The snow fell without pause. She danced under the blizzard, the snow soft beneath her feet.
Her brother was up with the men, listing to their conversations while he was trying out a metal club.
Her mother was smiling at her, webbing a net for fishing. Katara skipped towards her mother and held her tightly.
"I'm sorry I can't play with you right now." The child smiled and nodded. It didn't matter. Not when she knew the black snow was near.
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The tribe's woman had been in bed for three days. Her stomach had long settled down but she had developed a small fever and she welcomed the pause. She turned in bed, her hair covering her eyes and cheeks. Her hand languorously brushed it off. She could hear Ryu's soothing voice in her ear, whispering gentle words. His warm hand rubbing her back. She vaguely remembered her lips on his, an attempt to rid herself of someone else's feel, someone else's taste. The waterbender cringed. His lips were still vivid on her own. The taste of alcohol, the heat, the abandon. Her lips had felt numb afterwards, like they had been burnt off and only a slight tingle proof of their existence. It reminded her of the kisses she had shared with Jet, passionate and lustful. Only she felt neither for the Fire Lord. Still, she couldn't shake the memory seared into her mind's eye. His face just before she leaned in. There was smoke and fire inside her, and it was consuming her. The worst part was, she wasn't quite sure if it was guilt or something else.
She felt like she had been torn. Torn between Katara the Master from the South and Katara the concubine with an agenda. Strange how years of brutal war changed people. Perhaps, before she had to flee to the Earth Kingdom, she would've never sell herself and her beliefs this easily. But conflict had shaped her. Jet's death and the emptiness she had felt had changed her. What were her moral beliefs in the sight of the millions of people hurting by this war?
The girls that slept in the same room as she did, talked when they thought she was asleep. They would whisper slanderously about her supposed pregnancy. She did not find it in herself to care.
Xue had spent as much time as she could with the waterbender, telling her of the day's gossip and activities. She had been rather occupied with a couple of nobles, husband and wife offering support and gold to the war effort. She had told Katara details of their intimacy, and the Tribe's woman had actually paid attention. It was a necessary evil, and apparently all the concubines actually had to tell.
Madame Zhu walked into the room, her haughty demeanour more annoyingly persistent now.
"I can tell you are feeling better." She grabbed Katara's face and inspected her. "Your colour has returned." Her nose scrunched up into a foul grimace. "But you smell horribly. Like sickness." The matron grabbed the waterbender by the arm and pulled her up. "Come on now. You have to wash yourself. You have etiquette lessons and also koto today. You will not go smelling and looking like that!" She sounded appalled and Katara thought she had good reason. She probably looked disgusting.
The bath was full. The voices swam around the waterbender quite pleasantly. She sat on a stool and removed the dirt and sweat from her body. She walked to the pool and sat. The water was warm and steamy and Katara felt the familiar pull of her element in her gut. It was like the water was begging her to be manipulated. She resisted the urge to bend. It would do her no good to give into temptation. She sat, eyes closed, releasing her mind from any thought. When she rose, her skin had wrinkled and she walked to the outer baths to dry herself off with a towel. The woman looked at the robe Zhu laid out for her. It was long-ish, stopping mid-calf, the sleeves wide and billowy, the red fabric sheer and snug against her shape. Katara found she was no longer as bothered by their choice in attires anymore. Walking to the room she scanned the quarters. The women were all looking at her like she had two heads. Some didn't even hide their disgust. Her room was quiet and Xue sat on her bed looking pensive.
"Good morning." Katara said, smiling gently at the Fire Nation girl.
"Oh!" Xue jumped and bowed slightly to Katara, more out of absent mindedness than anything else. "I can see you are better." The waterbender nodded and walked to her bed. She grabbed her arm bracelet and her anklets and placed them.
"I was never told what these are for." She mused more to herself than Xue. The other girl giggled softly.
