Just for good measure, she followed this statement with a cringe-worthy attempt at pleasant laughter. Spirits, she was transparent.
"Well you can't do that today," Lan said, and amazingly, there was no suspicion in her tone.
"We can't?" she asked, confused.
"Of course not," the other woman answered, shaking her head with an amused smile. "You can't spend your last day at sea cooped up with rhinos."
"We're arriving at the Earth Kingdom tomorrow?" She hadn't expected to make it there so quickly. The closest Earth Kingdom port was a long way from the western Air Nomad territory.
"Earth Kingdom?" Zhu asked, raising his eyebrows, "You mean you haven't heard the news?"
Beside her, Zuko frowned. "What news?"
"There was a huge announcement posted on the bulletin this morning," he said, spreading his arms widely to emphasize its size. "From this point on, the Western Raiders are no more. We've been summoned back to the homeland to join the Fire Lord's imperial air fleet."
"We're being promoted!" Chen summed up excitedly.
Katara and Zuko looked at each other in shock. They weren't going to the Earth Kingdom after all. They were going to the Fire Nation.
And they were arriving tomorrow.
oO0Oo
"C'mon, Twinkletoes. Get your head out of the clouds and earthbend!" Toph barked, chucking a large boulder at her distracted pupil.
Aang nimbly dodged the projectile chunk of crushy death and sent a similar, albeit smaller, boulder back at her, which she effortlessly pulled from the air and shattered into gravel. He frowned and pulled up a wall of solid earth, pushing it toward her, but she just scoffed and parted his wall like a window curtain.
"You call that bending?" she gibed. "Haru has a better chance of defeating the Fire Lord!"
Aang glared at her in frustration. "I'm trying!"
"Trying? Don't make me laugh. Your heart's not in this at all."
"She's right, Aang," Sokka piped up from the sidelines, where he'd been watching and snacking on nuts with Suki. "I may not know a lot about earthbending or whatever, but you're usually a lot better than this."
Aang stared at the ground in front of his feet and sighed. "I'm just worried about Katara and Zuko." He raised his head and looked at them all earnestly. "I can't stop thinking about how they might be in trouble and that we should be out there looking for them. It's been two days and we haven't seen any sign of Azula at all. Why are we still waiting?"
Sokka looked away with a pained expression. He agreed with Aang. He desperately wanted to search for his sister. He couldn't stand not knowing where she was or if she was safe. She was strong and he trusted Zuko to help look out for her, but he knew that might not be enough. If he could, he would hop on Appa right now and go look for them but he couldn't justify risking everyone's safety like that. He looked back at Aang and said, "I hate this too, but it's still just too big a risk."
"I think you should go." Everyone, save Toph, looked up at the sound of Hakoda's voice.
"Dad?"
"It's alright, Sokka," he said, smiling encouragingly, "We can handle ourselves for a few hours."
Sokka looked uncertain. "Are you sure?"
"Like Aang said, we haven't seen hide nor hair of the princess since we left the temple. And even if she did show up, we have three benders and the Avatar. We'll keep."
Sokka was still unsure but then Suki nodded at him with confident smile and that was all the convincing he needed. He grinned widely and stood, pulling her up with him. "We'll be back before sundown," he said, and without another word, they hurried off to prepare Appa.
Aang frowned after them. "But I wanted to-" A rock whizzed past his nose, interrupting him.
"Sorry, Twinkletoes," Toph stated, not sounding at all sorry, "You've got training to do."
Aang sighed but relented, and the lesson resumed.
Still, he just couldn't bring himself to focus on earthbending at the moment. How was he supposed to concentrate on mastering the elements when his friends were missing? How could he be expected to just wait patiently while Sokka and Suki searched without him?
Ever since he'd seen Katara surrounded by fire in his nightmares before the eclipse, he'd worried endlessly for her safety. He knew now that he'd been smothering her a bit, but he couldn't help but fear for her. He worried about all of his friends, but Katara was extra special to him. She was his forever girl.
Toph scowled as her pupil mindlessly dodged another of her attacks. This was getting ridiculous. She knew Aang was worried, and he had every right to be; on his own time.
"Stop dodging and fight me!" she demanded, kicking the ground in frustration.
Instead of protesting like before, Aang just plopped down on the ground and slumped his shoulders. "I'm sorry, Toph. You were right. My heart just isn't in this right now." He put the heal of his hand to his forehead and furrowed his eyebrows. "I need to know that she's safe."
