Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar or anything associated with it except my fanfiction
ABOUT TIME I UPDATED.
Katara aimlessly wandered the cavernous hallways of the Earth Palace, her mind awhirl in a hurricane of thoughts and feelings. She felt as though she was drowning, that she was suffocating - how agonizing the conflict within her was.
She didn't understand. What was happening to her? Why was she so easily provoked? She had never reacted this strongly before, especially not in the presence of such a prominent figure. Aang and Sokka were probably wondering what was wrong with her back in the throne room. This was the quickest, easiest way to blow her cover and ruin everything for her master. She groaned inwardly and pressed her fingers onto her temples. What was wrong with her?
A small flare of pain shot through her mind. She winced as she reflected upon her acquired condition since returning from the market. Despite her best intentions to return to the Avatar and his friend in their Ba Sing Se home, there were a few brief lulls in tempo where she felt a pain in her temple, as though she was fighting herself. She massaged her forehead, trying to return to some semblance of normalcy. Why had her day suddenly become so bad? A lack of food she could handle - an assassination attempt on the king was also likely inevitable, if not desired. But what especially terrified her was how quickly Sokka's and Aang's minds had jumped to Azula. It was as though the world wanted to mock her by unraveling her master's plans. She steepled her fingers, feeling the headache slowly subside, and her mind become clear once more.
Maybe there's inconsistencies in your little fabricated story, you!-
Silence!
Despite the smallness of this small voice in her head, and her absolute conviction in Firelord Azula's truth, she instantly bent over in pain as her headache flared once more. But just as quickly as it had came, the headache subsided, leaving no evidence of its existence except the memory of the pain.
Katara closed her eyes, took a deep breath and a meditative stance, and took deep breaths. The pain still did not go away. She slowly took some waterbending stances, trying to move with the flow, to smooth the inconsistencies within her mind. She was unsuccessful. In desperation, she bent some water out of her flask, and put it over her forehead. She tried to concentrate, to use her healing powers to alleviate the pain, if only somewhat, but she was unable to concentrate with the stabbing of needles in her mind. Defeated, she slowly opened her tear-stained eyes, and set her eyes on a dark green stone.
A stone the color of a dark, musty room with a harsh light...
She doubled over and cringed.
"The Avatar is the enemy... Azula is the Firelord... you are a filthy watertribe peasant..." The words asserted themselves within her mind, drowning out everything around her. It was only her, and the calm, certain words that were cemented within her mind. The pain became jumbled and irregular, the concentrated attack on her mind becoming chaotic and disorganized, weakening in strength.
She suddenly felt a calm and a dead certainty in conviction that what she was doing was right. She opened her eyes and stood up, her eyes once more black. As they dilated down, she started the long walk back to the others.
All traces of pain were gone. No protest. No pain. Just the Firelord, her slave, and their enemies.
I should go back to the others and make reparations - they're probably super suspicious of me right now...
"So what is up with Katara right now? She hasn't been acting normally lately - her logic seems erratic, her temper's been absymally low, and her focus is a complete mess! Sure, sometimes she has the temper of a drunken Fire Nation man, but she always calms down, whereas today she's incessantly been on a short fuse!"
"With my lack of information, I must inquire an approximate time as to when these anomalies in behavior began to occur," stated the king.
Aang and Sokka shared a glance. "Well... we're not entirely sure... but it seemed like those things began to happen after she got back from a little market excursion," admitted Aang. King Kuei elevated a curious eyebrow at him. Rubbing his neck sheepishly, Aang elaborated, "Well... we'd ran out of food, and Katara suggested going to the market. I offered to go with her, but she adamantly refused, saying that my being there would indefinitely prolong the trip."
"I mean, she's not wrong," Sokka interjected. "You guys together and all lovey-dovey is just... oogies!" They stared him down until he relented. "Okay, sorry, I get it, not the time. But all the same, there's also a huge fat Avatar fan-club coincidentally located at the market despite your proclamations against those congregations, Your Earthiness. It wouldn't be logical nor wise to have the Avatar travel out on a simple shopping spree."
"And what about you, Sokka of the Watertribe?" Kuei asked dryly.
"Well, I mean, I wouldn't last two seconds with my baby sister until I was either frozen to the wall or pelted with a hundred snowballs. And that's on a good day! -"
"For good reason," muttered Aang under his breath, and rewarded himself a secretive, internal smile.
