Katara opened her eyes and found herself gasping for breath once again. The fire had spread like the night before, only this time, she actually went into the fire, only to be pulled back once more. But she was getting closer to it.
Then she realized, what her father had told her to do, and she was happy she was going to do it. Katara got herself ready and put her hair all up in a small bun, with the rest hanging down in a braid. It was traditional, but she liked it. Admiring herself, she set for the usual morning drill: breakfast with the family.
..:-:..
"So, how is everything going? I heard there was a meeting yesterday?"
Shira looked up at Nasu from across the table and he smiled.
"Yes actually, and its result was a good one."
Shira sighed sadly. She was prepared to here it.
"We have finally arranged with whom Katara will marry!"
She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. Then she put on her best smile.
"Nasu, I still don't understand why you want Katara to marry first. Yue should have been married long ago."
"Yes, she should have, but since she is going to inherit the throne, I want to find only the best man possible to sit beside her as the tribe's new king. Since Katara is now going to turn sixteen, then I don't see why she just can't marry now. He's a good suitor for our daughter; I picked him with her best interests at heart. Oh…"
Katara came into the room and smiled at her parents. They smiled back again and as she sat down, they exchanged glances saying that their discussion was over. Soon the rest of the family followed. Pakku was the last one in this time. Sokka just dived into his meal without greeting his father or anyone else for that matter. Breakfast went quite well, just like before. This was starting to become a bit weird for Katara. She usually didn't have such good luck, but why argue with it?
Breakfast was over, and Sokka pulled Yue aside.
"Yue, where have you been these past few days? You've missed out on all the fun! I got to see these two kids fight each other yesterday because I took their food! It was hilarious!"
She smiled and laughed even. But she didn't answer his question.
"Sokka I have to go. Meet me later at our room. I'm planning something!"
This last statement made Sokka's lip curl. The day had come and he didn't care what his sister did, as long as she met up with him later so that they could carry out the plan.
..:-:..
"Rise and shine sleepyhead! Time for another walk!"
Zuko jerked his head up to see those blue eyes, but he knew it wasn't Katara. Not only had it not been her voice, but she hadn't said the secret phrase. He closed his eyes again, and tried desperately to go back to his dream. Zuko was with her, and she had encased him in a pool of tranquility. It felt so nice.
"Come on! I don't have all day!"
Zuko growled. Did this being have to bother him? Was she really that bent on ruining his morning, his life? Slowly Zuko stood and Yue opened the door. When they were out in the sun again, this time Zuko didn't flinch. But Yue did. He looked… so much more suitable to her eyes… maybe because of that parka… wait, where did he get that parka from?
"Where did you get that?" she asked demandingly.
Zuko just smiled.
"Katara gave it to me."
"What?"
"I said Katara-"
"I know what you said! I can't believe her!"
"It was a nice gesture. I slept warmly last night because of it."
Yue glanced up at him. He looked a lot like a water bender now. But he was still hideous with that scar. This was going to go nowhere and she knew it. What was the use?
"Well… yes it was… but it was out of pity Zuko! Didn't you know?"
He looked at her angrily.
"What do you mean?" he asked out of gritted teeth.
"Zuko, Zuko, Zuko! Katara only gave that to you because she has this soft part in her little old heart that makes her do things for people. You aren't special to her, she just pities you like she would anyone else."
"Hey Yue?"
"Yes?"
"Looks like you should borrow some of that 'soft part' from Katara. You need it."
She stamped her foot on the ground and clenched her fists. Yue snarled at him and the guards came right away.
"Princess Yue? What is wrong?"
"I'm fed up with him! I can't take it anymore! Take him to his cell!"
Zuko chuckled. That was fast.
Yue watched again as the prisoner was sent away. An evil idea came into her head.
..:-:..
"Sokka! Get up! We've got work to do!"
He jumped off of his bed and looked at his sister eagerly.
"So Yue, what is your plan this time?"
"Can you write something for me?"
He looked at his sister with aggravation.
"What? Is that all you want me to do? Just write something down? How boring is that?"
She leaned into his ear and whispered something. An evil smile curled on his lips. Yue passed him a piece of parchment and ink, along with a feather. Sokka did his best, and when he finished, he gave it to his sister for approval. An exact replica of the smirk on his face was planted on hers and she rolled up the piece parchment.