Toph relaxed out of her bending position and walked over to where he sat, fully intending to beat him into action, but then she had an idea.
If Aang was so determined to be worried, then she would give him something to worry about.
Using her most reassuring voice, she said, "Look, Aang, Katara's fine. Sparky will keep her safe. I mean, he's always watching her, after all." Line cast.
Aang sat up a little straighter, and she knew he'd taken her bait. "He is?"
She smirked inwardly. Time to give the line a little tug. "And it's not like there's anyone else on that island for them to worry about. Just them. Him and her. Completely alone."
"Completely alone," Aang repeated, "...together."
"Exactly, so there's absolutely nothing to be concerned about," she assured him innocently. "Personally, I can think of worse things than being stuck all alone with a strong, devoted firebender, especially one as helpful as Sparky. I'll bet he does all kinds of nice things for her," she crossed her arms behind her head. "Lighting campfires, finding food, comforting her, keeping her warm at night..." Perhaps she was laying it on a bit thick, but she'd been suffering from meddle withdrawal since they'd left the temple.
Aang's worry turned to suspicion and then to dread. Toph sensed the conflict within him and barely suppressed her grin. She just couldn't help herself. This was what she lived for.
Really though, she was doing Aang a favor. If there was one thing Toph had learned since Zuko joined their team, it was that the firebender clearly had a deep emotional attachment to Katara. She wasn't sure exactly how to define that attachment, but she knew it was far more complex and intimate than Aang's twelve-year-old crush. Aang needed to be aware that there could very well be adversity ahead for him, should he continue to pursue her.
Princey might not want to let her go.
"You don't think that he'd...you know..." Aang trailed off, fidgeting anxiously.
"That he'd what?" she asked, feigning ignorance.
"Try to..." he trailed off again and shook his head. "Never mind. I know he'd never do that to me." He got up and started walking back to camp. "I'm going to go help Teo with his glider designs."
Toph finally allowed herself a smirk as he left. He could say whatever he wanted, but the seed of doubt had been planted.
"Are you sure that was a good idea?"
Ah, right. She'd forgotten about Water-Papa.
She shrugged. "It's for his own good. Just because he wants to be with her doesn't mean it's gonna happen. Better he realize that now than be completely crushed when she rejects him."
"What makes you think she'll reject him?" Hakoda asked somewhat curiously.
She shrugged again. "Maybe she won't. Who knows? But I'm not gonna hold my breath."
Hakoda was silent for a moment, then he said, "And Zuko... Is he...?"
She smirked. "Again, who knows?"
oO0Oo
Screw fitting in. They should've just gone to bed.
These were Zuko's thoughts as he shoved through the throngs of people in the lounge, searching for any sign of Katara. She'd disappeared not long after they arrived with their new "friends". The female soldier had led her away while he'd been distracted by the two men and now he couldn't find her anywhere.
A fire navy lounge was not a good place to lose an innocent young woman. Especially one as attractive as Katara. Her looks were sure to draw attention from the room's males and he feared what might happen to her. She lacked experience in this sort of setting and she wouldn't know how to handle herself like the other women. Katara was smart and self-aware but she was also trusting and friendly and he cursed himself for letting her out of his sight.
He reached the back of the room where a group of older soldiers had set up instruments and were providing lively music for the rest of the partygoers. He'd hoped to get a better view of the area from here, but all he saw was a hopelessly vast sea of partially inebriated sailors.
He cursed under his breath and pushed his way back into the crowd.
oO0Oo
Katara sat on a raised cushion surrounded by a group of nearly a dozen unfamiliar faces. Lan had briefly introduced each of them before leaving to grab them some drinks but Katara had been too nervous to remember any of their names.
When Lan had told her that she wanted her to meet some friends, Katara had assumed they were just going to say hi and then go back to the others. Now she was regretting leaving. Zuko probably had no idea where she was and she was feeling insecure being alone with all of these strangers. Not to mention she was right smack in the den of the enemy.
To make matters worse, the lounge was noisy and stuffy and despite having removed the heavy armor from her uniform before they came, she was beginning to feel uncomfortably hot.
Luckily, Lan returned shortly. She took a seat on the empty cushion next to Katara and handed her a large, cool glass cup filled with a bright red, fruity smelling liquid.
"What's this?" she asked swirling the drink around curiously.
