"So leave a light on, I'm coming home. It's getting darker, but I'll carry on.
The sun don't shine, but it never did, and when it rains, it fuckin' pours, but I think I like it.
And you know that I'm in love with the mess, I think I like it." Doomed, Bring Me The Horizon
Xx
They are rudely awakened the next morning by bombs being shot at their camp. The temple crumbles around them as Aang and Toph work on earthbending them an escape route. Katara and Sokka attempt to pull Appa into the tunnel, but he won't budge.
"You guys go, I'll hold them off! I think this is a family visit." Zuko runs off, uncaring for their calls to get him to come back. They continue trying to pull Appa into the tunnel, but it's no use.
"We'll have to fly out of here!" Aang's voice rings out over all the noise.
"We won't be fast enough with all the weight!" Sokka shouts over the sound of bombs and crumbling rocks.
"We have to split up." Katara turns to her father as he speaks up, him and Chit Sang standing with set faces.
"No! We're not splitting up again!" Katara's eyes fill with tears. "How will you get off the island?"
"We'll be fine. You kids take Appa, we'll find our own way off." He and Chit Sang nod to each other. Katara is fairly confident that her father will find some way of getting off of the island, but that's not what she's worried about. "We'll see each other again, Katara." Her and Sokka hug their father, tears streaming down her face as she thinks of them all being separated again. They pull apart, and her dad and Chit Sang run off.
"I can blast that wall," Toph points to a wall that's in the direction of the sounds of fighting, "and we can escape that way."
"There's a lot of fire in that direction!" Sokka sounds rightfully apprehensive.
"We can do it." Aang's voice is steady, his confidence bleeding through into the group as they mount Appa and sail through the hole Toph made in the wall, the rock that had been blasted away brought up and held in front of Appa as a shield by the both of them. They sail past Azula and her airship, Katara using her waterbending to bat away any fireballs that aren't absorbed by the rock shield.
"Zuko!" She sees him fall from the top of an airship after a particularly large blast of orange and blue fire, and Appa swings around and under him so that Katara can reach her hands out and pull Zuko down into the saddle before they take off.
Xx
They land for the night on a small Fire Nation island, one that isn't inhabited and is as good a spot as any to camp out. They sit down for dinner, but Katara's mind is occupied by her father. She can't believe they had to split up again, after only having seen him for one night. She tries to eat, but her stomach has other ideas, and she leaves the group with tears in her eyes. She goes to the edge of a cliff overlooking the water, the waxing gibbous moon hanging in the sky among the stars. She hears someone sit down next to her, and judging by the warmth, she knows it's Zuko.
"Are you okay?"
She sighs, rubbing her face with her hands. "Not really, no." Zuko puts his arm around her, and she leans into his shoulder. "I'm just upset about having to split up from my dad again." Tears fall from her eyes as she continues, "it makes me think of my mom. I just— I can't have either of them because of this fucking war, and it hurts!" Zuko rubs her arm as she cries. "My mother was killed in a raid when I was eight. They were looking for a waterbender, and she told them it was her. They killed her right in our home..." She can't hold back her sobs as she collapses into Zuko. "She died protecting me. And my dad left so soon after to fight in the war, and—"
She can't continue, her sobs violent and exhausting. Zuko doesn't say anything, and for that she's grateful; there's nothing he can say that will make her feel better, anyway. He holds her while she cries, until her breathing is even and her eyelids droop with their own weight. She feels herself drifting off when he picks her up, one arm under her knees and the other cradling her torso, and brings her to her tent. He lays her down gently on her bedroll, covering her with a blanket and kissing her forehead before he leaves, and sleep takes her almost immediately.
Xx
She wakes the next morning with crusty eyes and a dry mouth, and a pounding headache to match. She groans as she pulls some of her water out of its skin to hold to her aching head, willing the pain to ebb away as she heals herself. She grabs her comb and walks out of her tent, squinting at the light and she pulls it through her hair, stopping when she sees Zuko slumped over sitting on a rock.
"Zuko?" He lifts his head, dark circles under his eyes a stark contrast to his pale skin. "You look terrible."
"I waited out here all night." She furrows her brows as he stands. "I talked to Sokka last night. I know who killed your mother, and I'm going to help you find him." The comb falls onto the ground, her hands and feet going numb as his words sink in.
"Who was it?" Her words are shards of ice, sharp and deadly.
"A group called the Southern Raiders." He steps towards her, but she doesn't move.
