Chapter 5
Zuko climbed out of his palanquin as soon as it had stopped directly in front of the waterbending academy, finding himself instantly flanked by two of his ever-present Kyoshi bodyguards. Without much hesitation, the young Fire Lord proceeded straight towards the entrance, hoping that by the late afternoon most of the visitors would have departed and he wouldn't be confronted with masses of supporters. He was in luck. While there certainly were plenty of people still present at the academy which to him felt more like an indoor park, the amount of visitors was no longer large enough to form a cheering crowd. Individual citizens still waved and bowed to him at a distance, but nobody approached him, which currently suited Zuko perfectly well. His plan right now was to locate Katara as quickly as possible, get her into the palanquin and be on their merry way towards the evening's surprise entertainment.
He had been looking forward to this evening ever since mentioning the surprise to Katara the day before. In fact, he had been strangely excited and even giddy the whole day... even worse, for some reason his sleep the night before had been restless and interrupted. Somehow, Katara's arrival had shaken him out from the dull boredom inflicted by the predictable patterns of Fire Lord's obligations, and he felt himself full with a kind of energy he hadn't felt in a long while. I wonder why it would take Katara of all people to affect me like this, Zuko wondered, together with his bodyguards roaming the windings paths of the academy, searching for his waterbender friend. Maybe because her presence takes me back to those days leading up to my father's defeat, when we had to live every day as if it could be our last, always on the lookout for dangers, never letting down our guard, always fighting for survival. I... don't miss the horrors of those days, but they did change me for the better and forged so many lasting friendships.
Still... there's no denying that Katara has changed from when we last met, Zuko admitted to himself, finally spotting his friend near one of the open water pools ahead of them, Katara bent on one knee, animatedly explaining something to a group of young children, accompanied by weaving hand motions, mimicking the basic waterbending skills. Or maybe it's simply because she's here all alone, I'm seeing a different part of her because she's not constantly fussing over Aang, agonizing over the outcome of our desperate resistance and struggling to keep some kind of cohesion amidst a bunch of frighteningly young kids. It was true, Zuko freely admitted it, Katara had been the glue that had held the group together. He could only guess what this effort had taken out of her.
Well, regardless of whether Katara has changed or not, I know I'm looking forward to discovering this new side of her that I hadn't previously noticed, Zuko smiled at himself as he approached Katara and the kids. One of the children noticed him first, the girl's eyes widening in awe. Katara must have spotted the girl's reaction for she turned around to look, smile instantly lighting up her face when she noticed him.
"Zuko!" she cried happily. "I didn't think you would be picking me up yourself! Let me just round things up, please?"
"Of course, take your time, Katara," Zuko smiled back at her.
"Whoa... you and the Fire Lord are friends?" one of the young boys gave Katara an admiring stare. "That's so cool!"
"Yes, and he's actually not that bad, once you get to know him," Katara laughed at the impressed looking children. "But now you need to run along, kids, we are done for today! If you enjoyed your lesson, tell your parents to bring you back tomorrow! I'll be here!" The children quickly scattered at that, leaving Katara alone with Zuko, the two Kyoshi warriors maintaining a respectable distance.
"Seems like you've bonded very well with those kids," Zuko remarked. "Everything went well?"
"Yes, mostly," Katara replied, frowning a little. "It took me a while to find my rhythm in the morning... for some reason, I couldn't sleep last night."
She couldn't sleep either? Zuko's eyebrows rose at that, but he quickly dismissed it as a coincidence. "I will speak with the servants to prepare more comfortable quarters for you," he decided instead.
"No, don't... I really don't think it was the room or the bed," Katara uttered quickly, then grabbing his arm and tugging on it lightly. "Anyway, shall we depart? You promised me a surprise, and I have been looking forward to collect."
"I like your attitude," Zuko smiled as together they proceeded down the paths meandering between the waterbending pools, towards the exit from the academy. Once they were out on the street, Katara appeared a little uncertain until Zuko pointed at the palanquin near the entrance, one of the servants opening the door for them. "Have you ever used a palanquin before?" he asked, noticing her hesitation.
