A/N: Hey I hope this chapter is longer than the last. I've been working on it for days. I upgraded the rating on this story to T because a K+ rating also makes me paranoid that I'm going to put something in the story that shouldn't have a K+ rating. I keep my stories clean but it doesn't hurt to be on the safe side. Enjoy!
Chapter Eleven
"Katara! Wake up Katara!" Aang flew up and landed on the end of the hammock where Katara had been oh so peacefully sleeping.
Katara mumbled something about pink bunny rabbits and rolled over.
"Come on Katara! We're almost there and you said to wake you so you could put on a disguise. And can you help me with a disguise too?"
Katara sighed deeply and opened one eye reluctantly. She was reminded of a few months before when she had had the same rude awaking so they could go chase some bear for Aang to ride. And look where that had gotten her. I hope I don't find anything that significant this time. She thought grumpily as she rolled out of bed, snagged her foot in the hammock, and fell on the floor. I can't take anymore under cover work.
By the time she had freshened up and met Aang and Sokka on deck, Katara was feeling better. Apparently I didn't know how sleepy I really was. It's almost night fall; I slept through an entire day!
She surveyed Sokka and Aang closely. They had their disguises at the ready. Sokka was wearing armor from one of the guards he and Aang had defeated when they had stormed the ship. Aang, being slightly too short to pass for a guard, was wearing a cloak they had found in a hammock below deck with its hood pulled up over his face.
Katara had had a harder time coming up with her disguise. She knew the Fire Nation would recognize her if she went as she was. She had no doubt that Prince Zuko put up wanted posters as soon as he could. He may have let her go but she seriously doubted that he would stick with his decision for long. She had, however, come up with a disguise that she thought was rather good. She was wearing a gypsy's dress that had been stored below deck (she had made a mental note not to think about where it came from, apparently Fire Nation soldiers got very lonely).
It was a bit big on her but it defiantly made her look different. She had large golden bangles on her wrists and around her ankles. The dress itself was green and white with a purple strip across the skirt. She hadn't been able to think of anything to do with her hair so she had simply pulled it back with a piece of ribbon. The shorter bits were hanging down since she couldn't pull them back but on the whole she thought it would do its job.
"There it is." Sokka whispered, gazing out across the choppy waters as the steam from the ship curled around them in the darkening night. "The Fire Nation."
They gazed in tense silence at the looming mass of land coming ever closer.
"Wonder what animals they keep there." Aang murmured.
Katara couldn't help but laugh. Some things never changed.
They watched it coming closer until finally they had sailed up to the harbor. A few Fire Nation guards appeared to help them tie up their ship and to check that they weren't spies.
Katara felt a thrill of fear run through her as the guard looked her over. He smirked at her gypsy dress but jerked his head, motioning for her to go on into the city. She wanted until Sokka and Aang had been cleared and then they set off quickly for the heart of the city. They had decided to stay away from the borders in case any thieves were lurking there. It was best to call as little attention to themselves as possible.
"Wow!" Aang said in awe, trying to look everywhere at once. "This place is amazing!"
Katara hated to admit it but he was right. There were street venders everywhere with strange children's toys that lit up and spit fire. The lights were decorated with paper lanterns and life-size dragons decorated the sides of near by stores. Entertainers wear at almost every street corner they came to and Katara and Sokka had to drag Aang away more than once. It was defiantly different from any place they had ever been before.
"Come on," Sokka said, pointing towards a darkened corner of the street, "I think we can buy some stuff over there."
Katara looked at the place. It was a little shop with a faded sign above it. She couldn't read the sign from where they were standing but she had a flashback of the day she had run into Prince Zuko in the village.
"Um…you guys go ahead," she said quickly, "I'll catch up with you later. I think there's something over here we might need." She added quickly as Sokka gave her a strange look.
He shrugged. "Ok, whatever. Just stay out of trouble."
Katara rolled her eyes and walked away. She looked up at the sky. It was a beautiful night with a full moon and sparkling stars. She gazed at it, feeling slightly calmer. No matter where she went, she was always gazing at the same night sky and the same stars. It was a comforting thought.
She looked around at the stores that lined each side of the street. There weren't many people around this part of the town and Katara was relieved. It was hard to be caught when no one was around to see you .
As she passed one shop, however, a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks.
"They'll never know what hit them." A smug male voice said.
Katara gasped and quickly pressed her hand to her mouth. Admiral Zhao! She crept slowly to the window of the shop and, after checking to see that no one was coming, peered in.