"- not to mention that food shopping isn't my thing."
"Really?" said King Kuei. "I thought that you were quite adept in the area of merchandise and goods, and thrived in negotiations and choosing wares."
"Yes, but not food. For food, I pay any price for even ostrich-horse hay! Katara never did trust me on shopping trips after that incident... but that's not the point! The point is, we let Katara go out on her own to get some food, and then after coming back, her temper seemed a lot more snappy!"
"Maybe, but then again, I remember her saying that there were a few men... hitting on her," Aang scowled. He didn't like the thought of other people - especially creepy men - eyeing his Katara, but on the other hand, he couldn't really blame them. Katara was... Katara. The drop-dead gorgeous, fiery, passionate and compassionate young woman who saved the Avatar from an iceberg and nearly singlehandedly saved the world from an endless era of fire and death. A beautiful, famous, irresistable woman. How could anyone not notice her? Still, it didn't sit well with him that those people were making Katara uncomfortable. Had they no sensitivity to her?
King Kuei shrugged irritably. "It's for that reason that at least one of you should have gone with her. At the very least, you could... ah... act as dissuasion against those things from happening to her," he said testily.
Sokka huffed. "Okay, okay. Lesson learned. Stick with each other at all times. We've been a little out of practice, okay? Especially with how safe and well the city's been with your rule."
This underhanded attempt at flattery did not run amiss with the king, who somewhat softened on his reprimanding of Sokka and Aang. "I suppose that's not unwarranted, given the peace that's settled over the city since the deposition of both Azula and Long Feng." Kuei's face darkened, however, at the mention of his former Secretariat. Once his most trusted advisor, Kuei had come to realize - with the help of team Avatar - that Long Feng was using Kuei as little more than a puppet in order to establish a totalitarian dictatorship over Ba Sing Se. He was put down eventually, but the bitter memories still remained fresh in Kuei's mind. "But still, you shouldn't let your guard down so easily. Just because things seem over, doesn't mean the dangers are gone. After all, I still haven't been completely successful in purging the detestable stain of the Dai Li from the Earth Kingdom."
"Wait..." Sokka said, snapping his fingers. "What if that's what happened? You said the Dai Li are still at large, right? And they were rather notorious for their use of "indoctrination techniques" to curb the population's rebelliousness. Then what if the Dai Li had somehow gotten ahold of Katara, and then brainwashed her? Then that would explain everything!" Sokka looked expectantly at the faces of the other two.
"Sokka, I hate to be the one to put down your rather reasonable idea," Kuei said, "But that simply wouldn't be possible."
"How come? It's perfect! Katara goes to the market," Sokka said, pantomiming with his fingers a figure walking about. "Then somehow, the Dai Li manage to catch her, take her to some place, and brainwash her." He raised his hands and waggled his fingers to mimic the effect of brainwashing. "Then that would be why she returned home so late, and why she's been behaving abnormally. Not to mention, that would tie in with your attempted assassination, since the Dai Li probably have a thing or two or twenty against you. It all fits!"
"And yet, Sokka, despite the ingenuity of the idea, I'm afraid I must reject it," Kuei said tiredly. "You say that Katara must have been brainwashed. How so? The only instruments and location used for brainwashing has been and always will be Lake Laogai, and as I'm sure you are aware of, the underground base of Long Feng has long been demolished, and as insurance against any suspicious activity, I have posted guards at the Lake, day and night, and they have reported to me without fail that no happenings exist at, near, or under Lake Laogai."
"Well, what if your guards had been brainwashed as well?" He drew withering looks from the others. "I-I'm just saying! It wouldn't be that much of a stretch!"
"Then you call into question my judgement as a ruler and protector of my people?" Kuei demanded coldly.
"N-no! That's not what I meant! You see, these kinds of things happen! I mean, not... not a lapse in judgement, of course!" Sokka's desperate smile was more of a plastered grimace as the king glowered at him, original courtesy having dissipated with Sokka's flighty mind. "I'm just saying that sometimes there could be a mistake or something, maybe not at your level, Your Earthiness, but still... you can't discount the possibility immediately."
"It's not only that, Sokka. This is Katara we're talking about. You know, your sister who also happens to be a master waterbender and one of the greatest healers in the world?" Aang said, turning his back and bending over to prove his point. "She's saved the Avatar from becoming a nonexistent history. Not to mention her prowess in combat is fearsome. Do you really think she'd be caught off guard so easily, Sokka?" Aang asked.