"I can't say that I have," Katara replied, after a small pause finally climbing inside and taking a seat, Zuko following to sit opposite to her. While the seats were very soft and comfortable, there wasn't a lot of space and their knees ended up pressed tightly together. "I'll admit... I don't feel entirely comfortable with those poor servants having to carry us through the streets. We could have walked," she frowned.
"I agree, I don't like taking the palanquin," Zuko agreed. "But I've been advised that it's one of the many ways for a Fire Lord to project his power. It seems silly at face value, doesn't it?" Katara nodded swiftly. "But maybe it's not that silly, when you really think about it. If the Fire Lord acts exactly like every other citizen at all times, then people might start thinking... if the Fire Lord's actually not special, why do we even need a Fire Lord at all?"
"I hadn't thought about it that way," Katara admitted. "I... still think it's a bit of a stretch."
"Oh, I think so too," Zuko laughed. "I'll try to do something about it eventually, but trust me, there are many issues on a Fire Lord's plate at all times, most of them a little more important."
"Oh, I don't doubt that," Katara replied sincerely. "Anyway, when will you let me know what the surprise is? I'm dying to know!"
"Actually... we should be approaching it shortly, give it another minute or so," Zuko grinned, having stolen a peek outside. "Now, if you were to take a look..."
Katara quickly pulled aside the curtain covering the palanquin's window, realizing that they were being carried towards a large building, lined with columns of impressive size and a large carving in the white marble facade that spelled out the words 'Royal Theater Hall'. "Wait... you're taking me to a theater?" Katara blinked. "To watch a play?"
"Yes?" Zuko felt a little taken aback by her reaction. "Something the matter?"
"You want to watch a play after the disaster that was the Ember Island Players?" Katara looked at him in disbelief.
Zuko burst out in open laughter. "Oh, Katara... that's actually the main reason why I wanted to take you to see a play," he shook his head, unable to stop chuckling. "I want you to form a proper impression about Fire Nation culture. Trust me, you'll be impressed, but you'll have to keep an open mind."
"Well... I'll trust you, I suppose," Katara eventually acceded. Zuko was about to call on the servants to open the palanquin's door, but Katara reached out and stopped him, still looking a little hesitant. "Before we go... is... is my attire suitable for the evening? You'll have to tell me these things..."
"Katara, you look absolutely fine the way you are," Zuko smiled at her. Somehow, Katara acting shy and hesitant seemed to make his heart skip a beat or two. "You're good enough for the Fire Lord, which means that you're good enough for everyone here. Besides... we'll be sitting up in the royal booth, so you won't have to mingle with anyone else unless you want to."
"Oh... well, that sounds... rather lovely, actually," Katara gave him a relieved smile. "Shall we go then?"
"Of course," Zuko nodded, calling on the servants to open the doors and they proceeded inside, walking down the impressive corridors of the royal theatre, lined with pristine red carpets, walls decorated with equally bright red drapes with golden embroidery. Busts of famous actors and theatre patrons of the past generations looked on as they passed by, climbing up a staircase to the upper floor, eventually being led into a private booth that overlooked all the seats below and offered a perfect view of the stage.
"Wait, will it be just the two of us?" Katara suddenly turned towards him having entered the booth, looking surprised. "Mai's not coming?"
Zuko's mood soured instantly at the mention of Mai. The row in the morning had been particularly unpleasant. Mai was upset both because he had doted so much on Katara the evening before, and also because he planned to do so again this evening. She's just acting all jealous when I haven't given any reason to do so, Zuko thought resolutely. Not that I can tell that to Katara, she'll just decide that it's somehow her fault, and then she'll feel miserable and the entire evening will be ruined.
"No, she hates the theater," Zuko instead replied, urging Katara to sit down and taking a place next to her.
"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Katara asked again, not letting the matter slide, looking straight into Zuko's eyes with that earnest, wide-eyed expression that somehow made it all but impossible to lie.
"Maybe not, but it was still her decision not to come," Zuko replied. "Listen, Katara... Mai just needs to accept the fact that I have friends with whom I want to spend time with. Is that too much to ask?" Katara quickly shook her head. "And it shouldn't matter that one of those friends is a girl. Well... a young woman, really," Zuko added, blushing slightly. "Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that in the end she has to trust me. I mean... you're here alone while Aang is at the air temple, and there are probably quite a few girls who have a crush on the Avatar. Does that bother you?"
