Chapter 5: Frustration

Katara could not have imagined a more awkward situation in her wildest dreams.

Stuck with the enemy. Prince Zuko.

After she had woken up and Iroh had explained to her what had happened, she agreed to try his plan to turn the salt water into fresh water. She spent the next few hours testing it out, trying to take some water out of the air. Eventually, she succeeded in taking a few droplets out of the air.

"I did it," she announced proudly. Despite the situation, she grinned as she eyed the droplets. If nothing else, it was a learning experience. "Just a few drops, but I can build from there."

"Excellent," Iroh said, a large grin on his face. He sat near her, though not quite beside her. "Now, we should practice. I'll heat the salt water, and then you can take the evaporated water out of the air. Unless Zuko would like to try?" Iroh looked over to his nephew, who was on on the opposite side of the draft. The prince just sat there on the driftwood, scowling at his uncle's question. He didn't have to voice his answer; it was obvious he didn't want to help. Katara frowned as she saw Iroh's smile fall a bit. "Very well, then. But I hope you will be more willing to cooperate in the future."

I doubt that, Katara thought as she glared at the prince. He didn't seem too interested in helping, apparently preferring to sit and sulk while Katara and Iroh did their part to survive. Stupid, spoiled prince.

Katara and Iroh set to work. Katara bent a small stream of water out of the ocean, forming a small orb of water between her and Iroh. From there, Iroh would use his firebending to heat the water. Katara watched as the orb would slowly evaporate, and she began to use one hand to pull the water vapor out of the air, using her other hand to maintain the orb of salt water. It was rather complicated, more difficult than just pulling water from the air; she had to put her focus into each task concurrently. Taking the water from the vapor and holding the salt water orb. She used one hand for each task, and several times she faltered, bending the wrong orb, or almost dropping one. The balls of water weren't perfect and were more like randomly shaped, ever-shifting blobs. It was a very difficult process, but finally all of the sea water was evaporated, and Katara used her now free hand to pull to vapor into the other ball of water.

"That was some excellent bending," Iroh praised. Katara smiled, feeling a surge of pride. She had done it. It was difficult, but she managed to do it, all on her own. And although she would have preferred praise from Master Pakku over that of an enemy, she still appreciated Iroh's words.

"Thanks," she finally let out. The old man truly didn't seem so bad for being Fire Nation. Katara supposed that this was a good thing−she and Zuko would have clashed, possibly to their deaths, if Iroh hadn't been there to intervene. At least it's not just me and Zuko, she thought.

"Zuko," Iroh beckoned his nephew over. "We've done it! We've made fresh water. I told you that we could work things out if we cooperated." Zuko looked over to them, looking momentarily disbelieving, before glancing at the orb of fresh water that Katara was holding up. For just a second, Zuko locked eyes with Katara. Disbelief, hope, mistrust, Zuko's eyes showed them all. Katara just looked at him blankly and she almost raised her eyebrow. It's not poisoned, jerk. I'm drinking it, too. Zuko looked away and came closer.

"We haven't got anything to put the water in," Katara pointed out. "And I can't hold this up forever. So…I guess we'll drink what we've got for now, and in a few hours Iroh and I can make more." Iroh nodded approvingly, while Zuko scowled.

"And how are we supposed to drink it? You just said there's nothing to put the water in." Zuko sounded irritated, and Katara began to wonder if the prince was ever happy.

Katara looked at the water, and pulled some out. She opened her mouth and used her bending draw some water in. "There," she said after swallowing. The water was wonderful−she hadn't realized until then just how dehydrated she was. Her mouth had been parched and the water felt amazing as it soothed her dry throat. "Just open your mouth, and I can guide the water in."

To Katara's exasperation, Zuko just got upset again. "We're not animals!" he shouted indignantly.

Katara clenched her fists. She was resisting the urge to throw her hands up in the air as she shouted back. "Fine! You can just sit there then. More water for Iroh and I! You know, we're trying to survive. And you just sit there and complain!? Well, I'm sorry that life on a piece of driftwood isn't fancy enough for you! If you don't feel like helping, or even appreciating what we do, then you can just sit there and starve for all I care."

"Fine!" he snapped.

"Fine!" He turned away from her again, and Katara did the same. Her water was rippling unstably with her anger, and Katara stuggled to keep it up.

Zuko is impossible, she thought. I thought he was bad before, what with him chasing us all over the world…but actually spending time with him? How is it even possible for one person to be so infuriating? Katara heard a tired sigh, and turned to see Iroh, sitting between her and Zuko. He was shaking his head, and pinching the ridge of his nose.

"Water?" she offered. He had done nothing to offend her; in fact, she found herself increasingly surprised by Iroh's geniality. And, frankly, she was starting to feel bad for him. How long had he been putting up with Zuko's attitude? She was about ready to scream, and she'd only been with Zuko for part of a day.

The old Fire Nation general smiled appreciatively and nodded. Katara bent a bit of water over to him and he drank it gladly. "Ah, thank you, Katara."

