Chapter 11: Anticipation

The next few days Katara spent sleeping, getting up occasionally to relieve herself and eat. Time was the best healer, with rest coming in at a close second. She got used to staring at the gray walls of the tent before falling asleep.

Changing the bandages involved outside help, usually the Emperor or Hiro. It wasn't a big deal—the wound was low enough on her torso that all she had to do was pull up her shirt a bit, keeping herself mostly covered, and then one of them would unwrap the old, stained cloth before wrapping new ones on. The hasty stitches they had made while she was unconscious remained in her skin until they could go back to Kotzut and get a real doctor to look at her.

On the fourth day, they moved campsites.

"Staying in one place for too long increases our chances of the rebels finding us again," said the Emperor, as he saddled up his horse.

"But I thought we killed them all," Katara said. She was surprised at how easily and nonchalantly the words came out. Like killing Kyoshi warriors was such a normal pastime that it didn't deserve more than an emotionless tone coupled with a few careless syllables.

"There's always more," growled Faozu, a dark look on his face. "They're always breeding."

No they're not, thought Katara. They don't breed fast enough. They'll eventually die out, if somebody doesn't do something.

Her first reaction to her own silent thought was: Breed. Like horses and sheep and goats breed.

Humans fall in love. Animals breed.

Her second reaction was: I'm the somebody who's supposed to be doing something.

"Let's go," the Emperor finished, and lifted Katara up onto the horse before mounting up behind her.

"Are we going back to Kotzut now, your Majesty?" The plaintive voice of Lady Adia floated in from behind them. Katara refused to turn and look at her, although she could feel the Emperor behind her doing so in order to be a gentleman.

"No, my Lady," he replied, tone so perfectly polite and controlled he did not sound like the Emperor that Katara knew. "We won't be attempting that trip until we know for sure that Katara is fine and healthy enough to travel again."

Lady Adia did not reply, but Katara distinctly heard a soft, "hmph" sound that drew close alongside them.

Strangely triumphant for some unknown reason, Katara, sneaking a glance at Lady Adia from the corners of her eyes, let out a soft, content sigh and settled in as closely as she could with the warm body of the Emperor behind her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, so unawares that Katara almost laughed. As it was, she knew she couldn't keep the tiniest of satisfied smiles from her face.

"My back's just a little strained," she replied. "But I'm okay now."

They continued on in silence. Katara kept a firm hold on the laughter bubbling up inside her. She could feel the sharp, indignant, jealous glances the Lady Adia kept sending over. Katara found it hilarious, that she, a common soldier, could command the envy of a high-bred, noble lady like Adia. The thrill of manipulation and power swept through her.

He's so close to you (skin on skin) wouldn't it be the easiest thing to draw a knife and just stick it in him?

The smile disappeared from her face.

She rode on in sober silence. Lady Adia didn't matter. Lady Adia's petty jealousy didn't matter. Katara was a fool to think that anything beyond life and death mattered right here, right now.

The Emperor was so warm, so alive behind her that it seemed impossible she would one day quench that fire and kill him.

Because it would happen. She would do it.

I will finish this, and save the people I love.

So warm.

Sleep, eat, piss, change bandages. This was her daily repetitive cycle for four days until she finally couldn't take it anymore.

"I stink," she said one night by the fire, when she'd felt well enough to eat outside with the rest of them. "I need a bath tonight."

"Go ahead," said Lt. Ensei, not looking up from the food he was shoving into his mouth.

Katara was a little surprised at first that they hadn't protested or told her she should stay still to minimize her wound. But her body had been healing quite nicely so far, to the point where she could walk to and from the camp without another person's help anymore. Things were looking up.

She stood to gather her things for a bath, when the Emperor spoke up.

"You could take the Lady Adia along with you," he began.

Katara was momentarily confused. Lady Adia?

The Emperor must have seen her expression in the fire light. "The noble woman we rescued?"

Comprehension dawned. "Oh. I remember." This sort of ruined her plans for a nice, quiet bath that she could enjoy alone.