"Well the bracelet marks you as a palace concubine. It's the mark of the Fire Lord. If it is removed, then whoever had been using you will be punished. Unless it's our Lord himself." Katara eyed the bracelet on her upper arm revoltingly. She was not someone's property no matter how long she had to stay here. "The anklets are about status. The number of charms indicates how many masters you have had. You already have five charms. They symbolise our life. The Fire Nation emblem, the heart, the teardrop, the babe and the instrument. And then you get a charm from the masters you've pleased. They can be anything really, but only the Fire Lord gives expensive ones like Lihua's. She has about seven charms offered to her by our great Lord. She usually changes them from time to time. They are expensive tough." The waterbender nodded and Xue took her by the arm into the feeding area. They grabbed their rice and steamed vegetables, and sat down. The table went quiet, all eyes on Katara and the waterbender fidgeted in her seat. She would have said something. Eased their hearts with her empty womb, but she didn't.
"They all think you are with child. Your sickness only made the rumours more believable." The other girl offered her quietly and the waterbender scooped a bit of rice into her mouth. She chewed slightly, feeling the burn of the other concubines' stares.
Her eyes fell to her bowl and she blinked. "They aren't white today? I thought we always used the same porcelain."
Xue laughed into her hand. "White is for the lower ranked concubines. The ones no one actually cares about." Katara frowned at that. "As your status here goes up they give you different china. It's also more expensive. See?" She held up her white bowl with intricate black flower patterns. The waterbender's was similar but with orange patterns. She raised a brow. "What is orange?
Xue smiled "Well the order is simply white for the girls that aren't summoned at all, then green, blue, black, orange, red and lastly gold. It really depends. If the Fire Lord gives you to many nobles, you may get a red but if you get one really important patron you may also get red. Gold is reserved for our Lord's favourite. There is only one set of gold porcelain."
"Who decides who gets what?" The Tribe's woman inquired, inspecting her bowl.
"Madame Zhu. Records are kept of everything we do. It's also a way for our Lord to know who prefers who and which noble was with each of us."
Katara nodded. The rest of their meal was eaten in silence.
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He woke up with light in his vision. His foot was aching, throbbing in tandem with his pulse. His head pulsed. He had been projected back a good fifty meters and was sure he had been knocked out.
The Tribe's man got up. He winced as hot pain shot up through his lower limb. His foot was broken he was sure. There was no way he would make it back with his lower ramification in this state. Not in this blizzard. Not without his men. He looked around. The hunter vaguely remembered tripping on a block of ice. He also remembered seeing a person trapped inside it. He had hacked at it with his club.
There were no shards of ice anywhere, no body, not anything but the big white expanse. He limped forward and looked down into the gaping whole left by whatever it was he had broken into. The hunter looked around. He was alone and hurt and he was surely going to die.
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Lien had stolen her away from her koto lesson. She had raved on about how Lihua was mad as all gods. The Fire Lord had summoned for her all three nights she had been conveniently ill. Lihua had joined him but something had transpired that left the woman sour for these three days. Katara didn't really care. Lihua was pleasant enough but it was not the waterbender's priority to make sure the was happy with her behaviour.
"I don't know what weapons you've been using Water Tribe, but whatever it is…. seems our Lord is buying it." Katara felt repulsed. She had only kissed him once. It hadn't been a big deal- except she had felt he had needed that kiss more than she did, for different reasons-, he got kissed all the time.
"Why are you helping me?" The waterbender pulled her hand away from Lien's grasp.
"Look I love Lihua like a sister. We have known each other since we were children. We both came from exceedingly rich families and we were both offered to the harem to straighten the ties of our families to the royal house. Lihua is however the Fire Lord's favourite and she has been for a while. There is no way you can take her place." The Fire Nation woman placed her hands on her hips. "You do, however, hit a nerve with me. Call me whatever you want, crazy or stupid, but I like you." She smiled. "You have spirit. We are very much alike. And unlike Zhu, I believe men have acquired different tastes in women over the years. Maybe in Azulon's time they wanted demure, perfect little dolls to play with. Nowadays, they want us. They want women who give them a bit of fun. Who challenge them and question them…." She paused. "As long as they aren't married to them, that is." Grabbing hold of Katara's wrist again, she stepped into her private room. It was smaller than Lihua's, but contained a great number of things. Gold jewellery, full body mirror, stacks of clothing neatly lined by colour. She was clearly eccentric. "The Fire Lord will pick Lihua as a wife. But that doesn't mean he won't have a good time with you first. And, even though I like you, which I do, I can't sugar-coat the fact that you have no idea how to play this game."
