Title: The Hunter and The Prey
Category: Avatar: Last Airbender
Author: RedNovember
Chapter: 9
Genre: Romance/Action
Pairing: Zuko/Katara
Rating: T (PG-13) for now, but if I have to up it to M (or R) I will.
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of this series. However, the
fanfiction written, the plot contained and any original characters I
write I do own.
NOTICE:
PLEASE READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTES AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER! THEY ARE
IMPORTANT, AND ARE THERE FOR A REASON, BELIEVE IT OR NOT! Thanks.
Chapter 9: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
It takes years to build up trust, and it only takes two seconds for suspicion, not proof, to destroy it.
Katara took her first breath of fresh air in three days and raised her head blissfully to the blue, blue sky. How wonderful it all felt. Leaning over the side of the ship, she dangled her arms down towards the water far below her, and pulled up small streams of water to her hands, before letting them go, plopping back into the sea.
A heavy hand on her shoulder made her stop and turn around. She stared into the emotionless face of one of her black-clad guards. He shook his head no, side-to-side, slowly. Katara's lips thinned. Except for the four guards shadowing her every footstep, the day could have been her first perfect day out of her room.
She had woken up that morning alone in bed, and saw that Zuko had left a short message for her on his pillow. The note simply stated that they'd reached Menthat in the middle of the night, and he had had to take care of some business onshore first, before he would come back and get her. It had been simply signed, Zuko.
He hadn't explained about the guards. They were obviously part of some elite section of the Fire army, for they wore different uniforms and were incredibly professional. Iroh had met up with her for breakfast and explained that they were an elite force named the Royal Guard and answered only to members of the royal family. During Katara and Iroh's breakfast, the Guard had stood behind her chair in a row, staring straight ahead at the opposite wall the entire time. Iroh left soon after breakfast, reluctantly tell her he had to finish up matters elsewhere.
Katara had spent most of the remaining morning on deck with her guards. She noticed there were significantly less people on board. Most of the officers had left to oversee business on land, and majority of the sailors were on shore leave.
She sighed, leaning against the railing and stared up at the sky, trying to ignore her guards without much success. Not that they were extremely annoying or chatty. They were just silent black shadows always on the edge of her peripheral vision. And now they wouldn't let her practice her Water Bending.
Katara scowled. They were definitely more competent than her previous guards. Iroh had also told her there were only twenty of them in existence at any one time. Which meant one had to be extremely qualified to be admitted into the Royal Guard. And once they were in, it was for life. Katara had been surprised. What if they wanted a family? What if they got old and couldn't work anymore? Iroh had averted his eyes, saying that most didn't survive to grow old. It was a very dangerous occupation. Katara surmised that if it was such a dangerous job, then babysitting kidnapped girls probably wasn't what they usually did.
"Then what do they do?" Katara had asked Iroh curiously.
"Oh… just things."
"Like what things?"
"Things like… assassinations… and other important things." Iroh finished lamely.
Katara hadn't asked anymore about the subject. Iroh had left soon after, telling her she was looking much better. That was the only time they spoke of her injuries, aside from when she'd thanked Iroh for the medicine.
It was practically noon when Zuko came back with several other soldiers. He saw her lingering by the railing and tapped her on the shoulder. She was pleasantly surprised to see him, and he dismissed the Royal Guard with a slight nod. They saluted him and departed to who knew where.
Katara followed Zuko back down to their room. "Where have you been all day?" She asked curiously.
He rubbed on hand over his forehead before dropping the large bag he was carrying on the bed. "Overseeing supplies and the hiring of men to repair the ships." He answered. "Mostly boring stuff, but it still has to be done."
They weren't exactly buddy-buddy with each other now, but they could speak comfortably without any awkwardness or tension. Zuko's apology had lessened the animosity between the two. Katara's eager optimism for leaving the ship soon helped as well.
Zuko pointed at the large canvas bag. "You'll find women's clothes for you in there. A disguise of sorts, really. You'll be dressed as a noblewoman, on an outing with her husband." He reached for the door. "If you need uh, any help, I'll be outside." He made a quick exit.
She grinned to herself. Why would she need help from him putting on clothes? Opening the bag, she found a red dress with gold embroidery, made of some light, high-quality linen material and a bit of silk for the sleeves. It wasn't terribly flowery or fancy, but fit for a noble's wife. She put the white silky under dress on first, then slipped the red dress over her head. It fit will enough, floor-length, tucked in at the waist, loose billowy sleeves that were in style right now, and gold lacings on both the front and back. It had a low, square neckline, but not low enough to be indecent. After all, she was supposed to be married.
After the dress, she opened a small pouch in the bag to find some smaller items of gold jewelry. Nothing flashy, just a simple gold chain with a small ruby pendant and several gold bangles for her wrists. With a brief pang, she remember her mother's necklace, the one she'd lost so long ago.
Giving a small knock on the door, she called "I'm ready!" before untying her hair to comb it out with her fingers.
