For the Love of Him -or- The Betrothal

This chapter is dedicated to...HAV and Scudelia Electro! Neither of whom I own! YOU GUYS ROCK! •Whispering to the readers• Really, they're really good...you should get the Peace Maker OST (don't own it!)...much goodness it is!

Disclaimer: •Hobbles in all covered in scratches and bite marks• Lawyers...EVERYWHERE! I told them I didn't own it, I swear I did! BUT LOOK WHAT THEY DID! •gestures to self• They painted my nails! •sobs openly from the sheer horror of having to wear nail polish• I'm ruined! I can never go out in public again! How will I go to college? How will I buy groceries? •random person walks up and slaps some sense into the hysterical author• Sorry...I needed that. •hands the random person 5 dollars and shoves them off the stage• Now, I don't own the show, so please stop sending lawyers to attack me. Thanks a bunch! And how was the banana hunt going?

Chapter 5- Conflict Overload


A flurry of action erupted on the lone fire nation ship that had been cruising peacefully into the open water just outside the water tribe's territory only moments before. A shrill whistle sounded, causing people to leap up from whatever it was that they were doing and begin to race about, yelling orders to each other. Thick clouds of smoke began to form overhead as the crew added more and more coal to the blazing furnace that fueled the ship's motion. The craft jumped foreward in the water, picking up speed as it swung in a wide arc away from the setting sun and towards the darkening eastern sky. Alone and stoic at the front of the warship stood the fire nation's exiled prince, staring into space from just behind the huge pointed bow. All A golden fire flared in his eyes, though there was no sun to shed any light on them. His entire frame quivered as excitement and fury thrilled through his blood. "Avatar...this time, I will catch you and restore my rightful honor."

An hour passed and Zuko was still standing there, staring into the distance as if turned to one of the very statues the earth benders would sculpt with their powers. The others, soldiers and crew alike, hadn't neared him. They'd seen him in these moods before and had since decided that it was a preferable fate to leave well enough alone and thus keep their lives and limbs intact. Still, there just was something wrong with leaving the heir to your kingdom standing at the front of the ship in the chilled night air. Even if he was exiled, the soldiers still had a duty to protect Zuko and eventually one of them wandered below deck to locate General Iroh and bring the matter to his attention. A few minutes later, the soldier reappeared on deck with the previously mentioned Iroh and returned to whatever task he'd been doing beforehand.

Iroh shook his head at Zuko's back, a small grin spreading across his face. "He's so stubborn...he'd probably stand there all night if I let him, though it wouldn't make the boat go faster in the least," he sighed as he made for his statue-like nephew. "Prince Zuko," he called as he neared his charge and clapped a calloused hand onto the younger boy's shoulder. Zuko nearly jumped a foot in the air from the sudden contact and whirled about, preparing to launch a fiery punch at whomever it was who'd disturbed him. "Hyaa!" he fired before managing to notice that it was only his uncle. Luckily, Iroh managed to sidestep it with no injury to himself.

"It's just me, Prince Zuko. " The old man grinned at the confused look on his nephew's face. "Come, the chef has prepared us a wonderful dinner and the tea is getting cold." He turned back away from the bow, grasping Zuko's upper arm in an old but vice-like grip. The prince struggled for a bit, wanting to be on deck just incase they somehow came upon the avatar. "Don't worry. The avatar was spotted near the western coast of the earth kingdom. We won't even be near there until tomorrow." Zuko let up a bit at that, realizing his uncle was right and that it would be foolish to stand up all night and then be exhausted when they did find the avatar.

"Yes...I was...excited, that's all," he mumbled, embarrassed that he'd acted so childishly. I just don't want him to get away again. He tried to convince himself that he hadn't been too irrational.