"She's been wanting to clean herself in the river for awhile," the Emperor continued, "But refuses to bring a guard with her."

Hiro and Qin sniggered. Katara glared at them, "I don't blame her."

Hiro and Qin looked indignant.

The Emperor had a straight face, but Katara could detect the smallest sign of a smile. "So I thought since you're well enough to hold off any attackers until you scream and bring us running, you could take her along with you."

Katara shrugged. "Fine."

By the time she got back to the campfire with her towel, extra change of clothes, and soap, the Lady Adia was already there and waiting for her. With only a terse, "let's go," Katara started off for the river bank. She could hear the lady's hurried footsteps behind her, and she continued on through the trees.

It was a short walk to the river, and under the moonlight, Katara soon found a small side pool of calmer water, a sort of mini-bay that was covered with smooth rocks at the bottom. The current rushed away further out in the water, but this tiny spot was perfect.

Without a word, Katara began to strip off her pants and then her shirt. She could hear the slightly shocked silence behind her from the Lady Adia.

With only her essentials on (and the white bandage around her ribs), Katara turned and said, "What, going to bathe with your clothes on?" and waded slowly into the icy water.

Katara could hear shuffling and cloth rustling as the lady undressed. She bent down to scoop up water to pour over her body before using the soap. This felt good. Being clean felt good. Being in the water felt good.

"Do you usually bathe alone?" the Lady Adia was next to her in the water, that haughty look on her face, having overcome her previous surprise.

"Yes. You think I would do otherwise?" Katara asked, unsure of where this was going.

Adia shrugged, a delicate lifting and dropping of her slender, milk-white shoulders. "There is talk," she said, a small slanting of her eyes beneath her lashes.

Katara stiffened. She knew that, as the only female soldier in the Elites, rumors were passed around and more often, crude jokes were made. She had made a point to ignore them before, and would continue doing so. "Talk is talk," she said, continuing to calmly soap up her bare arms.

Obviously not deterred, Adia started on a different track. "The Emperor seems to care very much about you getting hurt." Smooth, deceptively innocent tone.

"The Emperor cares about all of his soldiers," Katara replied. She refused to go for the bait.

The Lady Adia laughed, a mocking, feminine laugh. It grated on Katara's nerves and made her wish all the more that she was bathing alone. And it was this, more than anything else that Adia had said, that pushed Katara past the boiling point.

"Look," Katara said, finally turning to face her. "If you're going to say something, say it. If you think there is anything… anything inappropriate going on, just come on out and accuse me of it. I don't want to play games. Just say it, and I'll go on not caring, and you'll go on believing whatever it is you want to believe."

The triumphant glint in Adia's sloe-dark eyes confirmed that Katara had done what she had just promised herself she wouldn't do. Lady Adia had succeeded in annoying her.

"Whatever it is," Adia smirked, waving one hand dismissively, "that you and the Emperor don't have going on, know this: He's playing with you. After this little affair that you two aren't having, he'll drop you. He's the Emperor. You're a commoner. An Elite, but nonetheless a commoner."

"Affair?" Katara hissed. "Affair?" Then she forced herself to relax and resume a calm expression. "You're insane. You have no idea what you're talking about."

Adia laughed again, almost as if she hadn't heard Katara's derogatory words. "You think you can hide everything and reveal nothing. I am from the Fire Court, little soldier, and the subtle machinations we have there make your manipulations look childish."

"Wait—" Katara realized what Adia was talking about. The ride over from the first camp; how she had purposefully tried to make Adia jealous by leaning on the Emperor more than she had necessarily had to. "You're jealous."

Adia raised one perfect eyebrow. "Jealous? Of you?"

"Admit it," Katara said, smirking herself now.

Adia gave her a look—one that swept Katara from head to toe, lingering on her bandages, her scars received from training, her various bruises from fighting, her wet, tangled hair, and her dark, foreign skin. It was a mocking sweep, the sort of look an older woman might give a little girl trying to play dress up. Under her gaze, Katara felt her confidence draining away, her faults and flaws coming through as if Adia was seeing straight through the lies Katara kept around her inner self.