"How can we find them?" Her heart is beating fast in her chest, anger pushing through her veins with every pulse.
"There's a Fire Navy communication tower not far from here according to the map. All the navy's movements are coordinated by messenger hawk, and every tower has to be up to date on where everyone is deployed. If we can get in—"
"We can find out where they are." She picks her comb up off the ground. "Pack your things. We're leaving now."
Xx
"I need to borrow Appa."
She and Zuko approach Aang as he flings large bales of hay into Appa's mouth.
"Oh, is it your turn to take a field trip with Zuko?" His voice is bright as always, and it grates on her nerves.
"Yes." The edge in her tone causes him to turn towards her with a concerned look on his face.
"Where are you going?" Sokka looks up at them from his perch on a log nearby as he hears the exchange.
"We're going to find the man who killed our mother."
Sokka stands up sharply and walks over at Katara's words.
"I know how to find the man who did it." Zuko makes eye contact with Sokka, something unspoken passing between the two of them.
"What exactly do you think this will accomplish?" Aang sounds skeptical, and it boils Katara's blood.
"I knew you wouldn't understand." She turns around, ready to walk away before Aang stops her.
"Wait! I do understand! You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. How do you think I felt about the sandbenders when they stole Appa? How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people?"
"She needs this, Aang." Zuko's voice is gentle, yet firm. "This is about getting closure and justice."
"I don't think so. I think it's about revenge." Aang has the audacity to sound upset, and she snaps in response, whipping around so fast that her neck pops.
"Fine! So what if it is? Maybe that's what I need! Maybe that's what he deserves!" The words feel sharp and jagged as they pass her lips, but she doesn't care.
"Katara, you sound like Jet." She gets up in his face, her finger pointing dangerously close to his nose.
"How dare you compare me to him," she growls at him like a caged animal, her vision tinting red. "Jet attacked innocent people! This man murdered my mother!"
"Sokka, tell me you're on my side!" Aang turns to her brother with a pleading face, but his expression is stoic.
"Katara, I can't tell you that what you're doing is right," he glances at Zuko, "but I can't tell you what to do. I trust you to do the right thing." Some of her anger bleeds away hearing Sokka's comforting words, but not much.
"Seriously, Sokka?" Aang's voice is steeped in frustration now. "The monks always taught us to forgive. Revenge is easy. Forgiveness is what will truly bring you peace."
"Aang, she's not a monk." Zuko steps in, maybe sensing that Katara is this close to biting Aang's head off. "She has to do what she feels will help her process this, not what you think will help."
"We're going." Katara turns around again and starts to walk away. "And you can't stop us."
Xx
She sits on Appa's head, her braid whipping behind her in the wind, the chill barely touching her skin through her black clothes and the numbness that's overtaken her. Zuko sits next to her, poring over a map silently as they head towards the navy communication tower. They had waited until nightfall to leave the temple, the almost full moon sitting perched in the night sky among the twinkling stars, and Katara can feel it's grace running through her veins like electricity. Ignoring it is impossible at this point; Yue's power is a spark, and her resentment is dry kindling. The fire roars in her ears, drowning out almost everything else.
"There it is." Zuko disrupts her thoughts and points down towards a small island with a tall tower located on the shoreline. "We'll have to sneak in and get the information we need so that they don't alert the Southern Raiders before we can get to them."
She pulls Appa's reins and guides him down to a secluded area hidden from the tower by large rocks. Katara creates an ice raft in the ocean, and pushes it towards the tower after Zuko hops on. She uses a large wave to hoist them up high enough so that they can jump into the tower through an open window. They make their way silently through the corridors, taking advantage of the air circulation system by climbing up into the vents that run above the halls when they find the room they're looking for. A woman sits inside the room at a desk writing something, a full bottle of ink perched beside her; Katara uses her waterbending to topple the bottle and spill ink across the scroll and the woman's hands. She curses under her breath before walking out of the room, and Katara and Zuko drop down lightly into the office after the door closes heavily behind her. They sift through what feels like endless files and scrolls before Zuko finds what they need.
"Here." He whips a scroll out of a cabinet and spreads it hastily on the writing desk. "Southern Raiders, stationed near Whale Tail Island." He rolls the scroll up and puts it away on his way to point out their destination on a large map hanging on a wall. "We should be able to get there by tomorrow night." They head back out of the tower, climb onto Appa, and speed off into the night.