Katara was offended. "I have been with men before!" She bawled.
"A man you were in love with doesn't count. Things don't happen the same way. Besides when they actually like you they tend to forgive any…lack of skill."
The Tribe's woman frowned. She couldn't be that bad.
"Today we are going to practice some flirting and then initiating sexual contact."
"What?" Katara's face drained of colour.
"Well yeah. You think the Fire Lord will just go Lie down" She mimicked a man's voice the best she could. "And you will just lay down and take his seed? Nope. Not how it works." Lien sat on the bed. "First you must laugh, make eye contact, touch me. Be overall stimulating and hold my interest." She smiled knowingly. Katara had a feeling Lien took much more pleasure in this torture than she should've had.
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Iroh sipped his tea while his Lord paced around the room. His nephew had been fuming for well over an hour, sometimes throwing his hands in the air, pinching the bridge of his nose, gesticulating and trying to form coherent sentences, others just drinking his fire whiskey with the same ease as if he was gulping water.
He finally had stopped and took to looking out of a window into the gardens. He could see Zuko's far away gaze, as if his mind was somewhere beyond the horizon.
"What do you think we should do, uncle?" His raspy voice came suddenly, and the old retired General placed his cup on the Lord's desk.
"Is it confirmed your sister is taking action against you?" The Fire Lord sighed and Iroh could see life weighing upon him. No man that young should have to deal with what Zuko had, up until this point. The loss of a mother would break a man. But the young Lord had lost both his parents, never truly being loved by one of them, had been scarred at the tender age of thirteen by his own father. He had killed a man at sixteen to regain his birth right, had lost a wife and child and now was dealing with his own sister's treachery. Not that any of them expected Azula to take his crowning kindly. She harboured mixed feeling towards her brother, Iroh could tell. She wanted him to suffer as much as he could and at the same time she took his company as much as she could. But Azula had always been ambitious. And she would have the throne she felt was hers. She was the strongest, the cunning, beguiling prodigal child of Ozai.
"My spies have told me she is planning something. They just don't know what it is." Zuko made a gesture as if to stroke his hair. He stopped short when he felt his topknot.
"We must be vigilant. Gather as much support as we can, take away her allies. But we cannot act until we know what she has in store for us. We can only defend." The Fire Lord nodded.
"I had hoped she would've let go of her obsession with the crown." The young man sighed, his voice heavy with guilt and betrayal.
"Did you, my nephew?" Zuko glared at him.
"It was my birth right. I was born to be Fire Lord!" He boomed. The old general suddenly felt very tired. How he had wished his nephew could see the poisonous lie that had fuelled the war. The very poison that had hurt him all his life.
"Yes, nephew. Yes, you were." Iroh grabbed his cup and took another sip. A heavy silence extended between the two. When the young ruler finally took his seat, his tea had gone cold.
"Cold tea is life's greatest sin." The Dragon of the West offered and Zuko grimaced.
"There are worst sins than cold tea, uncle." The young man eyed him, his posture slacking as he settled his chin on his hand.
"I heard Lihua and Katara have been getting along." The old man smiled into his cup. He had been worried about the Tribe's woman. The Fire Lord raised his eyes towards his uncle, straightening in his seat. "Seems that way."
"She has been sick tough. Madame Zhu has been worried you would get displeased that she was unable to come when your summoned her." The old man's left eyebrow rose and Zuko looked at the window again.
He had indeed summoned her all three nights she had been sick. The first night he was slightly annoyed. Even when she was just on bed rest it seemed like she was challenging him. The second night he had been indifferent to her absence, his mind heavy with Lihua and loneliness and the need for his wife. The third night he had felt something similar to worry. She was worth nothing if she was too sickly to perform. The young firebender frowned.
"I hope she is feeling better." The old man said to no one in particular. The Fire Lord just nodded.