"And besides," Iroh yanked Zuko's hair to pull his ear down to an easy whispering level. "The crew might get suspicious...or think you were crazy." He released his nephew and grinned to himself at the troubled look on Zuko's face. "Don't worry, they don't think you're completely insane," he added, trying to cheer the prince up. "Not yet at least." Realizing his uncle was just trying to aggravate him Zuko just rolled his eyes and walked faster, leaving the general behind. He reached the hatch and ducked inside, slamming it shut afterwards. Iroh chuckled to himself. "He never could take a joke."

•With Aang's Group•

"Are you sure we're going the right way Aang? You promised we'd go to the north pole next, and well, frankly this doesn't look like the home of the northern water tribes," A grumpy Sokka asked from the back of Appa's saddle. Aang had yet again delayed the group by dragging them to some other remote island that didn't even show up on the map just so he could ride yet another strange creature that most likely didn't want to be ridden in the first place. And then he'd tried to get Sokka and Katara to join in. Of course, Katara jumps right up on one of those...whatever they were...and goes along with it! She's part of the reason we're going to the North Pole and she's just as happy to make detours as her boyfriend! Sokka rolled his eyes at the back of Katara's head. She was gazing avidly at Aang as he showed off his marble trick again. She's obsessive! I can't believe Aang hasn't noticed it yet.

"Yeah, I'm sure! I just checked the map, and Appa knows where he's going anyways." Aang grinned over at the sulking warrior. "We'll get there when we get there. Wanna see my airbending trick?" He offered up the spinning marble and waved it back and forth.

"Oh please! I've seen that almost ten times today already!" Sokka just grumbled and turned away. "Show me the map again, just to be sure," Aang shrugged and hopped over to the warrior and flapped the folded piece of parchment open, spreading it out smoothly over his knee. He bent close for a moment, trying to pinpoint where they were and then leaned back up with a smile. "Here! This is us, see? And here's where we've been!" He pointed to a thin black line that traced across the map, marking the end of it as Appa. Sokka snatched the map from Aang and turned his back on the airbender again as he studied the sheet of parchment and continued to mumble unhappily to himself.

Aang frowned and he turned back to Katara. "Is he mad at me or something?" the young airbender asked, floating back over to her and letting the marble slow and drop back into his palm.

"No, he's just cranky because he ate all his food yesterday and had to skip breakfast today." Katara patted Aang reassuringly and winking as she whispered, "You know him, it's just how he is. A big airhead with a bad temper!" Sokka growled at the comment and the two collapsed into laughter. A moment later though, they were jolted out of their hysterics by Sokka's angry but worried tone of voice.

"Aang! This map is upside down! Look, that's the coast of the earth kingdom down there on the right and you've got it marked down that it should be on the left! No wonder we're not there yet!"

Aang suddenly found that he was sweating profusely. "Uh...oops?"

•Somewhere in the Capital City of the Fire Nation•

Left! Right! Punch! The thoughts mirrored the actions of one of the two sparring young fire benders. The taller one was on the attack and several other benders off in the background were cheering him on. "Take her down Uroku1!" One called. "Show her why only men go to war!" Another jeered while flailing his arms around. "Heh, no problem..." the fighter sneered and charged foreward, sensing victory close at hand. This girl was pretty good actually. She'd managed to land a few solid blows on him, and some of them really stung. I'll just say I let her get a few in to make it even. He thought, going over his victory speech in his head.

His smirk grew as the girl came into range. Her black hair was whipping wildly about her pale face and an angry, determined light blazed behind her eyes. She's really not that bad looking after all...Strong too... "Hey!" he called to her as he launched his attack. "Wanna go out with me after this? You could hang out with a real warrior! Not like that prince of yours...an exiled failure like him probably never even saw battle! He isn't worth you to defend him!2" He grinned, anticipating her reply. She would see that Uroku himself was far superior to their long-gone prince and she would answer him yes. It would be a joyous agreement or a thrilled smile he was certain. No one can resist Urok-! "Too slow! You're being careless!" His thoughts were brought to an abrupt halt as she retaliated, ducking low beneath him and them pushed upwards, jabbing her elbow into his ribs, not hard enough to break anything, but with enough force to flip him over her shoulder and leave him sprawled, windless, on the ground behind her.