Zuko came in, quickly closing the door behind him. She watched him inspect her quickly, eyes lingering a bit on the changes the dress brought out in her, before looking away. Katara wasn't surprised. She laughed at him silently in her head. She'd been wearing men's clothes for the past week. Of course he'd be surprised to see her in women's clothes. Katara knew she wasn't any heart-stopping beauty, but she liked to think that it didn't hurt to look at her either.
Zuko dug around in the bag a bit more, before procuring what looked like a thin gold circlet and a sheer, transparent, red veil. She frowned a bit, having found the items earlier, but hadn't thought the veil would be necessary.
"You're going to have to wear this." He said, laying the veil gently over her hair. "All the married women do in Menthat." He placed the circlet on her head and it slid down until it rested in the middle of her brow, securing the veil in place. "Something about modesty, I think."
Katara shrugged. Whatever it took to get her off this ship.
"And… it'll help conceal your face in case anyone recognizes you. And help hide… the bruises." He finished a bit awkwardly. Then he grew stern. "I'm going to be with you the entire time, so don't try anything funny."
"I won't." She said quietly, then inspected herself in the mirror. The transformation was pretty good. She really did look like a Fire noble's wife. The veil was thick enough to conceal the details of her face and the bruises, but just transparent enough to allow her to see through it. She nodded, and brushed her hair from her shoulder, the bracelets on her wrist jangling slightly. Everything she wore was red and gold, Fire Nation colors. She really did prefer blue and silver… but beggars could never be choosers. Something she'd learned awhile ago.
She turned to Zuko. "Let's go."
Zuko let her back on deck again, and inside, she felt almost giddy with excitement at the thought of finally being among people who weren't all Fire Benders.
They walked across the deck towards the gangplank that led down to the wooden dock. Katara felt many eyes on her and knew majority of them wondered who she was. They were used to seeing a girl in grubby man's clothes, not a respectable noblewoman dressed as fit her position. With gold jewelry, no less.
A few minutes later, they were past the ship docks on the edge of the sea and entered the town, mingling in with the rest of the busy residents. They only had two regular Fire Army guards following them, enough protection for a noble and his wife. Katara's hand was tucked in his right arm, Zuko's left hand coming over to cover it. They looked the perfect picture of a couple out doing some shopping.
Katara leaned in close to Zuko, whispering in his ear. "Won't anyone here recognize you?"
He shook his head. "I've passed by a couple times, but I've never really been in this town before."
"But won't they recognize their Prince? I mean, by your scar?"
He shrugged slightly. "If they do, they'll just be even more respectful than they already are."
It was true. Many of the common folk in Menthat gave them respectful space as they passed through the crowds. She felt curious eyes on them, wondering who the lady was under the veil. She also saw several other veiled women outside, some with their husbands, some with friends or maids.
Slowly they made their way through the market place. Occasionally, officers from the ship would come up to whisper business or other news in Zuko's ear, glancing curiously at her. Once she even saw Officer Sakai follow Captain Raku up to them. She averted her eyes to the side while they talked, and felt his curious gaze on her as well before he finally figured out who she was. Then he turned away too.
Katara sighed. Really, it was wonderful to get out. All the people surrounding her were interesting, shouting their wares, bargaining, and basically living their own lives. But she'd like it so much better if she could just be a regular girl running around the market by herself, inspecting things and maybe buying something that caught her eye. She continually viewed her surroundings through a heady red haze because of the veil.
Turning back to Zuko after Raku and Sakai had left, she felt him press a small velvet bag in her hands. She could tell it was filled with coins by the weight and feel of it. She looked up at him curiously. "What's this for?"
He shrugged a bit, keeping his eyes above the crowd, watching their surroundings. "Something you can spend."
Katara held it uncertainly in her hand, unsure of what to make of it. But before anything else could be said, Officer Taru ran up breathlessly to Zuko.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Something urgent, very urgent… concerning the rebels…" He drifted off, bending over to catch his breath.
Katara felt Zuko stiffen beside her and release her hand. He gave her a look that said if you try to run, many bad things will happen.
She pointed at a fabric shop a bit away. "I'll be there." He nodded, and he and Taru moved a distance away into a small, shadowed space between two shops and bent to confer with each other.
Under the shade of the awning attached to the small shop, she picked through several fabrics. She wasn't really intent on buying anything, but she wanted to get out of the sun that was slowly heating her up through the dress and veil. Flipping through several stacks, she came upon a sturdy, plain blue silk. It rippled in her hands and she held it up to the light.
The shopkeeper noticed her interest and eagerly offered information about it. "Wonderful texture, yes? It would make a beautiful dress for a beautiful lady." He said, peering at her under her veil with an honest interest. She moved her head to the side, pretending to blush in modesty, but really trying to keep the bruised side of her face in shadow. "I'm sure your husband would buy it for you, such a beautiful wife he has like yourself." The businessman said earnestly.