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Her cheeks flushed every time she remembered Lien had made her sit on her hips and roll her own rhythmically. Riding she called it. She had stressed the importance of eye contact, telling Katara she should always look at the man- or woman for that matter- in the eyes as they had intercourse. It made things more arousing she had said. She had also instructed her to used her mouth in every single bit of skin she could reach, to touch as much as she could and to make sounds. She had said she didn't need to moan loudly, little whimpers here and there, gasps, sharp intakes of breath would suffice. Actually, she had said, they will be even more effective. Makes them believe you aren't faking. Katara blushed. Fake it. What did that even mean?
She had told the waterbender that not all patrons cared about her pleasure. That some would be blunt and rough, but she had to keep the act. She had also said some other patrons were very keen on pleasing, and were actually very good at it. She thought about Ryu and her cheeks flushed. Truth be told she was not keen on seeing him. She was also not keen on seeing the Fire Lord either. She felt rather bad about what had transpired. The kiss she had shared with the service boy to rid herself of the disgust she was feeling towards herself. She made a mental note to apologise to Ryu as soon as she could muster the courage to do so. She would have to tell him she could not be involved with him. If she was being honest with herself, she had very mixed feelings about him. She enjoyed him and his silver tongue. He was kind and made her feel beautiful in this sea of people who only saw her as novelty. On the other hand, he was still Fire Nation. She hardly knew him and he could be all sorts of nasty. Katara had the very bad habit of feeling attracted to any man who gave her attention, even when they were particularly unpleasant. Maybe it was the lack of boys her own age while growing up, maybe it was the lack of her father that made her crave affection.
The waterbender combed her hair. She quite liked her hair down, even though it got tangled easily. She looked at her books. She had been in the Fire Lord's harem for three months. She had managed to stay untouched this long but she knew Lord Sheng would come eventually. She eyed herself in her hand mirror and saw Madame Zhu standing behind her, knowing what it meant.
"I don't understand what he sees in you." Her voice was quiet and Katara saw she was pensive, probably contemplating why he had summoned her again. She wondered the same thing. The waterbender knew it wasn't because he liked her. It was duty towards General Iroh, it was curiosity, it was the need to exert his power over someone he considered inferior. His motives mattered not to her. As long as it got her closer to him. She got up and rummaged for clothes, always under the scrutiny of the matron.
"Perhaps you should show what best there is in you?" The old woman offered, her fingers rubbing her chin. Katara felt there was no way she could show him her waterbending, no matter how amazing it was. She smiled to herself at her little appreciative thought.
"You do have a nice looking bust. Maybe something to accentuate their size?" She arched an eyebrow. "Maybe something showing off your legs. They are nicely shaped, albeit rather short." The Tribe's woman frowned. She was not that short. And her breasts weren't that big. The matron walked out of the room and came back a few minutes later with some clothing. She roughly undressed Katara, stripping her out of her under biddings as well. She placed fabric over her head. It was a dress, albeit a very revealing one. The flanks were completely open, showing the side of her breasts- she blushed when she noticed- on her hip there were thin strips of fabric keeping the dress from opening. Her legs were fully exposed in the sides and so was part of her hips. The skirt of the dress was in an accentuated "v" shape exposing her outer thighs and ending between her knees. There were no sleeves, but her shoulders were partially covered by wide straps. There was a cup inside the dress bringing her breasts higher in her chest and closer together, accentuating the deep sweetheart neckline. Fringes fell from the bustier drawing attention to her. Katara sighed.
"Is this really necessary?"
"Our Lord deserves you on your best!" She sounded outraged.
"Wouldn't it be better if he couldn't see much? Wouldn't that make him want me more?" She offered calmly. Madame Zhu gasped.
"Absolutely not. He sees you looking ravishing and he takes you. There is no need for games."
Katara nodded. Madame Zhu combed her again, added a few red stones to it, as red blood tears on her wild mane. She painted her lips in a shimmery substance and added kohl and mascara to her lashes.
The old matron looked Katara over.
"Ravishing. Make us proud." She smiled giddily and pulled the waterbender to the entrance.
She followed Lihua through the corridors. The other girl eyed her from time to time.
"I told Zhu it was too much." The corners of the waterbender's lips curved slightly upward in mock amusement. The Fire Nation woman blushed.
"I'm sorry… You just look…hm…." Katara shook her head.