Sokka grabbed at his hair in exasperation. "Your bias towards Katara is blinding your judgement! Yes, she's my baby sister who has held the responsibility of a mother, and yes she's an extremely accomplished individual, but just because she's so great doesn't mean slipups won't happen to her!"
"And your desire to be right is getting in the way of your own thinking," countered Aang. "It's not that her being brainwashed isn't a possibility, but the chances of it are absymally low - enough for us to table that thought for later. I do think we should keep an eye on her, though, as something seems... off about her."
Sokka sighed. "Alright... but I'm not letting my suspicions up."
King Kuei cleared his throat, and all eyes turned towards him. "I am not against holding this conversation as to speculation to the roots of this problem, but as of now, I believe there is a slightly more pressing problem. We must find out a way to prevent another assassination attempt - or at least protect myself from another one. Otherwise, my downfall would cause a political rift and wreak chaos upon the Earth Kingdom! Omashu is located too far away to be of much assistance, not to mention I do not have any successors, so if I fall, the Earth Kingdom falls."
"And since the nations are so interconnected, this small ripple could have huge repercussions! Not that I'm sayin that the assassination of the Earth Kingdom's monarch is small, per se," added Aang hastily when King Kuei raised an eyebrow. "But I am saying that if the Earth King falls, the whole world could follow after that!"
"Okay, okay, so then instead of just justifying why we need to protect the king, can we at least concentrate on methods to protect him? Or to put these attempts to an end?" Sokka crossed his arms. "Oh, and it's probably best we do this quick. 'Cause, you know."
"Okay... so... how to protect the Earth King..." Aang said thoughtfully.
"So how to protect the Earth King?" Sokka echoed, whipping out a faux beard and attaching it to his chin. He stroked the beard thoughtfully as though it would aid his cognizant powers.
"Really, Sokka? That's what you're going to pull out? Your Wang Fire beard?"
"Hey, in case you haven't noticed, Wang Fire is a very enlightened individual that -"
"Okay, okay, yadda yadda yadda. Whatever floats your boat, brother. We have an assassination squad to stop!"
Aang and Sokka shared a furtive look, noting that although Katara's mood had changed, her diction was still off. For one, she rarely ever called Sokka "brother", and since when had she stooped to using words like "squad?"
But that was all the thought they were able to spare, before a battered messenger hawk clumsily fluttered its way to the four before collapsing in a heap on the ground.
Sokka squeaked out, "Hawky?" But the others, initially shocked by the brazen appearance of the bird, quickly recovered and wasted no time in rushing to the bird and extricating the scroll that was tucked in a container attached to the hawk.
While Sokka fretted over what seemed to be his own personal pet hawk - they all looked too similar to be able to tell - Aang cautiously unfurled the scroll with trembling hands, tensing up for the words that were sure to hit hard, considering the events of the past day.
Your Majesty,
Greetings from the Fire Nation. I hope this letter finds you safe and well.
I thought I ought to inform you of an unfortunate circumstance that had happened mere moments ago. I decided to check in on my sister's institutional cell. She wasn't there. I asked the staff about her disappearance, and they had no answer. I have sent out letters to every nation concerning this incident. I know she is not at the height of her power or judgement, but I advise you to stay aware of your surroundings and anything out of the ordinary. Remember, this is Azula. Be careful.
Firelord Zuko
As Aang clutched at the letter with pale hands, he heard Katara's breathing suddenly change, an erratic, hysterical, frantic intake and release of air that alarmed Aang. He reached out a consoling hand to her, but she swatted it away.
"Sweetie... is everything alri-"
But as he took a good look at her face, he knew everything was not alright. Her face was as pale as his hands, a disconcerting sign due to her darker complexion. Her blue eyes were wild, the pupils dilated, in what Aang could only assume to be fear. She took a small step back, then a larger one, and a larger one, then another and another until she finally turned and dashed out of the room.
Aang sagged. He turned to face the king. "I mean... that was kind of warranted with Katara. She's got... quite a past with Azula to say the least. But..."
