A/N: The time in this Chapter passes quickly because I want to get to the good part and I don't want to bore you with meaningless details. I hope the way I wrote it doesn't take away from the story. Tell me what you think.

Chapter Five

The next three days were a blur of pain for Katara. She wasn't sure what exactly happened. Her mind was too clouded to think straight. All she knew was that everyday was filled with new torturous training routines. They trained from dawn to dusk, their only breaks for lunch and diner. Katara wore the armor that they had all been given all the time except for when she slept.

The first time she had come to lunch wearing it the other boys had laughed. Why would someone wear their armor to lunch? It was crazy.

That had quickly changed when Prince Zuko arrived. He had cast a glance at Katara and then at the laughing boys.

"Why aren't the rest of you wearing your armor?" he asked coldly. They all stared at him in confusion.

"Why should we?" One of the braver boys spoke up. "What's so dangerous about going to lunch?" Someone snickered. Prince Zuko's eyes flashed. He motioned for the boy to come forward and stand beside Katara. Without warning he struck out with his hands, hitting both Katara and the boy in the stomach. His blow caused Katara to stagger a few steps where she quickly regained her balance but the boy who was not wearing armor fell to the floor clutching his stomach.

"That's what." Prince Zuko snapped and walked away.

Now, three days later, Katara awoke to shouts from the deck. Apparently they had reached the Fire Nation. Her heart skipped a beat. The Fire Nation. That means he'll be picking up whatever it was he needs to get to the Temple on the island. She dressed quickly and raced up to the deck.

When they had docked Prince Zuko turned to face his men. "Everyone except my Uncle is to wait on the ship for my return. No one is to follow me. It creates too much of a risk of being seen and we want to keep this visit as quiet with possible."

Katara's stomach dropped. How can I spy on him if he doesn't take us with him? She wondered if she should sneak after him. But she would almost certainly be caught. I'll wait until we reach the island. I can spy on him here, maybe even sneak into his room and see what these items are. She turned around and went back to her room where she spent the rest of the day catching up on the sleep she had been denied during their long training practices. The last thing she wanted was to draw attention to herself.

That, however, proved to be impossible.

The next day the crew found themselves already back at sea when they awoke. Prince Zuko had returned sometime during the night and had set sail while they were asleep. He was wasting no time in getting to the Temple.

Katara woke feeling refreshed from her long sleep from the day before. She stretched and got dressed, pulling her armor over her clothes. As she was slipping it on she was surprised to see that her arms and legs were starting to show defined muscles. She had been so intent on spying on Prince Zuko, or trying to anyway, that she hadn't noticed that she was becoming stronger. Maybe I'll even be able to beat Sokka in a fight when all this is over. She thought with a smile.

She walked down the narrow corridor that led to the training room. The only sources of light in the hallways were tiny flickering candles that cast eerie shadows across the walls. When she reached the end of the corridor she reached out and pushed open the heavy wooden door. It had the Fire Nation symbol on it like most everything else on the ship. It always made her shudder to see it. She couldn't wait to get off this ship. She wondered what Aang and Sokka were doing. I hope they're not too worried about me. I hope they're all right. Oh Sokka. I never thought I'd say this but I miss you and Aang so much.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts as she entered. Being alert was the key to surviving training. As she looked around the room her high spirit sank. There were no practice dummies, or anything else for that matter, in the room. This could only mean one thing. They would be fighting Prince Zuko.

"Alright." The familiar voice came from along the back wall. "Now that we are finally all here," he paused to glare at Katara, "we can begin. Today you will be fighting me again. May I remind you that we have tried this twice before and both times I have beaten you all." He sneered at them. "Perhaps you're not as strong as you might think."

Maybe if you weren't a Fire Bender we might have a chance. Katara thought angrily. None of us have bending skills except me, and I can't use them. She shook her head again. What do I care though? This is only a cover.

"Begin!" Zuko shouted suddenly and without warning struck the boy nearest to him. The boy was on the ground before he even knew what had hit him. The others quickly charged Prince Zuko only to be driven back by a wall of fire seconds later.

Katara hung back watching them try and fail over and over to get anywhere near the flame throwing Prince. She wasn't scared to fight him, they had twice before, but it seemed pointless to keep charging him like that. She circled around watching the fight in front of her. Another boy was hurled across the room. What would it be like... Katara wondered To beat him? Adrenaline began to course through her veins. His smirking face filled her mind as she thought back to when he had attacked her in the shop and when he had thrown her to the ground during training. She would give almost anything to see his face if it were him that got thrown to the ground for a change.

She wasn't sure what made her do it but before she knew it she had circled behind Zuko. She crouched behind him so that she was in his blind spot. He was to busy fighting the others to pay attention. She was practically invisible. She waited until he was in the middle of an attack then suddenly she sprang.

The impact of her blow knocked him off his feet. He crashed to his knees in complete shock, the smug look slipping from his face. He whirled to see where this new attack had come from. The others boys stepped back, sensing his anger. Katara stood glaring at him, her arms raised in attack position. Something flashed in his eyes. Then suddenly a small smirk broke out on his face. It was clear that despite the fact that he had been shamed in front of his trainees, he was glad for some real competition.

They circled each other slowly, neither one making a move. Then Prince Zuko sprang at her. She rolled out of the way but just barely. A fire ball whizzed by her left ear. Katara reached out and grabbed his ankle, yanking it with all her strength. For a second he was thrown of balance. That was all the time she needed. Jumping up she aimed a blow that connected with his stomach. She dodged a kick and tried to hit him again but this time she was not as lucky. He grabbed her wrist as she tried to punch him in the face, forcing her arm behind her back. He twisted it until she was almost on her knees, gasping in pain. She struggled but it was pointless, his grip was to strong. Then when she thought that she couldn't take the pain anymore he flipped her over. She landed hard on her back, knocking the breath out of her. He dropped to the ground and planted one knee firmly against her stomach.

Katara stared up at him, gasping for breath. Her lip was cut and bleeding and sweat was dripping down her face. Yet as she lay there staring up at him she couldn't help but notice his eyes. Something about them held her spellbound.

Then he was standing up and to her surprise he held out one hand to help her up. She stared at him in shock for a second then slowly reached out to take his hand. It felt warm against her own.

"You fight well." He said as he pulled her to her feet then turned and walked out of the room.