Lan gave her disbelieving look. "You've never had a Fire Lady? Wow, you really do spend all your time with rhinos."
Unfortunately for Katara, the rest of the group heard her say this and now everyone was looking at them with interest. Katara blushed and mentally reprimanded herself for her mistake. Could she be any more suspicious?
"Rhinos?" one of the soldiers questioned, sharing an amused look with the man to his left.
Across from her, another one of the group, a tall, attractive woman with long black hair and copper eyes, leaned forward and said, "If you like being around big smelly animals then you should feel right at home up here." She gestured to the gathered menfolk with a smirk.
"Hey, now. I didn't hear you complaining last night in the linen closet," a third man shot back with a smirk of his own. His comment was followed by a collective, "Ooooh," from the other men.
"Keep dreaming, Lao. I wouldn't touch you with a twenty-foot pole," the black-haired woman said, tossing back a small glass of amber colored liquid that Katara was certain wasn't tea. This time the "Ooooh" was directed at Lao and came from both the men and the women.
Katara took a sip of her drink, relieved that their attention was no longer on her. The flavor was nectarous; sweet, like ripe pears; but there was distinct burning sensation as she swallowed that caused a tingling heat to spread through her mouth. She wondered if that was the reason it was called a Fire Lady. She had a few more sips and felt the heat creeping up into her cheeks.
"Good?" Lan asked, sipping her own Fire Lady.
Katara smiled and nodded. "It's delicious."
"Right? Sweet but strong, just like a real Fire Lady. Though it's been thirty years since we had one."
The black-haired woman snorted at that and poured herself another drink from a long bottle. "We're not going to have one either, since Fire Lord Ozai won't take a new wife and Prince Zuko can't seem to stay unbanished long enough to marry," she said, kicking her legs up over the arm of her chair so that she was lounging at an angle.
"Or straight enough," the one called Lao added, to the snickering of his fellow men.
Katara nearly choked on her drink. Recovering quickly, she announced with much incredulity, "Zuko's not gay." This earned her a few skeptical looks, and she realized too late that she'd unthinkingly referred to their prince without proper formality.
Luckily, she was saved by Lan, who said, "Yeah, those rumors were disproved when he returned with that nobleman's daughter."
This bit of information caused Katara to frown. There were rumors? And what nobleman's daughter?
Lao snorted. "They were together for what, two months? I heard he didn't even use her. You'd have to be a fool to buy such an obvious cover."
Use her? Katara had to bite back words indignation at the man's flagrant chauvinism. And why was he so convinced that Zuko was gay? As far as she had seen, Zuko had never shown any romantic interest in other men. Then again, she hadn't seen him show any romantic interest in any women either... Actually, she was surprised to hear that he'd had a girlfriend. She couldn't picture it.
The black-haired woman laughed out loud and pointed her bottle at him. "Like how you sleeping with as many different women as you can is a cover?" This prompted more laughter from the rest of the group and even Katara couldn't contain a chuckle. Normally she wouldn't laugh at such a thing but suddenly everything was funny to her. She raised her glass for another sip and was disappointed to find that it was empty.
Just then, Chen appeared carrying a large tray of tall, narrow glasses filled with a goldish-brown liquid. "Ember Island Iced Teas for the ladies," he announced with a handsome grin, bringing the tray around so that they could each take a glass.
When he got to her, he winked and said, "Lee's been looking everywhere for you."
Lan nudged her with her elbow and said, "Ooh, he's worried about you. How sweet."
Katara ignored her teasing and rose to her feet. "I should be getting back to him," she said, trying to sound apologetic. It didn't help that the room wouldn't quite stay still.
Lan reached for her arm and tugged her back down. "He'll have a better chance of finding you if you stay here than if you disappear into the crowd," she stated sensibly. "Just relax and enjoy your drink."
"Who's Lee?" the black-haired woman asked curiously.
Lan gave the woman an impish grin and said, "He's delicious."
Katara felt herself blush for the umpteenth time that day. What, was he edible? Who used an adjective like delicious to describe a person? She wiped the sweat off her brow and took a long drink of her tea, hoping to wash the other girl's words from her brain. It didn't work.
Unbidden, her imagination produced an image of herself licking Zuko's pale chest, tasting the skin over his collarbone, sinking her teeth into the smooth curve of his neck... Her breathing quickened and she felt heat pool in her stomach.