"Maybe that's the person behind this assassination attempt." Kuei's eyes narrowed, and Aang realized to his shock that the king had truly matured. Instead of the goodhearted but inept child of a man he had met during his first tenure in Ba Sing Se, here stood a strong, brave, responsible man who proved himself a true and good ruler of his people. Kuei must have been terrified. No one sane wouldn't fear for their lives in his situation. But to his credit, he stood strong and tall, not showing any weakness, not showing any doubt or fear of his predicament. He was concentrated on his objective, and that was something Aang could admire and respect.
"I highly doubt we would be able to catch such a wild, unpredictable, powerful, and deadly woman so quickly. That means... I need a way to prevent another attempt on my life, as stopping her won't be immediately effective. But how?" Kuei sighed. "I can't just hide myself behind guards - she'd likely just cut them down like cheese or find some devious way to take me down without them noticing a thing - if the Ba Sing Se coup is any indicator. I'm trapped, am I not?" he laughed dryly.
"Well, you pointed out hiding behind your guards. Why not move your base of operations? You know, relocate to somewhere more inconspicuous?"
The King's eyes narrowed. "Perhaps. But then I would need a good place to hide. Not to mention, how would I be able to access my people, communicate with them with what is going on?"
Aang noted the King's diligence in duty to his people, and liked him all the more for it. "Leave it to me. I can safely tend to the people while you are hiding, and tell them what is going on. They will understand. I believe they'd trust you, considering your attitude towards your authority, and as Avatar and ender of the Hundred Years' War I don't think there's anyone who won't listen to me. So that would be fine."
"Very well," sighed the king. "In that case..." he cast a look across the room, where Sokka was currently crooning to the messenger hawk and Katara was nowhere to be seen. "Youth," the king said condescendingly, shaking his head.
"I know, right?" said Aang. When the king turned to him, flustered, Aang cracked a smile. "You know, I'm technically over a century old."
"Oh really?" The king's eyes widened with curiosity and wonder. He outstretched a hand. "That is rather intriguing. That must be from your time in an iceberg, correct? May I ask -" the king paused and retracted his hand, bending his fingers inward. "Ah. Perhaps another time. For now, collect your friends. You are dismissed for the time being, but if you could please assist me in thinking of a place for me to stay during this... this..." the king struggled to find a suitable word to describe the situation.
"Fiasco?" Aang offered.
The king smiled a half smile. "The the word I would have selected, but an appropriate word nonetheless. Farewell, Avatar, and until next time -"
"Sleep in a different bed chamber. Make it harder for Azula to find you. Oh, and if you can, post guards in random places so that she wouldn't be able to find your resting place," Aang said. The king smiled gratefully.
"Thank you, Avatar."
Aang hurriedly ran over to Sokka, grabbed him be the collar, and dragged him off to find Katara. Despite Sokka's protests, Aang doggedly marched on, moving with as much haste as possible.
The king's life did depend on them, after all, disorderly and immature though they were.
In.
Out.
In.
Out.
Katara sat down on the floor, far away from the others, mindlessly repeating the mantra her Firelord had kindly given her, the one that resonated deep within her mind.
"The Avatar is the enemy... Azula is the Firelord... you are a filthy watertribe peasant..."
She had overreacted again. But this time, it would be justifiable. She was sure of that. For what reason, she didn't know, other than a certainty in her gut.
But still, this did not allow her to escape blameless. She needed to calm down, needed to recollect herself, needed to return. Azula had been discovered. Katara needed to do better than this to match this newfound discovery and advantage Team Avatar had.
She opened her eyes, and knew she had to head back. As she retraced her steps back to the throne room, she tried desperately to think of something, anything that would help Azula or at least take Katara's mind off this day.
But all she could think about was the beckoning light and the flickering green room and the chair and...
"Yo, Aang, why'd you do that?" Sokka whined. "I need to take care of Hawky."
Aang had finally found Katara. She had been making her way back to the throne room. She had profusely apologized for the days past actions and behaviors, and Aang had quickly forgiven her. She was Katara, after all - she could do whatever she wanted to and Aang wouldn't fight back - and they also happened to have a more pressing issue at hand.
"Sokka, you need to stop caring so much about the bird and care more about the fact that you missed Zuko's letter that just happened to say that Azula's escaped from her cell."