Xx
The sun rises over the horizon, orange and yellow light softening the clouds in the sky, their color a little less dark in the morning glow. Katara sits on Appa's head, her body drowsy but her mind wide awake. She feels awful, and probably looks worse; her head is pounding, she's hungry, and she knows that she should sleep. She hears Zuko shuffling behind her, waking up with the sun and coming to sit next to her.
"You should get some sleep," he suggests as he rests a hand on her shoulder. He hasn't made an effort to be very physical with her since he told her about her mother's killer, and she appreciates it. She thinks he understands that she's too preoccupied for things like that right now. "We'll be there soon, and you'll need all your strength."
"I'm fine." Her voice is flat as the memories creep up on her. "I have plenty of strength. I'm not the helpless little girl I was when they came." A vision of her mother's face flashes in front of her eyes, the determined set of her brow and the steeliness of her blue eyes as she stared at the man who would soon take her life. Zuko's hand tightens on her shoulder, and she's pulled out of her reverie.
"Please rest Katara."
She acquiesces to the softness of his voice, to the warmth in his golden eyes, his worried gaze tailing her to Appa's saddle and weighing on her like a blanket as she drifts off into a dreamless sleep.
Xx
When she wakes, the sky is dark again, a sparkling sapphire stretching between horizons. The moon is truly full, the power and restlessness she felt last night amplified in Yue's glow.
"There it is." She climbs up next to Zuko, still perched on Appa's head, to see the ship off in the distance. "See those sea raven flags? That's the flag of the Southern Raiders." Her insides freeze over, her chi singing to the tune of the full moon above them.
"Let's do this." She cracks her knuckles. "Guide Appa into the water. I'll bend a bubble around us so we can sneak up on them."
Zuko does as she instructs, sending Appa into a nosedive towards the sea. When they break the surface, Katara's water bubble forms around them and keeps them dry, allowing them to breathe. They pull up to the side of the ship silently, and as Appa rises to the surface, Katara uses her water whips to pull one of the men off the deck of the ship and fling him into the ocean. The rest of the crew come to the side to see what pulled him over, and she conjures a massive wave, sweeping them all overboard. Zuko guides Appa to land on the deck as one last soldier comes at them. Katara blasts him with a jet of water, and he slams into the bridge with a sturdy thunk, slumping over unconscious as they run past into the interior of the ship. She coats her arms with sea water and sprints through the hallways, Zuko shutting and trapping a soldier into a sideroom as they make for their destination. They finally come to a closed door at the end of the corridor; Katara's malice rages through her body, a tidal wave in her veins.
"Are you ready?" Zuko looks back at her, his golden eyes peeking out over the top of the black sash he's using to cover most of his face.
"I've been ready."
She pulls her mask down, using the moon's power to crash her water into the heavy metal door and send it swinging open and off of it's hinges entirely. The man inside yelps in surprise, his attempt at attacking them failing miserably as Zuko swats his fireball away.
"Who are you?" the man warbles, amber eyes wide as they dart back and forth between Zuko and Katara.
"You don't remember her?" Zuko questions. "You will soon— trust me."
Katara is seeing red, her fury boiling over like an abandoned tea kettle, Zuko's words fading as her rage clouds her mind. The man moves to attack, and Katara reaches out for his blood, feeling it pulsate through every artery, every vien, every tiny capillary in his pathetic body. She sees his mouth move, but she hears nothing, malice a typhoon whirling in her ears blocking out any sound. She registers Zuko's voice, but it sounds hazy and muffled as she brings the man up to face her.
It's not him.
"It's not him." The red in her eyes subsides, the world coming back to her in a violent crash as she realizes the mistake she's made. "He's not the man."
"What? He's the commander of the Southern Raiders, he has to be the guy!" Zuko grabs the commander's collar and shoves him against the wall. "If you're not the man we're looking for, then who is?"
"You must be looking for Yon Rha!" the commander squeaks. "He retired four years ago!"
Zuko drops him on the floor and he crumples into a heap on the cold steel. Katara's eyes swim in tears as she turns around and stalks back to Appa, barely even waiting for Zuko to get himself into the saddle before she snaps the reins and they take off.
Xx
They sneak along the path leading out of a small village, following an older man carrying a basket of vegetables about to walk right into their trap. He firebends at a nearby bush uselessly, and turns around, proceeding to trip over the wire they had placed in his way. They jump out onto the dirt path, and Zuko sends a blast of fire at the man, who rolls to avoid it.
"I wouldn't try firebending again." Zuko's voice is hard and sharp, and Katara takes note of the fact that it's starting to rain, fat droplets falling onto the dry dirt beneath their feet.