She prepared to open her mouth to say that oh no, she had much too many dresses already and she wasn't going to burden her husband for another one when a tanned hand reached over her shoulder and deposited two silver coins in the shopkeeper's palm for the cloth. A confident man's voice came from close behind her, saying "Why thank you, dear merchant. I knew I hadn't made a mistake when I married my lovely Tara here."
Katara froze. She recognized that voice.
The cloth merchant smiled merrily and thanked them for their business. The man who had paid for the cloth grasped a shocked Katara gently under her elbow and lead her away from the cloth shop, exchanging pleasantries with the merchant. He pressed the wrapped package of cloth into her arms.
Katara finally regained her senses and dug in her heels, stopping suddenly. "Jet," she said, a note of disbelief in her voice. "I'm being watched, you know."
Jet, the leader of an illegal band of teenage rebels, turned around to look at her. They'd met awhile ago, back when she'd still been traveling with Aang and Sokka. "Hello Katara." He said, gazing at her intently through the veil. "I would've recognized you from anywhere, even in that get-up you're wearing."
She shook her head slowly. "I can't go with you."
He took her upper arm firmly in his grasp again. She winced, for he was pressing down on a large bruise. "I can't." She hissed.
"Don't struggle." He whispered in her ear. "I'm your husband. You're Tara now. We're going to go home, like a normal couple." He leaned back again, an easy smile on his face, tucking her limp hand in under his arm. "Besides, I already checked around. Your guards are too busy flirting with laundry maids to notice you've disappeared."
Katara kept shaking her head (no no no I can't I can't) but didn't resist when Jet drew her farther from the busy market, into a quiet side alley in a neighborhood district. She noticed he didn't say anything about Zuko. Had he seen her with the Fire Prince? Or had he come afterwards?
Finally they rounded a corner into a small alley. She stopped, pulling her arm back. She stepped carefully away from him. "I already told you Jet, I can't go with you."
Jet turned back to face her, a completely neutral expression on his face. "You can't, or you won't?"
Katara was shocked for a minute, before regaining her senses. "What are you talking about?"
"I saw you with him, Katara." He said, moving closer and closer to her. She backed away slowly. "I saw you with that goddamn Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation."
"I, uh, I-" Katara stammered, backing up until she pressed against the wall. "I wasn't-"
Jet lost his emotionless face. He was angry now. "He is our enemy, Katara! Need I remind you of that fact? What were you doing with him?" When she didn't answer, shaking her head side-to-side in denial, over and over again, he pressed closer. "What were you doing with him?"
Katara finally lashed out, her fear and anger at being discovered showing on her face. "You don't understand, Jet! I didn't have a choice!"
He sneered. "Didn't have a choice, Katara? I saw you in that merchant's stall. You were completely unwatched, your guards were busy, and you had freedom at your very fingertips. Yet you were more engrossed in picking out a nice color for your next dress than seizing an opportunity to be free!" He peered at her closely. "What's wrong with you?"
"You don't understand, Jet, you wouldn't-"
"Oh, I understand, dear Katara." He said, snapping back angrily. "What did you have to do to win your dear Zuko's favor? Did you turn in Aang and Sokka as well? Are they on his ship right now, tied up in chains?"
Katara shook her head violently. "Let me explain, Jet!" She said desperately. "Just shut up and let me explain!"
"Alright." He stepped back, eyeing her up and down. "I'll let you explain, since I'm such a nice and understanding man."
She took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "A week ago I was kidnapped by Zuko and taken on his ship. I didn't tell him where Aang and Sokka were. But three days ago they attempted a rescue and failed." She stared at the ground now. "See? Don't you understand why I'm here now?"
Jet was silent for a moment, considering her. "Yes." He said finally. "I know you were captured. I heard word of it through several sources, a week ago as well. News was that Katara, the Avatar's friend, had gone missing, presumably captured by the Fire Benders."
Katara breathed out. "That's what happened."
Jet's eyes narrowed again. "But I still can't understand why you didn't escape when you had the chance."
"I didn't know the guards weren't there, Jet-"
"More like you didn't care!"
She looked at him, shocked, then started shaking her head again. "You don't understand, Jet, you don't understand." It seemed that one line was the only thing she could force out of her mouth. She repeated it like a mantra over and over in her head you don't understand you can't understand you won't understand…
"You resisted when I took you away! You wanted to go back to that stupid, fucking moron Zuko! He's the reason why so many of us can't lead peaceful and regular lives, Katara! I really don't know how you even have the guts to touch the man. He's completely heartless." He looked hurt and maybe even a little… jealous?
But all Katara heard were the insults Jet had said against Zuko. "He's not heartless, Jet! I keep telling you, you don't understand the situation, and least of all, you don't understand Zuko!" She cried angrily.
The words hung in the air after she'd shouted them. Her hands flew up to cover her mouth, horrified. What had she just said? Had she just defended Zuko in front of Jet?
Jet raised his eyes to look her full in the face. "Oh, and I suppose you, of all people, do understand the great Fire Nation Prince? He's royalty, I know that. What does that make you, his favorite concubine? Or are you getting married sometime soon?"