"What do you mean I need to stop caring so much about Hawky? He's the best bird in the world. Isn't that right, Hawky?" Hawky let out a feeble squawk and Sokka cooed in sympathy. "I know, I know, you had a tough ride. But you made it through to us. And that's dedication and a good bird!" Hawky chirped in response. Aang and Katara sighed, and together they kept walking, hand in hand, until they noticed that Sokka wasn't with them anymore.
Suddenly, they were seized from behind and violently rocked back and fourth by a ballistic Sokka whose head semed to be exploding what with the ferocity of his shaking.
"YOU SAID WHAT? AZULA'S OUT? AND ZUKO SENT A LETTER ABOUT IT? WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN?"
"About five minutes ago, when you were too busy making out with Hawky in the throne room! Honestly, if I didn't know better, I'd say you'd've left Suki for that bir-"
Aang put a comforting hand on Katara's shoulder, and she receded. "Sorry," she mumbled.
"It's okay, Sweetie," said Aang. Katara flinched. "Is something wrong, Katara?" Aang asked worriedly.
Katara shook her head. "It's... it's... just nothing. Except everything that's been going on before. You know?" And Katara grabbed her left forearm with her right hand, an act that made her seem smaller and more vulnerable and so beautiful and Aang's heart stopped and King Kuei's problems didn't exist and neither did the world as he simply stared at Katara and -
"TALK TO ME, GUYS!" Sokka was practically hyperventilating as he shook both Aang and Katara again. He took a deep breath to calm himself down. "Azula's out?" he hissed. "Why does it seem like the world has it in for us?"
"Hey, there's never a lull in this kind of thing. Remember what Kuei said?" Aang said.
"Wait. What did he say?" Katara asked, embarrassed.
"Oh, that's right. You weren't there. He said that even though times were nice, you shouldn't let your guard down because anything could happen at any time."
Aang thought he saw a shadow flit across Katara's face, but he decided it was simply the unsteady lamp lights illuminating the streets that caused the disturbance. "I suppose that makes sense," Katara said slowly. "I mean, everything was going well this morning, and then -"
"Boom! No food, long shopping trip, Kuei assassinate AND NOW AZULA'S OUT!" Sokka's voice had started from a mere whisper and escalated to a shout that made Aang wonder at how deaf the city was. "WHY DOES THIS THING HAPPEN TO US? WHY? WHYYY?"
"Sokka, quit it! Screaming and whining and complaining won't get us anywhere. First things first, we've got to figure out a way to protect King Kuei!"
"Actually... while both of you guys were mentally absent - no offense meant - I happened to talk to the king. We need to hide him, because anything else Azula will just bypass or figure out a way to dispose of the obstacle in her way. With hiding, Kuei has the best chance to survive while we deal with Azula and whatever's going on. And even though he'd have to cut off contact with the rest of the world, we could maintain order for long enough while we try to stop Azula."
Katara nodded. "That's fair. So just brainstorm places to hide King Kuei... that's... that's... actually going to be hard," Katara said, sagging in disappointment.
"Well, never fear! I shall find a way!" Sokka said, brandishing out his beard once more to the chagrin of the other two. "Well, I do suppose it would be a place, not a way, we're looking for," he said ponderously, fingers stroking his chin.
A noncommittal growl emanated from Katara's throat. "Sokka, could you be serious for once?"
"Contrary to what you might think, I am being serious! Why else would I whip out the beard of enlightenment? It's served us tremendously in the past!"
"Besides making you look even sillier than you already are, as in Wang Fire as a Fire Nation Parent? I think not!"
"Humph. You don't understand the art and power that underlies a good beard, Katara."
"You don't understand anything except how to dress up ridiculously, Sokka."
"You have your taste, I have my knowledge."
"Are you implying that I don't have a sense of style?"
"Since you don't appreciate my taste in fashion, I'm going to say yes."
"I'm going to say you're full of it."
"At least I've started doing more household tasks. Must be nice not to wash my socks as much, huh, Katara?"
Katara sighed. "I suppose I must thank you for that, dear brother. Or rather, I should thank Suki for beating some sense into you."
It seemed as though all was as it should be. The night was calm and quiet, the streets nearly empty, and Katara and Sokka were back to their usual antics - a sign that Katara had returned to normal. But as the lighthearted sibling banter continued, Aang's furrow was creased in worry and concern as to the future.
They had barely won against Azula when her mind had fragmented. Now, with time to prepare and recover, what was she going to do next? And would they be able to stop her?
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