"Whoever you are, take my money, take whatever you want!" Yon Rha cowers behind his arms on the ground, fear shaking his body like a leaf.
"Do you know who I am?" She approaches the pathetic man, pulling her mask down and pinning him to the ground with her eyes.
"No..." he shakes his head as the rain falls steadier around them. Katara's anger increases with each descending drop. "I don't think so."
"Oh, you better remember," she seethes, and walks closer to him slowly, watching as terror dilates his pupils. "Your life depends on it. Why don't you take a closer look?"
"Yes, yes, I remember you now!" She sees his arms shaking under his weight as he leans away from her. "You're that little Water Tribe girl."
"She lied to you." Her voice is fury turned solid, hatred shaped into words and vibrations, her eyes boring a hole into Yon Rha's ugly face. "She was protecting the last waterbender!"
"What? Who?" His voice trembles as it spills weakly from his throat.
"Me!"
Her rage reaches its boiling point, and she reaches out to stop the rain in mid air. Her breaths come fast, laden with hatred. She morphs the rain into a dome-like shield above them with a twist of her arms, and launches all of it at Yon Rha at once, freezing the water into daggers of the sharpest ice she can imagine halfway to her target. He shuts his eyes, petrified with fear, bracing for the attack. I can't do it. She stops the daggers half an inch from his body, letting them hover in the air so that he sees them when he opens his eyes. Her anger drains out of her, leaving nothing but an empty exhaustion in its wake.
"I did a bad thing! I know I did, and you deserve revenge! So why don't you take my mother, that would be fair!"
"I always wondered what kind of fucked up person could do such a thing." Her voice sounds as empty as she feels as she lets her ice daggers melt and falls down to the ground along with the rain. "But now that I see you, I think I understand. There's nothing inside you— nothing at all. You're just a pathetic husk of a man."
"Please, spare me!" She thinks he might piss his pants from fear at this point, his tears mingling with the rain on his wrinkled face.
"But as much as I hate you, I just can't do it." She takes a deep breath and hangs her head, turning around and walking away before she can regret her choice.
She and Zuko walk back to Appa in silence, tears threatening to fall from her eyes with every step. The rain continues to fall around them, and Katara finally feels the chill in the air, her anger having bled out back on the dirt path with Yon Rha. As they approach Appa she shivers, and she brings her arms up to hug herself, too tired to bother bending the water out of her clothes and hair. Zuko rests his warm hand on her back, and she crumbles, turning into his chest as her sobs rip through her. He holds her without saying a word, encircling her with his strong arms, thawing her out with his warmth and affection. Despite everything that's just happened, she feels safe in his arms, like nothing could ever hurt her again if she could only stay here forever. She doesn't know how long they stand there, the rain continuing its descent around them, but she knows how tired she's grown when her eyes finally dry. She sags against Zuko, her weight held up only by his warm body against hers. He easily scoops her up into his arms to carry her onto Appa's back, and sets her down gently in the saddle where she falls asleep almost immediately.
Xx
They return to the small island where their camp is, and Katara immediately goes to sit by the water as Zuko is approached by Aang.
"So, how'd it go?" He can tell that the boy is apprehensive, his voice failing to cover up the unease he feels.
"She let him go." Aang's face lights up.
"That's great! I'm going to go talk to her!" He bounds down after Katara with Suki following closely behind him.
"So she didn't kill him?" He turns around to face Sokka, his expression unreadable.
"No, she didn't." Sokka lets out a heavy breath, and his face relaxes.
"Did you know?"
"What, that she would let him go?" Sokka nods. "Honestly, no. I didn't. I hoped that she wouldn't kill him because I don't think she'd forgive herself." Sokka nods again in understanding. "I don't want her to have to live with that weight on her shoulders. But if she had..." he shrugs. ''I just want to be here for her."
"You're a good guy, Zuko." Sokka claps his hand on Zuko's shoulder as they both look out towards where Katara is now sitting on the dock with Suki. "I'd give you the whole 'if you hurt my sister you're dead' speech, but I know you won't hurt her."
"Never."
He watches as Katara puts her head on Suki's shoulder, and the other girl wraps her arm around Katara in response. He realizes that this is the first time he's truly felt like he's a part of something, like he matters and that people care about him other than his uncle. It feels like what he thinks a proper family should feel like, and if these people are his family, then he thinks he might be alright no matter what happens in the end.