"Sokka, you are excellently wicked."
"No no, don't thank me. It was your genius idea! You deserve all the credit!"
Yue bowed flamboyantly and flashed her eyelashes at him.
"Why thank you, if I do say so myself!"
"What are you waiting for Yue? Go!"
She smiled and vanished through the doors.
..:-:..
"Princess Yue? What are you doing here again? So soon? I thought…"
She shushed the guard and gave him the parchment.
"Take this to Princess Katara and tell her it's from Zuko. No questions about it!"
That last part was added in, as the guard was about to open his mouth and ask a question. He nodded and followed Yue out of the staircase. Once they were out, she bowed and watched as the guard headed off towards Katara's room. Too bad she wasn't going to see her reaction.
..:-:..
Katara got back to her room and looked over herself just to make sure that she looked all right. She wanted to look good for him. But no, she had to stop thinking this! He was fire nation royalty! Fire Nation. She couldn't have feelings for the enemy. Was that what he was? But he was banished! Katara growled at herself. Why did her mind do this to her? Why on earth did she have to think so much?
Suddenly there was a knock at her door.
"Yes?"
The door opened, and in came one of the guards.
"A message for you Princess Katara. It's from the prisoner."
She took the piece of rolled up parchment and thanked him. When he went away, she took the message curiously and opened it. After she finished reading it, she sat down on her chair from shock.
'Katara-
I know I have only known you for a couple of days now, but I can't help but think about you. I don't know what it is, but I just sit here wishing you were with me. Katara, I think I love you. Please come get me as soon as you get this.
-Zuko'
She read it over about ten more times until she finally told herself she wasn't dreaming. But it was so sudden! Did he really love her? As she read it, she felt butterflies rise in her abdomen, and her heart began to race. There was only one way to find out.
As Katara walked down the quiet hall towards the cell, all she thought about was what he would say to her. And then of course, she was thinking about how loudly her heart was beating. Could it please just slow down, and quiet itself a notch? This was no way to go greet Zuko. She stood there in silence waiting for him to say something. Then she remembered.
"The fish is in the hole."
Zuko perked his head up happily and raced to the door.
"Katara! You're here!"
"Yes… I have to talk to you."
They made the walk out in silence surprisingly. Zuko was curious to know what she wanted to talk about that seemed so important that she didn't want to discuss it in front of the guards. Finally, when they were out in the fresh air, looking at the city with its people going about their daily business, and the guards lurking away in the shadows again, she stopped and they sat down. Katara breathed in deeply and then spoke.
"Zuko… do you really mean what you said?"
"What are you talking about?"
She felt so stupid, actually thinking he liked her back.
"… The note you told the guard to bring to me?"
Zuko looked as shocked as Katara when she handed him the letter.
"This! Do you think it's a joke?"
He read it over carefully and when she saw his eyes turn serious, she knew he had read that certain little part that made all the difference. Zuko handed her the note and sighed. If he could have, he would have written the note himself, but for now, he had to look like it didn't matter to him at all.
"I didn't write that. I never wrote anything. This is fake."
Katara looked at him numb struck. First she thought he liked her, then he didn't and now she wasn't sure at all.
"So, you would never write that…" she asked slyly.
"Well… no I never said that… I just mean that well, someone pretended to be me… and they wanted you to think it was me."
Only one person came to mind, Yue.
"It was Yue! I know it was! Oh, when I find her…"
Zuko caught her arm and she stopped, turned and looked at him.
"Katara, you don't know that it was Yue. Let's just forget about it and enjoy the day."
He pointed towards the city and she smiled. He was right; she was worrying too much about something that must have been a practical joke set to anger her. It had, but she wouldn't let that ruin her day with Zuko.
"Come on. I want you to meet some friends I have."
He looked optimistic, and followed her. The guards followed just as well. They would not lose the two like last time.
"Oh look! There they are now!"
Zuko and Katara walked across the bridge and stood near a door to a tall building. Suddenly, a bunch of little kids ran out yelling and screaming happily.
"Katara! Katara!"
"You finally came!"
"We thought you left forever!"
She laughed as she motioned for them to stop clinging to her parka. Zuko looked on amused, and Katara smiled gently at him. Finally, they all stopped screaming, and only one voice was heard from the group.
