Chapter 19 Surprise! It's Zuko the chicken!

Katara quickly told Zuko the plan with occasionally glances at the chicken suit. She was worried that 'Fear' might interfere with her plan and one of them would get hurt. If 'Fear' did interfere at one point or another than Katara would be ready for the girl. After all she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Katara stood up and tossed Zuko his chicken suit. "I can't believe you talked me into this." Zuko sighed. Slipping the suit over his clothing. "I'll kill you if this stupid plan doesn't work."

"Oh don't worry it will. Iroh helped me with it." Katara smiled grabbing her ninja outfit and a red mask this time. She knew that her secret as the Orange Spirit had been discovered so if she tried as a different spirit she might get down to Aang and her brother in time.

Zuko shook his head at the girl. Things were going to be different after she rejoined the Avatar. It would return to hunting down the Avatar and it would be like none of this ever happened. He would go back to hating Katara and she would look at him like he was another grotesque fire bender with a plan to conquer the world. He watched Katara leave; leaving him to his thoughts. How long would this pattern go on? Two maybe six years until he caught the Avatar or his father allowed him to come back to his home?

He remembered Katara talking to his uncle earlier when she was just a prisoner and nothing else. She had mentioned something about Aang having to master all four elements before the end of the summer, which would be about September maybe October; he couldn't remember when summer ended.

He looked at his reflection in the mirror. He had a chicken suit on him. And if his father caught him betraying his country like this then he wouldn't have a home to go back to because he'd be dead or banished Avatar or no Avatar. He slipped out the chicken suit and threw it against the wall and walked out of the room. He couldn't go through with it. After all his country meant everything to the young prince.

He looked at Katara talking with his uncle. She looked so happy, would Zuko allow his pride to get the better of him just so he could capture the Avatar himself? He shook his head no. He wanted to see Katara's plan fall flat on its face. He walked back into his room and stripped himself of all of his clothes except of his boxers and slipped back into that chicken suit.

He walked back out of the room and hung his head down in shame. He felt like that nothing could be worse than this. Unless she made him running around quacking or whatever chickens do, then that would definitely make things worse. Both Katara and Iroh towards to him. And both tried to hold back their laughter.

"Oh shut up!" Zuko snapped. "I'm only doing this because I want to see the girls plan to fall flat on its face."

Iroh turned his head to hide his laughter. "Don't let the men see you Prince Zuko." Iroh laughed. "They may not take you seriously anymore."

Zuko's gaze suddenly averted to the ceiling. He couldn't stand the gaze of either Katara or his uncle any more. Katara walked up to him and leaned on him. She smiled as she leaned forward to steal a kiss from the prince.

"I think it makes you look brave." Katara whispered pulling down the beak closing the gap that showed who Zuko was.

"You owe me six kids for this." Iroh started laughing hard using the wall to keep his balance. "I'm serious!" Zuko said from underneath the suit.

Katara laughed and pulled the 'chicken' along. "I'll think about it. If we get married I can understand maybe like three kids but no more… if we get married."

Zuko smiled to himself and allowed Katara to lead him around his ship. It was a good thing that none of his soldiers could see him. They only had half an idea who was in the chicken suit.

"Do you think that's Prince Zuko?" A guard asked as they stepped out onto the deck. "If it is I don't think I'll ever look at him the same way again." Lieutenant Ji nodded in agreement.

Zuko watched as Katara placed his swords on her back. She smiled she redid her hair into just a single braid instead of that bun mix thing. Iroh walked out with couple more weapons for the girl. In his hands were a bow and a quiver of arrows. Along with the bow and arrows were two daggers. The old guy handed them to Katara who placed them into her boots. It looked like she was a well trained assign with all the items she was being handed. She placed the bow and quiver on her back before pulling out a bison whistle. She blew into it and turned her head towards the sky.

"It didn't work Lady Katara." A guard said nearby.

She smiled as Appa landed on the deck shortly after the statement was said. She petted Appa on the side. Zuko raised an eyebrow before following Katara onto the flying bison. He had no other choice than to trust the water bender because at the moment she was the only way he could get the Avatar into his hands and then get his honor back.

"Appa, yip yip." Katara said as the bison flew into the air. Zuko grabbed the edge of the saddle and held on for his life as Appa flew towards the west.

Katara patted the bison on the head before telling it where they were going. She head back and sat down next to Zuko who now had his eyes closed tightly.

"Afraid of heights?" She asked titling her head slightly.

Zuko nodded and opened his beak, which kept closing on him. He was paler than usual. Katara smiled and leaned on the prince. Zuko smiled and wrapped his arms around the girl.

"Zuko after we rescue Aang will you join our side?" Katara asked looking up into Zuko's amber eyes.

"No." Zuko said a little harsher than he meant to.

Katara pushed away from the prince and stared into his eyes. "Why not!" She shrieked Zuko flinched at the sound.