It was all she could do to keep herself from physically shrinking back.

"What," Adia said softly. "is there about you that I could possibly be jealous of?"

Change the subject; Katara could save face and avoid the rhetorical question by changing the subject.

Averting her eyes, she pretended to busy herself by combing her hair with her fingers. "There is nothing going on with me and the Emperor," she said with as much firmness as she could muster. "Nothing at all."

"Good," Adia replied, face twisted into a satisfied smile. "because if there was, I'd pity you."

Katara said nothing. Pity? She didn't want pity.

Adia took her silence as a go-ahead to keep talking. "It's as plain as day to me your girlish infatuation with him," she continued, rubbing her pale, perfectly slim arms with the rough soap Katara had brought.

Katara's head shot up. Infatuation?

Adia laughed, shaking her head slightly. "I understand; what is there not to like? He's royalty, the Emperor of the entire world. You probably think if you catch him, snare him with your sneaky little traps and games, that you'll earn his trust and he'll fall in love and marry you."

Katara continued to stare, open-mouthed.

"It's a beautiful dream, surely," Adia gave her a sideways look. "One that probably every preteen girl in the Fire Nation has. The dream of becoming a princess, with golden riches and obedient servants and a handsome man." She laughed again. "A hopeless dream. Except in the case of myself, of course."

Clearly this Lady Adia loved to hear the sound of her own voice talking. Fine. Katara could play the spell-bound audience without any difficulty.

"I have known the Emperor Zuko since we were both young children. We grew up together; our fathers were great friends, you know? His family is royalty, my family is rich. It is surely meant to be." Adia's gaze sharpened on Katara for a moment. "And nothing, not even a grubby little soldier, will stand in my way."

Katara finally found the voice to say something. "You are insane."

"There is a fine line between insanity and ambition, Katara," Adia laughed that soft, feminine laugh again. "It is the perfect mix of the two that makes a person powerful."

Katara just shook her head, and began to step out of the water, reaching for her towel. "Whatever," she mumbled under her breath. "Whatever."

"Wait," Adia called out. Her tone was commanding; one of someone used to being obeyed instantly and without question. Katara gritted her teeth and turned around to face Adia.

"Even though it was the Emperor who really rescued me, I suppose I have to give you some appreciation for saving me from that nasty little rebel who was about to chop my head off," Adia said, voice light and cheerfully malicious. "What would you have me do?"

These Fire Nation people treated honor and debts very seriously. Even a shallow, power-hungry girl like Adia knew when she owed somebody something. If not that she was truly grateful, but to make herself look good by repaying a debt with graciousness.

But Katara wanted no part in it. Adia didn't have a single thing she wanted. "You can just forget it," she growled, pulling on her clothes and gathering her things into a bundle.

"Interesting," Adia mused out loud, her perfect, white figure rising out of the water. "I guess I'll just have to throw you a big party to thank you. What do you think?" Her voice was dripping with sarcasm, all mockery and jest.

This time Katara turned and left, without a single glance behind her.

"Hey Doctor! We've got a dying patient for you," Qin called loudly as he and Hiro hurried Katara inside the medical building.

Katara grimaced, walking through the rows of beds as straight-backed and healthy as any other soldier. The trip back from the two rivers had been merely tiring, that was all.

The same doctor who had treated her at the very beginning after her gauntlet (it seemed like such a long time ago) merely glanced over before going back to his current patient, a man with a bloody arm. "I'll get Kaz to look at her in a minute. Sit down."

Hiro moved Katara over to one of the beds with an exaggerated care, almost as if he were afraid she would break. "Is this bed comfortable enough?" he asked her with a laugh in his eyes. "Could I get you something? A drink? Maybe a foot massage?"

"Get off," she mumbled, swatting him away. Qin chuckled. Hiro pretended to look offended.

"But I only have your best interests at heart—"

"Go unpack or something," she snapped. "Take a shower. You both stink."