"We missed you Katara…"
Katara picked up the boy and hugged him. She held him in her arms and smiled.
"I brought a friend with me today! I would like you all to meet Zuko!"
They all turned their attention towards him, and he put one hand over his neck, and the other simply waved. He chuckled slightly and smiled. The kids gave each other blank stares, but then all at once they rushed up to him.
"You look so cool!"
"Is that a real scar?"
"Why are you so tall?"
"Do you know any neat tricks?"
Even the boy in Katara's arms reached towards Zuko and so she gave the little boy to him, and he was now in Zuko's arms. Zuko laughed along with Katara as the boy started to play with his hair. Swoosh, swoosh. Suddenly, all of their hands reached up towards Zuko.
"I call piggy back first!"
"No! I was first!"
"You are both wrong! Zuko is giving me a ride first!"
Katara held her side as she laughed in pain. Finally she caught some breath.
"Kids, kids! Settle down! Zuko will give you all rides, if you get in a nice line."
It was like magic. All of the chaos subsided, and they all formed a nice line. Of course not before hitting each other on the head, and pulling over each other's hoods. Zuko glanced at Katara and she just shrugged her shoulders and smiled. She felt bad for him, so she went and stood right next to him.
"Okay. I'm going to be giving rides too."
A bunch of 'Yays' were heard from the line as Zuko and Katara both picked up a kid and put them on their backs. They began to run around, and then the two kids cried out to one another. Seems like they wanted to do battle as they were given a piggyback ride. So Katara and Zuko ran to each other and then dodged at the last second. It was so much fun, that Katara hadn't even realized the gong for lunch sounded. Sadly, they said good-bye to the children.
"Zuko! Will you come play with us soon?"
He chuckled and smiled; feeling so good inside to know someone actually liked him for who he was. A child's love was contagious and it spread inside him.
"Of course I will. I'll come back with Katara."
Zuko looked at her with a soft smile, and she looked away smiling, because she felt a faint warmth spread across her cheeks. They walked back up to the palace in high spirits. When it was time to separate, Katara turned towards the guards.
"I would like you to escort the prisoner to my room after lunch has ended so that we can resume our fun."
The two guards looked at Katara eyeing her, but Zuko kept looking back at her while he was taken away. Katara did the same thing, but they took turns doing it, so that neither saw the other looking. She got to lunch and it went fine, without any problems. Afterwards, Katara took Sokka aside.
"Hey Sokka? I just wanted to let you know something."
He smirked. Their plan must have worked.
"Can you keep this between just the two of us? Okay, well, you know what father told me? That Yue is never going to get married. He won't allow any man to touch his daughter. And so I think you should back him up and do the same. Keep her away from any man, especially that prisoner."
Sokka looked at her angrily and then grabbed her arm.
"What do you mean?" he hissed at her.
"Well, didn't you know? She's been spending the past few days with that prisoner she told us all about! I thought you knew…"
His nostrils flared and he raged off to go find Yue. Katara smiled. She wouldn't be bothered any longer.
Back at her room, she saw the guards already standing there with Zuko. When he saw her, his golden eyes lit up. They walked side by side, the guards a few feet behind them. Zuko and Katara were so close in fact, that they didn't see the food she gave to him.
"Zuko, I want to show you this really cool place before we head back to the city."
"Okay, well I'm a bit tired out anyway. Those kids have unending energy! It's like they could go on and on just playing each day."
She laughed and he smiled. Katara just felt so much at ease with him, like it was perfectly normal to act so un-princess like with him. He didn't have that high special royalty hung under his nose like Yue either. It was like a perfect match, except for the fact that they were from enemy nations. She sighed as they stopped in front of a circular door.
"Here we are. Go on in."
Katara opened the small door, and Zuko just barely fit through. Katara followed, but the men decided to just stand guard outside. When Zuko walked in, a broad smile graced his face. Katara saw this and smiled herself.
"Come on!"
She grabbed his hand and led him across the bridge to a small area with a pond and small bamboo trees in the background. Both of them took their parka's off as the warmth surrounded them, so it was no longer cold.
"What is this place? It feels so much like… home…"
Zuko sat down on the grass with his legs crossed and admired the green grass.