"Wha..? How did you?" Was all Uroku managed to get out as he tried to catch his breath. At first he wasn't too concerned with her managing to deflect his attack, but as he regained his wits, he could hear his friends laughing without remorse. "Looks like she's the real warrior if you ask me!" one called, bending over and slapping his knee as he continued to laugh. Rage began to boil within the boy, anger that this female had shown him up. "That's it! Now you've made me mad!" Uroku growled furiously as he scrambled back to his feet. The girl seemed completely unfazed by his anger and rather then back down, as he'd hoped she would, she just shook her head and raised her hands into a defensive posture.

"I'll show her. Then she'll really wish she'd never challenged me!" he seethed as he launched a second attack. He aimed a hail of punches at her, each spitting a ball of flames towards her. Far from harm her though; they seemed to be absolutely ineffective. Some she managed to dodge, other she deflected with burst of her own, some she just stood and took though, the fire scattering and dying as it hit her, leaving no damage for all their burning touch. What? I'm the strongest bender in my group! She should be nothing but ashes by now! Uroku began to panic when his attacks yielded no results. He poured out more fireballs, his desperation causing him to aim erratically, and only a few of his attacks even went in the right direction. "This has to work!" he cried as he poured the last of his strength into one huge blast of fire, shaping it into a blazing sheet of fire that washed towards her. A drip of sweat trickled down into his eye and he stopped to wipe it out, loosing sight of the girl for a moment though he thought he saw a dark form become enveloped in the crashing inferno.

As the blaze faded, Uroku looked around. His friends had retreated during his final attack and he spotted them, clapping wildly up in the stands. He grinned and waved, calling out, "She should have said yes! Looks like it's too late for that though..." he trailed off as he looked around. Not a sign of her. He shrugged, not concerned. In the fire nation, if anyone fell in a sparring match, they weren't mourned. Only the strong were of any worth and survived to greatness, and if someone could be killed in a basic training exercise, they weren't worth the tears in the first place. Uroku shrugged again and took a step forward, already envisioning the nice soothing bath he was planning on having to celebrate his victory. His foot only just touched down onto the ground when a firm hand landed on his shoulder, catching it in an iron-like grip. The owner of the hand leaned close, their lips brushing against his ear.

"Slow and unobservant." The girl's voice reached his ear, a mere whisper, her light breath breezing across the side of his face, sending an icy shiver down his spine.

"But...how?" was all he managed to get out before she cut him off again by dropping her second hand onto his other shoulder.

"Monosyllabic as well...your parents must indeed be proud." Her voice was angry, steel-smooth and as icy as the northern glaciers. The voice somehow seemed to paralyze Uroku, and he stood rooted to the spot, the only things able to move were his eyes. Somewhere, as if from far, far away, he could hear his friends crying out to him, telling him to move, to get away from there, that they never should have come. The hands clamped down, harder, and Uroku gasped as he felt something in his shoulders beginning to crack and splinter and a bolt of lightning-like pain shot upwards to the center of his forehead. "Weaklings like you have no place badmouthing Lord Zuko." This time small tongues of fire licked outwards from her hands, not quite hot enough to burn, but definitely enough to make Uroku sweat. "I'm usually not the violent type, but for some reason I can't help but feel that I should teach you proper respect for our prince," she hissed at him. One of her hands released his shoulder and Uroku automatically raised a hand to feel just how bad off it was. A few seconds later though, he didn't care about much of anything anymore. The girl turned her hand so the edge was angled just right, and delivered a swift blow to the base of his neck. He sagged in her grip, eyes loosing their focus as he slipped out of consciousness.