They left, laughing and promising to come back for her later if she wasn't ready by the time they were done.

A slight shuffle at her side brought Katara's attention to the face of a boy who looked too young to be in the army complex, doctor or no. Then she realized it; Kaz, the boy she'd met on the first day of recruitment when she and Hiro had been standing in line. He was the nervous one who had asked if this was the right line they were standing in.

"Hey," she greeted him. "Haven't seen you around for awhile."

"Yeah," he replied softly, methodical hands moving to check on her bandage. She raised her arms up obediently to stay out of his way. "I just completed my medical training a few days ago."

Katara watched him as he slowly unwrapped the cloth, focused on the task at hand. She tilted her head back to look at the ceiling; her arms were slowly getting sore. Kaz didn't seem like much of a conversationalist. Quiet, no-nonsense boy that shouldn't have gotten her attention. So what if she'd met him the first day in the recruitment line? He wasn't that important of a guy.

"So are you a real doctor now?" She asked, trying to prompt something from him in order to fill the silence.

He shook his head. "No. I have to go on one field mission with a Patrol and learn how to deal with real-life injuries before I'm fully certified." Kaz took out a small pair of sharp scissor and began to snip at her stitches. "These can come out now."

"How does it look?" Katara craned her neck to look at her own side.

Kaz pulled out the last of the stringy thread and examined it. "There's going to be quite a bit of scarring. The stitches were done in a hurry, weren't they?"

She nodded and sighed. Another scar to add to her ever-growing collection. For a brief moment, she was reminded of the flawless, alabaster skin of the Lady Adia. Katara grimaced to herself. Damn her.

Kaz caught her look and merely shrugged. "Nothing you can really do about it now. I guess a little more rest and don't sleep on that side for a few more days will finish it. No infections. You're pretty much okay."

Nodding, she slid off the bed and rotated her shoulders. "Thanks Kaz."

He nodded, and she left, heading back to the Patrol barracks. She had to unpack and wash her uniforms. Hiro and Qin would probably want to go into town again for a little relaxation before embarking on their next mission. Maybe she'd join them this time.

She stepped through the door and was surprised to find everyone standing in a circle inside. Lt. Ensei looked up from the cream-colored paper he held in one hand.

"Arrived just in time," he said to her.

"What's going on?" Katara asked.

"An invitation," said Faozu, pointing at the paper in Lt. Ensei's hand.

"To what?"

Lt. Ensei handed her the invitation. "Have a look."

The paper was thick parchment, the kind only the rich could afford. The minute she felt it, she knew whom it was from.

I guess I'll just have to throw you a big party to thank you. The sarcastic voice rang in her ears as Katara read over the gold lettering on the invitation. Fancy words about throwing a feast or ball or banquet or something along the lines in order to honor the wonderful Elite Patrol that had rescued Lord Huang's daughter from the greasy hands of the rebels… yada yada yada… date and time, formal court wear… Emperor would be present…

Katara raised one eyebrow before giving the invitation back to Lt. Ensei. "We're not actually going, are we?"

They exchanged looks. "Well, it is a party for us, specifically," Faozu said.

"And a banquet," said Hiro. "Which means free gourmet food."

"Formal court wear?" Katara pointed out. "I don't happen to have any ball gowns lying around in my backpack."

Hiro shrugged. "I'm sure the Emperor could scrounge something up for all of us."

Katara had no more valid protests she could voice without sounding suspicious. Truth was, she frankly didn't want to attend. It was a sham. Adia would use it as a chance to make a joke of Katara, she just knew it. It might seem innocent and fun (after all, how demeaning could free banquet food sound?) but Katara was positive there was something else going on here. Adia had mentioned a party with sarcasm; the only reason she would actually go ahead and do it would be to send some sort of oblique message to Katara.

Katara wasn't used to subtle court games; perhaps Adia had been right. Katara wasn't intelligent enough to manipulate and deceive like all the nobles did in order to secure power for themselves. She was a simple soldier; a simple fighter. The only way she would be able to figure out what Adia meant by this was to actually attend.