"It doesn't bother me at all," Katara smiled. "You... make a very good point, Zuko. I hadn't thought about it that way, but you're right," she nodded, falling silent for a moment as the two of them watched more and more spectators streaming into the already packed hall below. "So, tell me, Zuko... what is the play called?"
"The Avatar and the Fire Lord," Zuko replied.
"Oh, no don't tell me... it's a touching tale of your bonding with Aang?" Katara guessed teasingly.
"What? No!" Zuko protested. "Gah, why would you even say that, that sounds awful and cheesy. No, this play is a retelling of the story of Avatar Roku and Fire Lord Sozin."
"I see..." Katara looked thoughtful. "Hmm, I wonder what the Fire Nation's take on that story could possibly be..."
"Well, the play is about to begin, so you'll find out soon," Zuko smiled. "You might be surprised..."
As the play began and went on, Zuko often kept stealing glances at Katara to observe her reaction. Having seen the play several times already, the show of emotions on the waterbender's face was a much more interesting spectacle for Zuko. What it told him was that Katara was absolutely enthralled with what she was seeing, watching the performance in wide-eyed wonder, often letting out a gasp of surprise. On a few occasions, during particularly tense and dramatic moment of the play, Katara clenched at the railing of the booth with such ferocity that the skin of her knuckles turned white. When the bell rang to signal the end of the first act, the young waterbender slumped back into her seat looking both thrilled and emotionally exhausted.
"Let me guess... you're enjoying the play?" Zuko remarked with a smile on his lips.
"Enjoying?" Katara turned to look at him in disbelief. "I love it! This is nothing like those awful Ember Island Players! These actors are... something else, they really make me feel like I was there with Roku and Sozin, it's so intense! And they are benders... the actors are real benders!" Katara gasped, her excitement making Zuko grin broadly. "Remember those silly Ember Island Players, how they were throwing colorful ribbons at each other? Ha! These actors... they actually bend on stage, and with such care and precision! I... don't know much about art appreciation, but all I know is... I absolutely love this!"
"I couldn't be happier to hear it," Zuko chuckled. "Also, I believe food is here," he pointed at the two servants entering their private booth with trays in their hands, one of them unfolding a small table within arms reach of them both, the servants then retiring just as quickly as they had appeared. "Help yourself, if I know you at all, you have skipped the meal at the academy again."
"How did you know?" Katara chuckled, helping herself to a generous serving of spicy rice noodles with eggs and thinly sliced radishes. "Oh, and one more thing I noticed about the play?" she spoke in between mouthfuls of food. Zuko gave her an inquisitive look, urging her to continue. "I'm honestly shocked about the accurate portrayal of both Roku and Sozin. I thought that Roku would be cast as the villain of the piece."
"Katara, if you had watched this play some five years ago, it would have been exactly like that, shameless lies and propagation of Fire Nation supremacy," Zuko admitted. "It was only a year or so ago that I ordered changes to the play to match the historical record."
"You... you ordered it changed?" Katara stopped eating and looked up at him from her plate, her eyes wide in surprise, filling with the softest warmth of appreciation in a way that almost made Zuko forget to breathe. "You have done something truly beautiful, Zuko," she whispered, looking deeply touched. "Thank you, not just on my behalf, but on behalf of everyone who will be blessed enough to witness this amazing play."
"You give me too much credit," Zuko replied hoarsely, aware that his cheeks were burning as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck.
"I don't believe so," Katara shook her head vigorously, then returning to her meal. "I'm still shocked about how horrible the Ember Island Players were in comparison to this. Granted, their abysmal performance didn't upset me as much as it upset Aang, but still..."
"Oh, I vaguely remember something about that," Zuko nodded. "Was it because his actor was a girl?"
"No, no, because in the play my character insisted that she loved him as a brother," Katara explained. "Also, apparently I had a massive crush on you."
"Ah," Zuko remarked impassively. "Well. I guess Aang was upset over nothing in the end."
"He certainly overreacted," Katara nodded. "Though I still wonder about that script. Some parts felt completely invented, but some parts were actually accurate..."