Katara's face grew red hot with rage. She felt like slapping Jet, or hurting him extremely badly. "I don't expect you to understand, Jet, but this is really-"
"I can understand just by looking at you!" Jet shouted and stepped back, eyeing her up and down. She flinched under his gaze. "You're dressed like a woman who belongs to a Fire Nation Prince. You look filthy rich." He flicked disdainfully at the gold necklace and bracelets on her body. "That dress couldn't have been cheap." He touched the red cloth. "And this," He fingered the small velvet bag full of coins. "What is he paying you for, Katara?" He finally raised his eyes to hers again. "Walking hand in hand with that bastard Prince through the market place like a fucking married couple. I can't believe this." He finally said, stepping back, clear hurt and disbelief in his eyes. "I can't believe you."
Katara couldn't find anything to say. After hearing what Jet had said, she was speechless. Did she really look like that? Did she really look like Zuko's kept woman? She was surprised Jet had even recognized her, the real Katara. Katara the simply dressed, Water Bender girl who wanted nothing more in the world but the company of her older brother and best friends.
Had she really changed so much? If she had, she certainly had not resisted it. She had dressed in these fine clothes willingly, even asked to come into Menthat, had accepted Zuko's gift of money, and hadn't even thought of escaping when Zuko's attention was diverted. She had just waited in a fabric shop like an obedient dog on a leash. What was she now? What had she really become?
She could feel several things. Horror at her own betrayal, and sadness that Jet was so angry at her now. "Jet, I'm sorry."
"Tell me that you aren't doing this willingly, Katara." He said, sorrow in his voice. "Tell me that you're doing something else. You're spying for us rebels. You're getting information for Aang and Sokka. You're there to assassinate Zuko. Anything. Just tell me anything but what's really going on." He took a deep breath. "Because if you are doing this willingly, then you're definitely not the Katara I thought I recognized."
"Jet… wait, I know I'm wrong. I know I am. It's really all my fault." She said desperately. "But I don't think you know what Zuko's really like. I don't think you can blame him. He hasn't been horrible at all to me." Liar a voice whispered to her. Liar. He tried to strangle you. She tried to ignore it.
Katara wanted to change Jet's opinion, she wanted to tell him all about the kind things Zuko had done for her. His apology, his gifts, the peaceful expression on his face when she woke up in the mornings next to him, his gentle warmth and embrace. She wanted Jet to know everything about Zuko's good side, the side she had learned did exist.
Jet's previously sad expression turned frightfully angry again. "That damn Fire Prince isn't horrible? Do you know what he's done, Katara? Do you know the people he's killed? Have you ever been in a real battle against him? He kills, Katara, ruthlessly and brutally." He glared at her. "Have you ever seen your precious Prince kill? He's an animal! He's completely heartless! He is utterly bent on the destruction of the free world and everything that stands against the Fire Nation!" Jet breathed heavily, stepping in closer to her, backing her up against the wall. "He's out to kill the Aang! He wants to kill your friends!" Jet stared at her. "He probably even wants to kill you!"
Katara tried shaking her head in denial (no that's not true that's not true he wouldn't do that) but found that all the good things Zuko had done for her paled in comparison to everything else she'd seen lately, and all the things Jet had just told her about.
She remember, painfully, Zuko's effortless beheading of Rishku, his emotionless face when he had violently cut Sokka's arm (her own brother!), his unbelievable anger and how he'd injured her by throwing her to the floor, and how he had tried to strangle her! Zuko had tried to kill her!
(Zuko is a killer he is he is Jet is right I can't believe I've been this stupid I can't believe it he is a killer he killed Rishku he tried to kill Sokka he tried to kill me and he's trying to kill Aang oh I can't believe it I don't WANT to believe it…)
She gave a half-choked sob and grabbed Jet's sleeve. "I'm going with you Jet, I'm going with you. I don't want to stay with him anymore."
Jet looked at her in satisfaction. She finally understood that Zuko was no good. He wondered if she'd been seriously brainwashed. But all that mattered was that she come with him now. He could keep her safe in the forest until Aang and Sokka arrived. He placed his hands comfortingly on her shoulders. He wouldn't let that bastard Zuko anywhere near her as long as he lived.
Katara bit her lip, still thinking hard about her decision and everything surrounding it. She shied away from thinking anymore about Zuko and grasped feebly at the thought that her freedom was close, so very close. She could leave with Jet now, this very moment, and no one would ever know. She could reunite with her brother and Aang.
But, of course, things were never that simple.
A soldier in a Fire Nation uniform ran around the corner, and upon sighting Jet and Katara in the alley, turned around to shout back at someone following him. "I've found her! Sir! I've found her! She's here! Along with that rebel leader!"
"Shit." Cursed Jet, and he grabbed her arm, pulling her away, down the alley. Katara moved slowly, unable to decide whether to flee or stay. What should I do what should I do Zuko's here I should leave with Jet I should I should…
Jet continued to drag her along behind him, and she finally picked up her feet and began to run with him. "Shit! They recognized me!"