"There! No blood on my hands to deal with and perhaps he'll learn something from this…You two!" she turned and hollered up at the retreating backs of Uroku's so-called friends. "Take him to get some help. When he wakes up, tell him not to dishonor himself anymore by speaking ill of our prince." She watched as the two slunk down to where they were, and smiled to herself at how nervous they seemed. She backed up a step leaving some space between herself and Uroku's unconscious form, and the two darted forward, each grabbing one of his legs and dragging him swiftly away while glancing back every few seconds to make sure she wasn't going to sneak attack them. Such jittery people…she thought to herself and turned to go. It's not like I was going to eat them or anything...She shrugged and walked out of the arena, her thoughts drifting to other things.

Across the arena, the two boys took one final glance backwards and let out a sigh of relief when they saw that the girl was no longer in sight. They eased Uroku to the ground and sat down beside him. One tossed a handful of fire into the air, sending out the usual distress call3 that would alert any nearby healers that their aid was needed. All they had to do was sit and wait. "Man," one sighed, shaking his head. "I told him not to talk about the prince that way. Now that...she came back..." he trailed off ominously, obviously wanting to draw a response from his friend.

And it worked. The second friend's head jerked up and he glanced around nervously. "Who's back? Who was that? I thought that Uroku was really strong. How could a girl beat him?" he clamored, eyes widening in awe.

"You don't know? I guess you wouldn't. You just arrived in the city yourself." The first friend shook his head, as if amazed that this boy didn't know about the girl. "That girl graduated top fighter in her gender group at the bending academy4. It would have been her entire age group too, but many of the boys she'd beaten had noble families who didn't want it known that their sons were defeated by a girl. The second friend nodded in agreement. He would want that rumor to be floating around about himself either. He looked back up when the first friend began to talk again. "And what's more, they say she was once promised to marry the prince. When he got exiled, her family called it off. Everyone though she'd gotten over it until about a year ago, when someone did just what Uroku did and she went completely nuts. She pummeled the soldier into submission and then her family left the city, claiming she needed to get away and get better control of herself. She's just now gotten back..." The discussion went on and on like that, until finally a healer arrived and led them all off.

•Back at the Warship•

The morning after they'd changed course to intercept the Avatar Zuko was pacing frantically around the perimeter of his room. We should have seen them by now. Why hasn't anyone told me that they've been spotted! He wondered to himself over and over again as he continued to wear down the threads of his carpets in a circular pattern. A few circuits later and he had moved on to punching one hand with the other fist. By the next time he came back to the same spot, he was yelling outright and repeatedly stopping to attack some random object in his room. "Where is he!" he raged, finally having enough and flinging his door open. He stormed into the hall, repeating his question as he went, startling a good few soldiers who were peacefully doing their rounds. Still enraged, he pushed the door that led up onto the decks open with enough force to cause it to bounce off the wall behind it. His uncle was standing near the deck's center and Zuko stomped towards him. "Why haven't we-"

"Ahhh...there you are Prince Zuko! I was just about to send someone for you. We've had several sightings now. I waited until we were sure. I didn't want to disturb you unnecessarily." Iroh had turned about, facing down Zuko with a wide grin. Zuko gaped at him. "So...we have found him then?" he asked, wanting to be sure this wasn't another of his uncle's tricks.

"See for yourself!" Iroh offered up a telescope and pointed to a speck in the distance. Zuko snatched it up, extending the tube to it's fullest and aiming it to where Iroh had pointed. At first he couldn't see anything of great interest, but as he swung the scope about searching for them, he caught a brief flash of creamy fur.

"There!" He refocused the lens, locking in on his target. A simple rotation of the telescope and it zoomed in even farther. He centered it on the one person he'd wanted to find the most. "The Avatar..." he murmured, grinning with anticipation. "This time, you will be mine!" He snapped the telescope shut and whirled about, flinging his arm in an arc towards the flying bison. "Full speed to the Avatar!"

A line of fire benders, the best on the ship, formed at the bow of the boat and stretched back along its sides. "Ready!" Zuko cried, stepping into the very foremost position of the line, right in it's center. Perfectly synchronized, they lifted their right feet and slammed them back down again. "Aim!" A rippling fireball appeared in each bender's hands and they took careful aim. By this point, they were much closer to Appa; close enough to make out the individual riders on it's back. One had a bald head. An excited grin momentarily appeared on Zuko's face. "FIRE!"