Across the room a tsungi horn player hit a sour note and Katara was snapped out of her fantasy. She shook her head. Sweet Tui and La, what was that?
"Wow, Zora, you downed half your glass," Lan said, impressed.
Katara blinked and looked down at her drink, finding it was true.
"Speaking of, my bottle's empty," the black-haired woman lamented, holding it upside down to demonstrate. She grinned then and looked around at the gathered soldiers. "You all know what that means."
There were looks of comprehension and excitement at these words, followed by an enthusiastic chorus of, "Spin it!"
Katara watched them, confused, and her vision swam alarmingly. It was like looking through warped glass.
She wished Zuko would hurry up and find her. She was in desperate need of some fresh air.
The woman placed the bottle on the ground and seats were scooted in order to form a circle around it. "Here goes," she said, giving the empty bottle an expert twist with her fingers.
The bottle spun round and round and Katara followed the motion along with everyone else, wondering what was supposed to happen. When it finally stopped, everyone turned to look at the person its nose was nose was pointed toward. It was one of the men who had made an amused face when Lan mentioned Rhinos.
"Din! Haha! Good luck, man," his friend said, clapping him on the back.
Din groaned and looked beseechingly up at the ceiling. "Please, Agni, let it be a woman this time."
Now even more confused, Katara watched as the bottle was spun again, this time with even greater audience interest. She absently took another sip of her drink as the bottle slowed and finally came to a stop, this time pointing at her.
"Oho! Looks like Agni heard you, buddy," Lao said, giving Din a thumbs-up.
"Oooh, Zora!" Lan nudged her again.
Katara looked around the circle unsurely, wondering if anyone was going to tell her what was going on. Din put his drink down and stood up from his seat, smoothing his uniform and straightening his topknot before walking through the center of the circle to where she was sitting. He gave a her a once over before offering her a smile, which she politely returned. He was a pretty average looking guy; dark brown hair and chestnut eyes, though she was having a hard time focusing on any one part of him as the fuzz in her brain was making her feel lightheaded and dizzy.
"Go for it, Din!" someone called.
Din shot them a grin. Then he was gripping her shoulders and leaning in, almost as if he were planning to...
A hand shot out from behind her and covered the man's mouth, pushing him roughly back. "Don't touch her," she heard Zuko's voice growl near her head. She turned around and saw her companion's face set in a stormy expression, his visible eye glinting warningly.
"Hey! Who do you think you—" Din's friend started, but Lan cut him off with a chipper exclamation of "Lee!" accompanied by a wave. She turned to Katara and winked. "See, Zora? I told you he'd find you."
"That's Lee?" the black-haired woman asked, looking Zuko up and down appreciatively. "Damn."
Zuko seemed not to notice them, or perhaps he just ignored them. He laid a hand on her arm and asked, "Are you okay?"
The intensity in his expression surprised her and Katara just nodded dumbly. He glanced down at the nearly empty glass in her hand and then to the completely empty glass next to her cushion before taking her face in his hands and tilting it up into the light. She didn't fight him. She simply watched his face curiously as he moved her head from side to side and studied her eyes.
"You're drunk," he said, frowning disapprovingly and taking the glass from her hand.
"Drunk?" she repeated, giving him a disbelieving look, "That's impossible."
He gave her a skeptical look. "You just put away two very hard drinks," he said incredulously, "Of course it's possible."
It took a moment for her brain to catch up with his words, but when it did, her eyes widened. "Those drinks had alcohol in them?"
There was an explosion of laughter from the group and Katara felt suddenly very foolish. If she were in her right mind, she probably would've gotten angry and told them off for laughing at her, but as it was, she felt more flustered than angry. There was a tug on her arm and as if reading her earlier thoughts, Zuko said, "Come on, let's go get some fresh air."
"Hey, now! You can't just take her away," Din's friend protested. "She's in the middle of something." He was backed by noises of agreement from his fellow soldiers.
"She's not interested," Zuko snapped, glaring back at them coldly.
Katara almost wanted to protest, just because it was her natural reaction when people tried to speak for her, but if that man, Din, was going to do what she thought he was going to do, then Zuko was right, she wasn't interested.
She stood from the cushion but nearly fell back down again when she overshot her center of gravity. She swayed a little, trying to find her balance, and she saw Zuko lift his arms, ready to steady her if needed. She ignored the snickering and chortling of the soldiers, most of whom were taking great delight in watching her struggle.