"What?" Katara gasped alongside him. "They know you?"
"Yes. I'm the leader of the rebel band who's been plaguing the army for such a long time in the forests surrounding Menthat. If they catch me, it's the end."
At that moment, Zuko turned the corner and charged into the alley. His widened, and all he saw was that damned rebel leader taking Katara away from him. How had she gotten away from her guards? Damn them both. But he'd get them. It was only a matter of seconds.
True, for all along the rooftops lining the alley Katara and Jet were running down, Fire Nation archers appeared, drawing their bows and aiming down at the two figures on the ground.
Jet stopped, turning wildly from side to side, searching for a way out. They were surround by the archers on all sides, and Zuko quickly advanced upon him from the direction they'd come from. Seeing the pure anger and hatred in the Prince's eyes, Jet grabbed Katara and spun her around, pinning her to his chest, facing outward. He drew a shining, wicked dagger from his belt and held it at her throat. She gasped in horror, clutching his arm, trying to pull the dagger away from her neck. He held on to it steadfastedly.
Giving the Prince a fake, triumphant look, Jet exclaimed, "Yes, Your Wonderful Majesty," the rebel leader said in a mocking tone, "I have captured your precious prisoner." He gave Zuko a sneer. "Just what are you going to do now?" Jet's hand shook as he clutched the dagger tightly. He wanted to tell Katara with all his heart that he would never cut her, not for anything, that this was just a ploy to get away from the Fire Nation army. But he couldn't. Zuko had to believe that he was willing to kill the girl in order to escape with his life.
And the Prince did. He slowed down, watching Jet warily. "She means nothing to me." Zuko stated with a false confidence. In his mind, he imagined carving Jet into tiny little pieces, slowly and excruciatingly, for causing Katara fear and pain. "I don't care about the girl."
Jet laughed wildly, drawing the knife up closer to Katara's neck until it cut through the veil and hit her skin. She gasped, struggling in his arms. "I don't either."
The two men eyed each other warily like fighters seizing each other up before a fight. From what they said, Katara meant nothing to either of them. Then why weren't they each making a move?
The uncared-for girl finally stilled in Jet's grip, understanding that struggling would only increase her chances of getting cut. Her mind flew to all different possibilities frantically. If neither of them cared about her, why the stand off? Why the tension? What were they each waiting for? If Zuko cared nothing for her, why didn't he tell his archers to shoot?
"I've already cut through the veil." Jet grasped Katara's china and forced it up to reveal her neck. Zuko's eyes focused on the bruises. Jet didn't notice. "It would be even easier to cut through the skin." He drew up the knife forcefully, barely nicking the skin. Katara gave a slight scream of primitive fear. He wouldn't do it, not for real.
Zuko stepped forward before he could stop himself, raising a hand and shouting "No!" as Jet forced the knife up. His face showed fear now, along with the previous anger.
Jet grinned triumphantly. "She doesn't mean anything to you?"
Zuko was forced to back down. "What do you want?"
Jet turned serious again. "First of all, tell your archers to lower their weapons." Zuko complied, giving them a signal. All the archers lowered their bows, but were still taut with tension, ready to shoot whenever their Prince commanded it of them.
"Second, I'm taking Katara with me."
Zuko wondered internally how the rebel leader knew who Katara was. How long had they been talking before he'd arrived? His suspicions grew, and he began to suspect Katara of betrayal as well.
"No." Zuko said sensibly, all traces of emotion gone. "I let you go with your life, you give me Katara. It's a fair deal. A life for a life."
Jet grinned again. "No, dear Prince." He said the title as if it were an insult. "Let me explain it to you so you understand." He said mockingly. "You let me and Katara go, and the girl gets to live, which is what you want. And I get what I want, which is my life. However, if I don't get to leave with Katara, then I'll kill her first, which means you don't get what you want. Then you'll kill me, which means I don't get what I want either." Jet smirked triumphantly, confident that he had it all figured out. "One way, we both win. The second way means we both lose."
"No." Zuko said again. "She gets to live, and she has to stay with me."
"Oh, no, Your Majesty." Jet said, smiling now. "You can't have your cake and eat it as well. That's much too greedy."
All of a sudden, Jet's eyes widened in shocked surprise, and Katara felt a thunk reverberate from Jet's body and his hand loosened on the knife, releasing her as he fell to the ground. She climbed out hurriedly from under him, and discovered, to her horror, a poisoned knife embedded in Jet's back, thrown by the Royal Guard who had crept up silently behind him during his exchange with Zuko. The black-clad man stood motionless at the end of the alley across from Zuko. The Prince gave him an approving nod.