•With Aang's Group•

"There! See, I told you I'd get us back where we needed to be!" Aang smiled cheerfully over his shoulder at Sokka, who still wore a grumpy scowl.

"Yeah...sure you did. And you only had to stop and ask for directions three times!" Sokka taunted the younger boy. "Only girls ask for directions!" Katara frowned at that.

"That's because girls are smarter than boys!" Katara retorted, assuming a haughty look and standing over him. From behind her, Aang got in on the fun by sticking his tongue out at the warrior and waggling his fingers at him with his thumbs in his ears. "Nyaaa!" he added as an afterthought, which of course led to a battle of weird faces between the two boys. Wondering why her brother was suddenly making pig-faces Katara whirled around, prepared to ask Aang what he thought was wrong with Sokka. "Aang, why is Sokka...Aang!" she cried, exasperated at the immaturity surrounding her. "Just ignore him Aang. Fighting back encourages him. Don't fall for his...Aang! Stop that!" she implored him when he didn't stop after she asked the first time. "C'mon you two!" She turned back to Sokka, aiming to thwack him and put a stop to his foolishness. "Stop that right now!" She almost did hit Sokka when he kept making faces after that, but just as she swung her arm down he stopped. "Finally!" she sighed and let her arm fall. "I'm glad you seem to have at least some maturity. Hey Sokka?" she waved a hand in front of his face. He didn't budge. "Sokka?" She leaned down; waving her hand right in front of his face, so close she bumped his nose on one pass. "What's wr-"

"Fire nation..." Sokka mumbled, cutting her off.

"What?" Katara asked, confused and a little afraid because of how her brother had said it.

"F-fire nation!" He said again, louder and more insistent. "There! Fire nation!" he repeated, voice building to a yell as he spun Katara around and pointed to the warship, which by then was almost directly below them. Aang turned at Sokka's words too and gasped. He jumped over to the edge of Appa's saddle and leaned over the edge, looking down at the ship. "Uh-oh..." He looked back up at his two friends. "Looks like we're in trouble!" he laughed nervously as several fireballs arced into the sky behind him, missing Appa by mere inches.

((A/N: From this point on, the two lines, Aang's and Zuko's, are going to merge into one. I'm hoping that'll make it a little easier to deal with!))

Down below, Zuko fumed angrily. They missed! We're right under a huge flying creature and they MISS! He clenched and unclenched his fists, trying to release some anger. Anger clouded the mind and fogged one's judgment. Without clear thoughts, he would certainly not be able to catch the Avatar. "Fire again!" he commanded and stormed off. He'd been so anxious to catch up to the Avatar that he'd rushed directly onto the deck with no preparations. "Command the troops to continue firing. Don't let them get away!" he demanded of Iroh and disappeared below deck again.

"You heard the prince! Fire at will!" Iroh waved on the troops, who nodded and continued firing.

High above, very few of the missiles actually connected. Once over the shock of finding the fir nation so close at hand, Aang had leapt back into his seat and taken the bison's reigns. Katara and Sokka both moved towards the very center of the saddle, not wanting to get hit in the ensuing onslaught. "We need to make a choice Aang! Either we land and fight or you get us out of here!" Sokka yelled over the noise of the soldiers below.

"I know! Appa's being difficult! He doesn't like all the fire around him and I think he might have been hit once!" Aang managed to reply, fighting with the wildly thrashing bison. "It's okay boy, really!" he tried to soothe the giant mammal, but the bison would have none of it. He bellowed angrily and continued to flail around, managing to dodge the flying fireballs somehow while making it impossible for Aang to steer. "I think Appa might need to land in the sea. If he got a burn then the water will help. I'm going to let go of the reigns and let him go if he wants. Be ready to get wet!" he grinned to his friends as the thick ropes slid from his hands, easily shielding how nervous he really was.