She let Zuko lead her away through the crowds of boisterous partygoers toward the door. She quickly discovered that walking became a feat when you were drunk. It didn't usually require so much concentration just to travel in a straight line.
The world around her was a whirl of noise and color and she let her gaze drift from one thing to the next finding it too hard to focus on multiple things simultaneously. Eventually, they arrived out in the hallway and Katara was glad to leave the bedlam and hot, stagnant air behind her.
It was a short trip from the lounge to the deck and the moment they exited the superstructure, Katara felt the invigorating energy of Tui fill her, exciting her chi and escalating her power. She'd forgotten that tonight was a full moon.
The restless feeling returned tenfold and she felt the muscles in her arms twitch impatiently. She didn't know if it was the alcohol in her system or being surrounded on all sides by miles of her element or simply the full moon, but the need to bend hit her with a vengeance. Without realizing it, she'd run to the side of the ship and begun to assume a waterbending stance but she caught herself just in time. She reminded herself that she couldn't bend here. Even though the deck was empty, they were in plain view of many windows, and waterbending on a ship tended to cause a lot of turbulence.
Zuko came up next to her and she didn't realize that she was breathing hard until he asked, "Are you feeling okay?"
She turned around to face him just as he was raising his hand to put it on her shoulder, causing his fingers to brush over her left breast. She jumped and he quickly retracted his hand, stammering out an apology.
Rather than becoming cross at him like she normally would, she started giggling like a mad person. Zuko was clearly taken aback by this reaction and he looked at a loss for how to respond to her sudden giggle fit. His baffled expression only made her laugh harder and she wondered at the power of alcohol that it could make something as stupid as an accidental boob grope so hilarious.
In an act of impulsiveness, she reached out and brushed her hand over his left pectoral. She heard him suck in a breath but she was more focused on the feel of his chest under her hand. She gave the area an experimental rub and giggled again when he stared at her like she was insane. She looked up at him coyly and said, "There, now we're even."
oO0Oo
Zuko stared down at Katara helplessly as she played with his chest, wondering if she even realized what she was doing. The moonlight reflected in her eyes bewitchingly and he could see power, wild and intense, churning in their depths. It put him on edge and pulled him in at the same time.
Usually, being near Katara calmed him. Maybe it was because she was his elemental opposite, but her presence gave him relief from the volatile fire within him. Back in the winter, for the short period of time that he carried her necklace, he'd found that if he held the pale pendant up next to the sun his heart would calm and his mind would clear.
Now she was having the opposite effect. Instead of being soothed, his inner fire flared up to match the intensity he saw in her eyes. His blood heated and seemed to accelerate through his arteries and he felt a surge of power along his spine.
Katara's hand fell away from his chest and they just stood there, staring at each other.
Without realizing what he was doing, his hand lifted to rest over the front of her pelvis. At the same time, she brought her own hand up and laid her palm over his solar plexus. He felt energy gather and swirl at their points of contact; hot where her hand touched him; cold where his hand touched her. His uncovered eye fell closed and he was all sensation as their hands switched places, his palm traveling up and while hers slid down, leaving a burning trail over his stomach. However, before they could reach their targets, the door to the deck opened and gaggle of drunk soldiers poured out, laughing and gabbing amongst themselves.
Zuko snapped to his senses and pulled away, and Katara did the same. The energy between them flickered and faded away, leaving them to blink at each other in warm night air. He opened his mouth to ask her what in Agni's name had just happened but he stopped when he saw that she looked just as confused as him.
The group of soldiers caught sight of them and one of them called out obnoxiously, "Hey, are we interrupting something?" to the snickering of his companions.
Zuko pursed his lips and ignored them. He was still addled from what just happened and had no desire to deal with a bunch of inebriated sailors.
"Oi!" the soldier called again, "I asked you a question!"
Katara looked over at them uncertainly and Zuko put his hand on her shoulder so that she'd look at him instead. He shook his head and said, "Don't acknowledge him. It'll just encourage them."
"You think you're better than us or something, one-eye?" a different soldier goaded, "You think that because you're getting some, you're above us? Is that it?"
Zuko clenched his jaw, but refused to rise to their bait. Every ship a had its share of bellicose punks and he knew better than to indulge their drunken contentiousness. He'd had a stressful enough evening as it was, losing Katara in the hotbed of the enemy and then finding her intoxicated and about to be molested by some no-name piece of meat. Not to mention whatever the hell it was that just happened to them.