Katara understood that it had been planned out from the beginning. Zuko kept Jet occupied while the assassin crept around behind and stabbed him in the back. She backed away slowly from the dead body on the ground, scooting backwards on her behind, her hands covering her mouth. A red stain quickly spread from Jet's body and covered the dirt underneath him. He had been alive just a second ago! Just a second ago, only a moment ago…
Zuko finally spoke up. "Get this cleaned up." He instructed one guard as he waved one hand dismissively at the corpse. He refused to meet Katara's eyes, whether in anger or something else, she couldn't tell. The Royal Guard came up beside her and helped her up with one hand under her elbow. Once she was standing again, she yanked her arm away from the assassin and stared straight ahead. She didn't want the man who had just killed Jet touching her.
Silently, she followed behind Zuko back towards the ship. There was definitely no chance of escape now. Two regular Fire Army guards came up on either side of her and grabbed her arms, keeping her sandwiched between them with barely any room to move. She tried to jerk away at first, but they held fast. She didn't want them touching her. Fire Nation soldiers had probably all killed somebody at some point. She didn't want any killers touching her. Especially Zuko. He was a murderer.
They were all murderers. She was surrounded by them.
In fact, she was a murderer herself.
It was because of her that Rishku had been killed. If she hadn't been on the ship, and he hadn't been so determined to catch her, Zuko wouldn't have sliced his head off. (The notion that Rishku would have died eventually, mostly likely by Zuko's hand, in the occurring sea battle was one thing Katara didn't think about).
It was because of her that Sokka had gotten hurt. If she hadn't been so stupid and gotten caught in the first place, her brother probably wouldn't have a bit ugly scar in his arm now.
And now, it was because of her that Jet was dead. She wondered where he'd be now if she had never gotten captured by the Fire Benders in the first place. He would still be alive. If she'd never gone into that alley with him, he'd still be alive. She was slowly and surely killing every single man who got close to her and Zuko. Indirectly, of course. Zuko (or one of his minions) did the literal killing, either that or he gave the direct order to kill.
They walked back through a quieter section of the marketplace and Katara knew that eyes were following them, especially the woman caught between two soldiers. She held her head up with as much dignity as she could, but was still glad for the anonymity the veil gave her.
The whole way back, Zuko was fuming in his mind. On the outside, he looked perfectly calm and collected, leading the band of men and one woman back to his ship. But inside, he was raging to interrogate Katara on every aspect of her conversation with Jet. For they had certainly had a conversation. A million questions leapt into Zuko's mind.
Had Katara willingly gone with the rebel leader? Had she told Jet anything? Had Jet threatened her? Had she threatened Jet? Had she wanted to leave with him? Or had he been forcing her to? Was she on his side? Did she tell him anything about Zuko? Did she tell Jet that Zuko had been mistreating her? Did she lie? Who's side was the bitch on, anyways?
How could she possibly be on your side? A voice in his head replied. You kidnapped her, you threatened her, you hurt her brother, you almost killed her. What would make her possibly want to stay with you any longer?
She shouldn't have left the shop! Why hadn't the fucking guards been keeping an eye on her? Good thing he'd arrived in time, or Katara could be who knew where by now! Good thing he'd killed that bastard Jet, and gotten Katara back.
His anger and outrage consumed him so fully that he had to hold himself back from setting fire to everything they passed. In containing his passion and heat within himself, his own body temperature raised several degrees, and two Fire soldiers walking beside him soon found themselves sweating and uncomfortable from the heat their Prince was emanating.
For the rest of the walk back to the ship, Katara kept quiet. She mourned Jet's death inside herself. Zuko wasn't talking to her, and she hoped he didn't think she had betrayed him or anything. You almost did, a voice told her. No! she protested against herself. I defended him! I stood up for him!
He's not going to believe you. He's going to get angry. And you know what he does when he gets angry…
As soon as they arrived back on the flagship, Katara lost track of Zuko and he disappeared into the crowds of sailors and soldiers on deck. She was taken back to the room. Once she arrived and was safely locked in again, she removed her veil and took off all the jewelry. She remembered Jet's words from earlier.
"You're dressed like a woman who belongs to a Fire Nation Prince…" And the hurt look in the now-dead Jet's eyes. "I can't believe you, Katara."
Katara sighed, rubbing her eyes with one hand and settled down in her usual armchair, pulling her dress haphazardly above her knees as she crossed her legs. She put her head back, wondering when Zuko was coming back and what would happen when he did.
Not an hour later, a click at the door notified Katara that Zuko had arrived. She stood up carefully, crossing her arms over her chest in an unconscious but obviously defensive stance. She was looking out the window again as he came in, and so was completely unprepared when he grabbed her forcefully by the arm and shoved her down in the chair again. She winced and cried out, for he had grabbed her bruise hard.
He leaned over her, arms on either side of the chair, eyes burning hatefully into her face. "What did you tell him?"
She looked back up at him with as much dignity and calmness as she could muster. "What makes you think I told him anything?"
He moved one hand from the chair and she flinched to the side unconsciously.
Zuko gave a low laugh. She was scared of him, though her face showed nothing at this point.
"What makes me think that you wouldn't tell that fucking bastard anything?" He leaned in closer and she couldn't help but shrink back in her chair. "It's a good thing I killed him. Now the rebels will be scattered and it'll be so much easier to kill them all off."