"No! Don't let goooo!" Sokka waved his hands back and forth as he watched the ropes begin to slip from Aang's grasp, but it was too late. They could all swim very well, but the prospect of being stranded in the ocean with the fire nation right on top of them wasn't a happy one. There was a jolt as Appa, feeling the bit go loose, veered off course and angled down towards the blue sea. All three passengers grimaced and latched onto the surface of the saddle as hard as they could, preparing for the rough landing.

Zuko grinned when the bison began to go down though it nagged at him a bit. Why would the Avatar give up so easily? He'd seen how the bison managed to dodge all but a few of their fireballs, they could easily have flown off. Maybe they couldn't though...If the bison was injured too severely they might have need to land. He considered the possibilities as he strode to the edge of the ship nearest to where the bison would land. "They can't out swim a warship. This time we'll have them for sure! Ready the boats!" he commanded several soldiers, who immediately saluted and ran off to prepare the warship's smaller vessels that had been stored below deck. Zuko followed shortly after them. He fully intended to be the one to drag the Avatar into the smaller boats. If anyone else did it, they might very well try to claim that they'd caught him themselves.

Off a few hundred yards from the warship, Appa hit the surface of the sea with a bellow of relief. The cold waves soothed his scalded underside and the slat helped to clean the wounds. The three riders weren't quite so pleased with the landing though, as it had sent up several huge sheets of mist and spray, effectively soaking them through. "Try to hurry him up. A quick dunk will dull the pain for long enough for Appa to get us away from here." Sokka advised, keeping a watchful eye on the fire nation's ship. They'd stopped firing, but he wasn't sure whether or not that was really a good sign.

"I'll try, but it's not like I can really make Appa go. He's smart, and if he wants to go he will. There isn't really any way I can make him fly." Aang said, patting the shaggy beast's back happily, trying to calm him and the anxious Sokka down. There was no movement on the warship, and though he thought he heard a few some things splash into the water, it didn't look like they were planning on anything. "I think we have a few minutes. I don't want to be by the fire nation either, but Appa won't fly if he's too sore."

"I hope you're right." Katara scooted on her knees until she was right behind Aang. She reached out a hand to help him soothe Appa and sighed. "About the fire nation not doing anything I mean." Appa made an odd gurgling noise. Aang smiled and looked up at Katara. For a moment he thought he saw something dark slide around behind the bison but he shrugged and forgot about it. Probably just his big old tail. He shook his head and tossed a grin at Sokka before he picked up the reigns again. "We might not need to wait and find out. It sounds like Appa's ready to go again. He might only go a little ways, but it'll get us away from here."

Sokka almost cheered he was so happy. It wasn't like the fire nation to sit by so calmly when the avatar was right by the ship and he was getting very agitated. "Then let's go! Yip yip! Yip yip!" he egged the bison on. "Yip yip!" Aang added for good measure. With a rumble of assent, the huge creature began to move forward, quickly rising up into the air. "Look! He's really going up!" Katara cheered and clapped her hands. "Now let's get out of heeeeerrree!" Her happy cry turned to one of horror as she suddenly felt something long and tough loop around her. She felt a tug and then a more violent jerk from the other end of the rope that had lassoed her. "Aang! Sokka! Help me!" she begged them as she scrabbled for a good hold on the saddle. She found one and both boys came to her aid, each taking hold of one of her hands and pulling back, trying to keep her on Appa's back.

Unfortunately for them, Appa was still rising and when they got a moment to look below they saw that the dark thing Aang had forgotten about was really a small fleet of ships, each filled with at least five fire nation soldiers. They had lined up on both sides of the rope and were pulling back with much more force then Sokka and Aang could hope to. They all leaned fore ward and Aang could make out that the one at the very tip of the closest boat was Prince Zuko himself. It was at that exact moment that Appa, deciding he was high enough, jerked forward, taking off for the continent of the Earth Kingdom on the eastern horizon.