He grabbed Katara's hand and made to move to the door but he only made it two steps before encountering resistance. He looked over his shoulder to see Katara still standing there, looking down at their joined hands curiously. He gave her arm a small tug and caught her eyes when she looked up at him, silently urging her to follow. She got the message and let him lead her back across the deck.
As they passed the group, the man who'd called to them first stepped out and blocked Katara's path. He smoothed the loose hairs from his topknot back and, giving her what he must've thought was a sexy look, said glibly, "Listen, dollface. Whatever this guy's doing for you," he jabbed his thumb in Zuko's direction, "I can give it longer, faster, and harder. You know what I'm saying?"
That was it for Zuko. This fool had crossed the line. How dare he suggest such a thing to her. How dare he speak to her in such a dishonorable manner. He would show this guy longer, faster, and harder when he pummeled him into the cold steel of the deck. He clenched his fist, preparing to slam it into the guy's stomach, but Katara was a step ahead of him. She raised her free hand and slapped the soldier hard across the face—so hard that his head snapped to the side and he staggered back. She looked at him with an expression so cold that Zuko almost expected to see the sweat on the man's skin turn to ice.
"You pig. Just how shallow do you think I am?" she asked scathingly and Zuko was reminded of his first night at the air temple when she'd come to his room and threatened him. "I'm not laying with him, and I'm certainly never going to lay with you, so bug off and leave us alone." With that, she turned up her nose and swept on by, pulling Zuko along with her. The soldiers were too stunned to even react. Zuko didn't blame them. She had just pegged that man right in the face and her look clearly said that if anyone else attempted to bother her, she would hit them somewhere far less friendly.
They walked back to the bunk room in silence. Zuko could almost taste the ire rolling off Katara in waves. He'd never seen her just hit someone like that. With her bare hands. Her primary strength was in her bending and she obviously had little, if any, martial arts training, but damn! She really packed a wallop.
Zuko was now more determined than ever to keep off her bad side.
The bunk room was even more empty than the night before, though neither of them were surprised by this. They nabbed the same bunk bed they'd used the night before and Zuko went off to use the men's washroom while Katara went to the women's. Usually, Zuko preferred to bathe in the morning but he knew that if he did that here he'd run the risk of exposing himself to the other soldiers so he settled for an evening shower instead.
He had to remove the bandage over his left eye, both to keep it from getting wet, and in order to let his hair down, and he was more than happy to finally have it off. Keeping one eye covered too long caused his depth perception to suffer. Rather than putting it back on after his shower, he simply draped a towel over his head while he walked back to the bed. Katara had beaten him back. She'd probably cheated and used her bending to cut the time of her own shower. She was lying on her back on the bottom bunk, staring off into space.
Zuko closed the curtain, allowing only a small gap for light, and removed the towel from his head. He dropped it by the foot of the bed as he sat down next to her. "How are you feeling?" he asked carefully.
Katara turned her head just enough to look at him and grunted. He wasn't sure how to interpret that, but at least she didn't seem angry anymore. He looked down at his lap and thought about what to say to her. He felt like he ought to say something. This whole situation was his fault. He was the one who'd suggested disguising as soldiers; he was the main reason Azula had attacked the temple; it had been his idea to hide in the uppermost levels of the temple, well away from the others. It didn't feel right to him to just go to bed without having some kind of conversation about what happened, or at least offering his comfort, for whatever it was worth.
"I miss Aang," she said suddenly, quietly, and Zuko felt a pang in his chest. His shoulders sagged. Of course. She wants him to comfort her. He surprised himself with the bitterness of the thought.
He didn't know why her simple admission hurt him. He knew it shouldn't. Aang was her dearest friend. Why wouldn't she miss him? It's not like Zuko didn't miss him too.
No. He did know why. Zuko wasn't a stranger to his own faults. He knew he was a jealous person. He wanted Katara to rely on him the way she relied on the Avatar. He wanted to be close to her the way that Aang was close to her. He wanted to smile with her and laugh with her and be important to her.
"—And Sokka and Toph, and Suki, and my dad," she continued, interrupting his thoughts. All at once Zuko felt very silly. It wasn't Aang that she wanted, it was her family. The family that he wished he could be a part of. "What if I never see them again?"
"We'll find them," he said with conviction. And they would. He would make sure of it. Nothing would stop him from bringing her back to the people she loved. "I promise."