"It's not a good thing to kill anyone." Katara whispered, eyes darting over his shoulder. She refused to meet his gaze. "It's never a good thing."
"Not anyone? Not even a murderer?" He asked her, questioning her ideas of ethics. This girl had the strangest, stiffest, prissiest morals he'd ever come across. "Wouldn't you be doing the world a favor by killing a killer?"
"Jet wasn't a killer." She was still whispering.
"But wouldn't it benefit the world to destroy a murderer? That way, they wouldn't be able to kill anyone else, yes?"
She shrank even further into the chair. "Maybe not kill them… maybe just imprison them…"
"Wouldn't you be doing the world a favor by killing me?"
Katara finally looked him in the eyes for a brief second before glancing down at the floor again. She didn't answer.
Zuko gave her a small smile. "Think of all the lives you would save, Katara. Think of your precious Avatar and brother. You'd be helping them by killing me. You'd be helping the whole world by killing me. So why haven't you done it yet? Hm? Why haven't you tried to kill me yet? You could save thousands of lives. Just by ending mine."
Katara had closed her eyes, shaking her head blindly from side to side.
"It's because you can't, right? You can't bring yourself to kill me." He gave her a strangely annoyed look. "You're weak."
He finally stood back up, moving away from the chair and Katara. She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
He turned back to her abruptly. "But that's not the point of this conversation. We're not here to discuss our morals. I want to know what you and Jet were talking about."
"Nothing." She said, standing up too. She didn't want to be pinned in a chair again. "Nothing. We were just saying hi."
"It didn't look like you were saying hi." He said, glaring at her. "You were gone for a full minute, maybe more. And when I got there, you were leaving with him." He looked at her closely. "Was he making you leave? Or did you want to leave, Katara?"
She bit her lip. "Both."
"How could it be both? You either wanted to leave, or you didn't. Don't lie." He was getting angry now.
"I'm not lying!" She said, her hands curled in fists at her sides. "Jet told me things. He told me things about you."
Zuko stood perfectly still. "What things?"
"How you're a murderer. How you're a killer."
Zuko instantly relaxed and gave her a mocking grin. "Like you didn't know that already? Or did you just need pretty-boy Jet to assure you of that fact?"
She wouldn't look at him, and crossed her arms over her chest again.
"You were there when I killed Rishku. You were there when I cut your brother. And you were there when I told the Royal Guard to kill Jet." He laughed a little. It wasn't a nice laugh. "You should have figured that out a long time ago."
"Then I was stupid." She said, turning her back on him. "I wasn't going to go with him, you know."
"I don't believe you." He stated, matter-of-factly.
"I told him things about you too."
"Oh, so was this nice little catch-up chat you two had all about me? Was I the only subject you two had time to talk about? I'm really flattered."
"I told him you weren't a heartless bastard."
The words were like a slap in the face to him. Zuko had no smart reply to that. Katara listened to the silence behind her.
His jaw worked, and he finally spit out "Well you shouldn't have. Because it's not true."
"You might think it's not true, but I know it's true."
"You're delusional."
"Maybe I am."
"Why did he want you to leave?" Zuko finally asked. The conversation had taken a completely different turn now.
"Several reasons. He was scared for me. For my life." She finally turned to look at him. "He wanted to protect me."
Zuko felt the anger rise in him. Why couldn't she speak anything but praise of that fucking Jet? He completely lost it. "I can protect you! I am protecting you, from everyone else out there who could do you harm! I'm protecting you, not him!"
"Jet wanted to protect me from you." Katara said, looking him in the eyes directly. "Could you do that, Zuko? Could you protect me from yourself?"
And now he had no answer.
Katara turned her back to him again, staring out the window.
He felt like hitting something. Someone. He felt like hurting someone, felt like causing pain because it was the only way he knew to release the roiling mass of emotion inside himself. By inflicting it on others. All his fire and rage turned him against the one person in the room, the woman gazing out the window and she became the entire focus of his blurred vision. Just let it out just let it go and you'll be okay just let it all out at her she's the problem she's the one causing this she's the enemy just let it all out…
But his years of training and control kept himself in check. He forced everything back into himself, back into a dark corner of his mind where the fire would wait until it's next chance. It took everything he had, and he still stared at Katara's tense, straight back until his eyes regained their focus. I just did, Katara. I just protected you from myself. I just did it, can't you see that?
He turned around to leave. But before he could open the door, a scrap of blue cloth on the dresser caught his eye. The velvet money bag he had given Katara earlier was also placed on the blue cloth. He picked both up in each hand. The cloth was beautiful and new, but the money bag was still full.
He turned to her. "Did Jet buy this for you?"
"Yes."
"Why didn't you just use the money I gave you?" He spat out bitterly.
"He wanted to buy it for me. I didn't ask him to."
Zuko felt an immense anger and jealously rise in him again. But all he said was "It's a good thing I killed Jet. It's a good thing!" He slammed the door shut behind him, before he could do any further damage.