The slack snapped out of the line around Katara and she yelped in fright and pain. "Aang! Do something!" she pleaded with him, a few tears escaping down her cheeks. "I'll try! Appa! Stay!" Aang grunted from the effort of holding her on the boat while trying to get Appa to halt. For once the bison listened and the airbender turned to look at the similarly straining Sokka. "Sokka..." His eyes light up as an idea struck him. "Brace yourself. I'm going to let go for a moment."

"What? Why?" Sokka looked frantic. The two of them combined could barely hold onto Katara by that point. If Aang let go, then she'd fall for sure.

"I'm going to get your boomerang and cut her loose. I can reach it easy from here. You just have to hold on for a minute!" Aang tried to reassure him. Sokka thought for a second on it and then nodded grimly. It was risky, but their only chance. "Katara? I'm going to let go for a second. I'm going to try to cut you free. Try to hold on as tight as you can to Sokka, okay?"

"Aang..." Katara's eyes were full of fear. she felt like her arms were about to fall off, and the soldiers tugged on the rope again, almost slipping her out of her friend's hands. "If...you're sure you can do it." She smiled, trying in vain to be brave.

"Okay then..." Aang took a deep breath, steadying himself. If he was too slow, she'd be captured for sure. "On three. Get a good grip Sokka." The warrior nodded and reaffirmed his grip on his sister. "One...Two...Three!" he released Katara's hand and lunged for the boomerang. He snatched it out of Sokka's belt and raised it up high, preparing to bring it down and sever the rope. It was at that very moment that the fire nation heaved on the rope again, and Sokka couldn't hold her back on his own. Aang watched in anguish as his grip slipped and within a split second Katara was plummeting down towards the ocean.

"Aaaaaaaannngg!" she cried as she fell, reaching out desperately for his too-distant hand. She hit the cold water with a sploosh and the soldiers quickly reeled the line in, towing her towards the boats as they began to move back towards the larger warship.

"Katara!" Aang leapt into the air, using his bending skills to angle him towards her and give him an extra boost. "I'll save you!"

"Aang! Don't!" the avatar was stopped by Sokka's sudden appearance before him. "Why? They've captured her! We can't leave her there!" Aang shoved the stoic Sokka out of his way just in time to see the boats, with Katara bound and in tow, round the side of the boat and the people above dropped lines down to tether them in. Appa had had enough by that point and had resumed his course for the eastern island. "Appa! Stop!" Aang tried to command him, but the bison just grunted and kept going. "We have to go back for her! Stop Appa!" he tried again with no effect. "Appa...please..." he begged, dropping to his knees in defeat. "We have to go back..."

"I know Aang, and we will." Sokka kneeled beside the sorrowful airbender, trying to comfort him. "Katara's my sister and I won't leave her there. There's nothing we can do now though. If we try anything, we'll just end up captured ourselves. Sometimes we need to retreat before we can attack." he recited a traditional warrior's saying, drawing strength from it's wisdom, even though he felt close to tears himself. "Katara's strong. They won't do anything to her. They know we'll go back, and that's what they want. I think we can assume she's safe for now." Sokka nodded to himself. He almost pitied Zuko. He had no idea what a handful Katara could be when she was mad. With any luck, they'd be begging for her to leave within a day.

Aang sniffed, seeing the truth to Sokka's words but still very upset. "I-I know. She'll be fine. Appa needs to rest anyways." He rose shakily to his feet and picked up Appa's reigns. A familiar light glowed in his usually joyous eyes. The light of the Avatar. "We will get her back. Yip yip!"

From the deck of the warship, Zuko watched as the bison disappeared in the distance. "Looks like your friends won't be joining you just yet." His eyes flickered to the right, landing on Katara, who was flanked by four soldiers. "They will have to come a try to rescue you at some point though." He let his words hang in the air, leaving Katara to discern their implications herself. "Until then, you will of course be staying with us." He nodded to her guards. "Take her to the dungeons. "One of the soldiers grabbed a hold of Katara's arm and began to drag her off. "Be gentle though. We wouldn't want to loose our bargaining chip." Zuko reminded them.

