Chapter 11 Funny Behavior
Three weeks after the last Chapter
Zuko Pov
When I woke up the next morning I found my arm slung around Katara. I smiled softly at seeing how peaceful she was. I lifted my hand and tucked a stray hair behind her ear. She began to stir and I smiled when her ocean eyes opened to stare up at me.
"Good Morning" I said with a soft smile, she stretched and let out a small groan before sitting up and looking at me again.
"Good Morning" She said happily, I leaned in to give her a kiss. She wrapped her arms around my neck and I took that as a sign to continue. I untied her robe and slide my hands inside. Moving my hands up and down her side, sending shivers through her body. She let out a moan and ran her fingers through my hair. I pushed her down so that she was laying on her back and I straddled her hips. I kissed down her front and gave each of her nipples a tweak. Than she sat bolt up.
She pushed me off of her and ran to the bath room. She slammed the door before I could say a word. I was at the door in seconds and I could hear faint sounds of her throwing up.
"KATARA! Let me in..." I said banging on the door.
"No go back to bed Zuko I'll be fine" She replied gasping, that was it with one swift kick I had the door open, she was knelt down by the toilet, her hair like a curtain around her face as she emptied her stomach. I walked to her side and pulled her hair behind her head. I rubbed her back with my other hand and whispered comforting words to her.
With weak hands she tried to push me away, but was either too busy puking or crying to really push me away.
"You will be okay. This little bug will go away soon" I said rubbing her back. I hated getting the fire flu, and I could tell she had it for sure. "The flu only lasts 24 hours you will be better by tomorrow"
"Your probably right" She said as she stood up and rinsed her mouth out in the sink. When she was done and cleaned off I picked her up bridal style and laid her in the bed.
"You lay here and rest" I said pushing her hair out of her face. "I have a meeting today, but I will send Ty lee in to take care of you"
"Umm...Okay" She said rolling over so her back was to me
"I love you" I whispered in her ear before laying a kiss on her forehead.
"I love you too" She murmured back as I walked to the door. I walked through the halls wondering how Katara could have gotten the fire flu. Fire nation citizens only caught the flu during the winter months. Since it was the end of spring it felt odd for her to catch the flu now.
"HEY ZUKO" Ty lee yelled as she did a cartwheel towards me.
"Hello Ty lee" I said plainly
"Where is Katara on this fine morning?" She asked as she tilted her head and stared at me with a look of excitement on her face.
"She is back in our room. She has the fire flu, I was wondering if you would go sit with her. I have a meeting to go to" I asked trying to be nice
"Alrighty, but are you sure it's the fire flu?" She said looking at me funny
"She was throwing up this morning so what else could it be?" I asked raising an eyebrow
"Never mind than" She said shaking her head and turning to walked towards my room, before she was to far down the hall I heard her murmur, "Boys are so stupid"
I let out a frustrated sigh and went to the war meeting. Through out the meeting the advisors spoke to my father about various topics and through out the meeting I was rarely addressed. Azula spoke freely in the meeting throwing in her two cents every five minutes. I did not speak up, not out of fear, but simply I had no interest in the topic of war. My father paid me no mind while I sat beside him, I felt like an invisible figure forced to attend these meetings.
When the meeting was called to an end, my father stood and asked for an audience with me.
"Zuko, how is your water bender?" He asked smiling greatly at the mention of Katara
"Very good father. She has be a reliable companion." I told him plainly
"You have not grown tired of her yet?"
"No sir." I told him
"Well when you are tired with her send her my way, I hunger for the company of a water bender once more." As if to add emphasis he licked his lips and I felt a growl rise up in my throat. "Ah, my next appointment is here, please be on your way, son" He added as the doors to the war room opened to reveal a woman's figure.
I walked towards the door and as I passed the person I noticed it was Mai. She wore her hair down, her thin robe was tied loosely. I froze at the door and turned to see Mai disappear behind the curtain of fire. Thats when I heard both of them let out sinister laughs. I walked quickly back to my room, trying to shake off the image of Mai and my father. I did not see where I was going and ran into Azula.
