Chapter Three

"You'll never get away with this!" Katara shouted in anger and frustration as Prince Zuko led her below deck. He ignored her and continued down the corridor until they came down the cabin where his uncle was still sitting, exactly as Prince Zuko had left him.

"Uncle!" Zuko yelled in frustration, "Do you think you could have been a little more helpful! What were you doing all this time!"

"Why Prince Zuko! Surely you would not part a man from his tea, would you?" He took a sip from the cup sitting, half-full, on the table, "I was merely finishing my afternoon snack. But the Avatar got away? Well, that's too bad. But I see you have you have not returned empty handed. Who is this?" He gestured at Katara with his tea cup.

"One of the Avatar's helpers. She's the water bending one."

"Ah, yes!" His Uncle examined Katara closely, "I remember seeing her before. Let's see. What was her name? Kento? Kiko? Kanto?"

"Katara." She said coldly.

"That's it!" He sat back, pleased at having this recent puzzle cleared up.

Prince Zuko rolled his eyes. "Would you take her down to the prisoner's hold? She is our captive until we reach the fire nation."

"Oh Prince Zuko." His Uncle stood up and walked over to stand in front of them. "Surely you will not pit such a fine lady as this in such a dreary place. We are firebenders, not tyrants."

"Lady or not, she is our prisoner, not some guest!"

"Why don't you let her stay in the extra cabin? It locks from the outside and no one uses it. I'm sure it would be much more comfortable."

"But! Oh fine! I don't have time to argue! Take her to the extra cabin and make sure you lock the door!"

"Oh no, no!" His Uncle sat back down and picked up his tea cup again. "I'm afraid I have more…ahhh…..pressing matters to attend to at the moment." He leaned back and began to sip his tea again.

"I'm on a ship of morons!" Prince Zuko screamed in frustration, throwing his hands up. "Come on!" he snapped at Katara. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her out into the corridor.

"Hey listen buddy!" Katara, who had been standing silent through this whole thing, jerked back suddenly, catching Zuko by surprise and causing him to release his grip on her.

"What do you think your doing!" He asked angrily.

"I'm sick of being pushed around! You don't have to drag me everywhere! I can walk fine by myself, thank you!"

He stared at her for a minute. "Fine." He said finally, then turned and headed down the corridor. Katara hesitated then followed him to the extra room.

"You will stay here. You can leave only if someone comes and gets you which won't happen often. You will be locked in so don't even think of trying to escape. And no water bending!" He opened the door and Katara walked slowly in. She didn't like the idea of being locked in but what other choice did she have? Prince Zuko shut the door behind her and she heard the lock click into place. She sighed and sat down on the bed to examine her surroundings. The room was small but big enough to be comfortable. There was a single window looking out over the ocean. The bed had a red bedspread. There was a table beside the bed with a lamp on it. A red and yellow drape hung behind the bed and a wooden chest of drawers stood against the opposite wall. Other than that, the room was bare. Katara walked over to the chest and opened it only to find it empty. She went back to the bed.

I don't want to sleep; I don't even think I could if I tried. She sighed and closed her eyes. Pictures, fragments of the day, drifted through her head. Aang……Sokka……Zuko. Zuko! Katara sat up in surprise. No! What was she thinking! Zuko was the enemy! For a second she had thought of him as…..as…. What? She asked herself. A friend? Something else? She sighed and lay back down. I'm tired. In the morning I will figure out what to do, but for now I need to get some sleep. I have to be prepared for anything. With that she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.