He saw her hand move and then suddenly it was grasping his own the way it had when they left the deck. Zuko felt pleasant warmth spread over his palm and fingers. Her next words shocked him and the sincerity with which they were spoken caused a lump to form in the back of his throat. "I'm glad you're here," she confessed quietly.
Zuko's heart swelled up in his chest. This time she wasn't simply remarking on the convenience of his firebending, she was genuinely glad that he was with her. Not knowing how to properly respond to such a declaration, he settled for squeezing her hand.
They sat, or in Katara's case, lazed, in silence for a while, their hands connecting them. Zuko stared out through the crack in the curtain and Katara's gaze landed somewhere past his shoulder. Neither of them were truly looking at anything. It was an odd episode of closeness and comfort that, to Zuko at least, was unfamiliar but somehow also nostalgic.
He didn't want to break the moment but there was something that he felt needed to be said. "I'm sorry about what that guy said to you. I hope you don't think that every Fire Nation man is like that."
She smiled and shook her head. "Of course not," she assured him. "Those men were just a bunch of pricks. Every nation has them."
The fact that Katara had just smilingly referred to a large subset of the world's population as 'a bunch of pricks' after referring to Admiral Zhao as a 'belligerent dickhead' gave Zuko cause to wonder just how innocent she really was. Or at least what kinds of conversations she was having with Suki.
Again, they were silent for a time. Then, "Zuko?"
He looked down at her. "What?"
"Tell me a story."
Zuko spluttered. "Tell you a what now?" The suddenness and unexpectedness of her request caught him completely off guard.
"A story. I want to hear a bedtime story."
He gaped at her. Perhaps she was drunker than he thought.
"I don't really know any stories," he said lamely. At least, none that he could remember off the top of his head. Where was this even coming from?
She was undaunted. "Make one up then."
Zuko floundered for a long moment as he considered his options. He could indulge her silly request and make a fool of himself with his poor storytelling and crappy imagination, or he could play the tired card and just go to bed. He chose the latter.
"We're arriving in the Fire Nation tomorrow. We should probably get some sleep." He made to stand but was pulled back down by the hand that he'd forgotten was still firmly clasped with hers. The sudden tug caused him to lose his balance and he barely avoided falling on top of her. He twisted his body so that he landed next to her instead.
She stared at him with large blue eyes that were suddenly much too close to his own. "Please."
Zuko turned his head so that he was facing the top bunk and pinched the bridge of his nose with his free hand. "What kind of story do you want?" Spirits, he was such a pushover. He couldn't even say no to a drunk, fourteen-year-old girl.
Katara scrunched up her face in thought. "What's your favorite animal?"
"Turtleduck," he answered without thinking. As soon as he said it, he mentally smacked himself. Why couldn't he pick something manlier, like a platypus-bear, or a sabretooth moose-lion?
Katara smiled and to Zuko's relief there was no hint of mocking in the expression. "Then tell me a story about a turtleduck."
Right, a turtleduck. Okay. He could do this. He cleared his throat self-consciously and started. "Um, once upon a time, there was a turtleduck. He lived—"
"What was his name?" Katara cut in.
Name? "Uh..." he racked his brain, "...Lee."
She gave him a suffering look but didn't say anything.
"Right. So, uh, Lee was a turtleduck," he continued, "and he lived in a pond."
That was as far as Zuko got before he realized that he had absolutely no idea what to say. He probably should've done some planning before he started his story. It was like his uncle always said, he never thought things through.
Thinking quickly, he said, "So, um, one day Lee, the turtleduck, decided to go for a swim in a different pond. Because there was another pond next to the first pond. Well, not right next to it. It was a kind of far away, but close enough to walk to. Er, I guess he could've flown..."
"I get it, Zuko, go on," Katara said, looking amused.
Zuko dragged a hand over his face. He really wasn't good at this sort of thing. "Okay, so Lee went to another pond. To swim. And he did that." He trailed off helplessly.
"Why did Lee leave his pond?" she prompted.
Why? "Um, he left because...he wanted to see what life was like in other ponds?" Seeing Katara's questioning look, he elaborated with the first story he could think of. "His family always told him that his pond was the best but he'd seen how much fun other turtleducks were having in their ponds and he wanted to see for himself." If he weren't so flustered, he might've given himself a pat on the back for managing a full, coherent sentence.