"I thank you for bringing me this information General." Zhao was saying. The other man was half hidden in shadows but Katara thought there was something vaguely familiar about him. As he stood up straighter and the moonlight hit his face she remembered where she had seen him. It was General Gonju, the man Zuko had met with when she had first over heard the plans to find this mysterious item that was causing so much trouble. General Gonju had been the man who got the supplies for Zuko from the Fire Nation, whatever they were.
"I can assure you that you will be handsomely rewarded for this information." Zhao continued.
"Thank you Admiral." Gonju answered. "It is unfortunate that Zuko has the Fire Nation artifact but I thought if I aided him in getting it then you would have something to frame him with. You can say that he stole it and would not willing give it back to you. That way once he is dead you can merely say he was killed in a fight."
"Yes," Zhao said smirking, "A lot less questions are asked that way then if he is believed to be murdered, though who would care enough to file charges against me when I kill him I don't know. But best to be on the safe side now isn't it?" He laughed. It was not a pleasant sound and made Katara shiver.
He's going to kill Zuko! She thought in shock. I don't believe it, General Gonju sold him out! I always knew they were twisted. She slunk away from the window, her mind reeling. Zhao was going to kill Zuko. A whirl emotions were welling up inside her. What do I do?
She felt ripped in half as she walked up the street, with no idea where she was going. Half of her wanted to save Zuko but the other half didn't want to admit it. I don't want to care. He's the enemy! So why do I care so much? She tried to sort out her thoughts, come up with some kind of plan, decide what to do next but she was soon interrupted and what happened next completely drove any thoughts of Zuko away.
"Hey! Hey! There! It's the Avatar!" A sharp yell split the peaceful silence that had enveloped the town only moments before. Katara spun around, her eyes wide in horror. Sure enough, several Fire Nation guards were racing in the direction that Sokka and Aang had just set off in.
The night erupted in sounds as a crowd began to gather and guards rushed past, pushing people roughly aside. Katara turned on her heel and raced as fast as she could towards the spot where the guards were headed.
No, no, no! This can't be happening! I just found them, I won't let us be separated again! Katara's mind screamed as she pounded down the crowded street. She bumped into someone, nearly knocking them to the ground and ripping the ribbon from her hair in the process. She didn't even turn to see who it was as her hair tumbled down around her face. She was grateful it was still so short; otherwise it would have been hanging in her eyes to where she couldn't see.
She raced on, unaware of anything except that she must reach her goal: Aang and Sokka.
"Hold on, I'm coming," she whispered.
Seconds later, as another shout rang out into the night and a fireball whizzed into the darkness, Katara slid to a halt in front of the store where Aang and Sokka had been headed. Her eyes widened in horror. Aang's glider lay broken in half on the ground along with Sokka's knife. At least fifteen Fire Nation guards stood in a circle in front of the store. Aang was pinned with his arms behind his back by three guards. His hood had slid off and there was a large gash above his right eye. Sokka stood only feet away surrounded by four guards. Apparently he was still trying to put up a fight.
"Sokka!" Katara cried without a thought as to her own safety, she only wanted to save her friends from the clutches of the enemy.
"Aang!" She tried to rush towards them but the crowd of onlookers that had formed closed tightly so that she couldn't pass. She stopped so she wouldn't run into them and stared over their heads at her trapped friends. A guard sprang at Sokka but missed as Sokka rolled to the ground and the guard crashed into the building. He wasn't fast enough for the second guard, however. Before Katara could get a clear view of what was going on, Sokka was pinned against the wall with his arm wrenched painfully behind his back.
"Katara!" Aang cried suddenly as he noticed her for the first time. The guards spun around.
"The girl!" One cried, "Grab the girl!" Three of the guards ran forward and the crowd, apparently not wanting to get involved in the struggle, parted to let them pass. Katara backed up slowly, her eyes never leaving Aang's face.
"Run Katara!" Sokka yelled at her. Katara hesitated. I can't leave them! I can't! She screamed at herself.
"Please Katara!" Aang's voice broke through her thoughts. "Don't let them get you too! Run!"
Katara felt a great sadness swell inside her but she knew that she didn't stand a chance against that many guards. She had no choice.
"I'm sorry!" she choked out and turned and fled. She raced back up the street, her bracelets falling with a clang onto the stone street. A tear ran down her cheek at the thought that she was leaving her two best friends behind. Traitor, traitor, traitor, ran over and over in her head, even though she knew that Sokka and Aang would be glad she had escaped.
Thinking of escape made her realize that the sound of pounding feet was coming closer. She burst ahead, running as hard as she ever had before in her life. If she couldn't help her friends now she could at least make sure she wasn't caught so she could come back and help them later.