He should've hurt her. She deserved it. She deserved everything for hurting him.
As Zuko left, Katara reached up with one hand to cover her eyes and she sat down shakily in the chair. She had felt the fire heating up the room behind her and it had taken every ounce of her strength not to scream, cry out, and plead to Zuko not to hurt her. She had been terrified for her life. But he'd handled it. And she was still okay.
She wouldn't cry, not again. Anyways, now she was too exhausted to do anything except breathe. It took effort to just breathe. Maybe she wasn't as okay as she'd thought.
Was this what she was doomed to until rescue came, or something else happened to change her situation? Was she doomed to fight with Zuko, make up with Zuko, and do something to anger Zuko again?. And then end up fighting with Zuko, make up with him, and finally anger him again? It was like one big repetitive circle. That was all their relationship was. Fight, make up, anger, and fight.
She'd thought things had changed when he had apologized last night, and when he had agreed to give her a little trust by letting her off the ship. Well she'd destroyed every bit of progress they had made. It was always like this with him. Everything they did. One step forward, two steps back.
Go back several days to events right after the pirate and Fire Nation sea battle…
Appa was seriously hurt.
Aang and Sokka had to finally admit that the great flying bison wasn't in any condition to fly. Not for several months. The arrows and cannonball had had to be painfully removed, and afterwards, the little operation had left Appa in extreme agony and the two boys covered in bison blood. But at least nothing was infected.
"He needs a healer. An animal healer." Aang finally said, stepping back to watch the slumber of his great bison friend. "He needs to get better. And he needs a healer for that." The 12-year-old boy's eyes filled with tears. "He got hurt trying to help us."
Sokka rinsed his bloody hands in the small stream they'd finally stopped by. "I'm sorry too, Aang." He breathed sorrowfully. "The only animal healers in any sort of walking distance are in the nearest town. That would be Menthat."
Aang kept his eyes trained on the bison. "How long of a walk is it?"
"Two, three days. Maybe less, if the walker wasn't carrying any baggage and didn't have to rest at night." Sokka replied.
Aang swallowed painfully.
"I'll do it." Sokka said, coming up behind the boy and settling a hand on his shoulder. "I'll run to Menthat as fast as I can and get a healer for Appa."
"It's got to be someone we can trust." Aang said, accepting Sokka's offer. "There's people in the city who would turn us into Zuko as soon as they knew who we were."
Sokka brightened all of a sudden. "Hey! Aang, know who else is near Menthat? Jet is!"
Aang turned around to look at him, hopeful. "Really? Is he still in the area?"
Sokka nodded. "His home base is in the forests surrounding the city. And if he isn't at his base, one of his followers will be. I'm sure they have some kind of medical expertise. They have to. They've been fighting guerilla warfare with the Fire Nation soldiers forever. They've got to know something about healing."
Aang nodded. "That's a good idea."
Sokka gathered one water skin and two pieces of bread, half of what they had left. "I'll start now." He looked up at the sky, judging the time. "If I run at night, and only stop for short rests to eat, I can be there by evening tomorrow or morning of the day after."
Aang sighed. "I would do it, Sokka, but I have to stay with Appa. I can't just leave him." Someone had to stay with the great bison and made sure he was fed and comfortable.
"I know, Aang, I know. It's okay. I need the exercise anyways." He winked, looking more confident than he really felt. He walked over next to Appa and gently patted his head. "Hang on until I get back, okay buddy?"
Appa slept on.
With a good-bye to Aang and a "Be careful!" from the Avatar, Sokka took off down the small dirt trail that led towards Menthat. He paced himself, knowing he'd have to run through the night. It would be tiring and a bit scary, running by himself through the forest at night. But he'd do it. Anything for his friends. And anything to help his sister.
Besides, he thought, he could really use the endurance training anyways.
A/N: I HAVE NEVER, EVER WATCHED THE EPISODE WHERE AANG, KATARA, AND SOKKA MEET UP WITH JET. NEVER IN MY WHOLE LIFE. IT AIRED WHEN I WAS WRITING THE LAST CHAPTER, AND I MISSED IT SO I COULD UPDATE.
Why am I getting weird about this? Not cause I'm pissed or anything, but Jet is a big part of this chapter, and seeing as I've never watched the episode with him in it, I had to take several liberties with his character. I probably messed up two billion times on his personality, his looks, his location, his ideals. Everything. But I needed a character here who was close to Katara and I didn't want to go through the pains of making up an original character and having to explain a long-ass history about them.
So, I hope nobody gets pissed off that I might have messed up Jet. But really. I've never watched the episode. I was planning to, but I got caught up in this. So I'm watching it tonight. But I wanted to upload this before tonight so yeah... there you go. Hopefully, I didn't screw it up too bad.
THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS! I LOVE YOU ALL! Tell me all your thoughts, comments, and suggestions. OOC? More action? More drama? More angst? Too much of something? I really do consider everything you guys say. THANKS AGAIN!