"It's fine. Not my choice. I would rather be dressed like you are." The Tribe's woman nodded towards the other's simple green robe matching her own, in an emerald colour.
"Doesn't really matter, does it? I will be out of it soon enough." She deadpanned. Katara silently agreed.
The guards opened the door to the Lord's chambers and both women waited. They eyed each other from time to time but neither spoke. The doors opened and the waterbender jumped. Lihua smiled brightly.
"My Lord." In three strides she was in his arms. The corners of his lips curved up into a small smile. His eyes softened at her enthusiasm. And then they locked on Katara. She squirmed under his scrutiny. He eyed her from top to bottom his eyebrow rising elegantly. He stepped away from Lihua and walked to her. The man eyed her and then grabbed her chin and tilted her head right, then left.
"You seem healthy." He said all of a sudden and she gaped like a dead fish.
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She had been standing to the side while Lihua fondled with the young ruler. She was sitting across his lap kissing his jaw and massaging his chest, occasionally giggling like a fool. He kissed her from time to time, offering little whispers and smiles. The man was drinking heavily though, rice wine that Katara had poured for him.
She could swear he stole glances in her direction from time to time. Maybe he was wondering if she would come on to him again this evening. His cheeks slightly tinted when she caught him staring and Katara felt her blood drain from her, covering her sides the best she could.
She replayed her dream in her mind, her childhood home, a welcome distraction. She had been a different person before the Fire Nation raids. Three raids that had taken everything from her. The first when the black snow came for the first time in her life, soiling the purest white in ash and blood, her mother's blood. The second time she had been thirteen. The men that raided her small Tribe were not merciful and raped indiscriminately, old and new alike. Her brother had hidden her, had begged her to stay put, the price was far too high for her to be brave. When it was over there was silence. Months later the women were drowning out babes in the sea. She went to the North after that, began her training. She had lived there for a year until she was almost fifteen before she had to come back to the South and help out the very diminished numbers of brothers and sisters. Sokka had stayed, too young to fight an enemy as ruthless. The fourth time the Firebenders came, looking to destroy the remnants of something already ruined, her father had been ready to fight, the men back home to try and salvage was beyond their power to mend. Her brother and father had smuggled her into a Fire Nation ship. That was the last time she saw any of them.
Her heart had changed. She had believed so hard the Avatar would come to save them all but all she had found was devastation.
The waterbender looked at the Lord. How could only one person cause so much strife? The fate of the world in his hands, all the people that had died, that continued dying, the women that were raped, the children born into war and pain and fear. It should make her angry, but it only made her tired. His eyes caught hers for a split second, clouded in something she couldn't quite read.
The Fire Lord's brow rose. He pushed Lihua aside gently and walked towards the fire mantle and turned to Lihua, smiling gently.
"Will you walk ahead into the room? I will be with you shortly." The Fire Nation woman tilted her head, looking nonplussed. She stepped into the room quietly, giving Katara a look. The door closed behind her and the waterbender felt very cold all of a sudden. She quivered involuntarily and placed her arms around her without really realizing she was moving. The man walked closer, studying her face. She bit her lip, a sudden flash of bitter memory in her mind.
"You will come again tomorrow. Alone." His voice was raspy and smooth, and the girl bit her lip despite herself. Her mind reeled and she needed all her will power no to step away from him. His hand came up into her line of vision, and he tucked her hair behind her ear, the pulps of his fingers caressing her ear and her cheek.
Katara chanced a bold look up at him and found his eyes clouded with intoxication. The waterbender had no idea if he was doing this to break her, if he had enjoyed their kiss, if he wanted her. She nodded quietly.
His fingers traced her locks and she took a deep steading breath. He was offering little gestures of affection she was quite sure he was not aware of. The man looked down and his cheeks tinted again. Katara blushed as well and covered her chest by folding her arms on top of her bust.
"Tell me woman of the Tribes, why you were absent these three days?" The tone was low, almost like a whisper. She looked at the fireplace.
"I was ill." Katara offered quietly. The flames danced in the mantle, crepitating. The Tribe's woman sighed. She was going to do what she must, but she would do it as herself, as Katara. "Why? Did you miss me?" Her voice sounded bolder than she felt, and she added his title as an afterthought. His eyes widened, and he stood there looking at her like he had been struck. And then he frowned.