Gasping for breath Katara raised her eyes to survey the street ahead. To her relief she saw a narrow alley way ahead of her. If I can just reach that maybe I can hide. She concentrated on the tiny street, the only chance she had. The guards had fallen behind but they were still coming.
Finally the alleyway loomed in front of her. She turned and practically threw herself around the corner. Unfortunately someone was already standing there.
As she rounded the corner there was suddenly a thud as she collided head on into someone in the alleyway. They stumbled but quickly regained their balance. Katara was thrown off slightly more and collapsed against them. She looked up and found herself face to face with Prince Zuko himself.
Her mouth dropped and she stared at him in complete shock. He stared back at her with an equally surprised look on his face but recovered from this unexpected meeting first. Glancing over her shoulder saw the shadows of the advancing guards. Without saying anything he grabbed her wrist and dragged her roughly down the alleyway and through the door of an abandoned building. They ducked down below the window so they could see out but the guards couldn't see in.
"Which way did they go?" The head guard shouted as they rounded the corner. There was silence for a second as the guards looked around.
"There!" the guard shouted, pointing in the wrong direction. "I saw someone move!" Like a shot they were off. If the situation hadn't been so terrifying, Katara would have laughed at the guard's apparent stupidity.
She relaxed slightly as their foot steps faded away but felt the thrill of terror rush back again as Zuko stood up beside her, hauling her roughly to her feet.
They stood looking at each other in silence.
"Well, this is the last place I would have expected to see you. Couldn't get enough of the Fire Nation after your little charade?" His tone was icy as you continued to stare at her.
Katara hesitated, she didn't want to tell him to the truth but Aang was already captured anyway and he had just saved her, from the guards at least. "We came here to get supplies." She said, meeting his gaze.
He was silent again. Why did he hide me from the guards? She wondered. Suddenly her eyes widened as realization jolted through her.
"Why are you here?" she asked in surprise.
He raised one eyebrow in a slight smirk. "I'm from the Fire Nation, remember?"
"You're in exile! You'd get in just as much trouble as I would if you were caught!"
His expression turned sour again. "I know. I was….looking for something but then you had to bring the guards sniffing around here so I had to hide you to get them away. You should be thanking me."
He could have just let them catch me then they would have left without a search. She thought with a slight smile but just looked at him and simply said, "Thank you."
Zuko opened his mouth to say something but stopped, looking at her in surprise. Apparently he hadn't actually thought she would actually thank him. He blinked a couple times, trying to sort out his thoughts. "Well you know I can't let you go right?" he snapped finally.
Now it was Katara's turn to be surprised. She hadn't considered it before. What was he going to do with her now? "I could just leave right now. And you wouldn't be able to follow me because the guards would catch you." She said, her anger apparent in her flushed cheeks. She did not like being in someone else's control.
"And get caught?" He said smugly. "You wouldn't be much help to the Avatar then, would you?" His grin grew wider. "By the way, where is he now?" He looked around the tiny room as if expecting the Avatar to magically appear before him. "He's never far away when you're around."
Katara stared back at him in silence. Maybe I should run for the door. She thought but since he was standing beside it she doubted she would get very far. She wasn't sure if it was worth it to try. At least here she was safe from the guards, for the moment.
"Not going to tell me?" he continued, "No matter. Soon the Avatar will be the least of my worries. I have other plans, as you may know, and it doesn't matter anymore whether I have him in my possession or not." He took a step closer, his eyes never leaving her face. "Though it does seem strange that you would leave him all alone out there with all those guards."
Katara felt the anger rising again. She bit her lip to keep from saying anything.
"Ah well, I'm sure you're only with him for the glory. He can't actually be your friend. Otherwise you would be out there protecting him instead of in here saving yourself. But I'm sure he'll understand that you left him all alone."
"I didn't have a choice, they already had him!" Katara screamed, her anger bursting. As soon as she said it she realized it was a mistake. She had fallen into Zuko's trap, he was trying to trick her into revealing where Aang was and she had done just that. Mentally she kicked herself, how could she be so stupid? There was just something about Zuko that always made her lose her head.
She dropped her gaze to the floor, her anger leaving her as quickly as it had come, as she realized what she had done. Zuko's triumphant smile was enough to prove that he now knew exactly where Aang was, in the hands of the Fire Nation guards.
"Well isn't that a shame?" he said sarcastically. "And what about your brother? Has he been captured too?"
Katara just shook her head. "I'm not telling you anything."
"You don't have much of a choice of what you do from here. I can turn you in to the guards any time I want."
"I wouldn't be so sure about your safety if I were you." Katara countered. The conversation she had overheard between Admiral Zhao and General Gonju had just come back to her. It had been forgotten in the chase that had followed.
