Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: CrimsonSkye06 asked a good question: why is this rated 'T' when both of the other stories were only 'K+'? The answer: I was constantly debating on whether or not to move EfaP up to 'T', but decided against it. I'm not going to write anything explicit or overly gorey, but there will be more suggestive scenes, dialogue, etc, than there were in the last two stories.

In mystrange little ultra conservative mind, anything I wouldn't want to explain to my nine year old sister ('why is it bad if they sleep next to each other?' she asks)counts as 'PG 13'. Chapter 3 will make for a good example.

There's also going to be a bit more violence in this, but you already know that it's in the 'Action' genre. Honestly, it's nothing you haven't already seen from me, but I'm scared I might overdo it, so it's 'T', just to be safe.

Chapter 2

Wanted, dead or alive: Zuko

This fugitive was the former Prince of the Fire Nation, knows Firebending and several martial arts. He is insane, armed, and dangerous. Can be identified by a large burn scar across his eye. Hunters be warned.

By order of Admiral Zhao

The notice was illustrated with a rather accurate drawing.

"Insane?" Zuko said dryly. He passed the notice to Katara, who backed away to study it.

"I could have told them that much," Sokka said with a shrug, ignoring Zuko's glare.

"Those notices are posted all over the city," Aang said.

"So what are we going to do about it?" Katara asked, rolling up the scroll.

Zuko offered her an apologetic glance over her brother's shoulder.

"You don't need to worry about that," he said calmly. "The three of you need to go. I'll take care of things here."

"Yeah, right. And I'm a polar bear," Sokka said. "I think we all know how talented you are with 'taking care of things.' You're coming with us. Where I can keep an eye on you."

For an instant, Zuko was too angry about the insult to comprehend the rest of what had been said. He kept his face carefully blank as the realization hit him.

"What?" he demanded. Sokka looked smug.

"Well, you're not going back there," he pointed airily at the ship. Zuko opened his mouth to protest, but his eyes fell on Katara. And he fell silent. Ignorant of his contemplation, Sokka turned and began walking away, idly studying the shops around them.

"Are you coming?" Aang asked, following after Sokka. For a moment, Zuko didn't answer. His eyes shifted from the ship, to Sokka and Aang, to Katara, carefully weighing his options. Finally he offered her a gentle smile.

"I take it we're supposed to follow them?" he mused. Katara returned the smile with a broad grin, and Zuko felt instantly comforted with his decision. He wasn't going to make her choose between him and her family. He wouldn't cause her more grief. Not again.

They walked together after Sokka and Aang, though few strangers would have recognized them as being together. Zuko kept at a constant, comfortable distance away from her, just out of arm's reach, and though his gaze prowled the crowded market, his eye constantly returned to her face. As they caught up with the others, they found Sokka and Aang digging through a random kiosk.

"What are you looking for?" Katara asked, examining one of the curios in Sokka's hand.

"That notice said to look for a guy with a scar, right? So your boyfriend is going to to need something to hide it, or we'll end up arrested. Simple."

"An eye patch?" Katara asked dryly, picking the black patch from her brother's grip.

"How about this?" Aang piped up, tossing a large and rather fluffy wig over Zuko's head. Surely enough, the false locks fell over his face, completely obscuring the scar. It also made Zuko look as though a hogmonkey had just died on his forehead.

Katara suppressed a laugh, and gently pulled the wig from Zuko's brow. The Exiled Prince felt his mounting irritation suddenly vanish.

You have an amazing smile, he thought, no longer caring how ridiculous he looked, nor the fact that the other two boys were nearly collapsed on the ground, clutching their sides in mirth.

"We'll keep looking, but that's a good backup," Katara told Aang, still giggling softly as she replaced the wig on the kiosk.

They finally decided on a short cloak with a low hood that fell eerily over Zuko's face. Aang pointed out that the entire thing looked rather creepy. Yet Katara had suggested it, and the other options had become increasingly bizarre after the wig, so Zuko made no effort to argue against the disguise.

Paying for the cloak was no difficulty; Katara had pocketed a coin purse from one of the more irksome guards at the Fire Nation's prison during her stay there, and Zuko had brought his own generous supply of money. Aang was pleasantly surprised by this, and automatically began wandering toward one of the nearest shops, this one displaying strange, intricate little devices with absolutely no practical use. Sokka rolled his eyes and grabbed the Avatar, steering him safely away from the wares.

"Remember what happened last time?" he pointed out, gesturing at Zuko. "First we got attacked by pirates, and then Katara got a boyfriend. Trust me, Aang, one is enough." Aang evidently found this incredibly amusing, though he hadn't given up.

"But there's no pirates here," he protested. "And some of that stuff looks really cool!"

Sokka rolled his eyes, though only Katara saw the gesture through the shadows of his disguise. She simply smiled at him.

"Are you sure there's no towns here?" Sokka asked for the twelfth time.