"I don't need to explain myself to a water peasant!" Zuko said glaring at the girl. "But if you must know it's because I would be betraying my country. I refuse to get into any more trouble than I'm already going to get into."

Katara's sapphire blue eyes filled with tears. She walked back to Appa's head and sat down. She grabbed the mask that was currently tied to her waist and put it onto her face. "We're almost there. Do you remember what you're suppose to do?"

"Yeah make a fool of myself."

"You've already done that by helping a water bender stay out of harms way. Oh and wearing that chicken suit around deck did it too." Katara smirked as she put on the mask. "I hope you're wearing clothes under that because I'm pretty sure that is going to be burned."

Zuko shook his head. "Don't worry that pretty little head of yours off. I know what I'm doing."

Lord Ozai's ship came into view and Katara stood up and made sure that her mask was on tight and her weapons were securely in place. She wasn't going to take any chances. She turned to Zuko and pointed down. The prince nodded and jumped off Appa as the flying buffalo flew lowered down toward the ship. Zuko landed and quickly closed his beak so that no one could see his true identity.

Katara held back a laugh as Zuko ran up to a guard and began to peck at him. She shook her head. She wouldn't have gone through with it if it weren't for Iroh's idea. She looked at Appa and gave him commands were to hide once she was off of him. She jumped down as Fire Lord Ozai walked out of the room. She quickly hid behind a box and watched the evil man make a way towards Zuko. She quietly made a wish that Zuko wouldn't be caught and killed.

"Get that bird!" Ozai yelled. About twenty men started to chase after Zuko.

Even though his father couldn't see him under the chicken suit, he smiled and so badly wanted to give that man a piece of his mind. He knew that wasn't the point of this mission so he decided to climb up. He looked around for something to climb up to. He noticed that the helmsman wasn't in his usual spot so he quickly made his way over there. When he reached the top he could see across the whole ship. His father was barking orders at the men on board the ship to burn the chicken but every attack failed that was shot at him and any men that climbed up were kicked down.

Katara took the chance to sneak down into the ship and find her friend. She looked around for any signs of guards but figured that they were all up on deck trying to get Zuko killed. She shook the feeling off of seeing roasted chicken on the deck when she came back up.

"Help! I can't breathe!" Katara smiled at herself it was her brother who was pounding on a nearby door.

She walked over to it and tried to open it. It was no use, it was either a fire bender's doing or 'Fear' had been there and locked the boys in the room. She took out one of her daggers and tried to pry the door open. No luck. She took out one of the swords that were meant for Zuko to defend himself that she never got around to giving them to him, she chopped off the doorknob and kicked the door. All that did was give someone no way of getting in.

Looking around once again she saw that no one was there she pulled out a little bit of water she had placed in a canteen and placed it on the hinges. She looked around for a third time before blowing onto freezing the hinges. She then took her sword and hit each hinge knocking it off. After that she kicked the door down, hoping that the door hit neither Aang nor Sokka.

She let out her breath that she was holding to see both boys standing up away from the door. She pointed towards the way she came and hoped that they would both follow her. She turned around and still saw the boys staring that the door, which was on the floor.

Boys, Katarathought before running back and pulling both boys along.

When they arrived on deck Zuko was still fighting off the army. Katara took out one of her swords and threw it up to him. Zuko caught it with little effort; he then motioned for the three of them to come up there with him.

Katara ran off towards the current chicken and only stopped to kick a guard that stood in her way. She used a rope that was tied to her side and launched it with an arrow up towards the boy. It fell nearly five feet before it caught onto something. She really never shot an arrow before but tried her best still the same. Zuko grabbed it and tied the rope around the smoke stack nearby him. Then when Katara and Sokka both had a good grip he pulled them up in a couple of pulls. Aang of course flew up and began to help him.

Ozai was furious that the Avatar was escaping by way of a chicken and the Red Spirit. He climbed up the ladder himself and stared at the four of them. "I suggest you say your prayers because after I unmask the chicken and the girl then things are definitely going to get a little hot."

Katara looked behind her and saw that they were at the edge of the ship and the ocean lied below them. She then looked at Zuko and both of them nodded. She grabbed Sokka's arm and Zuko grabbed Aang's arm. They waited until Ozai launched his attack before flipping over the edge.

Okay this didn't turn out the way I wanted it to but hey it works. Anyway now time to answer a review:

STRANGEPERSON: Yeah I'm weird when it comes to noticing little things like monkeys. I wont' kill Zuko, but I can assure you my main people have a tendencey (Sp?) to flirt with death so to speak. Fear is going to die, Nyla... well that's a surprise. And Zhao and Ozai... as Ruko (from Confusing Fire) once said, "Off with his head!"

Anyway, i found it funny that most people said that they wanted to see Zuko in the chicken suit. (I have a weird sense of humor) Anyway, I'll update soon. So stay toon... I mean tuned. Later. K15