His eyes narrowed. "What are you talking about?"
Katara smirked slightly. The tables had turned. Now it was she that had the power to control what happened to Zuko instead of the other way around.
"Why should I tell you?" she asked. "What difference does it make to me if you live or die?" She tried to keep her voice normal but she felt something inside her as she said it. Could it be……sadness? She wondered in confusion. Surely I can't actually still like him! But the feeling was becoming harder and harder to ignore as she thought back to the gloating sound of Zhao's voice as he talked of finishing Zuko off.
"You really do know something," Zuko said, staring at her with that expression that made her feel as if he could see exactly what she was thinking, "You're not bluffing." He took a step towards her. "What do you know?"
Katara made a mental note to never dangle vital information in front of the enemies face again. She had hoped to trade this secret for him letting her leave but apparently this wasn't going to work. Katara glanced over his should at the open door and a plan formed in her mind.
"Admiral Zhao!" Katara suddenly shrieked, taking a step back and staring at the door frame in horror.
Zuko spun around in alarm, his hands bursting into flames. When he looked, however, his gaze met with an empty door frame, exactly as it had been when they had entered the building.
This was the reaction that Katara had hoped for. As soon as his back was turned, she took off, racing as fast as she could for the open door and her passage way to freedom. Zuko didn't realize what was going on until she was almost to the door but when he did he yelled in anger and lunged at her.
He landed on the floor, his hands closing around Katara's ankle. She tripped and fell on the floor with a crash, gasping in pain as she landed on her wrist and there was a crack! She rolled over on her back, cradling her arm in her hand, trying her hardest to keep the tears of pain from coming. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Zuko pulling himself to his feet, preparing for another attack no doubt. Biting back another cry as a sharp pain jolted her wrist again she kicked out, knocking his legs out from under him. He fell back to the floor but, being far more trained than she, twisted in mid-air so that he landed on his knees instead of his back.
Katara tried to jump to her feet but found out quickly that putting pressure on her wrist was a very bad idea. She was all to glad to change tactics to rolling farther away from Zuko as a fireball flew at her from where he had finally managed to pick himself back up. Katara saw the door looming beside her out of the corner of her eye and pushed herself onto her knees with her good hand. She was about to stand up when suddenly something crashed into her, knocking her flat on her face. She screamed as her arms were wrenched behind her back and she realized it was Zuko who had tackled her again. The pain now radiating through her hand was unbearable.
"Please! My wrist!" she choked as she bit back a sob. She hated herself for pleading like this with the enemy but she couldn't stand it. She had to get him to let go.
"Tell me what you know!" He yelled. His grip tightened on her wrist more.
Katara bit into her lip so hard she tasted blood. She let her forehead fall against the floor as she tried to ignore the throbbing pain.
There was silence as they both stayed frozen, waiting to see what the other would do. Apparently Zuko was trying to decide whether or not inflicting immense pain was the answer to his problem. Surely he wouldn't be that cruel. Katara thought to herself. Please don't let him be that cruel.
Finally Zuko let go slowly and stood up pulling Katara with him by her good hand. She let herself fall back against the wall, not sure if she could hold herself up at the moment. Her stomach was feeling uncomfortably weak.
"Let me see." Zuko said, his voice void of any emotion.
"Wh-what?" Katara asked him in confusion.
"I treated all the injuries of the men on my ship for the last year along with my uncle. Let me see your wrist."
Katara stared at him in surprise. Should she let him? Finally, with great reluctance, she held out her already swollen wrist for him to examine. He took his fingers and pressed gently against it. Katara flinched as her wrist gave another mild throb.
"It's sprained." He said, letting go. "It'll heal on its own as long as you don't use it."
One minute he's fighting me, the next he's giving me medical advice. Katara thought in bewilderment. I just can't figure this guy out.
Suddenly there was a shout from outside.
"There coming back." Zuko said, glancing out the window. Katara didn't have to ask to know he meant the guards. He looked back at her. "I'll make a deal with you. Come back to my ship with me. Tell me what you know and I will keep you safe from the guards. I know that your brother and the Avatar must already have been captured or you would be back there trying to save them so what have you got to lose?"
"And what happens when you reach land again? Do I go free?" Katara asked.
Zuko just looked at her. "We'll discuss those terms when we get there. At the present moment I don't think you have much of a choice."
Katara hesitated. How could she leave Aang and Sokka again? But it seemed it was her only option. As she heard another shout, this time closer, she turned and nodded to Zuko. "Fine."
"Good, let's go." He motioned to the door and they slipped quietly into the darkness, neither one sure what had just happened between them or what would happen next.