"So, he went to the other pond."
"Yeah. The other pond was nice. He met lots of other turtleducks and ate bread and lived happily ever after."
Katara furrowed her eyebrows. "That's it?"
"Well, yeah. What else is there?"
"Did he make any friends?"
Zuko shrugged. "I guess?"
"Did he fall in love?"
He turned his head and gave her a withering look. "He's a turtleduck."
"What? You think that just because he's a turtleduck, he can't fall in love?" she accused.
Zuko sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose again. "Alright, fine. He met a pretty girl-duck and they fell in love and had a fabulous wedding and made lots of cute baby ducks together. The end."
Katara just lay there, not saying anything for a long moment, then, "You're a really crappy storyteller, you know that?"
Argh!
Zuko made his displeasure known by scowling at her and saying, "You're the one who demanded it. Just what part of me did you expect would be even remotely good at telling stories?"
The ridicule left Katara's voice and she asked, "Didn't anyone ever tell you bedtime stories growing up?"
Zuko let go of his frustration, and, letting his hands come to rest on his stomach, said, "My mother sometimes told me stories. I don't remember them very well, though."
There was another pause, then Katara asked, "Do you remember what they were about? Like what kinds of stories she'd tell you?"
Zuko thought for a moment. "Myths, mostly. She loved lore." He found himself smiling as he remembered his mother; how she would sit by his bed and tell him fantastic tales about the spirits and times long passed. Even Azula had enjoyed listening to her.
Katara looked up at the bunk above and said, "My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days; a time of peace when the Avatar kept balance between the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads. Of course, she was born nearly twenty years after the start of the war so she'd never actually experienced it, but others in her tribe remembered it well. She grew up on tales of those times." There was obvious longing in Katara's eyes as she said this. "Can you imagine a time like that? No war, no killing, no hatred. You and I could've been friends."
If we knew each other back then, do you think we could've been friends, too? Those words had haunted Zuko's thoughts for months and here Katara was suggesting the same thing.
"My mother told me stories like that too," he confessed quietly. "About when the four nations lived together in harmony. She said that right now our world is damaged, but one day it will be whole again and it will be the most beautiful world there ever was."
Back then, he thought she'd been referring to when the Fire Nation won the war. Now, he understood. She'd known. She always had. All this time, he'd completely misunderstood her.
"We're going to fix it," Katara said softly. "We're going to make it whole again."
Not knowing if he was included in that 'we' or if she was simply referring to herself and her friends, he said, "I'm going to help you."
Katara rolled onto her side so that she was facing him fully and looked at him like he was stupid. "Of course you are. You joined us, didn't you?"
The way she said it, so blunt and matter of fact, brought a wide smile to Zuko's face. He was one of them. He was truly one of them. Aang, Sokka, Toph; they had all accepted him, but without Katara's acceptance as well, he was still an outsider.
This is where I belong.
He made a silent oath right then and there. Whatever it took, whatever happened from here on out, he would make that beautiful world their reality. For his mother, for the Avatar and his friends, and for Katara.
oO0Oo
Oh my friggin black and blue, rabbit-molested god! Chapter eleven is finally, finally done! This chapter was not supposed to be this long. It was supposed to be finished and uploaded weeks ago. Blame my job. We just lost someone, and my hours have been increased until we can find a replacement.
I hope it was at least worth the wait.
Many things happened in this chapter. Zuko and Katara finally talked about his scar, Ty Lee made a new friend, Toph trolled Aang, Katara got drunk, Zuko got jealous (there will be much more of this to come), and Lee the turtleduck got a fabulous wedding. Everybody went home happy.
In case you hadn't noticed, I'm on a quest to include as many fanfiction tropes as I can in this story. In this chapter alone we had spin the bottle, accidental drunkenness, jealous!hero, pervert bitchslap, and a last minute rescue. (Tell me if I missed any. :P). Also, I've come up with a great game. It's called spot the video game references. I've lost track of just how many I've included throughout this fic, but there've been quite a number.
I deeply appreciate your reviews and I can't wait to read what you have to say about this chapter. Feel free to make suggestions or harp about things you don't like. I write for all of you! (and maybe a bit for me too).
Also, to Tired Person, I am deeply sorry for keeping you up so late. I can't always control my awesome.
Next Chapter: Arrival in the Fire Nation! Zuko and Katara spend a day in town and run into someone we all know and love. ;)
Until then!