"I believe the poster claimed that the writer used sources such as singing nomads, pirates, prisoners of war and a surprisingly knowledgeable cabbage merchant," Zuko explained.
"So... what you're saying is, some of these sources saw me yelling at you all the time and then decided that somehow we were an item?" Katara blinked. "If you recall, I wasn't exactly... charitable towards you, was I?" she gave him a pensive look.
"You had your reasons," Zuko smiled. "Very good ones. Besides, it's in the past. Also, I suppose they must have thought that we were arguing like an old married couple."
Katara laughed at that. "Maybe so! Or maybe they saw something that we did n-..." she suddenly stopped herself, cheeks flushing pink. "I meant to say, maybe they thought they saw something we didn't see."
"It's possible," Zuko managed, wondering about Katara's odd slip of the tongue. It wasn't like her to become so flustered. "Anyway, you better finish your food, the play is about to resume," he added, his words underscored by the bell that rang out throughout the hall.
"I wouldn't miss a second of this play," Katara put the bowl of noodles back on the try and returned her full attention to the performers, while Zuko resumed subtly observing her reaction. As the play neared its crescendo, it looked as if Katara's heart was about to leap out of her mouth, she appeared so entranced and taken by the performance. As the final act of the play came to a close with the actor of Roku disappearing in the very real but controlled flames that overtook the stage, and the actor playing Sozin stood menacingly over the backdrop of invading tanks and warships, signaling start of the terror that would last a hundred years, Zuko was horrified to see that Katara actually broke down in very real tears. In an instant, he was at her side, taking her hand in his and wrapping his other arm around her shoulder to steady her.
"I'm okay... I'll be okay," she managed eventually, and he quickly released her before the touch turned from supportive to awkward. "I know it's just a play, but it felt so very real. I always thought that the story of Roku and Sozin was very tragic, but... until I saw this play, I didn't truly grasp the true tragedy of it all. To think that the truest of friends could be pulled apart like this... I can't blame Roku for his indecisiveness, I don't think I could have killed Sozin either."
"You know why I really had the play changed, Katara?" Zuko spoke quietly. She shook her head, silently urging him to explain. "First and foremost, I did it for myself. I come to watch it every year, because I have to remember that even if the Avatar is my friend, I must constantly watch myself not to become like Sozin. Or Ozai..."
"I... don't believe you could become like them, I truly don't," Katara exclaimed passionately, reaching out for his hand and squeezing it. "You've changed so much for the better... it's truly admirable," she added warmly.
"I won't be able to stop myself from blushing if you keep saying things like that, Katara," Zuko smiled, his cheeks smoldering with heat.
"I like it when you're blushing, so what's the harm?" Katara teased, then quickly turning more serious. "Honestly, Zuko... I cannot thank you enough for this amazing evening. It was the most fun I've had in years!"
"Why?" Zuko asked, feeling a little stunned at her statement.
"Umm... what do you mean, why?" Katara blinked in surprise.
"I, uh... I mean, I'm very glad you enjoyed this, but... I'm surprised you haven't been having this much fun in years," Zuko explained, trying to work through his confusion. "I mean, you're traveling the world with your boyfriend, your brother and your friends, I would have thought you're having a lot of fun all the time."
Katara froze at his words, looking like she did not know how to respond. "That was just... an unfortunate turn of phrase! Obviously, Aang and I are having much fun on our adventures together," she offered quickly. "Anyway, forget about what I said, just know that I really enjoyed the evening, okay?"
Zuko wasn't buying it for a moment. Now what's going on here? Is something not quite as well with her and Aang as she's letting on? It's not like Katara at all to misspeak like that and then make up such a poor cover. Still, the evening had been so perfect and he didn't want to ruin it by pressing Katara and making her irate, so he decided to drop the issue.
"Well, I'm glad you had fun," he smiled instead. "With your permission, I'll arrange something for tomorrow as well. Though I doubt I will be able to top this."
"I'd like to see what you can come up with," Katara winked at him.
"Oh, I have more surprises up my sleeve, trust me," Zuko grinned, then extending his arm to her. "So, shall we return to the palace, dear Water Tribe girl?"
"Let's do that, dear Fire Lord," Katara smiled as she took his hand in hers.