"Alright," she sighed. "I guess we're going."

Katara shivered slightly as she passed through the great entryway into the Fire Palace. It was a warm day outside; not a cloud in sight. Still, she had the strangest feeling. Shaking her head, she hurried to catch up with her patrol, who were looking around them with the same awed interest she was. Lt. Ensei merely strode forward nonchalantly at the side of the Emperor; they were discussing something Katara couldn't hear.

This place was gigantic. Everything was beautiful carvings and red tapestries and golden decorations. She had never seen so many riches in her entire life. An entire nation's—an entire empire's­—history was in here. Generations upon generations of rulers and nobles had passed through before her. It made Katara feel quite insignificant.

"—only attending because my presence is required and I can't risk offending that family," the Emperor was muttering to Lt. Ensei.

The Lieutenant chuckled and said, "I'm sure your uncle will be there to help smooth things over if they get out of hand."

The Emperor seemed to relax just a bit at this. "Iroh was always a good diplomat. He's a peace lover."

Lt. Ensei glanced over. "Too bad it doesn't run in the family."

Emperor Zuko's reaction was bitter. "Of course not. I'm supposed to be the warmonger, remember? The prophecy that was made? I'm the one fated to finish what my ancestor started by killing off the rest of the rebels."

"I would think," Ensei said carefully. "that you would be happy to have them conquered and under your control after so many years of unrest and rebellion. Isn't that your goal?"

"Yes, well," Emperor Zuko's voice seemed a bit absent, almost far away. "I just wish it didn't have to be so… bloody."

They walked on in silence. Then the Emperor seemed to notice them once more. He waved a hand at the grand doors and rooms they were passing by. "That leads to the royal library—that one goes to the armory—the bedrooms are that way—"

Now they were passing through a long hallway with portraits hung up on either side. Katara could see the dates on the plaques underneath, getting more and more recent as they walked further along. It was interesting; so many faces and the change in styles of clothing. There was definitely a familial similarity between all of them. With some portraits, she noticed that one child in a previous family painting was the hard-faced, grown-up ruler in the next.

They passed through and finally came out into a large, open hall brightly lit with torches and one glittering chandelier up above. Two staircases curved up and around, opposite each other, leading to a higher floor. There were more double doors on either side, probably opening up to other large rooms. A few chairs and small tables were placed against the walls, which were red-hued and utterly blank.

Except for the wall opposite them. There was what seemed to be a large portrait there; taller than an average man's height. It was covered with a brown cloth, sides tucked in to prohibit peeking.

Lt. Ensei stopped short. "Zuko—is this—the painting?"

Faozu frowned. "The famous one? Of the first Zuko and his wife?"

The Emperor nodded, curt and short. "I had it covered."

Katara could remember now, that confusing conversation that had been cut off when the rebels had been sighted. The portrait with the two of them, the first Fire Emperor Zuko and his Lady Katara, was completed and hung up, and at his majesty's orders, was never to be taken down, not even after his death

"Why?" she and Lt. Ensei asked at the same time.

But when Emperor Zuko answered, he only looked at Ensei. He did not seem to see Katara at all. "I couldn't remove it; so I had it covered." It wasn't an answer, not really. But his tone of voice suggested finality and a cold, impenetrable mask for anyone who dared to question him further.

He shrugged. "It's not that bit of a deal. Besides, you're here for a celebratory banquet, not an art gallery showing." Now his voice was wry, sarcastic.

Katara couldn't take her eyes away from that dull brown cloth draped over the enormous painting. She wanted to see what was under it. She felt that if she stared hard enough, she could almost, almost imagine the colors underneath, the gold and blue, the hand on her shoulder, the scar—

"And if you don't want to be late, I suggest you follow the maids and they'll show you where to go," the Emperor drew her attention back to him. There were three maids standing near a corner, dressed in serving uniforms.

"Late?" Hiro said. "There's three hours until the banquet starts."