"You're welcome," she returned, offering him a small smile.

"Zuko will come around," he told her quietly. He frowned. "My nephew is prideful. He thinks he can do everything on his own…he doesn't like relying on others, much less someone he would usually consider an enemy. This situation, this helplessness…Zuko is lashing out, unfortunately at you, but give him time."

"I'm not helping him if he doesn't help us," Katara told Iroh. That was how it was done in the Southern Water Tribe and how it was done with Aang and Sokka. Once again, Katara felt a pang of loneliness at the thought of them. She missed them. And, she realized, it had to be even worse for them. To her, she had only been separated from them for a few hours. But she had been unconscious for four days−and Aang and Sokka would have undoubtedly been looking for her during that time. They must be so worried, she thought. And Sokka…he lost Yue. Katara also felt a small sting of loss as she thought of the princess. She hadn't known her as well as Sokka had, but she had talked to her a few times. Occasionally she had gone with Sokka and Yue on their outings, but she had spent most of her time at the Northern Water Tribe learning waterbending, or talking to Master Pakku. Still, she had been on fairly friendly terms with Yue, and had had a few conversations with her. She knew that Yue had loved her brother, even though she was already betrothed. Stupid arranged marriage. Katara closed her eyes for a moment, remembering Yue's last moments and her farewell to Sokka. I should be with Sokka, Katara thought. He just lost Yue and I should be there with him.

What does he think about me? Is he looking for me? Is Aang with him? Katara felt certain that they were looking for her. The question was, would they find her? From what she could tell, they were drifting away from the tribe, not to mention how far out the wave could have pushed them to begin with. Katara hoped they did find her, though she honestly wasn't certain what would be done about Zuko and Iroh. What would they do? Leave them in the ocean? Katara doubted Aang would go with that. He had refused to leave Zuko out in the blizzard before, and leaving them in the middle of the ocean with no food or drinkable water wasn't any better. So what then? Take them to the Northern Water Tribe? Somehow, Katara doubted they wanted prisoners, even royal ones. More likely they'd be killed. Of course, there was still Zuko to take into consideration. By all appearances, his obsession with capturing Aang went beyond rationality. Just a few days previously, he had taken Aang and waded into a blizzard with no way to get out of the North Pole. So if Aang were to show up for Katara, would Zuko attack Aang? In the middle of the ocean? Iroh, Katara suspected, wouldn't approve. He, at least, seemed to value survival over fighting enemies. He had talked Zuko down from fighting Katara, but could he convince Zuko not to attack Aang for the sake of survival?

Would he? As pleasant as Iroh seemed, Katara had to remind herself that Iroh was not only a Fire Nation general, but royalty. He was the Firelord's brother. He may be willing to work with a waterbending friend of the Avatar, but the Avatar was the greatest threat to his brother and the Fire Nation's war.

Katara groaned, rubbing her head. This is ridiculous, she thought. I've been around Iroh for a matter of hours and I'm already questioning our enmity. He was incredibly strange. The way he talked to her, the way he praised her and smiled at her. One would think he didn't even know they were enemies. In a way, he was just as frustrating as his nephew. Whereas Zuko was obviously a royal pain, who would yell and shout and literally breathe fire at the slightest offense, Iroh was so enthusiastically friendly, it was baffling. Katara idly wondered if all of the members of the Fire Nation's royal family were so…bizarre and extreme. She almost laughed at the thought. If they are all crazy, then no wonder these two left home. They must all drive each other crazy.

Somehow, the idea of the Firelord's family being incredibly dysfunctional comforted Katara. And, in a way, it seemed…right. Thinking of Zuko, she had a hard time picturing the most evil guy in the world taking time out to have a wife and care for his children. She tried to picture the Firelord plotting the death and destruction of the world, and then walking a room over and playing with a toddler Zuko. It was a ridiculous image and suddenly Katara felt…sad. Sad because she really couldn't picture it. Firelord Ozai did have a family. But what sort of person could he be with his family when he was so cruel to the rest of the world? How could he possibly be caring towards his family when he carelessly rips other families apart? For a moment, Katara turned and looked at Zuko, who was still turned away from her. What was his father like with him? Did Zuko see a different side to his father than the rest of the world? Or was the Firelord cruel to his own son?

Of course not, Katara chided herself. It was unfathomable. Whatever Firelord Ozai was like to the rest of the world, she supposed he must have had some affection for his family. Katara looked back to Iroh and considered asking about the royal family. It could be useful information, she told herself. How many other relatives did the Firelord have? Who was set to inherit the throne? Katara figured it was Zuko, but then, the Firelord could have a child older than Zuko for all she knew. Katara decided against asking Iroh. Friendly as he was, Katara would be surprised if he didn't answer her, but there was no guarantee that he'd be honest.

Katara was saved from her thoughts by her stomach grumbling, and it was only then that she realized that she was quite hungry. She looked over to Iroh. "I'm going to try to catch some fish," she told him.

He nodded, once again smiling. "And then I can cook them for you."