"It's the most spiritual place in the north. I come here often when I want to get away from people like Yue. Afterwards, I feel like I can overcome anything."
She sat down on the grass next to him, and she watched the two fish play in the water, circling each other like always. Zuko hadn't seen the fish though because he was too focused on admiring Katara's beauty. Not only was she beautiful, but she had a heart of gold. She knew things about the spirits, so she was intelligent. And she was so great with the kids in the city. In one word, she was perfect.
Katara turned her head to Zuko when she saw him looking at her through the corner of her eye. Why had he been staring at her? When she looked at him, he looked away, up to the sky, anywhere but to her. Finally he just rested his back on the grass and closed his eyes, taking in all of the tranquility. He really did feel like he was being reborn and refreshed of all negative things in his mind. Suddenly, he felt someone hovering over him. He opened his eyes, to see Katara smirking at him.
"What?"
"Oh nothing. It's just funny to see someone as deep as you surrendering to nature."
She smiled as she let go of the water she had cupped in her hands. It spilled onto his face and then he shook it off. Katara laughed freely, and then Zuko sat up. His face was now right in front of hers, and their bodies very close to one another.
"So you think that's funny?"
She stifled her laugh, but was still smiling.
"No, not at all!"
"Well, maybe you will think this is funny then."
Katara backed away a bit, as Zuko arched his arms, and then held his hands together. He was lost in her smile, and only wanted to brighten it even more. Zuko hadn't thought at all about what he was doing. So he looked down at his hands, as a flame erupted and then he pushed it up slightly, so it circled above his head.
"Look! I'm Ozai! The great fire lord!"
Zuko said this in a mocking tone, and Katara laughed even more. But suddenly the flame vanished, and her laughter was replaced with a gasp. The two guards pulled Zuko up forcefully and put his hands behind his back. She got up swiftly and ran after them, making sure she picked up both of their parkas first. All along the way back to the cell, they were quiet. Before Zuko was shoved into the cell, Katara handed him his parka and tried to smile. The creaky door shut close, and Zuko saw the glimpse image of her eyes, before they faded away. When they were out of the hall, Katara stood before the two guards desperately.
"Please. I beg of you two! Don't tell the Chief!"
"But if we don't, we could be accused of treason! You could just as well Princess."
"I know, but hear me out! Just because he is from the fire nation, and he is a fire bender, does that already make him our enemy? All of these days in the cell, he could have escaped somehow, but he hasn't! He's just sat there wasting away his days in the darkness! If he was our enemy, he would have killed me by now! But he hasn't. He isn't our enemy, so I beg of you two to not say a word of this to my father."
They exchanged worried glances, but the look Katara gave them was so desperate, so pleading, that they caved in.
"Okay, we won't tell. But if something happens, it is not our fault."
She nodded her head, and then surprisingly gave each guard a hug. They reluctantly accepted and smiled.
"Thank you both so much!"
And so she walked off, happy to know she had made a friend, and that he wasn't going away any time soon.
..:-:..
"I can't believe you Yue! How could you do that to me?"
She huffed and sighed.
"Sokka, I don't see what you are getting so worked up over!"
"You are my sister! And you were with that guy! Who knows what could have happened to you!"
"Well, I'm glad you care Sokka, but nothing happened! And besides, I was only doing it to get Katara angry and jealous!"
He stopped pacing around the room, and looked at her with a cocked eyebrow.
"How could she be jealous?"
Yue rolled her eyes. Men always had to figure things out so slowly. And there it was, a grin on his face that meant he had finally understood.
"Oh! So you think she likes him?"
"Of course she does! Why else would she have gone out of her way to save him at that meeting?"
"Well… do you think our plan worked?"
"I don't know, but what I do know is that she won't be happy for long."
"Why?"
Sokka leaned in eagerly and grabbed Yue's hands in anticipation. She threw his hands away and smirked.
"You will find out soon enough. All I'm saying is, she is going to get some very sad news. Some very sad news indeed."
A/N: Another plan in action! Lol Not gonna say what it is! Lol You'll have to wait and see just like Sokka! Lol Okay, so yeah, this seems all repetitive and all, right? well no worries! This fic is now going to pic up the pace!
Next chapter shall be VERY good… not so happy, but good I hope! Lol Hope this one didn't bore you too much! Lol thanks for reading! Review?