"Trust me," the Emperor replied. "You'll need at least one." Then he nodded in Katara's direction. "She'll need two."

Katara didn't know whether this was an insult or not. But Emperor Zuko had already turned to leave.

The first of the three maids, obviously the leader, stepped forward and dipped a little curtsy. "I'll be taking the lady." Giving Katara a polite and inquiring look, she inclined her head for Katara to go first, through a set of double doors on the left side.

As Katara walked hesitantly forward, she could hear the two other maids directing the men through another doorway. She looked over her shoulder in time to see Hiro give her a reassuring smile before they disappeared.

A light touch on her arm turned her back; the maid bowed her head yet again and said, "If my lady will please follow me."

"Oh no," Katara raised her hands before her. "I'm no lady, just a soldier."

The maid gave her the most utterly polite mask Katara had ever seen in her life, and repeated, "If my lady will please follow me."

Katara gave it up as a lost cause and followed obediently. They passed a few closed doors, some open, brightly lit antechambers, until the servant finally opened the last set of doors at the end of the hallway.

A wash of humidity and wet warmth hit her hard in the face; Katara breathed in the heady, beautiful perfumed smell. It was a wondrous bath she had just walked into, complete with sunken tile pools with heated water. There were all sorts of bottles and soaps lined up on a shelf; a stack of fluffy maroon towels sat heating on warmer. To her, it was paradise, after three months of quick, cold dips in the nearest river during tiring missions, constantly on the alert for enemies. She could certainly die happy now.

Katara stood at the edge of the pool, itching to strip everything off and leap in, but the maid stood silently by the closed door. After a few more minutes of awkward silence, the servant finally spoke up. "Is the bath not to my lady's liking?"

Katara, surprised, shook her head hurriedly. "Um… are you going to wait outside?"

The maid gave her another blank, perfectly polite look. "I am to assist the lady in her bath."

"Really, it's okay, I'd feel much more comfortable by myself—"

The maid cut in. "I am to assist the lady in her bath. It is the traditional way."

Katara stared for a minute, before finally shrugging and beginning to strip off her clothes. Obviously the Fire Nation people put much weight on their traditions and rituals. Maybe all nobles had servants helping them in the bath, and it was just her who had privacy issues.

Sinking into that blissful warmth, Katara couldn't help sighing aloud as she emerged herself all the way into the water before reappearing again, smoothing her hair back off her face. She heard the maid's footsteps approach, and then a sweet-smelling scent filled the air, before capable, firm hands descended on her hair, rubbing in the cleansing oil and perfume. Although she might have been a bit awkward having a servant attend her bath, Katara had to admit that the maid's careful hands soothing her scalp was definitely an amazingly relaxing experience.

Eventually the maid asked her quietly to rinse out her hair, before redoing the procedure, and then allowing Katara to soap herself before emerging from the bath, a large, warm towel waiting for her.

I could really get used to this, Katara thought as she quickly rubbed herself dry. Her hair was completely clean, shiny, and felt good for the first time in months.

After she was dry, the maid moved her on to a room adjacent to the bath. Here there were all sorts of lotions and oils and perfumes on a beautiful wooden dresser with a bright mirror that shone Katara's reflection back at herself. The maid combed some sort of perfumed oil into Katara's dark hair, while she experimented with different bottles of lotion, rubbing them into her arms and hands.

The maid stood silently, crossed the room and opened the doors of three closets. Inside was the largest collection of clothing Katara had ever seen in her life. Quietly, she walked along the rows, fingering this one, drawing out that one. Who had the money to spend on so much fabric and to pay the seamstresses to sew such complicated, beautiful outfits? Why would the Emperor have need of all these women's clothes?

"These are clothes from past Queens and Empresses, kept for important visitors who need a dress on short notice," the emotionless voice of the maid explained as Katara finished her wondrous inspection. "All are available for you to use at your leisure."