"Watch it… dumb dumb" She said folding her arms
"Azula did you know about father and Mai?" I asked her
"What about father and Mai" She asked looking very confused for a moment
"Well apparently your friend Mai is father's new play toy." I explained
"Mai...HA...Mai would never… hook up with father" She said with denial
"Well than you'd be surprised." I said walking away from her as she turned and headed towards the war room. I could just imagine her face when she walked into that room and caught Mai and my father together.
I pushed my door open and saw Katara sitting in a chair by the window reading a book.
"Are you feeling better?" I asked as I crossed the room and gave her a slow kiss on the lips.
"Yeah I feel fine now" She said returning the kiss by wrapping her hands around my neck.
"Good, because there is something I want to do that we have not done for some time." I said lifting her up in a bridal style hold and carrying her to the bed.
"I am sorry Zuko, but I am not in the mood for that right now" She said with hesitation in her voice.
"Why? Did I do something wrong?" I asked confused
"No, of course not, its just I don't want you to catch what I have" She said quickly
"It's not contagious, and besides I had it when I was a kid I can't get it again" I said before sucking on her neck.
"Mmm...but honestly Zuko not right now" She said pushing me off her and sitting up.
"Okay if you do not want to" I said looking down defeated
"Zuko I want to...but just not right now" She explained trying to spare my feelings. She grabbed by bangs and pressed our foreheads together, staring into my eyes.
"Katara we haven't...you know...in a long time... I just feel like you don't...want me anymore" I said
"You know I love you Zuko. It's just something has come up" She said turning her gaze away from mine.
"Please tell me what's going on in that brain of yours. I am so confused" I told her, putting a hand on her chin and making her look back up into my eyes. At the same time she grabbed my other hand and placed it on her stomach.
"It involves this" She said as her hand moved away from where mine was on her stomach.
"What you feel like your going to throw up again?" I asked even more confused, pulling pack to get out of her way.
"No...No...Wait here" She said pulling away and going into the bathroom. She came back out carrying a clean month cycle clothe.
"You have your month cycle?"
"NO...I have not gotten my month cycle" She whispered looking at anything but me. I could tell she wanted to tell something but she was holding back.
"What does that..." I stopped when all the pieces fell together in my mind. The throwing up, the missed month cycle, the reason she was acting so funny, Ty Lee, every thing pointed in one direction.
"Zuko...I'm...Pregn" I cut her off before she could finish
"Pregnant" I said it slow and turned it over and over in my head. A slow tear fell down her tanned cheek, and her eyes searched mine for a reaction. I crossed over to her in three long strides and had her protectively wrapped in my arms. If my father found out he would kill her and the baby.
"How long have you known?" I asked her quietly
"About three weeks…" She cried into my shoulder.
"Does anyone else know?" I asked trying to control my emotion.
"Ty lee figured it out." She explained, and that explained Ty lee's funny behavior this morning. She began to cry harder into my shoulder.
"It's going to be okay tara." I told her
"it isn't okay Zuko!" She said pulling away, "I don't even know who fathered this baby"
"I'm the father, Tara."
"How do you know? you father could be the one who fathered the baby"
"no he could not have because he drugged you. Tara he must have used drugs to protect himself from having a bastard child."
"So this is your bastard child, that your father has already threatened to kill?" She said with fear in her eyes.
"No he won't be able to Katara, we have ways of preventing him from finding out."
"Really… cause there is no way I'm getting an abortion." She scoffed at me in anger.
"No I would never suggest something like that. I was saying we could hide the pregnancy and, when it starts to show I can have Ty lee take you some where." I offered
She nodded and went to sit on the bed, she laid her head on her pillow, her hands on her stomach already protecting the life inside.
"Katara, forget about the danger of my father for a minute. Do you regret this… us?"
"No,Zuko!" Her head popped up from the bed, before she relaxed back into her pillow "It's just I don't know if I can handle Ozai finding out about this. I don't want to think about what he will do to us." She said the pain evident in her voice.
"and I will do everything i can to protect you from him." I said climbing on the bed and placing my hand over hers on her abdomen. This was going to be very difficult.