"I would never enjoy the company of one of your kind, let alone miss it." He growled, and stood stiffly, posture rigid, most likely an intimidation tactic. She had seen much of this when she was taken prisoner, and interrogated.
"I am sorry to have presumed." The waterbender took a step forward. She was much shorter than he was, but her eyes were steady on his. He growled once more and fisted her hair. She gasped, but protested no further. His inebriation was making him act ways he would not any other way. Katara had heard much about how he had changed after the death of his wife, how he changed even more when he drank. It mattered not, it was actually helping her resolve.
Her breathing was heavy her chest colliding slightly against his, such was their proximity. He looked down at her cleavage again, his cheeks coloured, and liked his lips.
The door to his room opened and Lihua peeked through. She was naked, the fire in his chambers making her nudity comfortable. She looked at them and frowned. Katara did not like the look she shot her.
"What is taking you so long, my Lord?" The woman whined impatiently and Zuko walked towards his room.
"Forgive me, my lady." He kissed her hand. "I hadn't realised how long it had been"
Lihua pulled him in the room as she grumbled something Katara didn't quite catch. The doors closed and she walked to his sofa, taking the liberty to sit down. She allowed herself a smile. A small victory had been won today.
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He had walked for three days, the size of his foot augmenting with the added weight. He had had no choice. He would've died had he stayed where he was. He saw the small tents of his community. He limped towards them, fighting his exhaustion, clinging to life however he could. He heard some voices and strong arms helping him hold himself up. The shouts echoed as whoever was with him called for help. He passed out.
When he woke he was in a tent, his foot bandaged and supported by a wooden splinter. He looked around and spotted a canister of water, which he drunk eagerly. Eating snow was not good enough to quench a thirst. He settled back down and closed his eyes. He was sore and fatigued. A long time passed, and he was on the brink of sleep when he heard the flap of his tent open.
"Sokka." He knew the voice. His father held him tight against him. No matter how old he got his father would not stop embarrassing him. "I am so glad you are alive. We were all afraid you had gotten lost or killed out there." He held him again then pushed him slightly away to inspect him. He probably looked as bad as he felt. For the first time he noticed the commotion outside.
"What is going on?" His voice was cracked and thin from his state. His father smiled brightly.
"The Avatar is back, son. The Avatar is here."
A/N: So this took a long time coming. I am really sorry it took me four years to update this but things have not been easy and I lost my muse for this. Thing is I have plenty of later chapters figured out and partially written and far along but I did not know where to go. I hope you liked this one. I re-read The Plan and I kind of wanted to drop it, because I see many flaws and I really don't write like this anymore. But the constant reviews and love this fiction has gathered gave me the strength to write it again. I will probably revise it when I am done with it. So I just wanna talk about somethings concerning this work. First Zuko and Katara are both different from show selfs. This is a different, much more brutal worlds than canon!verse. They have done things and seen things that the characters in the show haven't. Also they are older and there is no Avatar so there is a general loss of hope that permeates everything. About this chapter, I think that show!Zuko would probably be a funny drunk. This Zuko is older and has been drinking quite heavily since his wife passed, so he holds his alcohol better. He got bolder and maybe a bit confused Lihua with Katara and there is also this crazy thought in his mind that Ozai would want him to do this, that he can get her to turn on the Northern Water Tribe and also his need for what he perceives as affection, which here is much the same as sex because that's all the concubines want with him. To use him to further themselves and gain more power.
Also I will be changing the rating of this work to an M. There aren't going to be any lemons or anything but there is a bit of language and a lot of talk about sex, and also some slightly sexual situations, that in my opinion and where I come from are actually quite permitted for teenagers. Still I felt it would be better so no one feels like this is too mature.
So I hope this was good enough to keep you reading.
In this chapter I am going to have to give a general THANK YOU to everyone that reviewed, liked and placed this on alert. It means so much to me. I promise that I will go back to personally thanking each one of you in the next chapter.
As always ideas and criticism are very much welcome. I do appreciate since I am still on the fence about where to go to get to the place that is clear in my head.
Happy 2016 everyone.