After the soldiers had gone, Zuko sighed and turned back to the ocean. The flying bison was out of sight by then, probably over Earth Kingdom soil. He leaned onto the edge of the boat, letting his mind wander back along the events of the day. The day could have gone worse, but then again, "I didn't get the Avatar..."

"But you did manage to capture one of his friends. It is certain that he will return for her." Iroh had come to announce dinner and had found the prince alone on the deck. "Do not worry. Now, it is time for tea. Then, I think we should sail out into more open waters." Iroh advised, a contemplative look crossing his face.

"But why? Won't that make it harder for the avatar to find us?" Zuko inquired, wondering what his uncle was thinking.

"Yes, but I don't think we should confront him so close to the Earth Kingdom. They may send reinforcements if they learn we are here. It would be better to face him alone and in the open." Zuko grinned. It was a good plan. He could capture the Avatar without having to worry about the other nations getting involved. A very good plan indeed. As the two disappeared below deck, Zuko did something he'd rarely if ever done before. He reached out and thumped his uncle's back while congratulating him on such a grand idea.. The old man was useful once in a while after all it seemed.

•The Capital City of the Fire Nation•

"Have you heard? They say Prince Zuko's ship was sighted a few days ago off eastern coast of the Earth Kingdom. I wonder what he's doing there..."

"Do you think he could have found the Avatar?"

"No, I don't really think the Avatar is alive. Sure, the priests said he was, but how can we really be sure. No one has really confirmed that it's him after all."

"I guess you're right..."

Just outside one of the shops that lined the street the gossipers were walking down, there was a crash of pottery hitting the ground and shattering. In the doorway of an earthenware store, a raven haired girl stood, eyes wide open in shock. At her feet was a jug, the bottom half shattered on the hard ground. "Zuko...?" she whispered. Concerned, the shopkeeper wiped his hands and worked his way over to her. "Miss Ajuna? Are you quite all right? I can call for help if you've injured yourself." he offered. Ajuna blinked, coming back to herself and looking around quickly. Her eyes alighted on the confused merchant, who breathed a sigh of relief when he saw she seemed alright. "Good, you're fine. I wouldn't want to loose one of my best customers." She looked down at the broken jug.

"Y-yes...I'm fine. Something just...startled me...I'm sorry about the jug, I'll pay for it-" she bent down to pick up the pieces but the merchant stopped her.

"Don't worry. Just get home. It's getting dark, and I know you can handle yourself, but you look terribly pale, and I wouldn't want anything to happen to you."

"Yes sir. I'll be back...tomorrow." She nodded and left, her long black hair whipping behind her. "Zuko..." she murmured again as the sun began to set over the mountains. "I'll find you." she promised him, determination lengthening her stride and carrying her , not towards her home, but down to the docks where her own private boat was. A soldier looked up from the deck as she neared the boat and hailed him. "Be ready to launch in three day's time. We're headed for the Earth Kingdom."


1- Uroku: random guy I made up...supposedly he doesn't like Zuko much and badmouths him in public.

2 -Ajuna has been trying to convince the king that he should allow Zuko back into the kingdom.

3- Distress Call- think a flare type thing...goes up and flashes in a noticeable and recognizable way.

4- Bending Academy- Well they have to learn somewhere!

Gyaaa! So long but I'm done! Yay! No, this won't be turning into a Zuko/Katara fic at all! Ajuna is headed out to meet him now, so we'll see what happens...Will Zuko be reuntied with his forgottec friend/ lover? Will Aang manage to rescue Katara? Why hasn't Momo been mentioned yet? FIND OUT NEXT TIME IN: The Betrothal; Chapter 6, Star-lost Lovers! Again, PLEASE review! Thanks!