"As of two years ago, there was nothing." Zuko said tiredly.

"But that's more than enough time for a bunch of villages to pop up."

"I know that. But they would be villages. They wouldn't be large enough to require a heavy guard, and therefore, wouldn't be a major threat."

"But they could still see us. And they could send word to whoever has enough firepower to be a real threat."

"And in the time it would take them to receive the message and prepare an attack, we will be long gone. If there's any real danger, it's in staying on the ground." Aang glanced at the Prince, wondering how he could lie so expertly. Zuko clearly believed that nothing could be more suicidal than sitting in Appa's saddle, thousands of feet from the ground. But he remained firm, keeping his eyes carefully away from the landscape that rushed away beneath them, as he argued his point to Sokka. The argument itself had become little more than a distraction for the Prince and a chance for Sokka to talk, because all four of them had already mounted Appa and were currently flying above one of the less populated areas of the Fire Nation. He still wasn't sure whether he trusted Zuko, but...it didn't matter. Katara had faith in him. That much was important.

"Hey Aang," Sokka said, huffing slightly. "Go ahead and take a break. I'll drive." Obediently, Aang passed Appa's reigns to the older boy and climbed to the Appa's saddle. Apparently, Sokka had finally admitted to losing the argument.

Zuko was sitting close to the back, his fierce golden eyes locked on Katara. Aang recognized the cross legged posture. The Prince's shoulders curled slightly, his hands folded in meditation. Everything about the teenager was aggressive and calculating, the scar across his face a cruel reminder of the Prince's nature. Aang was still somewhat afraid of Zuko. He reminded him of a tiger; elegant yet deadly, swift yet powerful, still yet sanguinary. In all his twelve (or rather, hundred and twelve) years, it was one of the few animals that Aang had never attempted to ride. It was simply too dangerous. Because once a tiger decided to come after you, there was no survival except to flee. They couldn't be tamed.

And yet...there was no mistaking the look in Zuko's eyes. Without doubt they were predator's eyes, but as they studied Katara, there was no anger or hostility in them. Only... Aang wasn't sure exactly what that look was. It was careful, cautious, veined with poorly disguised adoration.

Katara really was incredible. Even if Aang didn't know the whole story, he could see that she had already done the impossible.

She had tamed the Tiger.

Aang was snapped out of his thoughts as Zuko turned his fierce eyes on him. Aang suddenly noticed that the Prince was shivering.

"Are you cold?" he asked, trying to sound as friendly as he could. Zuko shrugged, though he couldn't suppress his shaking.

"I'll get used to it," he said mulishly. Evidently the question had been asked before, because Katara was rolling up her sleeping bag. Most likely she had offered it to him already, and he had refused it, hoping to look tough for her. The thought was quite entertaining.

"You know, you're going to end up getting sick," Aang pointed out. Zuko offered him a freezing glare, and he found himself reminded again of how much the Prince resembled a wild, dangerous animal. Almost defiantly, Aang sat down close to him and Katara. He wouldn't let himself be frightened off. If Katara considered him safe, than Aang would as well. And if she was wrong...then somebody would need to protect her.

"What are those called?" he finally ventured to ask, pointing at Zuko's weapons.

"Long Dao," he said with a shrug. The answer was short and rather clipped. Katara, finally finished repacking the sleeping bag, examined the swords. Zuko gave her a slight nod, some kind of signal, and she picked up one of them.

"It's heavy," she observed. "A lot heavier than what the guards used."

"It would be," he said, relaxing slightly. Aang recognized an opportunity. "It's a broadsword. Most of the guards in the Fire Nation are supplied with short swords. They're thinner and easy to use, so new recruits can be trained faster."

"Where did you learn to use those?" Aang asked. Surely enough, Zuko didn't revert back to his usual cold demeanor.

"My uncle taught me," he said.

"He used to be a general, right?" Katara asked. Zuko nodded proudly.

"He was once known as the Dragon of the West. He was an excellent warrior. And still is, when he's not obsessing over food," he added thoughtfully.

"Sounds like he and Sokka would get along pretty well," Aang said. Zuko shot him a sidelong glance, but shrugged.

"Maybe," he said, still pensive.

"So I'm guessing he was a good teacher," Aang suggested.

"An excellent one. He is as much a master as the trainers at the palace..." The conversation continued for some time, drifting between topics, sometimes fading into complete silence until Katara evoked a new subject.

Sokka glanced back at the other three. Zuko hadn't done anything particularly menacing yet, and he wasn't touching Katara. But the young warrior couldn't shake the feeling of unease that wound through him as he studied the Firebender. Zuko seemed to sense his stare, and looked up. For a silent moment, they locked eyes, and Sokka was trapped in that piercing yellow gaze. Terror washed through him, and only a single thought surfaced in his suddenly racing mind.

This man is a killer.