How could she even begin to pick? Katara decided to chose from just one closet, in order to limit her options. Green, yellow, pink, white, purple, orange, red, gold, silver, blue…

Reaching in slowly, Katara withdrew a blue gown, simple in its design but luscious in fabric and texture. A stiffer, brocade material with velvet lining composed majority of the dress in a dark, ocean-blue color. A lighter, almost gauzy fabric floated over the dark blue brocade, from what would be the bare shoulders, across the bodice lined with gold thread, and over the full skirt, until it drifted to the floor where it would drape around the wearer's feet. It opened in front of the bodice and skirt to let the heavier, gold-embroidered fabric show through.

"A good choice, my lady," the maid's neutral voice came from behind Katara. "Would you like me to help you dress?"

Katara nodded silently, and the maid took the gown from her, unlacing the back for Katara to step into. It was almost a perfect fit; the bodice was a bit loose. Katara blushed as she realized it had been made for someone better endowed than herself. The servant made quick adjustments by tightening the back laces and rearranging some of the fabric.

"Now your hair, my lady," the maid gently guided Katara back to the chair. Katara watched as the maid's swift hands combed out sections of her hair and began to pin, making some semblance of the lengths. In the mirror she could see herself, light eyes large in her face, dark skin and darker hair. How foreign she looked, compared to the porcelain dolls of the women of the Fire Nation. Not for the first time, Katara wondered about her heritage. At least a bit of blood from the old, extinct Water Tribes to account for her Water bending. But what had they looked like? What color eyes? What color skin? A hundred years after their genocide, there was not much left of the Water Tribes and their genetic attributes. Almost nobody could remember what they had looked like. They hadn't been big on documentation or fancy portraits like these Fire Nation royals.

Gently sliding in one more pin, and patting her hair into place, the maid leaned down and looked into the mirror next to Katara.

"Are you ready, my lady?"

A/N:You guys know I usually don't do the cliffies, but this chapter got way too long. Forget my previous estimates on the length of this thing… I'm thinking it's going to push 18 or more chapters. Good news, eh? Also, my computer broke down over the weekend; that's why this update was a bit behind schedule. But it's all good now.

And, I thought Katara totally deserved a makeover!chapter. She's been riding horses and sweating and fighting and bleeding so much, she deserves a spa vacation. And don't you think it's time our favorite little Fire Emperor started to notice Katara's more… feminine side? XD

And about Katara's dress-- I'm inviting everybody to ply their artistic skills and draw it! Open to interpretation, based on the details I gave. If enough people do it... maybe a contest with... a prize?

Q&A Time:

Does Hiro fall in love w/ Katara later on? –Titan-Angel
Do you really want me to tell you NOW and spoil any chance of suspense and reveal the entire storyline to everybody? Or would you rather just wait and read it when I update.

People ask me these questions and I'm just thinking "Are they serious? Do they really want me to spoil it for them? Do they really want to know, by Chapter 4, what will happen in Chapter 12? Won't that sort of ruin it?" But I know how it gets to you. I'll try to update faster in order to make it easier on you guys. XD

What was Zuko going to tell Katara in the conversation when they were on horseback before the rebels attacked and interrupted? –several reviewers.
Please see answer of above.

I wasn't going to log in or review but because I love this story with all my heart and I want you to be encouraged and happy and all that... I shall review. -totallystellar
YOU, my friend, are totally stellar. Thanks for wanting me to be happy. XD Your review made me happy.

Pookiemagoo—Yes! Of course! Send me the link by all means! XD I love to see art created by reviewers.

Did you see the new Avatar episode, "The Fortuneteller"? –crazyaboutavatar
Ahhh. I did. It was adorable and pretty well done. But not to worry, I'm still going to write Zutara. But please, my fellow Zutarians, don't be prejudiced and be ship-bashers, whether it's with Katara/Aang or any other pairing. Be nice. Share the love.

Outsane—I'm right there with you, dying all the way.

On another, happier note, I think I've finally (only, like, 2 mths later) forgiven you for the ending of THATP –Arwey
I'm glad you've forgiven me. It was sort of a necessity, in order to write this fic.

If I didn't get your question, I'm sorry, and please ask again!