Katara spent the next hour using her waterbending to catch fish. There weren't many fish that had passed by their raft, and the ones that did were fairly deep underwater. Eventually, she caught three. One, she noticed, was considerably smaller than the others. "I guess this is mine," she said.

"Are you sure?" Iroh said. He looked genuinely concerned as he asked her. In truth, she was really hungry, but she knew she wasn't the only one.

"Yeah, I'm sure. So…you can cook them for us?"

Iroh nodded. "It won't be a delicacy, but it will be the best thing we've eaten in days." He was grinning. Katara actually laughed.

"I suppose that's true," she agreed.

She had already killed the fish and prepared it. All that was left was for Iroh to use his fire to cook it. He was about to start when they were interrupted.

"I could do that," Zuko's voice came. Katara was more startled than Iroh, and she turned around to see the Fire Nation prince standing beside her. He looked…calmer now, though he was still frowning. He wasn't shouting at least.

"You want to cook the fish?" Katara verified. Zuko looked at her, and for a moment Katara thought it was another glare. Then she realized it was less anger, and more determination.

"That's what I just said. I'll do it."

"Wonderful!" Iroh exclaimed, patting the empty space on the raft. Zuko took his seat there and Iroh's smile grew wider. Zuko stared at Katara expectantly and initially she was confused until she realized…

"You don't know how to cook, do you?" Zuko just scowled. "What, princes never need to cook?"

"No. We have servants for that."

Katara's eye twitched. "Well, sorry, we're fresh out of servants on our driftwood palace." Zuko glared at her. She sighed, trying to relax before they fought again. "It's not that hard," she told him. "We're not making fine cuisine. We just don't want the fish raw. So all you need to do is use your fire to cook the fish. That's it. Think you can do that?"

"Of course I can!" Zuko said defensively. "Peasant." He added that as an afterthought. Katara gritted her teeth. Tui and La, she thought. Please help me survive without going crazy. And please get me away from him as soon as possible.

She offered the smallest fish to Zuko, who punched forward, igniting the fish for a few seconds before putting it out. He really hasn't cooked before. When he was done, the fish was visibly overcooked. Great. He turned my fish into a lump of ash.

"You don't actually set the fish on fire," she snapped at him.

Zuko looked over to her, still holding the fish. "You're the one that said I should quit complaining and help! Now you're complaining?!"

"I think Zuko did well, considering it was the first time he's ever cooked," Iroh intervened. Katara wanted to snap at him, too. You're not the one eating ash for dinner. But Zuko paid attention to his uncle, and to Katara's surprise, the prince even looked a little pleased. It had to be the first time she'd seen him…well, he wasn't actually smiling, or happy. But for once, the prince didn't look angry or frustrated. Iroh continued, "Katara is correct, however. You don't normally set the food on fire. We still have two fish left; try holding them just over the fire."

Zuko nodded, grabbing the next fish offered to him. For a moment, he glanced at Katara, and she could have sworn she saw him blush. The two other fish weren't too great either. One was burnt again, but it was nowhere nearly as bad as the first one (this time, at least, it hadn't been set on fire). The other one was done unevenly, with tips of it looking slightly raw. Iroh took the uneven one. Katara glared at the first one, which she had already offered to eat. Her stomach growled with hunger, and Katara supposed it would have to do. Reaching out for it, however, Zuko offered her the less burned, larger fish. She looked at him incredulously.

He wasn't meeting her eyes, and once again she could have sworn he looked embarrassed. "Just take the stupid fish," he muttered. She took it from him, leaving him with the worst of the three.

The three of them sat in silence, eating the fish. Every once in a while, someone would be heard gagging. None of the three fish turned out well, but admittedly, it was better than starving.

"Thanks," Katara finally said, looking to Zuko, whose face was pinched as he ate the burnt fish. "You know…for cooking the fish." He was quiet for a moment and Katara thought that maybe he would just ignore her.

"It's fine," he finally said. After waiting a few more moments, he spoke again. "Thank you…for the fish."

"You're welcome," she said. It became quiet again after that as everyone finished eating their fish. Once again, Katara was reminded of how awkward the entire situation was and found herself wishing that she were back with Aang and Sokka.

The raft was mostly silent as Katara and Iroh once again worked together to create fresh water. This time Zuko took the offered water without complaint, acknowledging Katara's efforts with a small nod. Katara and Zuko didn't speak again before Zuko lay down and went to sleep. And as Iroh's snores filled the air, Katara figured that it was probably for the best that they didn't talk more than they had to. She didn't really want to talk to Zuko, anyways. Iroh, however, seemed happy to talk, and worse yet, actually seemed likeable. Katara was with them for survival; for now they weren't her enemies. But they'd never be her friends, and no matter how long she was on the raft with them, she couldn't afford to forget that. So she decided to speak to them as little as possible.

She wasn't going to get attached.

If it's unclear, this chapter goes back to where chapter 1 left off with Katara, Zuko, and Iroh. If the chronology of this fic is confusing, please feel free to say so, so I can consider that in any future revisions I may do.